Posts from — November 2011

Blog posts like this must be why I am getting all those seedy Google ads on my page….

Anyway there is a one hour reality TV special called the Virgin Diaries, where all the cast were virgins until their wedding day.

However one couple went one step further and decided to have their first kiss on their wedding day and it was well….. actually you check it out and tell me you think.

Please Lifestyle You fast track this show to Australia.

Since we only had a highlights package from Survivor South Pacific we have to wait to see who will be the next two kicked off Redemption Island will Ozzie prevail and knock out Dawn and Whitney?

Also will Albert and Sophie make a move on Coach?

Anyway while you mull over those weighty questions here is an interview with the executive producer David Burris and he answers the questions we all want to know about it.

Well except if Jeff Probst has a girlfriend.

The interview from TV WEEK:

What is your criteria when selecting a location for Survivor?

It’s a combination of things. The most important thing is the location going to serve creatively? Is it pretty visually? Is it going to look good on HD from a cinematography point of view? We want to go to cool places that seem adventurous and fun and look great. [We also look at the local culture] to see what we can incorporate into tribal council and challenges to make them look cool and interesting.

Do you have to pay filming fees to local governments?

We’ve been in places that were national parks, provincial parks or state parks, and that is a different agreement we have to strike up with local or national governments. We’ve also been in places that were almost totally privately owned, so we’ve had to make arrangements with several landowners.

Do you want to come back and film in Australia?

We’ve thought about coming back…. maybe to Far North Queensland, for somewhere tropical.

Or the desert?

I would love to do that! We’ve really only shot one desert location, in the Brazilian Highlands (Tocantins), and that ended up being one of our most beautiful seasons.

Where does host Jeff Probst stay?

Jeff has this huge airship like a blimp, and he’s completely decked out…, no, I’m kidding! (laughs) I like the idea that he gets lifted up into the sky. The contestants wonder if that’s the case: is he teleported in? But his crib is the same as the rest of the crew.

Do the contestants ever ask the medical crew for things like panadol?

They will ask. And it’s like, “Well, you have a headache because you haven’t been boiling enough water and you’re not drinking enough – it’s called ‘Survivor!’” They they’ll say, “We’re hungry, we’ve got a headache” and [the crew] say, “Go catch a fish!”

Do the contestants ever ask the camera crew for food?

Sometimes, in jest, a producer might say, “Come on, it’s time to do an interview” and they’ll respond with, “I’ll do an interview if you give me a granola bar!”

Nick Jonas has flown in to meet his girlfriend The Voice judge, Delta Goodrem’s family. (Source: Daily Telegraph)

Nicole Ritchie will be joining her husband Joel Madden when he comes out here to star on The Voice. (Source: Herald Sun)

Simon Cowell congratulates the team of The X Factor Australia saying it was a ‘massive step up’. I wonder if he would have said that if Andrew Wishart had won. (Source: Herald Sun)

Dani Minogue will be a judge on Britain’s Got Talent. (Source: Daily Mail)

Dancing With The Stars US contestant  proposed to his girlfriend on TV. (Source: New York Daily News )

Kim Kardashian says she won’t be having kids before she is thirty now. If you care… (Source: Huffington Post)

Also soon to be ex-husband Kris is unhappy about how he was portrayed in the first episode of Kim and Kourtney Take On New York. (Source: Huffington Post)

The Huffington Post, which seems to be obsessed with the Kardashian write that Kris Jenner, aka the mum, might be the next Kardashian on Dancing With The Stars.

If you are interested in what Courtney Stodden wears to church click here.  The 17 year old and her 50 something old husband are pitching a reality show. Her husband Doug has also pulled out of a movie due to what he thought was inappropriate sexual content. (Source: Huffington Post)

Bethenny Frankel won’t be getting her own talk show as she is thought to be too aggressive. (Source: Reality Blurred)

Survivor renewed for two more seasons, with Jeff Probst as host. (Source: Reality Blurred)

Personally I don’t see how you can hook up on Survivor, the no food, the bad weather, and the vermin would kill anyones libido.

However this was not the case for Keith and Whitney in Survivor South Pacific. They are now an item.

Also a minor scandal but it was revealed she was married to another country singer, and she got back from filming and said she was leaving as she met someone else.

It appears her and Keith’s romance has survived off the island.

(Source: Reality Blurred)

And for the five millionth time there is a newspaper yarn telling us Lara Bingle has shot a reality TV show pilot, and also it appears it has still not been picked up.

