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''Sunday'' was an Australian current affairs, arts and politics program, broadcast nationally on Sunday mornings on the Nine Network Australia. The program covered a range of topical issues including local and overseas news, politics, and in-depth stories on Australia and the world, plus independent film reviews, independent arts features, and independent music reviews. Its final show aired on Sunday, 3 August 2008.


History

The announcement of the launch of the private and independent breakfast television and Canberra-produced politics program on 22 October 1981 inspired controversy, as it was then practice to fill the spot with religious programming. The advent and ongoing success of ''Sunday'' was a significant milestone in Australian television, as it for the first time offered a credible alternative/rival to the dominant influence of the ABC's flagship current affairs program '' Four Corners'', which had premiered 20 years earlier. ''Sunday'' was often referred to as the "baby" of network boss Kerry Packer, although rival media outlets have characterised it as "an expensive indulgence". The first edition of ''Sunday'' aired on 15 November 1981, presented by Jim Waley, who hosted the show for the next 20 years and became synonymous with the program. ''Sunday'' differed from ''Four Corners'' in several key respects; at the time ''Sunday'' premiered, a typical ''Four Corners'' episode ran for 40–45 minutes (without interruption) and rarely presented more than one story per week. By contrast ''Sunday'' ran for two hours (including ad breaks) with a wide-ranging magazine-style format. Each episode typically opened with a news roundup presented by Waley, followed by a selection of short feature stories, an in-depth political interview by Nine's political editor
Laurie Oakes Laurie Oakes (born 14 August 1943 in Newcastle, New South Wales) is an Australian retired journalist. He worked in the Canberra Press Gallery from 1969 to 2017, covering the Parliament of Australia and federal elections for print, radio, and ...
, a "headline" investigative feature with in-depth coverage of a major story, a movie review by film critic Peter Thompson (the brother of actor
Jack Thompson Jack Thompson may refer to: Sports * Jack Thompson (footballer, born 1892) (1892–1969), English footballer who played for Sheffield United and Bristol City * Jack Thompson (1920s footballer), English footballer who played for Aston Villa and Brig ...
), and a general-interest 'colour' piece (presented during the later years of the show by actor-writer
Max Cullen Max Cullen (born 29 April 1940) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He has appeared in many Australian films and television series but is best known for his role in the film '' Spider and Rose'' and the television series '' The Flying Docto ...
). For many years, each show usually concluded with a musical segment, often featuring a visiting overseas performer or group. Waley continued as host until December 2002, when he left the show to take over from the retiring Brian Henderson as Sydney presenter on ''
National Nine News ''Nine News'' (stylised ''9News'') is the national news service of the Nine Network in Australia. Its flagship program is the hour-long 6:00 pm state bulletin, produced by Nine's owned-and-operated stations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, ...
''. He was replaced as ''Sunday'' host by ex-''
A Current Affair ''A Current Affair'' may refer to: * ''A Current Affair'' (Australian TV program), 1971–present Australian current affairs program that airs on Nine Network * ''A Current Affair'' (American TV program), a 1986–1998 American television news ...
'' host and reporter
Jana Wendt Jana Bohumila Wendt ( ; born 9 May 1956) is an Australian Gold Logie award-winning television journalist, reporter and writer. Early life Wendt was born in Melbourne to Czech parents who emigrated to Australia in 1949. Wendt attended Presentat ...
. Following the decision to change ''Sundays successful magazine format, it was revealed on 1 September 2006 that Jana Wendt would resign from the program, with both Ross Greenwood and
Ellen Fanning Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen ...
to take over as joint presenters of the show. During the Ross Greenwood and Ellen Fanning era, ''Sunday'' was considered to be a program made up predominantly of hard news and current affairs stories, particularly when compared to Seven's ''
Weekend Sunrise ''Weekend Sunrise'' is an Australian breakfast television program, broadcast on the Seven Network and currently hosted by Monique Wright and Matt Doran. History In 2005 the Seven Network replaced its struggling Sunday morning program ''Sunday ...
'', which, as of 2018, continues to air on Sunday mornings. Following the appointment of John Westacott as the Nine Network's chief of news and current affairs, it was announced that from 16 September 2007 ex-''
A Current Affair ''A Current Affair'' may refer to: * ''A Current Affair'' (Australian TV program), 1971–present Australian current affairs program that airs on Nine Network * ''A Current Affair'' (American TV program), a 1986–1998 American television news ...
'' host Ray Martin would replace Ross Greenwood as joint host of the program with Ellen Fanning. Prior to the 2008 return of ''Sunday'', it was announced that the program would return with a new and earlier timeslot of 7.30am. After the announcement, Martin suddenly quit the Nine Network after 30 years. Martin was not replaced and Fanning remained as the solo host. Until 2006, the programme was modelled after another Sunday morning programme with a similar format from the United States – '' CBS News Sunday Morning''.


