Race Around the World

Race Around the World was an Australian travel documentary and competition series produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1997 and 1998. The series was brought to the ABC by filmmaker Michael Rubbo,[2] and was based on the Canadian television series[3] Course destination monde (1988–1999).

Not to be confused with Race Across the World.

Race Around the World
Genre
Created byMichael Rubbo
Directed byJohn Lander
Presented byRichard Fidler
JudgesDavid Caesar
Sarah Macdonald
Tony Squires
Sigrid Thornton
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of series2
No. of episodes21
Production
Executive producersDavid Leonard (series 1)
David Jowsey (series 2)
ProducersPaige Livingston (series 1)
Deborah Boerne (series 2)
Running time30 minutes
Production companyABC TV
Budget$1,217,837 (series 1)[1]
Release
Original networkABC
Original release2 June 1997 (1997-06-02) –
26 October 1998 (1998-10-26)
Chronology
Followed byRace Around the Corner (1998)
Race Around Oz (2000)

Both seasons were hosted by Richard Fidler, a former member of the Doug Anthony All Stars comedy group.[4]

Premise

For each series, eight "racers" were selected from video auditions from the Australian general public. The only stipulation for the video auditions was a lead in of ten seconds of black. John Safran submitted his audition with ten seconds of yellow. The successful applicants undertook a brief course in documentary film-making, before deciding on an itinerary for their journey around the world. They were then given a digital video camera, and sent to their first destination.[5]

Over the next 100 days, the racers were required to devise, arrange and film a series of ten four-minute documentary films,[5] as well as a stand-by documentary and five "postcards". This gave them ten days to travel to their next destination, film the video, and send it back to the ABC in Sydney with detailed editing instructions.[6]

The series was broadcast as a weekly half-hour program, with four films shown per episode. Each film was then judged by a panel of three media and film experts including David Caesar,[7] Sarah Macdonald,[8] Tony Squires[9] and Sigrid Thornton, as well as being put to a popular viewer vote. Points were deducted for late submissions.[10]

Racers in the first series (1997)
  • Ben Davies from Sydney
  • Bentley Dean from Sydney
  • Scott Herford from Sydney
  • Daniel Marsden from Brisbane
  • Olivia Rousset from Perth
  • Claudia Rowe from Melbourne
  • John Safran from Melbourne
  • Kim Traill from Melbourne, Victoria

Olivia Rousset was the winner of the first series.[11]

Racers in the second series (1998)
  • Cate Anderson from Kangaroo Valley, New South Wales
  • Rachel Bannikoff from Canberra
  • Tim Bryson from Adelaide
  • Sheona McKenna from Melbourne[6]
  • David Shankey from Brisbane
  • John Thiris from Sydney
  • Catherine Turner from Sydney
  • Tony Wilson from Melbourne

Tony Wilson was the winner of the second series.[12]

After the Race

Although receiving fairly high ratings for its timeslot, Race Around the World was a considerable logistical and financial drain on the publicly funded ABC. In 2000, the series was scaled down into a local version restricted to the Australian continent, entitled Race Around Oz.[13]

A youth-oriented program titled Race Around the Corner was produced by ABC Children's Unit with students (14–16 years of age) making low-budget local productions in the same style as Race Around the World.[14][15]

Host Richard Fidler undertook a few more television hosting gigs, including the short-lived ABC art and culture chat program Vulture.[16] He then became a radio presenter and host of the popular Conversations radio show and podcast.[4]

Most of the racers from the series went on to pursue careers in media and film-making:

  • Perhaps the biggest success story amongst the racers has been that of the controversial John Safran. Safran actually came last on the first series (won by Olivia Rousset), despite winning the popular vote. The reason for this was that Safran had been disqualified from one round after submitting a film in which he had covertly filmed priests giving confession in Rio de Janeiro.[17] Safran went on to produce and present several television programs: John Safran's Music Jamboree and John Safran vs God for SBS; and John Safran's Race Relations for the ABC.[18]
  • Olivia Rousset, Bentley Dean and Kim Traill have worked as reporters for the SBS program Dateline.[5][3] Traill's book Red Square Blues: A Beginner's Guide to the Decline and Fall of the Soviet Union was published by Harper Collins in September 2009.[19]
  • Catherine Turner was a reporter with Al Jazeera, and later Channel 7.[20]
  • Bentley Dean was nominated for an Academy Award for Tanna.[21]
  • Scott Herford has produced three Australian independent feature films.
  • Like John Safran, Tony Wilson went on to host the breakfast show on Melbourne radio station 3RRR,[22] and has written a novel called Players (ISBN 1-920885-58-7).
  • Ben Davies is the creator and producer of the Network Ten observational documentary series Bondi Rescue.[23]

See also

References
  1. Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).: House of Representatives, Volume 219
  2. Coslovich, Gabriella (26 January 2018). "How brothers Mark and Michael Rubbo have spurred each other's creative careers". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  3. The electronic reporter : broadcast journalism in Australia (2nd ed.). University of New South Wales Press. ISBN 0868404950.
  4. Peatling, Stephanie (15 September 2017). "Richard Fidler confesses to radio's sound of silence and beautiful suspense". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  5. The SBS story : the challenge of diversity. University of New South Wales Press. ISBN 0868408395.
  6. Stevenson, Martin (17 April 1998). "Sheona focuses on TV race". The Examiner. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  7. "a film for all markets". RealTime Arts. January 2009. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  8. "Sarah Macdonald". ABC Radio. 21 December 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  9. "How I became a TV Star". The Sydney Morning Herald. 15 April 2003. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  10. "Race Around the World Rules and Regulations". Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  11. Christopher, Lissa (5 March 2007). "Walkley winner's solo journeys". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  12. Dubecki, Larissa (18 November 2006). "Convert to the cause". The Age. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  13. "Race Around Oz (2000)". The Screen Guide. Screen Australia. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  14. ABC Annual Report 1997–1998 (PDF). Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
  15. "Race Around the Corner (1998)". The Screen Guide. Screen Australia. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  16. "Cultural arty facts". The Age. 22 September 2005. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  17. "6 Aussies Celebs Who Became Famous From Winning Competitions". Hit Network. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  18. Compton, Leon (17 December 2009). "Crucifying John Safran". abc.net.au. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  19. Corporation, Australian Broadcasting. "Kim Traill has told the stories of Russia for almost 20 years". Conversations with Richard Fidler. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  20. "Cath Turner: Television Reporter, Channel 7". Samantha Wills Foundation. Samantha Wills Foundation. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  21. Wong, Tessa (25 January 2017). "The Oscar-worthy film inspired by a tribal song". Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  22. "Of killer bees and jamborees". The Age. 19 June 2002. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  23. "Ben Davies - The Brains Behind Bondi Rescue". The Beast. 1 March 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
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