Today’s story is about how a ‘sizzle’ reel is doing the rounds of the networks. Has any show ever gotten as much publicity before it has been picked up?

I am not really sure of her likeability factor and this was not helped by her recent cameo on Celebrity Apprentice. However as I have written before is Lara Bingle has the ability to be the Australian Kardashian?

The Daily Telegraph reports:

CAN Lara Bingle emulate the success of Kim Kardashian as the star of her own reality TV series?

It seems one local television production company believes so, with market newcomer Eyeworks backing the project.

Confidential can reveal a sizzle reel has recently been circulated to TV networks teasing a reality series based on the model’s life.

Yesterday producers at Eyeworks were not returning our calls but network sources said the promo reels had landed on programming executives’ desks at the Seven and Ten networks.

The concept follows the simple yet effective reality show premise “if it happens, shoot it” and Bingle’s fitness makeover gets an airing. Now if the program’s producers can only persuade Bingle to let them film her uncensored after-dark activities, Confidential is confident the program will find an audience.

Don’t panic the Australia’s Next Top Model star Simone is not in a lip lock with Altiyan Childs there are just little vignettes of gossip about both from the ARIA’s.

Sydney Confidential reports that Simone Holtznagel was carrying lube, but not for any nefarious activities but because she was wearing latex and apparently she needed it for her legs.

Altiyan Child’s who was accompanied by his 19 year old girlfriend won an award for highest selling single and was also spotted drinking double rum and cokes. Good to see he is still living the rock and roll lifestyle.

Also Delta Goodrem said she is a good headspace now, new man Nick Jonas, and new role as judge on The Voice. So should be a big 2012 for her.

You Tube is gold for stuff like this and Survivor fans will love this top Ten montage. Be aware the creator of this admits number 7 did not occur, it was tricky editing.

Reality Bites Back author and media commentator in the US, Jennifer Pozner, has done some satirical clips on aspects of reality TV shows. She calls it Reality Rehab.

This one she talks about reality TV stereotypes, she makes some good points and it is amusing.

People bitch and moan about the reality TV shows like Idol and The X Factor being the ‘easy’ way of getting a singing career and how it ki

However it appears now you don’t even have to know how to sing to get a recording contract, you just have to have the right look and profile. Rumours were circulating at last night’s ARIA’s that Ruby Rose, she who used to be the host of the fairly dull High School Musical – Fame has signed a record contract.

The Daily Telegraph reports:

Insiders revealed theMTV presenter is keen to take “the next step” in her career and become a full-time musician.

Confidentialunderstands Sony hopes Rose can mirror the success of spunky blonde Havana Brown, mixing and releasing mainstream songs into dance tracks and releasing them as CDs under a Ruby Rose brand.

There’s even a chance to segue into singing, as Brown did this year.

“She’s already got a name for herself that people will recognise and the right ‘look’,” an insider said.

“She dresses like she already is (an artist). Now it’s just about coming up with the right material and a market. Like house, R’n'B.”

While there was no confirmation to be had yesterday, an announcement is expected tomorrow.

Back in 2008, when Rose first appeared on the scene, she spoke about wanting to be a rock star but admitted being unable to sing.

There will be some starving muso’s out there becoming bitter and twisted if this rumour happens to be true.

New Idea interviewed Deni Hines to find out what she thought of her time on Celebrity Apprentice and how she felt about the way she had been portrayed on the show. It is quite interesting.

The interview states:

Deni, what happened? You came across terribly on the show. Did you expect such a public reaction?

I didn’t expect it, no. It was a weird experience. When you’re being filmed seven, eight hours a day you tend to forget they’re following you all the time, then selectively editing the material. I remember Julia [Morris] saying: ‘You’re so sweet, you tell it the way it is,’ I didn’t expect such a reaction.

How did you feel when you heard Facebook groups had started with names like ‘I hate Deni Hines’?

It’s sad that people have the time to do that. Why not join them all up into one? [Laughs] I might even join too, if I had time!

Are you devastated by all the hateful comments?

It’s not especially nice, but I can handle it. It is what it is. For me, this show ended months ago, but of course people only just got to finish seeing it on TV. Tomorrow, somebody else will be picked on.

Julia defended you, saying you’re the victim of racism. Do you agree?

Yes there’s definitely some of that in some of the messages I’m getting. It would  be beautiful to think the world no longer has racism in it – that would be a pipedream. It’s one thing to pick on my music or something about me, but how silly to pick on something I can’t change.

