Former triple j breakfast host Tom Ballard has been named as the host of an upcoming ABC television panel show called “Reality Check”. The series promises to lift “the lid on the juggernaut that is reality TV.
“We may froth about ‘Game Of Thrones’ and ‘True Detective’, but for all the social media noise, those shows are not what the public is really watching. No. They’re glued to ordinary people competing for TV prizes, for the promise of love, fame, riches, a new career, a different life,” reads the announcement.
Comedian Tom Ballard will be joined each week by three industry experts who will give viewers an understanding of what goes on behind the cameras of the world’s most-watched television genre. The series will air later this year and will be co-produced by Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder and ABC TV.
“Reality is dramatic, funny, poignant, and in many ways, reflects our community more accurately than any other genre, said Nick Murray, Managing Director CJZ. “This series examines how it works and asks the question: if Steven Spielberg is a genius for making audiences cry, why shouldn’t reality producers be lauded for doing the same thing?”
“I couldn’t be happier that CJZ and the ABC TV accidentally came across my audition tape for ‘Australia’s Next Top Model’ and decided to give me this job,” said host Tom Ballard. “I’m looking forward to celebrating and laughing at the inner workings of this cultural phenomenon. I’m also excited to be able to finally count live-tweeting ‘The Voice: Kids’ as ‘work’ and to claim all my Justice Crew merch on tax.”