Brand extension

After the initial success of ''Sunday'', an edition was produced from 1986 called ''Business Sunday'', hosted by Ali Moore. ''Business Sunday'' was committed to comprehensive coverage and quality reporting of business, economic and financial issues affecting Australia and the world. However, after 20 years of the program on Australian television, the Nine Network decided to merge ''Sunday'' and ''Business Sunday'' from 3 September 2006.


Hosts

* Jim Waley (November 1981 – December 2002) *
Jana Wendt Jana Bohumila Wendt ( ; born 9 May 1956) is an Australian Gold Logie award-winning television journalist, reporter and writer. Early life Wendt was born in Melbourne to Czech parents who emigrated to Australia in 1949. Wendt attended Presentat ...
(February 2003 – September 2006) *
Ellen Fanning Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen ...
and Ross Greenwood (September 2006 – November 2007) *
Ellen Fanning Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen ...
and Ray Martin (November 2007 – February 2008) *
Ellen Fanning Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen ...
(February – August 2008) (last host)


Alumni

A significant number of Australian journalists, media professionals, researchers and producers were involved in ''Sunday'' between 1981 and 2008. Among these are reporters and presenters: ''
Seven News ''7NEWS'' is the television news service of the Seven Network and, as of 2021, the highest-rating in Australia. National bulletins are presented from Seven's high definition studios in Martin Place, Sydney, while flagship 6pm bulletins are ...
s Adrian Brown, former NSW premier
Bob Carr Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947) is an Australian retired politician and journalist who served as the 39th Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, as the leader of the NSW Branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He later en ...
, Ross Coulthart, actor
Max Cullen Max Cullen (born 29 April 1940) is an Australian stage and screen actor. He has appeared in many Australian films and television series but is best known for his role in the film '' Spider and Rose'' and the television series '' The Flying Docto ...
,
Sky News Australia Sky News Australia is an Australian news channel owned by News Corp Australia. Originally launched on 19 February 1996, it broadcasts rolling news coverage throughout the day, while its prime time lineup is dedicated to opinion-based programs f ...
's
Helen Dalley Helen Dalley (born 1957) is an Australian journalist, who formerly worked for Kerry Packer's Publishing and Broadcasting Limited (PBL) media stable. Dalley is best known for her work on the Nine Network television programs '' Sunday'', ''Tod ...
,
Graham Davis Graham Hunt Davis (born 7 October 1953) is a Walkley Award and Logie Award winning Fijian-born Australian journalist. He hosts a weekly Australian television program, The Great Divide on the Southern Cross Austereo TV Networkand is a consultant ...
, the late Robert Haupt,
Laurie Oakes Laurie Oakes (born 14 August 1943 in Newcastle, New South Wales) is an Australian retired journalist. He worked in the Canberra Press Gallery from 1969 to 2017, covering the Parliament of Australia and federal elections for print, radio, and ...
, Ten News' Political Editor
Hugh Riminton Hugh Riminton (born 1961) is an Australian foreign correspondent, journalist and television news presenter. He is currently national affairs editor and occasional presenter of '' 10 News First'' (formerly '' Ten Eyewitness News''). He previousl ...
, Paul Ransley, film reviewer/writer Peter Thompson and ex-''
National Nine News ''Nine News'' (stylised ''9News'') is the national news service of the Nine Network in Australia. Its flagship program is the hour-long 6:00 pm state bulletin, produced by Nine's owned-and-operated stations in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, ...
'' anchor Jim Waley. Producers, researchers and media professionals include: Peter Hiscock,
Allison Langdon Allison Langdon (born 20 May 1979) is an Australian television presenter, reporter, journalist, and author. From 2023, Langdon will be the host of '' A Current Affair'' through Monday to Thursday, whilst Deborah Knight will still host from Fri ...
, Tom Krause, Ann Buchner, Nick Farrow, Kathryn Franco, Kirstine Lumb, Adam Shand, Karen Tan, former ''
Seven News ''7NEWS'' is the television news service of the Seven Network and, as of 2021, the highest-rating in Australia. National bulletins are presented from Seven's high definition studios in Martin Place, Sydney, while flagship 6pm bulletins are ...
'' chief
Peter Meakin Peter Jeremy Meakin (born 12 October 1942) is an English Australian journalist who has worked as news/current affairs director for all three of Australia's commercial television networks ( Nine Network, Seven Network and Network Ten). Early l ...
, Paul Steindl, arts specialists Catherine Hunter and Marianne Latham, political/media adviser Sarah Turner and long-time executive producer Stephen Rice.


