Better, but still room for improvement

Press, 27 April 1983, Page 13

Better, but still room for improvement

Review by

KARREN BEANLAND

Northern Television’s new morning show, “11 a.m.,” is a vast improvement on last year’s effort, “Good Morning!” But then it would have to be. As a first venture into both morning and private television in New Zealand, “Good Morning!” was more than disappointing. The show, filled with barely concealed advertising puffs, was superficial and pretentious. Its makers appeared to put more effort into attracting guests with “big names” and displaying their superior taste in interior design than investigating the subjects its audi-

ences wanted to know about. So the team behind “11 a.m.” is to be congratulated for bringing the show back to earth. Even more, it is to be congratulated for treating its audience as though it has some intelligence. The show appears to have found a niche as a sort of “Woman’s Weekly” for television. Food, fashion and children are the dominant subjects. Doubtless, this is to be expected, since these

subjects provide a proven formula for attracting what must be the show’s target audience — women in the home.

These subjects, plus the usual range of craft and hobby items, are usually approached in an interesting way. On mornings I have watched the show, demonstrations on cooking ethnic food, items on unusual shops and restaurants and film reviews have been included. It is pleasing to see that

the show is making an attempt to look further than this, with interviews of women who have taken up different careers later in life and one item about a former ship’s captain who now runs a child care centre.

There is still quite a lot of room for improvement. The show has a predictable format — although some viewers will no doubt see that as an advantage because they know when they will be able to nip out to make a cup of tea or coffee. More effort could be put into using more exciting filming techniques to add variety to the items. Most of the segments tend to be very static, often with the interview subject lined up against a flat wall or straight in front of the camera.

The show’s presenter, Heather Lindsay, has a pleasantly low-key approach, although she sometimes appears to be a little uneasy before the camera. Her interviews with guests are sometimes so brief that the watcher is left waiting for basic pieces of information. Surely, if people are worth interviewing, they deserve to be given a reasonable amount of time.

The reporter, Neil Roberts, does a good job for the most part, although again some of the interesting items could be longer. Perhaps when less of the show’s time is taken up. in items about the Princess of Wales, Neil Roberts will be given space to tackle a wider range of issues that affect women, such as stress, alcoholism, competing for work and budgeting. Inevitably, since it is produced in Auckland, “11 a.m.” has an urban, especially Auckland, bias. If its producers have a big enough budget to get out and about, there is a wealth of material available in other parts of the country, especially rural areas. After all, women who live away from the main cities may have the most to benefit from a show like this.