HD Heads-Up: February 15
February 15, 2018 
7 Comments
➢ TVNZ 2 is exiting The X-Files from primetime — when the rebooted series returns, it will be in a late-night slot: 11.10 Fridays from March 2. The network is using its US hiatus to replace it with the reality hour, First Dates Australia, which starts its 8.30 Thursday season tonight. Last week’s X-Files rated behind Three’s Married at First Sight and movie This Means War in the key demographics but out-rated TVNZ 1’s The History of Comedy. TVNZ 2’s rescheduling suggests US speculation that Fox won’t renew X-Files for another season is well founded …
➢ Pro-wrestling will screen here in HD for the first time when Maori TV premieres four WWE shows in the week starting February 24: RAW (7.00 Saturdays); Smackdown (7.00 Sundays); This Week (8.00 Fridays); and Experience (10.40 Fridays) …
➢ TVNZ 2 is bringing back The Amazing Race in a fringe primetime slot: season 30 will screen 5.30 Sundays from February 25. Also starting new seasons that week are The Walking Dead (TVNZ 2, 9.45 Monday), Duck Quacks Don’t Echo (Duke, 7.30 Thursday), Madam Secretary (Prime, 9.35 Thursday), NCIS: New Orleans (Prime, 9.30 Friday) and iZombie, which tvnz.co.nz will stream from February 27 (along with new comedy Living Biblically) …
➢ Ending their runs that week are MasterChef Junior USA, Heathrow: Britain’s Busiest Airport and The Secrets of Your Food …
➢ Premiering that week are Islands of the Gulf (TVNZ 1, 7.00 Saturday), Can’t Stand Losing You – Surviving the Police (Prime, 8.30 Monday) and Aussie game show The Wall (TVNZ 1, 7.30 Tuesday). Islands is an update of NZ TV’s first local documentary series, which Shirley Maddock made 50 years ago about the Hauraki Gulf and which her daughter, Elizabeth Easther, is revisiting; The Wall has proved a hit for Channel 7 despite hitting a wall of social media criticism …
➢ Appearing on March 2’s Graham Norton Show (Three, 9.00) are Margot Robbie, Allison Janney, Daniel Kaluuya, Alicia Vikander and Camila …
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February 15, 2018 at 12:49 am
Can’t TVNZ move The X Files to TVNZ Duke, Philip?
Sad way for The X-Files to bow out given how big it was in the 1990s
I have to agree with this article on Stuff, surely they could have come up with a better idea than more reality TV shows? 🙂
https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/101507383/threelife-dancing-with-the-stars-why-mediaworks-new-reality-is-out-of-step
I quite like the new series of The X-Files. Way better than all the reality crap that’s on at present …
Hi Leo. Yes, that could have been possible, although Duke’s primetime mix — comedy, movies, light ent, factual — excludes drama. At least this way TVNZ 2 is still screening The X-Files within days of the US for fans. I was surprised it came back at 8.30 given it didn’t rate well last year. But I imagine that TVNZ 2 thought it was worth another punt ahead of bedding in their Thursday reality block and knew if it flopped that First Dates Australia could easily slip in as the replacement. The ratings were okay but I suspect TVNZ 2 had the inside word from Fox that the Fox network wasn’t going to renew it for a third season and saw there was no potential in trying to build or maintain a primetime following for it.
I see David Duchovny is in New Zealand this week for a couple of shows, if anything weird happens we know where to go 🙂
Jesse Mulligan’s Natradio interview Feb 9: http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2018631359/turns-out-david-duchovny-s-a-singer-songwriter-and-he-s-coming-to-nz