Latest news with #Dreamworld
Sky News AU
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sky News AU
‘We're excited to be home': Channel 10 unveils first look at Big Brother revival as reality franchise returns to Dreamworld with new host Mel Tracina
Channel 10 has offered the first glimpse of its upcoming Big Brother revival as the struggling free-to-air broadcaster attempts to rebuild its programming lineup following a wave of cancellations. The broadcaster has been left with gaping holes in its local programming after axing the long-running news program The Project and resting long-running staples like Thank God You're Here. On Sunday, Ten shared the first official look at the new Big Brother and confirmed production will shift back to its original home inside Dreamworld. 'Big Brother is back home on 10 and returning to its legendary Dreamworld setting on the Gold Coast,' the network said in a statement. 'The iconic social experiment that launched countless conversations, rivalries, friendships and of course, the bum dance, returns refreshed and ready to capture a whole new generation of fans while rekindling nostalgia for longtime viewers. 'Expect high stakes, unexpected alliances, and classic and heartwarming moments as Big Brother once again opens the doors to the Dreamworld house, setting the stage for another unforgettable season in Australian television history.' The series will be helmed by Channel 10 regular Mel Tracina, who currently serves as a 'cultural correspondent' for The Cheap Seats and a radio host on Nova. 'The Big Brother house is synonymous with Dreamworld, so bringing the OG format to its OG location feels right,' she said in a statement. 'We're excited to be home (and in a new house that hopefully comes with an air fryer).' Big Brother Australia first went to air on Network 10 in 2001 and became an instant ratings winner for the channel, often topping 1.4 million viewers nightly. The early seasons of the show, which were presented by the no-nonsense Gretel Kileen, made stars of several contestants, including Sara-Marie Fedele, Blair McDonough and Chrissie Swan. The show originally aired on Ten for a further eight seasons before being revived in 2012 by rival Channel 9 for another three seasons with Sonia Kruger as host. The franchise then moved over to Channel 7, who produced another five seasons with Kruger as host, but swapped the original shooting location for Sydney. Ten confirmed that the new revival will see the return of live evictions and live nominations after the most recent seasons on Seven were pre-recorded. Viewers will also be able to stream the house live via the Tenplay website. Ten has received a grant by the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland's Production Attraction Strategy in exchange for bringing the show back to the sunshine state. 'Endemol Shine Australia's Big Brother has been an important training ground for many local screen practitioners and this new iteration will employ 95 crew as well as supporting four paid attachment positions,' Jacqui Feeney, Screen Queensland CEO, said in a statement. 'They will have the opportunity to learn from industry experts in critical areas such as outside broadcasting, a skillset that will be in high demand as we head towards the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Big Brother Australia announces returns to original broadcaster Channel Ten 17 years after leaving the network - as new host is confirmed
Channel 10 has confirmed Big Brother will be returning to Aussie screens. The popular reality series revealed in an Instagram post on Sunday that the upcoming 2025 season would be filmed at its iconic Gold Coast location Dreamworld. Channel Ten originally filmed the reality show at the theme park 17 years ago, when Big Brother first hit screens Down Under. In the clip, the show's new host Melissa Tracina - who replaced recent host Sonia Kruger at the helm of the series - answered a phone call, revealing that Big Brother had found a house. 'Surprise, @BigBrotherAU is coming home to @DreamworldAU!' the post was captioned. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'Get ready for more chaos and laughter than ever before, with the one and only @mel_tracina #BBAU | Coming to @Channel10AU.' Big Brother teased the big news on Saturday with a clip of an eye in a blue filter. 'BIG #BBAU news incoming... keep an [eye] out,' the caption read. In June, Daily Mail Australia reported that Big Brother would be returning to the Gold Coast later this year, but did not specify where. Production company Endemol Shine Australia all but confirmed the upcoming reboot would return to the location where the show was famously produced during its Network 10 run from 2001-2008 after putting out a call for local post-production staff. 