Former bFM brekky host (the best they’ve had, if you ask me) Hugh Sundae kindly sent me a link to his story on the 5th anniversary (already?) of New Zealand On Air‘s Phase 4 scheme.
Close Up is TVNZ’s late night news programme, and Hugh is one of the few people who can get away with a more colloquial presentation style on air (far more try it than pull it off successfully).
Of course, it helps to be assigned to the music beat – but even so, ever since he started on the wireless, I’ve always thought he was just naturally off-the-charts good at the whole broadcast presentation thing. Bastard.
As far as the story goes, Phase 4 was the kick in the pants New Zealand music needed to get from 2% airplay up to 20+%. Which it did. But not everyone’s happy.
And on that note, would somebody please take Dave Dobbyn to a pub? He always used to seem to be enjoying himself, but obviously needs a bit of perking up these days.
Watching the clip was particularly enjoyable because of the special appearances by many people I have a great deal of time for: Brendan Smyth, Paul Kennedy, Chris Hocquard, Bernie Griffen, Paul Casserly, Sean Donnelly… and there’s even a quick glimpse of much underrated up-and-comer Nick Gaffaney (who deserves to be hugely famous and just completely isn’t – yet).
Time for Phase 5. Somebody put Smyth, Hocquard, Casserly, Griffen, Mark Roach and – I dunno… Manuel Bundy? – in a room together and figure out what to do next.
Suffering from an NZ music withdrawal over here. Care packages anyone?
PS: Can someone please explain the weird Orson Welles-ish cutaway shot of Hugh sitting WAAAAAAAYYYY down the end of the table in the Brendan interview segment?
Yeah I was pretty impressed with that clip. 44 albums in 5 years… Could be a lot worse. Some great talent too – I’d say it out-numbered the crass radio fodder..I hope I’m right.
Not much else to say, just the whole thing made me happy heh.
paulie