Programs Turn On The Charm

Newcastle Herald

Saturday September 13, 2008

ANITA BEAUMONT

Television programs are supposed to be entertaining diversions but the creativity of scriptwriters and directors has turned them into effective recruitment drives for a plethora of industries.

Hospital dramas, replete with smouldering looks from behind surgical masks, are presenting an upside to removing a hernia.

Characters in the likes of The Flying Doctors, ER, All Saints and Grey's Anatomy spend as much time dissecting each other's loves lives as they do wielding their scalpels.

Sea Patrol has shown us that climbing on board a stinking illegal fishing trawler isn't so bad so long as you have aesthetically pleasing colleagues.

Fire departments Australia-wide no doubt had an influx of wannabe employees after Fire implied things got a whole lot steamier after hours.

And your average cop, detective or gangster show makes crime-busting and underworld dealing seem secondary to the lead characters' love interests.

Rush and The Strip (starring McLeod's Daughters actor Aaron Jeffrey looking disconcertingly similar to shamed AFL star Wayne Carey) are the latest Aussie offerings to pick up on this theme.

However, you can only gloss over the less palatable parts of a job so far. It remains to be seen whether Satisfaction and Secret Diary of A Call Girl will have too much impact on numbers in that particular profession.

BATTLEFRONTS

Sunday, NBN, 6.30pm

Former Australian swimmer Giaan Rooney hosts this new lifestyle series dedicated to making over neighbouring lawns all in the name of healthy competition.

Two expert teams get to work on the front lawns of a set of neighbours to see who can come up with the best front yard with a budget of $10,000.

The community picks the winning yard.

Keep an eye out for the two Newcastle men, landscaper Adam Goodchild and builder Trent Robinson, who are part of the expert Battlefronts teams.

MYTHBUSTERS

Saturday, SBS, 7.30pm

Sooner or later these guys are going to run out of myths, or start making some up (Mythmakers has a nice ring to it). But until then, the guys are hard at it.

Tonight they test the adage of "going down like a lead balloon" by attempting to construct a balloon made of lead and testing whether it will actually fly.

GREAT AUSTRALIAN ALBUMS

Saturday, SBS, 10pm

This documentary series continues with an in-depth look into the making of Murder Ballads by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.

Cave, often referred to as Australia's pre-eminent lyricist, recorded the album in 1995 as he and the band reached the cusp of stardom.

The album marked a significant turning point in Cave's development as an artist and the group's success.

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

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