Awards and accolades

''Sunday'' has won several awards, including gold and silver medals from the New York Festivals television awards in 2002, for its coverage of
East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-west ...
and investigation of cover-up claims regarding Governor-General,
Peter Hollingworth Peter John Hollingworth (born 10 April 1935) is an Australian retired Anglican bishop. Engaged in social work for several decades, he served as the archbishop of the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane in Queensland for 11 years from 1989 and was the ...
. In 2003, ''Sunday'' was awarded the "Most Outstanding Public Affairs Program on Australian Television"
Logie Award The Logie Awards (officially the TV Week Logie Awards; colloquially known as The Logies) is an annual gathering to celebrate Australian television, sponsored and organised by the magazine ''TV Week''. The first ceremony was held in 1959 as the ...
.


Firsts

Under progressive Executive Producer Stephen Rice, ''Sunday'' achieved number of firsts including being the first Australian 'newscaff' program to launch its own website in 1997 and promote on-air URLs to viewers. Working with the online producer Kathryn Franco, anchor Jim Waley introduced many viewers to the web for the first time when he said "...And you can read a transcript of Laurie Oakes' Interview shortly after the show at our ninemsn website..." For the first year, the program produced encoded videos for the website of selected segments. Sister program "Business Sunday" and "Small Business Show" followed.


Cancellation

On 25 July 2008, ''Sunday'' and Nine's late news program '' Nightline'' were both cancelled by the network. The final broadcast went to air on 3 August 2008. The reasons for the axing of ''Sunday'' included both poor ratings outside of the east coast and budgetary constraints as part of Nine's news and current affairs brand.