Did the producers ever ask you to play up your bitchy side?

No, they didn’t say that nor did I know how I was going to be edited. I did say I was happy to stir the pot a bit because that makes good TV. What they got was me under stress. There was a lot of controversial comments said by all contestants, but I guess the network chose to lump it all on me.

When did you realise that you had been depicted as a bit of a witch?

The only time I got any indication was at the wrap party. Someone got up and said”‘We’ve got a great show. We want to thank Deni Hines for the drama.’ I was like’ I was like” ‘What are you talking about?’

Some of your comments were pretty full-on. In particular, when you said Jesinta Campbell was the kind of girl you beat up at school….

I never bullied anyone! That was said for effect. I was the minority in school, I was the only black kid. In high school on e day, I got there to find ‘Marcia and Deni Hines suck’ written all over the quadrangle. I was freaked out. And I was bullied by three or four girls. I was so scared, the next day I hid a pair of scissors in my bag – not to hurt anyone with but to hold up if those girls picked on me again.

Did that toughen you up?

No – the music industry did. When a record person once said: ‘Your hair colour is too dark and curly – and can you lighten it up, lighten your skin and put blue contacts in?’, that toughened me up!

Polly Porter said she cried after the way you spoke to her…

I wish she’d done it in front of all of us. Had I known, I’d have gone up and said sorry.

If you could take back something you siad, what would it be?

Probably the bullying stuff. I stand up for the underdog – I’m not a mean person. You can think that I am by watching a TV show, but if you really knew me you’d think differently. For now, I’m being treated like I’ve killed somebody, by people I’ve never met. I didn’t rip Polly’s eyes out!

But surely all these hostile comments have hurt a little bit?

They would hurt if what people said was true, that I’m a bitch and a racist and that I don’t like people.

So you haven’t lost sleep over this?

NO. Being on the show and raising $47,000 for my charity, Oasis Africa, means 40 more kids in Africa now get to go to school, have three meals a day, medical assistance and a roof over their head for eight hours of the day.

Is your mum Marcia Hines upset about the backlash?

Mum has no reaction that she’s made known to me. She knows her child! I didn’t kill anyone. I’m sure if I’d gone crazy and attacked someone, Mum would have had something to say!

Tell us about your softer side, the side we don’t get to see….

I’ve got a huge heart. I love humans and animals.Over the years I’ve done work for 250 to 300 charities, from ovarian cancer to breast cancer, the RSPCA and the Special Olympics. On Christmas Day I sometimes visit sick kids in hospital. Last year I headed to Africa to visit orphans in Kibera. You’d have seen me cradling little babies in my arms, babies dying of starvation. That’s a reality I’m proud to be involved with  - much more than reality TV.

Career-wise, what do you say to claims you’re a one-hit wonder?

I’ve sold more than 1.3 million albums, had top five hits in the UK, France, Japan and the US, written a song for Beyonce, won an ARIA and had roles in stage shows and even a film. And there’s more to come…..

What have you learnt from all this?

Reality TV is not reality. It’s long, it’s tense, it’s heavily edited and often taken out of context, and it’s just not real.

New Idea readers also had the opportunity to send in some questions.

Who was your favourite and least favourite co-star?

I don’t have a least favourite because everyone you meet, good and bad, has something to teach you. Pauline Hanson was a big surprise – I hadn’t expected to like her. She’s the one who first phoned me to see if I was OK. Julia Morris was my favourite. We were already friends before the show but now we’re closer.

Your comments to Jesinta upset me. Do you think it sends the wrong message to kids about bullying?

Yes – it was meant in jest and I’m terribly sorry it was taken seriously.

You were quite mean to Polly about what you thought was her lack of celebrity. Why?

I didn’t think I was mean about lack of celebrity. If anything I was having a go at myself too – I don’t consider myself a celebrity. We’ve spoken and there’s no bad blood between us. A big thing was made of me calling her Poppy but that was all cut from one spiel. At the end of that I said: ‘S***, sorry Polly’. But of course that didn’t get aired! I get called Demi all the time. Big deal!

What has your mum said about all this?

Mum didn’t see the show. She doesn’t watch a lot of TV. She called me the other day, but it was just to ask how my puppy was.

It should be noted that Deni Hines did not take any money for this interview and New Idea donated money on behalf of her to Oasis Africa Australia.