Backyard Blitz
Encyclopedia
Backyard Blitz was an Logie Award
winning Australia
n lifestyle and DIY
television program
that aired on the Nine Network
between 2000 through to 2007 before its cancellation. It was hosted by Jamie Durie
and was produced by Don Burke
.
The show featured a very similar premise to the show Ground Force
, in which a team of gardeners employed by the show descend on a supposedly worthy individual's place and improve the garden for the cameras within a specified time limit. This similarity in fact led to legal action being taken by the rival Seven Network
who at the time was set to debut an Australian version of Ground Force.
The show like many of its other lifestyle brethren was mainly watched by older viewers and was widely derided by younger viewers and television critics. However it was a strong ratings performer. The four regular presenters on the show were landscaper Jamie Durie
, builder/carpenter Scott Cam
, Landscaper Nigel Ruck and horticulturist Jody Rigby
.
On 14 November 2006 Backyard Blitz was axed by the Nine Network after seven years on air. Don Burke, whose own show Burke's Backyard
was broadcast by Nine for nearly 18 years before it was axed in 2004, said his production company was "quite shocked by this decision". In mid-2007 Nine aired the six remaining unaired episodes that were filmed before the show was cancelled. In 2008, it aired a spin-off show Domestic Blitz
which still airs today.
Logie Award
The TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
winning Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n lifestyle and DIY
Do it yourself
Do it yourself is a term used to describe building, modifying, or repairing of something without the aid of experts or professionals...
television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
that aired on the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
between 2000 through to 2007 before its cancellation. It was hosted by Jamie Durie
Jamie Durie
Jamie Durie is an Australian landscaper and television personality. Formerly a prominent personality for the Nine Network, Durie has hosted a variety of programs for them, mostly "lifestyle" shows, such as Backyard Blitz, Renovation Rescue and The Block.Jamie previously was the host of the Seven...
and was produced by Don Burke
Don Burke
Donald William "Don" Burke OAM is an Australian television personality and author. He is best known as the long time host of Burke's Backyard, a lifestyle program which ran for 17 years from 1987 to late 2004 on the Nine Network. It has returned several times over recent years with a number of...
.
The show featured a very similar premise to the show Ground Force
Ground Force
Ground Force was a British garden makeover television series originally broadcast by the BBC between 1997 and 2005. The series was originally hosted by Alan Titchmarsh, Charlie Dimmock and Tommy Walsh and was produced by Endemol for the BBC.-Production:...
, in which a team of gardeners employed by the show descend on a supposedly worthy individual's place and improve the garden for the cameras within a specified time limit. This similarity in fact led to legal action being taken by the rival Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
who at the time was set to debut an Australian version of Ground Force.
The show like many of its other lifestyle brethren was mainly watched by older viewers and was widely derided by younger viewers and television critics. However it was a strong ratings performer. The four regular presenters on the show were landscaper Jamie Durie
Jamie Durie
Jamie Durie is an Australian landscaper and television personality. Formerly a prominent personality for the Nine Network, Durie has hosted a variety of programs for them, mostly "lifestyle" shows, such as Backyard Blitz, Renovation Rescue and The Block.Jamie previously was the host of the Seven...
, builder/carpenter Scott Cam
Scott Cam
Scott Cam is an Australian television personality appearing on several lifestyle programmes on the Nine Network.-Early career:Scott is a qualified carpenter who did a three-year apprenticeship with his brother’s business....
, Landscaper Nigel Ruck and horticulturist Jody Rigby
Jody Rigby
Jody Rigby is an Australian television personality, often appearing as a horticulturist on gardening programs.-Television:Rigby began her career on Channel Nine's Backyard Blitz in 2000, where she remained until the show finished in early 2008. The show was popular and it won 6 Logies...
.
On 14 November 2006 Backyard Blitz was axed by the Nine Network after seven years on air. Don Burke, whose own show Burke's Backyard
Burke's Backyard
Burke's Backyard is an Australian gardening and lifestyle program, broadcast on both radio and television. On television, it was a regular weekly series on the Nine Network from 1987 to 2004.- History :...
was broadcast by Nine for nearly 18 years before it was axed in 2004, said his production company was "quite shocked by this decision". In mid-2007 Nine aired the six remaining unaired episodes that were filmed before the show was cancelled. In 2008, it aired a spin-off show Domestic Blitz
Domestic Blitz
Domestic Blitz is an Australian lifestyle and DIY television series that debuted on the Nine Network on 18 May 2008, in the same former Sunday night 6:30 – 7:30pm time slot occupied by Backyard Blitz, which the show's format is based on. It is hosted by Shelley Craft and Scott Cam...
which still airs today.
Awards
The show won six 'Most Popular Lifestyle Program' awards at the Logies (2002–2006) and was nominated in the same category in 2007 but lost. Jamie Durie won the 'Most Popular New Male Talent' in 2001 and was nominated for 'Most Popular TV Presenter' in 2005 and 2006 for his role on the show.See also
- Domestic BlitzDomestic BlitzDomestic Blitz is an Australian lifestyle and DIY television series that debuted on the Nine Network on 18 May 2008, in the same former Sunday night 6:30 – 7:30pm time slot occupied by Backyard Blitz, which the show's format is based on. It is hosted by Shelley Craft and Scott Cam...
- Ground ForceGround ForceGround Force was a British garden makeover television series originally broadcast by the BBC between 1997 and 2005. The series was originally hosted by Alan Titchmarsh, Charlie Dimmock and Tommy Walsh and was produced by Endemol for the BBC.-Production:...
- Mucking InMucking InMucking In is a New Zealand "lifestyle" television programme that airs on Television One. It is hosted by Jim Mora. He is assisted by gardener Tony Murrell....
- List of Australian television series