Final broadcast

The final episode of ''Sunday'' was aired on 3 August 2008 from 7:30am–9:30am. It was hosted by
Ellen Fanning Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen ...
. It included the return of long-time and founding host Jim Waley, former Nine Network host and former co-host Ray Martin, current political editor
Laurie Oakes Laurie Oakes (born 14 August 1943 in Newcastle, New South Wales) is an Australian retired journalist. He worked in the Canberra Press Gallery from 1969 to 2017, covering the Parliament of Australia and federal elections for print, radio, and ...
, and appearances by former reporters
Charles Wooley Charles Wooley (born 1948) is a Scottish-Australian journalist, reporter, writer, TV personality and radio presenter who reported for Channel Nine's ''60 Minutes''. Early life and career Wooley was born on the Isle of Arran in Scotland, and mo ...
(from '' 60 Minutes''), Ross Greenwood (also a former co-host) and
Jennifer Byrne Jennifer Victoria Byrne (born 5 March 1955) is an Australian journalist, television presenter and former book publisher. She hosted the monthly ABC television program '' The Book Club'', originally titled ''First Tuesday Book Club''. Early li ...
. Peter Thompson also made an appearance, reflecting on past film reviews. A special "live crossover" between Channel 9 and pay TV news channel
Sky News Australia Sky News Australia is an Australian news channel owned by News Corp Australia. Originally launched on 19 February 1996, it broadcasts rolling news coverage throughout the day, while its prime time lineup is dedicated to opinion-based programs f ...
occurred, with an interview with former reporter
Helen Dalley Helen Dalley (born 1957) is an Australian journalist, who formerly worked for Kerry Packer's Publishing and Broadcasting Limited (PBL) media stable. Dalley is best known for her work on the Nine Network television programs '' Sunday'', ''Tod ...
, who now works at Sky News. Jim Waley went on to present the last Canberra interview by then current Prime Minister,
Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again from June 2013 to September 2013, holding office as the leader of the ...
, who in an interview with Laurie Oakes, expressed his regrets at the show's final departure. Before looking at the archived memories, the broadcast ended with a final goodbye with both Jim Waley and Ellen Fanning thanking all Australian viewers for their support over the past 2½ decades, with the emails, faxes and phone calls made to the Nine Network in protest over ''Sunday's'' axing. After the final show, former and current ''Sunday'' staff gathered for a final farewell function at the Union Hotel in North Sydney. In an interview published the following day in ''The Sydney Morning Herald'', Ray Martin criticised Nine's decision to shelve the series indefinitely: :"(It says) we're (Nine is) not serious about news and current affairs. If you want your serious stuff go to the ABC ... ''Sunday'' is part of the Nine brand ... so you can't just look at the bottom line ... Of course you have to make money, but how do you put a price on quality? ... I think, from a business point of view, it's ''dopey'', really ''dopey''." :"The perception is that we're (Nine is) not serious about news and current affairs. Maybe that doesn't fit the business strategy, that's fine, but don't whinge when we don't get the ratings we want. Don't whinge when the station's not worth the kind of money it should be worth. They're killing the golden goose.". A photo taken at the wake featured a group that TV Tonight's David Knox described as "legends of Australian TV journalism": Ray Martin,
Ellen Fanning Ellen is a female given name, a diminutive of Elizabeth, Eleanor, Elena and Helen. Ellen was the 609th most popular name in the U.S. and the 17th in Sweden in 2004. People named Ellen include: *Ellen Adarna (born 1988), Filipino actress *Ellen ...
, Stephen Rice,
Laurie Oakes Laurie Oakes (born 14 August 1943 in Newcastle, New South Wales) is an Australian retired journalist. He worked in the Canberra Press Gallery from 1969 to 2017, covering the Parliament of Australia and federal elections for print, radio, and ...
, Jim Waley and (Seven's)
Peter Meakin Peter Jeremy Meakin (born 12 October 1942) is an English Australian journalist who has worked as news/current affairs director for all three of Australia's commercial television networks ( Nine Network, Seven Network and Network Ten). Early l ...
. The photo by Bob Pearce which appeared in that day's ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' "would almost win a Walkley itself", Knox said. One week later after the final bulletin, ''Sundays Ninemsn website was removed.


See also

*
List of Nine Network programs The following list of programs are currently broadcast by the Nine Network / 9HD, 9Go!, 9Gem, 9Life and 9Rush as well as their regional affiliates, including WIN, NBN and Imparja as well as catch-up service 9Now. Some affiliate stations ...
* List of Australian television series * List of longest-running Australian television series


References


External links

*
Sunday at the National Film and Sound Archive
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sunday (Australian Tv Program) Nine Network original programming 1981 Australian television series debuts 2008 Australian television series endings 1990s Australian television series Australian Sunday morning talk shows 2000s Australian television series