'Endemol Shine Australia is looking for Queensland-based post production crew available to work on-site for the return of Big Brother,' the post read. While no filming location was specified, the post suggested that a new home could be built up North, after filming the latest three seasons in Sydney before the series was canned by Seven in 2024. The series will return to screens in early November and is expected to wrap in the first half of December. The abandoned Gold Coast house was deliberately set on fire in June 2019. Four children aged between 11 and 15 were later charged with arson after it was set ablaze. Two nine-year-olds who were also arrested were released after assisting police with inquiries. After the show was axed in 2014, the unoccupied set was left to rot for five years. A new house was built in 2020 in Manly for when Channel Seven picked up the series. It eventually relocated to Sydney Olympic Park in 2021 after receiving an eviction notice by the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The eviction notice was issued due to concerns about local wildlife. The reality show will be back at its original home on Ten, with the network vowing to bring the Australian franchise into line with its winning format. A call for local post-production staff was made earlier this year, hinting at the show's return A brand new crop of housemates will be live-streamed 24/7 as the series returns with a fresh new host in Melissa. She is planning to revamp the series, revealing to Daily Mail Australia that viewers will finally have access to the game in real time. 'What's so good about this is the livestream element,' she said. 'So you don't have to worry about getting a bad edit, or being the "season villain", because viewers can log in at any time and see what the [housemates] are up to.' The beloved reality show, which sees housemates compete to stay in the house to win prize money, found roaring success on Channel Ten in the early 2000s. Since then, the show has changed networks several times - first going over to Channel Nine before a revamped version at Channel Seven.
Herald Sun
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Herald Sun
What Australian theme parks need to learn from Disneyland
Riddle me this: if 132 people are lined up ahead of you for a ride that has a capacity of 16 guests (although seats are often left empty) and it takes five minutes between turns, plus an extra 50 seconds for the ride itself, how long is it before you get to the front? Theme parks are either wholesome family fun or an excruciating day of queueing. The world's best amusement parks know this and make lining up less eye-stabbingly awful. The world's less-best don't. After recent visits to Dreamworld, its sister park WhiteWater World, and Sydney's Raging Waters – along with a chorus of online complaints about Warner Bros Movie World – it's clear Australia falls dismally into the latter. 'What do you expect? Don't go in peak times!' came the online retorts. Tara Wells' family at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast. I timed my family's Dreamworld visit for when NSW schools were on holidays but Queensland's had gone back. It should have worked. We picked rides with visibly small queues and congratulated ourselves when we had no switchbacks in a line designed for zig-zagging. Yet still we waited. And waited. In Disneyland, there are only peak times and peak-er times. My family visited in a week of historically lower visitation yet still managed a day when the park reached capacity. My 'Happiest Day on Earth' was shared with around 84,999 other visitors (Disney doesn't release official visitor statistics). Did I wait in line? Oh boy, yes. Do I ever want to hear the chirpy 'Yo soy Bird!' from Autopia's looping safety spiel ever again? Absolutely not. But my day was not defined by queueing. Tara Wells' family at Disneyland. Disneyland's app shows expected wait times per ride so visitors can use their time more efficiently. I recommend the 'Lightning Lane Multi Pass' feature ('Genie+' at the time of my visit). It costs extra but pays off. While we queued in one line – or caught a show, or ate, or felt the full force of the price of light sabres – we were in a second virtual queue for another ride. About 17 million people visit Disneyland each year for its 35 attractions. More than a million people visit Dreamworld annually for its 22 attractions. With these ratios, Australia's theme park visitors should be laughing all the way to the front of the line. It's some comfort to see Dreamworld's staff being painstaking with safety procedures. They double-check gates, ensure everyone's out before new riders are let in, and sign a clipboard of (presumably) procedural checks. Nearly a decade after four people died due to safety failures, stricter safeguards are welcome. Dreamworld's 22 attractions attract a million visitors every year. But there needs to be a better balance of risk management with efficiency. Start by putting on more staff. By more, I mean one. Just one more team member per ride would drastically cut turnaround times. Then train them to focus on speed and efficiency. Taking your sweet time doesn't make for a safer environment; being thorough does. Finally, improve accuracy and communication about expected wait times. Thankfully, change is afoot. Last December's opening of Dreamworld's new rollercoaster, Jungle Rush, shows an awareness that the visitor experience starts in the line. Like Disneyland's Indiana Jones Adventure, it has theming and storytelling in the air-conditioned queue area. Expect the revamped Claw ride – reopening as King Claw later this year – to have more of the same. This goes a long way in reducing perceived (if not actual) wait times. If waiting more than an hour for a ride that's over in seconds is more misery than pleasure, how can amusement parks expect to survive? Riddle me that. Originally published as What Australian theme parks need to learn from Disneyland
Daily Mail
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Dreamworld sets tongues wagging with cryptic post ahead of Big Brother reboot: 'Is someone on The Giant Drop?'
