2015 in Australian television
This is a list of Australian television events and premieres that are scheduled to occur in 2015, the 60th year of continuous operation of television in Australia.
Events
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
Channels
Channel launches
- 1 February – Food Network, HGTV, Travel Channel
- 28 March – Foxtel Arts, Foxtel Movies Disney+2
- 28 August – Racing.com
- 17 November – Food Network Australia
- 26 November – 9Life, 9HD
Closed channels
- 15 March – TVN
- 28 March – STUDIO
- 31 October – Bio.
- 26 November – eXtra
- 20 December – TVS
Renamed channels
- 1 August – 111
- 26 November – 9Go!
- 26 November – 9Gem
Deaths
- 8 January – Rod Taylor, actor who starred in the American TV series Hong Kong, Bearcats!, and The Oregon Trail
- 9 January – Sarah Kemp, actress best known for her role in Sons and Daughters.
- 20 January – James Walker, screenwriter for numerous dramas including McLeod's Daughters, Home & Away and Neighbours.
- 3 February – Norman Yemm, theatre and television actor and sportsman
- 25 February – Terry Gill British born Australian actor, star of Crocodile Dundee and soap opera The Flying Doctors, also portrayed Santa Claus at the annual Carols by Candlelight
- 23 March – Michael Laurence, Television producer and scriptwriter, best known for television movie and serial Return to Eden
- 10 April – Richie Benaud, Wide World of Sports cricket commentator for the Nine Network.
- 17 April – Betty Lucas, Australian theatre and television soap actress known for Prisoner, Taurus Rising and Richmond Hill.
- 26 May – Bob Hornery, actor who played Tom Kennedy in Neighbours.
- 5 June – Alan Bond, Australian businessman who previously owned the Nine Network.
- 21 September – Yoram Gross, Film producer, animation director and film studio owner, creator of the film adaptations of Blinky Bill, including and Dot and the Kangaroo and its numerous sequels
- 23 September – Mike Gibson, Australian television sports journalist and commentator, known for Nine's Wide World of Sports and Fox program The Back Page
11 December – Harry Butler, AO, OBE Environment conservationist, TV presenter In the Wild and Australian of the Year 1979
- 21 December – Carol Burns Actress and Queensland Theatre Company founder, played Franky Doyle in Ten Network series Prisoner
Ratings
On subscription television, all but one of the top twenty most watched titles was sport, including the 2015 Cricket World Cup Final on Fox Sports 3, which topped the list with 616,000 viewers. The only non-sport program making the list was Game of Thrones which averaged 356,000 across its season.
Premieres
Domestic series
International series
Telemovies and miniseries
Program | Original airdate | Network | Country of origin | Source |
Olive Kitteridge | Showcase | United States | ||
Sons of Liberty | SBS | United States | ||
Pants on Fire | Disney XD | United States | ||
Bad Hair Day | Disney Channel | United States | ||
The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst | showcase | United States | ||
Houdini | Seven Network | United States | ||
Splitting Adam | Nickelodeon | United States | ||
Teen Beach 2 | Disney Channel | United States | ||
Descendants | Disney Channel | United States | ||
7 Days in Hell | showcase | United States | ||
One Crazy Cruise | Nickelodeon | United States | ||
Cartoon Network | United States | |||
Flesh and Bone | Stan | United States | ||
The Ridiculous 6 | Netflix | United States |
Documentaries
Program | Original airdate | Network | Country of origin | Source |
Chef's Table | Netflix | United States |
Specials
Program | Original airdate | Network | Country of origin | Source |
Hugh Laurie: Live on the Queen Mary | Bio. | United Kingdom | ||
The Comedy Central Roast of Justin Bieber | The Comedy Channel | United States | ||
Eurovision's Greatest Hits | SBS | United Kingdom | ||
Mission Pluto | National Geographic Channel | United States | ||
A Very Murray Christmas | Netflix | United States |
Programming changes
Changes to network affiliation
Criteria for inclusion in the following list is that Australian premiere episodes will air in Australia for the first time on a new channel. This includes when a program is moved from a free-to-air network's primary channel to a digital multi-channel, as well as when a program moves between subscription television channels – provided the preceding criteria is met. Ended television series which change networks for repeat broadcasts are not included in the list.Program | Date | New network | Previous network | Source |
River Cottage Australia | LifeStyle Food | The LifeStyle Channel | ||
Fashion Bloggers | E! | Style Network | ||
Plonk | Stan | Eleven | ||
A Place To Call Home | SoHo | Seven Network | ||
The Great Australian Bake Off | LifeStyle Food | Nine Network |
Free-to-air premieres
This is a list of programs which made their premiere on Australian free-to-air television that had previously premiered on Australian subscription television. Programs may still air on the original subscription television network.Program | Date | Free-to-air network | Subscription network | Country of origin | Source |
Louis Theroux's LA Stories | ABC | BBC Knowledge | United Kingdom | ||
Terror in the Skies | Seven Network | National Geographic Channel | United States | ||
Dig | SBS | Stan | United States | ||
The Politician's Husband | ABC | BBC First | United Kingdom | ||
Peaky Blinders | ABC | BBC First | United Kingdom | ||
The Strain | Eleven | FOX8 | United States |
Subscription premieres
This is a list of programs which made their debut on Australian subscription television, having previously premiered on Australian free-to-air television. Programs may still air on the original free-to-air television network.Program | Date | Free-to-air network | Subscription network | Country of origin | Source |
Under The Dome | Network Ten | TV H!TS | United States | ||
Brooklyn Nine-Nine | SBS | Universal Channel | United States | ||
Howard Defined | Seven Network | Sky News Australia | Australia | ||
Thank God You're Here | Network Ten Seven Network | Comedy | Australia | ||
Scandal | Seven Network | SoHo | United States | ||
Mrs. Brown's Boys | Seven Network | BBC UKTV | United Kingdom | ||
Winners & Losers | Seven Network | SoHo | Australia | ||
SBS 2 | FX | United States | |||
Empire | Network Ten | FOX8 | United States | ||
Motive | Seven Network | Universal Channel | Canada | ||
Please Like Me | The Comedy Channel | ABC | Australia |
Returning programs
Australian produced programs which are returning with a new season after being absent from television from the previous calendar year.Program | Return date | Network | Original run | Source |
RPM | Network Ten | 1997—2011 | ||
Gruen | ABC | 2008–2013 | ||
The Celebrity Apprentice | Nine Network | 2011–2013 |