The Joy of Sets
Encyclopedia
The Joy of Sets is an Australian comedy
television series looking at the elements used to construct television shows. The show was originally broadcast weekly by the Nine Network
, premiering on 20 September 2011.
The show is written and hosted by comedians Tony Martin
and Ed Kavalee
, and produced by Zapruder's other films, the production company owned by Andrew Denton
. Martin and Kavalee previously worked together in 2006 and 2007 hosting the popular Australian radio program Get This
.
of television shows, while the episode's title referred to the term used in the entertainment industry for credits, "selling the meat".
The show was filmed in front of a studio audience
at Technology Park, Alexandria
, Sydney, however it did not screen live-to-air
.
Prior to its production, it was stated that the show would offer "a unique take on television – the good, the bad and the gloriously misguided". While this led to early comparisons with another popular Zapruder production, The Gruen Transfer
, the release of The Joy of Sets revealed it to have a completely different structure and content.
Each episode of the show employed various methods to explain the techniques used, including discussion and banter between hosts Martin and Kavalee, video clips from classic and contemporary free-to-air
and pay TV programs, a celebrity guest related to the topic of that week's episode, re-enactments
by the hosts and guests, and audience participation.
Warwick Capper
appeared as a guest in each episode, making an unexpected cameo appearance
dressed only in gold hotpants during one or more of the re-enactments. A regular segment in each episode was a quiz called "Not on my network", where a member of the audience had to identify which of three unlikely options had actually been a real television program; this included a gift shop featuring a different attendant each episode, usually a former gift shop host from an old Australian television game show
, and different tacky television memorabilia each program as possible prizes. Another regular part of the program was Martin announcing that the show would conclude with a special feature under the end credits
, only to have Kavalee remind him that the show had no end credits, which would be met with an angry outburst by Martin or an invited guest just as the episode faded off air.
The first episode aired nationally in Australia at 9:00 pm on Tuesday, 20 September 2011, and featured guests Warwick Capper and Peter Phelps
. The first season was scheduled for eight episodes. The first four episodes remained in the 9:00 pm timeslot, however, from the fifth episode, the program was screened in the 10:30 pm Tuesday slot.
Television comedy
Television comedy had a presence from the earliest days of broadcasting. Among the earliest BBC television programmes in the 1930s was Starlight, which offered a series of guests from the music hall era — singers and comedians amongst them...
television series looking at the elements used to construct television shows. The show was originally broadcast weekly by 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...
, premiering on 20 September 2011.
The show is written and hosted by comedians Tony Martin
Tony Martin (comedian)
Tony Francis Martin is a comedian and writer from Te Kuiti, New Zealand who has had a successful TV, radio, stand-up and film career in Australia.- Career :...
and Ed Kavalee
Ed Kavalee
Edward Robert Kavalee is an Australian actor and radio host. He is currently co-host of a comedy program on the Nine Network, The Joy of Sets, with Tony Martin....
, and produced by Zapruder's other films, the production company owned by Andrew Denton
Andrew Denton
Andrew Christopher Denton is an Australian television producer, comedian, Gold Logie-nominated television presenter and former radio host, and was the host of the ABC's weekly television interview program Enough Rope. He is known for his comedy and interviewing technique...
. Martin and Kavalee previously worked together in 2006 and 2007 hosting the popular Australian radio program Get This
Get This
Get This was an Australian radio comedy show which aired on Triple M and was hosted by Tony Martin and Ed Kavalee, with contributions from panel operator, the late Richard Marsland...
.
Outline
The premise of The Joy of Sets was to have each episode focus on one element of television production. The first episode, for example, focused on opening creditsOpening credits
In a motion picture, television program, or video game, the opening credits are shown at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes on top of action in the show. There...
of television shows, while the episode's title referred to the term used in the entertainment industry for credits, "selling the meat".
The show was filmed in front of a studio audience
Studio audience
A studio audience is an audience present for the taping of all or part of a television program. The primary purpose of the studio audience is to provide applause and/or laughter to the program's soundtrack . A studio audience can also provide volunteers, a visual backdrop and discussion participants...
at Technology Park, Alexandria
Alexandria, New South Wales
Alexandria is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Alexandria is located 4 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney...
, Sydney, however it did not screen live-to-air
Live television
Live television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
.
Prior to its production, it was stated that the show would offer "a unique take on television – the good, the bad and the gloriously misguided". While this led to early comparisons with another popular Zapruder production, The Gruen Transfer
The Gruen Transfer
The Gruen Transfer is an Australian television program focusing on advertising, which debuted on ABC1 on 28 May 2008 and has run for four seasons...
, the release of The Joy of Sets revealed it to have a completely different structure and content.
Each episode of the show employed various methods to explain the techniques used, including discussion and banter between hosts Martin and Kavalee, video clips from classic and contemporary free-to-air
Free-to-air
Free-to-air describes television and radio services broadcast in clear form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring a subscription or one-off fee...
and pay TV programs, a celebrity guest related to the topic of that week's episode, re-enactments
Historical reenactment
Historical reenactment is an educational activity in which participants attempt torecreate some aspects of a historical event or period. This may be as narrow as a specific moment from a battle, such as the reenactment of Pickett's Charge at the Great Reunion of 1913, or as broad as an entire...
by the hosts and guests, and audience participation.