It appears that Big Brother could be making a welcome return to its original Queensland home. The popular reality series, which is getting the reboot treatment in 2025, was filmed at Gold Coast theme park Dreamworld during its original Network Ten run from 2001 to 2008. Ahead of its anticipated return to Network Ten after a lacklustre showing on Seven, Dreamworld has dropped a major hint about a potential return to the site. Posting to its official social channels this week, Dreamworld staff shared a video that showed a passenger in a car driving past the theme park who spots a person on the side of the road with a sign reading, 'Look up'. The camera then pans over the towering ride The Giant Drop, with the passenger saying; 'Wait, do you guys see that? Is there someone on the Giant Drop?' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. A second clip, shared on Wednesday, shows two people standing atop the lofty ride declaring: 'Hold on tight, something massive is happening at Dreamworld.' Captioning the clip, theme park staff teased something 'big' would be revealed on Thursday 19 June. 'Something's up,' the caption read, the sentiment augmented by a bulging eyes emoji. 'Signs are pointing to Dreamworld - literally. Whatever it is, it's BIG. Stay tuned.' The comment was followed by: 'We told you something big was coming.... hold on tight... all will be revealed tomorrow.' The cryptic post was met with a flurry of comments from theme park fans with some suggesting that the scoop was Big Brother's return to Dreamworld. 'Big Brother!!! The eyes emoji and BIG capitalised in the caption give it away,' one eagle-eyed follower suggested. 'It is returning to its original home at channel 10 so it also makes sense to return to its actual home!' Another commented simply with: 'Big Brother,' while a third suggested it was in fact incoming host Mel Tacina that was standing on top of The Big Drop. The hints come after production company Endemol Shine all but confirmed the anticipated series would return to its spiritual Dreamland home. The production company, last week, put out a call for local production staff. 'Endemol Shine Australia is looking for Queensland-based post production crew available to work on-site for the return of Big Brother,' read the post. While no filming location was specified, the posts suggest that a new home could be built up North, after filming the latest three seasons in Sydney before the series was canned by Seven in 2014. The series will return to screens in early November and is expected to wrap in the first half of December. The abandoned Gold Coast house was deliberately lit on fire in June 2019. Four children aged between 11 and 15 were later charged with arson after it was set ablaze. Two nine-year-olds who were also arrested were released after assisting police with inquiries. After the show was axed in 2014, the unoccupied set was left to rot for five years. A new house was built in 2020 in Manly for when Channel Seven picked up the series before it was eventually relocated to Sydney Olympic Park in 2021 after being served an eviction notice by the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The eviction notice was issued due to concerns for local wildlife. A brand new crop of housemates will be live-streamed 24/7 as the series returns with a fresh new host in 2025. Tracina is planning to revamp the series after taking the hosting reins from Gold Logie winner Sonia Kruger. Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Tracina revealed Aussie viewers will finally have access to the game in real time. 'What's so good about this is the livestream element,' she said. 'So you don't have to worry about getting a bad edit, or being the "season villain", because viewers can log in at any time and see what the [housemates] are up to.' The beloved reality show, which sees housemates compete to stay in the house to win prize money, found roaring success on Channel Ten in the early 2000s. Since then, the show has changed networks several times - first going over to Channel Nine before a revamped version at Channel Seven. Big Brother Australia was axed from Channel 7's 2024 schedule after scoring its lowest-rated season yet. The show got bumped from its original 7.30 time slot to a later time after just one week on-air and concluded its 15th season with just 152,000 overnight viewers in the five capital cities – a huge drop from when the show relaunched in 2020 with 853,000 viewers.
