WHO WE ARE: Momentous moments

Wednesday May 9, 2007 04:08 PM

Who We Are

To discuss whether Australians are mini-Americans, go to The Tribal Mind
A column about Australia by David Dale, published in The Sun-Herald, 18/5/2008
We rage and whinge about television programming, but no medium can match it for uniting a nation around emotional events. Over the past few weeks, this column has been seeking your views on the dramas and comedies shown on the box over the past 52 years (click here for that discussion). In the process we failed to see the elephant in the room. No episode of a drama or comedy series has ever attracted more than half the population, but plenty of other things have. Here's an attempt to rank the moments that moved the majority of us.

The most watched events in Australian television history
1 The funeral of Diana Spencer (1997)
2 The Sydney Olympics opening ceremony (2000)
3 Cathy Freeman's gold medal Olympic run (2000)
4 Wedding of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer (1981)
5 The first human to walk on the moon (1969)
6 The first TV showing of The Sound of Music (1977)
7 The Australian Open tennis Men's Final Hewitt v Safin (2005)
8 Twin towers reportage, September 12 (2001)
9 The boxing match between Lionel Rose and Alan Rudkin (1969)
10 The Rugby World Cup final (2003)
11 The World of the Seekers concert documentary (1968)
12 The Beaconsfield miners rescue (2006)
13 Australian Idol final verdict (2003)
14 The Block auction (2003)
15 The AFL grand final (1996).

That's the impression of Australia's priorities we gain from the raw ratings data. Moving from the statistical to the theoretical, I've also attempted a personal judgement on social symbolism, which I'd better put in historical order.

The most significant moments in Australian television history
1 Homicide becomes the first Australian drama to outrate a top US drama (The Fugitive) (1966).
2 Number 96 shows TV's first gay kiss (1974).
3 Graham Kennedy is banned from live television for doing crow imitations that start with an "f" (1975).
4 AC/DC make the first successful Australian music video clip It's A Long Way To The Top (if you want to rock and roll)' (1977).
5 The Governor-General, Sir John Kerr, seems drunk at the Melbourne Cup (1977)
6 Kerry Packer launches World Series Cricket (1978).
7 The Grim Reaper commercials warn about AIDS (1987).
8 Charlene (Kylie Minogue) marries Scott (Jason Donovan) in Neighbours (1987).
9 Bob Hawke admits infidelity and cries, on Clive Robertson's Newsworld (1989).
10 Normie Rowe and Ron Casey fight over republicanism on The Midday Show (1991).
11 Kerry Packer pulls off Doug Mulray's Naughtiest Home Videos halfway through the first episode, apparently because of a display of kangaroo genitals (1997).
12 The Block features gay renovators (2003).
13 Kevin Rudd starts his rise by doing weekly banter sessions with Joe Hockey on Sunrise (2003).
14 Big Brother contestant Merlin protests detention of boat people by olding up a sign "Free th refugees" (2004)
15 Steve Irwin holds his baby while feeding a crocodile (2004).
16 Pauline Hanson moves from politician to celebrity on Dancing With The Stars (2004).
17 Channel Ten expels contestants Ash and John from the Big Brother house for attempting to "turkey slap" contestant Camilla (2006).
18 The Chaser team show their arrest for breaching security at the APEC summit (2007).

What did I miss? If you'd care to suggest more interesting TV moments, or dispute the significance of the ones on the list, go to Comments

David Dale is the author of Who We Are -- A snapshot of Australia today (Allen and Unwin). To discuss Australian attitudes, go to http://blogs.sunherald.com.au/whoweare.

COMMENTS

It's widely reported that the television special "The Best of Abba" in early 1976 was seen by more people than the Moon landing. How come it's not on the list then?

DD replies: Because I have been unable to find the ratings figures for it in any ACNielsen records.

by Trent on May 18, 2008 at 12:32 AM

I never 'got' the Cathy Freeman run. I watched it on TV but .... meh. I was even at Olympic Park earlier that day (work).

by canoli on May 18, 2008 at 10:26 AM

The first TV showing of The Sound Of Music rates no 6 - good grief, were we really that desperate back in 1977???
And I'm with you canoli re Cathy Freeman's run - as watchable as any other Australian gold medal performance but that is all.

by Shoopie on May 18, 2008 at 12:23 PM

We're cannibals - that's the one conclusion that leaps out from your list. Just as rich and poor Australians alike consider themselves middle class, so too connected and isolated Australians alike believe in the image that TV casts over us, and accept the myth that famous people are just like us except that everyone knows them. The cannibalism comes when we stop empathising with their glamour and start empathising with their failures and faults, which morphs into an eager search for such faults that the media has no trouble feeding. Diana turning from princess to Home & Away love triangle, Hawke turning from PM and folk hero into alcoholic and adulterer, Irwin making an idiot of himself in front of a camera, unintentionally for once. The cannibalism isn't all vicious, as the Neighbours wedding, crow imitation, Freeman's let-Australia-congratulate-itself-and-you-the-watcher-part-of-it run and Big Brother activism suggest. If we like to empathise with the failures of glamour, we like to empathise with happiness and sincerity too, especially if it comes during a short-lived 15 minutes. That doesn't stop us being totally merciless in the need for it.