Warwick Capper
Warwick Capper
Warwick Capper is a retired high profile professional Australian rules football full-forward who played with the Sydney Swans with a short stint at the Brisbane Bears in the VFL ....
appeared as a guest in each episode, making an unexpected cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
dressed only in gold hotpants during one or more of the re-enactments. A regular segment in each episode was a quiz called "Not on my network", where a member of the audience had to identify which of three unlikely options had actually been a real television program; this included a gift shop featuring a different attendant each episode, usually a former gift shop host from an old Australian television game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
, and different tacky television memorabilia each program as possible prizes. Another regular part of the program was Martin announcing that the show would conclude with a special feature under the end credits
End Credits
"End Credits" is the first single from Drum and Bass duo Chase & Status' second studio album No More Idols. The single was co-written, co-produced and features vocals from Plan B and was released on 29 October 2009, reaching a peak position of No. 9 in the UK Singles Chart...
, only to have Kavalee remind him that the show had no end credits, which would be met with an angry outburst by Martin or an invited guest just as the episode faded off air.
Episodes
Peter Phelps
Peter Phelps is an Australian actor, singer and writer. He is notable for his role of Peter Church in the television drama, Stingers and Trevor Cole, in Baywatch...
. The first season was scheduled for eight episodes. The first four episodes remained in the 9:00 pm timeslot, however, from the fifth episode, the program was screened in the 10:30 pm Tuesday slot.
Season 1
| Ep. | Title | Focus | Guests | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sell the meat | Opening titles | Warwick Capper Warwick Capper Warwick Capper is a retired high profile professional Australian rules football full-forward who played with the Sydney Swans with a short stint at the Brisbane Bears in the VFL .... , Peter Phelps Peter Phelps Peter Phelps is an Australian actor, singer and writer. He is notable for his role of Peter Church in the television drama, Stingers and Trevor Cole, in Baywatch... |
20 September 2011 |
| 2 | The secret behind Masterchef | Cooking shows | Justine Schofield Everyday Gourmet with Justine Schofield -Episodes:This is a list of episodes for the Australia Channel TEN tv series, Everyday Gourmet with Justine Schofield.- Guest Chefs :Adam Swanson, Chef, Callum Hann, MasterChef Series 2 Top 24 Colin Fassnidge, Chef, Dominique Rizzo, Chef... from MasterChef MasterChef Australia (season 1) The first season of the Australian reality television series MasterChef Australia began on 27 April 2009 and aired on Network Ten, concluding on 19 July 2009 when Julie Goodwin was crowned the winner... |
27 September 2011 |
| 3 | Renovations | Renovation shows | 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.... from The Block The Block (Australian TV series) The Block is an Australian reality television show broadcast on the Nine Network. The show sees four couples compete against each other to renovate a home and sell it at auction for the highest price.... , Deborah Hutton Deborah Hutton Deborah Hutton is an Australian media personality. She is a former model, television presenter, magazine editor, and designer of her own brand of home wares, "Deborah Hutton Living." She is a spokesperson for the charity group Models with Arthritis, a patron of Camp Quality, and a supporter of... from Location Location |
4 October 2011 |
| 4 | Fun Family Freakshow | TV families | Glenn Robbins Glenn Robbins Glenn Maxwell Robbins is an Australian comedian, writer and actor.Robbins attended Strathmore Secondary College and graduated in 1975... from Kath & Kim Kath & Kim Kath & Kim is a Logie Award-winning character-driven Australian television situation comedy series. The series was created by, and is written by Jane Turner and Gina Riley who play the title characters: a suburban mother and daughter with a dysfunctional relationship... |
11 October 2011 |
| 5 | Send It Down to Forensic | Law and justice | Martin Sacks Martin Sacks Martin Colin Sacks is an award-winning Australian actor, chiefly known for his 12-year role on Blue Heelers from 1993–2005.-Career:... from Blue Heelers Blue Heelers Blue Heelers is an Australian police drama series which depicted the lives of police officers stationed at the fictional Mount Thomas police station in a small town in Victoria.- Overview :... |
18 October 2011 |
| 6 | Who Killed Warwick Capper? | Character elimination | Rob Carlton Rob Carlton Rob Carlton is an Australian actor and writer. He is best known for writing and starring in the comedy series Chandon Pictures. He also had starring roles in the comedy satire The Hollowmen and the children's television series Ocean Star.... |
25 October 2011 |
| 7 | What Could Possibly Go Wrong? | Things going wrong | Pete Smith Pete Smith (announcer) Peter Philip Smith OAM is an Australian radio and television voice-over artist. He is primarily known for his work with GTV-9 Melbourne as their announcer, including being the announcer on the nationally screened Sale of the Century for twenty-one years.-Radio:Upon leaving school, Smith joined... |
1 November 2011 |
| 8 | The Final Curtain | Finales | Peter Helliar Peter Helliar Peter Jason Matthew Helliar is an Australian comedian, actor and writer. Most famous for his work on television as Rove McManus' sidekick on The Loft Live from 1997 to 1998 and on Rove from 1999 and 2009... |
8 November 2011 |