Daily Mail
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
The hugely popular tourist destination Disney won't open a theme park in
With its amazing natural landscapes and beautiful cities, it's one of the world's most popular holiday destinations - attracting 7 million visitors in 2024 - but Australia is unlikely to get a Disney theme park in the near future. While the Land Down Under has plenty of its own brand parks, including its biggest, Dreamworld, on the country's Gold Coast, the most famous theme park brand in the world is yet to be tempted to open up there. Disney currently has six theme parks across the globe, including its original parks in the US - Disneyland Resort, California and Walt Disney World Resort, Florida - Disneyland Paris in Europe and three in Asia, in Japan, Hong Kong and Shanghai. And, to great fanfare, a new opening was announced last month, with plans unveiled for a Disney theme park in United Arab Emirates' capital Abu Dhabi - the brand's first major new theme park in nearly a decade and its first in the Middle East. Disney fans in Australia though are likely to have to wait a long time for an attraction on Oz soil, with executives confirming there are currently no plans in the pipeline. The reason? Disney doesn't believe Australia has a big enough population to keep a Disney park prosperous - and the demise of Sega World, which famously opened and then failed in Sydney in the 90s, is likely all the evidence the brand needs. A gaming mecca that was dubbed 'Sydney's Disney' at the time, Sega World opened at Darling Harbour's Pavilion and was said to have cost more than AUS$80million (around £38million)...but by the turn of the millennium, the indoor park was closed. While Australia has a population of around 26.5 million - plus 7.6 million tourists, it still small fry numbers compared to other destinations that do have a Disney park; Greater Tokyo, for example, has a population of 37 million. There have been plans for a park in the past, with a Gold Coast park rumoured back in the 90s, but China was later preferred as a natural step for expansion by the US brand. And now, it seems the Middle East has eclipsed Australia. While the city of Abu Dhabi has a population of about 2.5 million, Yas Island, where the park will open 'in the early 2030s' recorded more than 34 million visits in 2023, a 38% rise compared to the year before, Miral has said. 'We've always been interested in this part of the world - to bring our Disney stories to new, younger fans,' Disney's Experiences unit Chairman Josh D´Amaro told Reuters in May, adding, 'Abu Dhabi was an ideal location for us.' Miral, the Abu Dhabi-based leisure and entertainment group responsible for developing Yas Island, will finance, build and operate the resort. The creative and technical professionals who design Disney's theme parks, known as Imagineers, will lead creative design and provide operational oversight. The Abu Dhabi park, Disney´s first since Shanghai Disneyland opened in 2016, represents a continuation of the company´s plans to 'turbocharge' its Experiences unit, which includes its six global theme park resorts, a cruise ship line and a family resort in Hawaii. In 2023, Disney announced it would commit $60 billion over a decade to double the size of its Disney cruise ship fleet and invest in its theme parks. It also took a minority stake in Epic Games, creator of the online game Fortnite. Miral initially approached Disney to talk about their plans for creating a tourism hub in Abu Dhabi, said D´Amaro. That conversation led Disney executives to visit the prospective theme park site last September. 'We saw where our potential park might go, and had some serious conversations about what this could mean to our 'turbocharging',' D´Amaro said. After a return trip to the region in February, D´Amaro said the parties entered into serious discussions that culminated in a deal. The amount of Miral's investment was not disclosed. Miral Group CEO Mohamed Abdalla Al Zaabi issued a statement hailing the addition of a Disney theme park to Yas Island as a 'historic milestone' in the company´s efforts to build the island into a global entertainment destination. (Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter Henderson and Muralikumar Anantharaman) HOW TO GET MORE BANG FOR YOUR BUCK AT DISNEY THEME PARKS When it comes to family fun, few destinations rival Disney. Who can resist high-octane rides, thrilling entertainment and a cartoon cast for every generation? But wherever you embark on your Disney adventure, costs can quickly spiral. Here's our guide to getting the best bang for your buck at Disney theme parks all over the world. Disneyland Paris Highlights of Paris' two parks include the recently spruced-up Sleeping Beauty Castle, Indiana Jones and The Temple of Peril and Ratatouille: The Adventure. Best