''The Singing Office'' is a television series that has an American and Australian version. It features ordinary citizens who form singing groups in their workplaces, then compete against other teams; the rights to the concept have been sold to 20 different countries.

Australian version

The Australian version is hosted by comedians

Nick Giannopoulos Nicholas Giannopoulos (born 1 July 1963) is an Australian stand-up comedian, film and TV actor and film director. He is best known for his comedy stage show '' Wogs Out of Work'' alongside George Kapiniaris, the television sitcom ''Acropolis ...

and

Julia Morris Julia Carolyn Margaret Morris (born 20 April 1968) is an Australian comedian, television presenter and actress who has worked extensively in Australian television and radio, touring the country with her solo comedy shows. She relocated to the Un ...

. The television series aired in 13 parts on Fox8. Each week, there were two groups made up of five office coworkers. Both companies competed in a one-hour singing competition. Judges decided each week's winner. Twelve groups competed in the finale for a trophy. Giannopoulos first turned down the show until he saw the Dutch pilot, which he thought was different and fun. He said that the contestants are "uniquely Australian" and that they are very similar to who people work with.

American version

Ex-Spice Girl

Melanie Brown Melanie Janine Brown (born 29 May 1975), commonly known as Melanie B or Mel B, is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the girl group Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Sc ...

and ex- NSYNC member

Joey Fatone Joseph Anthony Fatone Jr. (born January 28, 1977) is an American singer, dancer, actor, and television personality. He is best known as a member of the boyband NSYNC, in which he sang baritone. In 2007, he came in second place on the ABC reali ...

hosted the American television series, which aired on

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

. Groups of contestants were chosen with the five best coworkers. Each group of contestants had vocal coaches and choreographers before they competed against each other in front of a live studio audience.

Travis Payne Travis Payne (born July 5, 1971) is an American choreographer, director and producer. He was the choreographer for Michael Jackson's This Is It until Jackson's death. Payne also served as the associate producer for '' This Is It'' and along ...

Taylor Dayne Taylor Dayne (born Leslie Wunderman; March 7, 1962) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She rose to fame in 1987 after her debut single " Tell It to My Heart". Dayne achieved six additional U.S. top-10 singles, including "Love Will ...

, and

Jon Secada Juan Francisco Secada Ramírez (born October 4, 1961), better known as Jon Secada, is a Cuban-born American singer. He has won two Grammy Awards and sold 15 million records, making him one of the best-selling Latin music artists. His music fu ...

judged the contestants and the winning team received $50,000. Brown said that it is not a serious competition like ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

'' or '' Dancing with the Stars''.

Episode list

Legal

The CEO of Absolutely Independent, Patty Geneste, said that Insight Productions infringed on the copyright of ''The Singing Office'' with their television series ''

Canada Sings ''Canada Sings'' was a Canadian reality music competition that premiered on August 3, 2011 on Global. Each episode features two glee clubs representing various organizations and companies, who both prepare and perform a song and dance number fo ...

''. Geneste said that ''Canada Sings'' has the same format with slight differences. President and CEO of Insight Productions, John Brunton, said that their show's format was inspired by ''

Glee Glee means delight, a form of happiness. Glee may also refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 30 ...

''.

Reception

Anne Louise Bannon of

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

said of the American version, "the show actually seems more positive than some of its fellow talent-competition brethren, and it's oddly charming in its own way." David Hinckley of '' New York Daily News'' said that the American show "falls flat" and that it is "plodding toward an amateur night competition".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singing Office 2008 American television series debuts 2008 Australian television series debuts