Archive for the ‘Discussion’ Category

The interminable wait is over! We finally have an airdate for the next season of The Biggest Loser Australia.

Season 9 of the show, focusing on Ararat, “Australia’s fattest town”, begins January 19th at 6.30pm according to an update this morning to the show’s official Facebook page. See it here.

Shannan, Michelle and Commando Steve are going to tackle transforming an entire town – or at least the portion of the populace who agree to be on TV. The ads they’ve been running have shown a lot of people with extreme weight problems, along with the usual sob stories on how they got that way.

The focus this season seems more on changing lifestyles and shifting the weight of a large number of people, rather than the competitive weightloss of previous seasons. The series was actually filmed in the middle of last year, so it’s unclear why it has taken so long. Perhaps they’ve filmed some proper follow ups this time around, to air as part of a finale episode?

Anyway. Sunday, January 19th. 6.30pm. Channel 10. Are we excited?

Well, you can!

The final weigh in for the series (?) set in the Victorian town of Ararat is set to occur on Sunday, 21st of July at 8.30am. If you’d like to attend (and maybe win $5,000 cash!) and can make it to Ararat Town Hall you need to email tbl.audience.vic@shineaustralia.com for more details.

I would assume tickets are limited but without knowing how large their Town Hall is I couldn’t say just how big the gathering might be.

[Source: The Biggest Loser Australia Facebook Page.]

Monday 24th of June – that’s this coming Monday – The Biggest Loser will be back!

Kinda. It’s a special episode airing 8.30pm (check your local guides) where the trainers, host and some special guests will take a look back at some of the most impressive transformations in the show’s history.

Special guests are listed as: Hayden Quinn (Masterchef?), Cameron Daddo (A Daddo!), Kyly Clarke (I have no idea!), Chris Brown (Bondi Vet), Deano and Hoppo (Bondi Rescue).

This may feature some catch up material with some former contestants, though that’s not stated anywhere. Suspect it will mostly be some chats with various Channel 10 personalities mixed with old footage, but you never know.

Currently I am not planning to write a recap for this. Though I may have some thoughts to express afterwards. :-)

Filming for the next season (?) of the show is already under way in the rural Victorian town of Ararat, according to The Ararat Advertiser.

The Biggest Loser crew, including the three trainers, will be going to Ararat to bring the healthy living knowledge hammer down upon the community, with plans to set up support groups and weekend workshops for people to attend if they want to get involved. There’s no casting call as such for those events, if you live in the area and are interested you can just rock up and take part.

There’ll also be a core group of locals, probably around 20, taken up to Camp Biggest Loser in Sydney to do the “intensive course” contestants on the show are used to. It’s unclear whether there’ll be eliminations involved in this, could make town life a little awkward if so?

The plans for this series seem to be aimed at some of the criticisms of the show, where people complain there is little support for contestants upon their return home. People like personal trainer Andrew Meade. I’m sorry, “former personal trainer on The Biggest Loser” Andrew Meade.

I’m not sure being the PT production hired for one of the eliminated contestants back in the second season really qualifies you as being on the show, but whatever.

With filming of The Biggest Loser: Ararat having begun in April and a 12 week timeline for their stay in the country town, we might just see The Biggest Loser again this year, potentially right after Masterchef finishes it’s second outing of the year.

Colour me excited!

In an article from this week’s Woman’s Day “King” Richard Roach has revealed he was happier prior to appearing on the show and losing all the weight.

Not because he doesn’t like being fit, skinny and healthier in general, because of the torrents of abuse he and his daughter have received since the show started airing.

I’m a tough bloke and I can take whatever is thrown at me, but the [online] abuse my daughter has received has brought me to my knees. She’s too scared to go to work because people are threatening to bash her.

One of the cited online comments includes the suggestion Amber needs a “punch to the throat”, apparently taken from Facebook.

Leaving aside the issue of moderating such comments before the contestants can see them, it does seem a little bit of an extreme reaction, even for the clear “villains” of the season. It’s important to remember that, no matter how much they might annoy you on the show, we only ever see a very carefully selected slice of their lives. Wishing harm upon them is never acceptable as they are more than just the characters we see on screen.

Richard went on to claim the show is “100 per cent fake”, citing as an example the producers covering the family’s coffee table with junk food. Presumably that was the ridiculous KFC and pizza feast we saw at one point, which I had trouble believing at the time.

Perhaps the most interesting part, for me, is that this seems a pretty fair indication that despite all their attempts to manipulate the game they have ultimately not won the grand prize? Or perhaps it’s all an elaborate ruse…

Despite being painted as the villain, Richard does not consider himself an arrogant, bullying person.

[…] I consider myself a family man, honourable, caring and generous. I had to play the game to the best of my ability – it was to save my daughter’s life, and I’m proud of that.

The internet hate machine will forget you and your daughter soon enough, Richard. Don’t fall back into old habits and you’ll end up better for the experience, even if it’s a little rough now.

(Source: Woman’s Day. Thanks for the tip, Gissy!)