by Nicholas on May 18, 2008 at 01:57 PM

I would have thought that Australia's winning of the America's Cup in 1983 would have rated???? The whole country seemed to stop & watch!

by WJ on May 18, 2008 at 03:16 PM

Wondering if when Gough Whitlam made his famous "Nothing Will Save the Governor General" speech should rate a mention on the list.
And the death of Molly on A Country Practice. Still makes me cry every time I see it.

by Bereft Skerrick on May 18, 2008 at 05:37 PM

I will mention one I slept through (till the cheering from my next door neighbours woke me) as I did not want us to get them - the middle of the night announcement that Sydeknee had won the right to host the 2000 Olympics. Bizarre that so many would stay up for that kind of thing.

by Cat on May 18, 2008 at 06:52 PM

Oh and I suppose the night my brother was asked to (and did) drop his daks on national telly and one of the other brothers appearance in a telemovie he helped write should go in - if only for my lot. :)
Both brothers hate the fact that I have the events on DVD.

by Cat on May 18, 2008 at 07:04 PM

I believe the infamous Uncle Doug episode of naughtiest videos was in 1992 not 1997. As far as memorable tele moments go, how about the Stuart Diver rescue?

by shuey on May 18, 2008 at 07:57 PM

Interesting that a couple of suggestions were overnight ones where ratings may not have picked them up - America's Cup & Sydney named as Olympic City - sadly I was awake for both and caught up in the excitement.
What about the PM's apology earlier this year, if it is not already significant it will be?
And the networks joining together following the Tsunami to host a telethon - it was the filing of egos at the door and the way they worked togather - albeit with lousy entertainment!
Dawn services here and at Gallipoli - always make me cry and this year's from France.
I also agree about Molly dying on a country practice

by Cathy on May 18, 2008 at 10:11 PM

The event which has moved me most was the live coverage of 9-11.
I was sitting at my computer that night, with a little portable telly on the side table, on channel 7, volume low, waiting for a late show to start. Might have been West Wing?
It slowly entered my consciousness that something important was happening on the telly - so I saw the second plane hit, and the buildings collapse.
Stayed up all night watching. Awesome. I've never got over it! I still cry at the thought of those poor people at work being murdered in such an horrendous way.
Mind you I'm pretty teary each night at the moment, seeing the poor Chinese people's agony.
What a world.
Were we better off in the "olden days", not knowing about these things until months or years after they occurred, and certainly not witnessing them?

by Sal on May 19, 2008 at 03:38 PM

Out of that list I would pick the "free th refugees" moment - very audacious!

I agree though with Sal that 9-11 tops that list by a mile, there was something visceral about it, television at its best, humanity at its worst.

Also the rescue of Stuart Diver would have been the first time in my memory that we got uninterrupted coverage of a news event, well that and possibly Gulf War I, but for Australia - the Thredbo landslide was the first.

by Jason Oliver on May 20, 2008 at 10:09 AM

What did you miss? Well, just about everything. Honestly, that list could be a list of 'stupidest moments that no-one watched'. Who on earth wanted to watch Pauline attempting to foxtrot or the idiots from The (yawwwwn) Chaser?
Are we after 'most significant' or 'most interesting' or just 'most watched' here?
Beause honestly, 'most watched' just means more stupid viewers tuned in that night.
I would include on a 'most significant' or 'most interesting' list Australia's America's Cup win, Molly's death on A Country Practice, Kevin Rudd's apology, Gough Whitlam's 'Nothing will save the Governor-General' moment, Paul Keating's speech at the funeral service of the Unknown Australian Soldier, November 1993, the wedding of PrinceCharles and Lady Diana Spencer, the Twin Towers coverage, the opening ceremony of the Sydeneee Olympics, coverage of Gulf War I - the first time we had been able to watch a war 'live to air', Abigail's first topless appearance on No 96, Gordon Chater's floral arrangement segment on Mavis Bramston (only us old people will remember that), in fact, anything Mavis will do, Bert Newton calling Mohammed Ali 'boy' at some awards ceremony and then trying desperately to repair the damage, Mike Willessee trying to host his show while shit-faced drunk and giggling and, of course, Graham Kennedy's crow imitation.

by meg on May 20, 2008 at 10:19 PM

I'm surprised that Makybe Diva winning Melbourne Cup number three isn't on the list for the most significant tv moments! Long live the queen of the turf.

by Sarah on May 25, 2008 at 09:24 PM

I too have read that the abba special aired on Sat March 20th 1976 at 6.30 pm a viewing of 54%according to contemorary reports which apparently shot to peices the Moon landing in 1969.

by Trudy Wilkie on June 03, 2008 at 09:15 AM

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Who We Are

WHO WE ARE: Momentous moments

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