After a month on the air in 2014, it’s high time to look back on five stories that have helped make The Feed the excellent show it is.
5- Nick Frost
Interviewing British funny man Nick Frost about dance fighting is a no-brainer for a successful segment. Thankfully, The Feed’s Marc Fennell is able to hold his own in wit against the great man and this makes for an all the more amusing chat. Frost’s humour and charm can sell anything- case in point, here he manages to make himself sound like a perfectly suitable casting choice for Latin dance contest film, Cuban Fury. Plus- now we have the beauty that is imaging dance fights in place of any regular violence in action films.
4- Buck Angel
For our money, this is kind of thing The Feed exists for. The story of transsexual porn star Buck Angel (nee Susan) is a fascinating one with a wider societal application. Unsurprisingly, the team took a delicate touch to the whole affair- which you know lesser commercial networks would inevitably had a childish giggle about. A play by play of Buck’s life, from female model to male porn star and Trans rights speaker, would make for brilliant viewing alone- the fact that the interview manages to unearth an interesting and wonderful human behind it all is great credit to Patrick and the team.
3- Christchurch
This piece is a far different one to what the show usually tackles, and is all the better for it. A contemplative and human look back on the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, this segment took up much of the show it was presented on. This extended time gave the team the space to check in with different groups of people affected in different way by the quake. The account of the Thompson family, whose son Isaac died in the earthquake, was particularly heartbreaking. Smartly edited and deftly presented, this was human interest at is most humane- not cloying or cheap, just a beautiful and understated look into something tragic.
2- Celebrity Chin Wag
On the total other end of the spectrum, who could possibly find fault in ‘Celebrity Chin Wag’ with Lee Lin Chin? The premise of putting one of the country’s most well respected and long serving political news reporters in charge of the gossip section is funny enough, but what sells this weekly highlight (Monday nights FYI) is Chin’s dedication to apathy. Never impressed, always stylish, this is a segment just begging for its own show.
1- Mardi Gras
LGBTQI communities in big cities, even trendy suburbs of big cities, face regular discrimination and marginalisation. It’s easy to assume this is also, geographically, where most of The Feed’s viewership lies. Therefore, it was a brilliant and well planned move on the show’s part to spend a large portion of its pre-Mardi Gras show focusing on the community in Broken Hill, population 20,000. The community’s Drive the Rainbow campaign focused on raising awareness and drawing supporters out of the woodwork ahead of the better known Sydney Mardi Gras. While they were disappointed with this result, this all made for truly engaging television. From the cringe-worthy pub locals to the joy on the participants’ faces, this is a piece of reporting the crew should be truly proud of.
The Feed airs Monday-Thursday, 7:35 (repeated 10:30) on SBS2
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