value time to visit: Where possible, swerve seasonal celebrations like Easter, Halloween and Christmas. French school holidays differ from ours, too, so do your research to get a better deal. Failing that, prices in January, February, September and November are likely to be much lower. Ditto with weekdays over weekends. Park tickets: As a rule of thumb, the more days you visit Disney parks, the cheaper the price. For deals, check third party outlets like Budget stays: A night at Hotel Marne-la-Vallée Val d'Europe, a ten-minute drive from the park, is £117 with breakfast for a family of four in the summer ( For a real budget option, happy campers can stay under canvas on a pitch with electricity at the Camping International de Jablines, a 20-minute drive from Disneyland Paris, from £14pp/pn ( Eat for less: The Earl of Sandwich serves everything from breakfast to salads and sandwiches, with most items under a tenner. Packed lunches are allowed inside the park. Disneyland California; Disney World Florida The first site to open, Disneyland California is home to the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty Castle. Walt Disney World, in Orlando, is the bigger – and arguably better – sister of the original, with over 173 rides to choose from. Best value time to visit: Disney offers official deals throughout the year, with January to May ones generally better than those around winter holidays. Tickets: Shop around discount providers for the best deals. Opting for '1 Park Per Day' tickets, rather than 'Hopper' tickets should save you some cash. Budget stays: For Disneyland, some off-property hotels are just as close to the action as pricier on-site offerings. A 25-minute walk from the park, doubles at DoubleTree Suites by Hilton start from £105 ( For Disney World, you're better off at the value resorts onsite, such as the All-Star Movies Resort, where doubles start from £118, and two children under 18 stay for free. Eat for less: Food is allowed inside the park. If you do eat onsite, avoid table-service restaurants to keep costs down. Disneyland Tokyo Japan's capital has two parks, Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea, as well as six hotels all within easy reach. The train from central Tokyo takes 24 minutes and costs around £2. Best value time to visit: Currently, the yen is very weak, so if Japan is on your travel wish list, don't put off a trip. Mid-January to mid-March is considered off-peak. Tickets: Only one-day tickets are currently available and it's cheapest to use the official website, It's £44 for adults, £37 for children aged 12 to 17 and £26 for ages four to 11 (under threes go free). Weekdays Tuesday to Friday see the smallest crowds. Budget stays: Family rooms at Mitsui Garden Hotel Prana Tokyo Bay cost from £117 in high season, with a free 15-minute shuttle to the park, The same night in the Hotel MiraCosta at DisneySea costs £440. Eat for less: International fast food options will fill bellies without a huge outlay – a small salami pizza at Pan Galactic Pizza Port in Tokyo Disneyland costs around £4. Otherwise, don't miss Ikspiari mall, located at the park's gateway; it's open late and has much cheaper options, plus a great supermarket, Hong Kong The smallest theme park in the empire, Hong Kong Disneyland is a 30-minute MTR train from both the airport and city centre. Comprising eight lands, the newest of them, World of Frozen, opened in 2023. Best value time to visit: Avoid holidays such as Golden Week (May and October) and Lunar New Year (January or February), as well as local school holidays and weekends. Mondays and Fridays are the busiest weekdays. Tickets: This Disneyland's succinct size means you can do it in a day, which keeps ticket costs low. Find savings on which has adult tickets at £59.85 and children/seniors at £45.69, saving around £14. Budget stays: Stay in central Hong Kong for the best deals; a room for four at the Dorsett Tsuen Wan hotel in Kowloon is just under £100 a night, Eat for less: Packed lunches are allowed inside the park. Citygate Outlets is a ten-minute cab ride away in Tung Chung and has 40 dining options. Shanghai The newest Disney park has eight lands, including Toy Story Land and Zootopia, plus two hotels and Disneytown for entertainment, dining and shopping. Best time to visit: November to May has the smallest crowds and cooler weather – but avoid weekends and major holidays. A 20-minute cab ride from the airport costs around £11 with the DiDi app, which works like Uber. From central Shanghai, the subway takes up to an hour but costs just a few pounds. Budget stays: If you're travelling with young children, the Toy Story Hotel is hard to argue with, particularly as rooms start from around £150. Otherwise, The Courtyard by Marriott, which has a free park shuttle and comes in at £136, is a good option,
