Midnight Zoo
Encyclopedia
Midnight Zoo was an Australian late-night interactive game show broadcast in parts of Australia
on the Seven Network
. Midnight Zoo debuted on 31 July 2006 and was broadcast from Sydney. The same show currently has success in America, the U.K, South Africa and Poland. It was shown live throughout Victoria, Sydney
and Brisbane
and ran from 12:30 am to 2:00 am Weekday mornings. The final airing of the show was on 21 October 2006. The show was hosted by host Steven O'Donnell
, Angie Richards and Charlotte Connell.
Angie Richards - Host, Hollywood Set
Charlotte Connell - Host, Bikini Beach Cabana Set
Steven O’Donnell
- Host, Cash Corner Set
Each host was allocated a location, as shown above.
) 'Up Late Game Show', hosted by former Big Brother
housemate, Simon Deering aka Hotdogs.
The 90 minute runtime of Midnight Zoo was split into three 30 minute slots. Each slot was allocated to one host/location pair. The puzzles were mostly Brainteasers and questions relating to popular culture and are regarded as relatively simple (for example, 'Name a movie starting with B'). Money is awarded via the gameboard, which dictates the amount of money won for a particular answer. A puzzle featured in a previous slot was carried over to the next slot, suggesting that one puzzle can sometimes occupy the entire 90 minute runtime.
To maintain interest in the show over the course of its duration, there were several segments featured during each slot. These were mostly to encourage callers during slow periods, which in turn encourages human interaction with the show. These include:
Cash Grab - A 5 minute period where all money on the game board is doubled.
Double Money - If successful, the next 2 callers will be awarded double their winnings.
Call Rush - A "short amount of time" where callers are further encouraged to call by on-screen graphics.
All segments came with the added incentive of being featured on live television as a caller. At the same time, a puzzle's jackpot amount steadily increased throughout the show.
As an added bonus, all successful callers were offered a chance at the Bonus Board. The Bonus Board featured 12 numbers, of which the contestant much choose 3. If the contestant chose all three correctly, their winnings were increased by a jackpot amount which varies from $2500-$12000
featured a segment on the influx of late night phone-in quiz shows. The segment mocked the standard of all late night quiz programs and their questions. For Midnight Zoo, particular reference was made to the female hosts wearing bikinis .
One Australian TV critic has even classed Midnight Zoo as the worst of the genre http://www.smh.com.au/news/tv-reviews/midnight-zoo/2006/08/21/1156012463458.html based on the use of bikinis.
Channel Seven's
morning program Sunrise
showed a clip one morning of the show the night before where a picture of Sunrise host David Koch was used in a "name that face" type game. The Sunrise team criticised the Midnight Zoo for spelling his name wrong and the show in general.
= 1 in 220.
The relative ease of the questions featured on Midnight Zoo suggest easy winnings for contestants. However, one must consider two important factors present in the game that restrict successful callers. Firstly, one must consider the chance of actually being chosen as a contestant. Secondly, one must consider the number of possible answers for the questions with respect to the number of available answers on the game board.
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...
on the 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...
. Midnight Zoo debuted on 31 July 2006 and was broadcast from Sydney. The same show currently has success in America, the U.K, South Africa and Poland. It was shown live throughout Victoria, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
and ran from 12:30 am to 2:00 am Weekday mornings. The final airing of the show was on 21 October 2006. The show was hosted by host Steven O'Donnell
Steven O'Donnell (actor, presenter)
Steven O'Donnell is a New Zealand-born naturalised, Australian television presenter and actor. He is best known as "Bajo", one of the presenters of the ABC video game review program Good Game...
, Angie Richards and Charlotte Connell.
Etymology
The somewhat unusual name of the show stems from the name of the show's creator, Jack Dita aka 'The Zoo Keeper'. Dita is known as a pioneer in the field of British interactive television. The presence of 'Midnight' in the name also hints at the show's late timeslot.Cast
Midnight Zoo was hosted by:Angie Richards - Host, Hollywood Set
Charlotte Connell - Host, Bikini Beach Cabana Set
Steven O’Donnell
Steven O'Donnell (actor, presenter)
Steven O'Donnell is a New Zealand-born naturalised, Australian television presenter and actor. He is best known as "Bajo", one of the presenters of the ABC video game review program Good Game...
- Host, Cash Corner Set
Each host was allocated a location, as shown above.
Format
Midnight Zoo was similar in concept to the Ten Network's (AustraliaAustralia
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...
) 'Up Late Game Show', hosted by former Big Brother
Big Brother (Australia)
Big Brother Australia is the Australian version of the international Big Brother reality television series. Big Brother Australia was produced from 2001 and ran for 8 seasons before it was cancelled in 2008. It has been renewed in September 2011 for a 2012 season. All eight seasons were produced by...
housemate, Simon Deering aka Hotdogs.
The 90 minute runtime of Midnight Zoo was split into three 30 minute slots. Each slot was allocated to one host/location pair. The puzzles were mostly Brainteasers and questions relating to popular culture and are regarded as relatively simple (for example, 'Name a movie starting with B'). Money is awarded via the gameboard, which dictates the amount of money won for a particular answer. A puzzle featured in a previous slot was carried over to the next slot, suggesting that one puzzle can sometimes occupy the entire 90 minute runtime.
To maintain interest in the show over the course of its duration, there were several segments featured during each slot. These were mostly to encourage callers during slow periods, which in turn encourages human interaction with the show. These include:
Cash Grab - A 5 minute period where all money on the game board is doubled.
Double Money - If successful, the next 2 callers will be awarded double their winnings.
Call Rush - A "short amount of time" where callers are further encouraged to call by on-screen graphics.
All segments came with the added incentive of being featured on live television as a caller. At the same time, a puzzle's jackpot amount steadily increased throughout the show.
As an added bonus, all successful callers were offered a chance at the Bonus Board. The Bonus Board featured 12 numbers, of which the contestant much choose 3. If the contestant chose all three correctly, their winnings were increased by a jackpot amount which varies from $2500-$12000
Criticism and problems
On 11 August 2006 satirical comedy series The Chaser's War on EverythingThe Chaser's War on Everything
The Chaser's War on Everything is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation television station ABC1. It has won an AFI Award. The cast perform sketches mocking social and political issues, and often feature comedic publicity stunts...
featured a segment on the influx of late night phone-in quiz shows. The segment mocked the standard of all late night quiz programs and their questions. For Midnight Zoo, particular reference was made to the female hosts wearing bikinis .
One Australian TV critic has even classed Midnight Zoo as the worst of the genre http://www.smh.com.au/news/tv-reviews/midnight-zoo/2006/08/21/1156012463458.html based on the use of bikinis.
Channel Seven's
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...
morning program Sunrise
Sunrise (TV program)
Sunrise is an Australian breakfast television program, broadcast on the Seven Network. On weekdays the programme follows Seven Early News, and runs from 6am through to 9am.-History:...
showed a clip one morning of the show the night before where a picture of Sunrise host David Koch was used in a "name that face" type game. The Sunrise team criticised the Midnight Zoo for spelling his name wrong and the show in general.
Probability
The only probability present on Midnight Zoo that can be computed is the chance of success on the Bonus Board. This is equal to = 1 in 220.The relative ease of the questions featured on Midnight Zoo suggest easy winnings for contestants. However, one must consider two important factors present in the game that restrict successful callers. Firstly, one must consider the chance of actually being chosen as a contestant. Secondly, one must consider the number of possible answers for the questions with respect to the number of available answers on the game board.