4 days ago
‘It's more of a mercy killing than an axing': Channel 10 preparing to announce new current affairs program to replace The Project
TV industry insiders have made grave predictions about the future of Ten's flagship current affairs program The Project amid reports the show will end in the coming months.
Produced by Rove McManus' Roving Enterprises, the weeknight current affairs show first hit Aussie screens in 2009 and has been a mainstay of the network's primetime line up.
According to TV insider Peter Ford, The Project 'won't last' until the end of 2025.
"I don't think The Project will see the year out," Ford told 3AW Breakfast on Friday.
"Quite frankly at the moment, it's more of a mercy killing than an axing."
The series' original panel consisted of Carrie Bickmore, Charlie Pickering and Dave Hughes but its most well-known line up was arguably Bickmore, Peter Helliar, Waleed Aly and Hamish McDonald.
It was this era that saw The Project and its hosts pick up a trophy case of Logie wins, including Gold Logies for Bickmore in 2015 and Aly in 2016.
Bickmore and Helliar left the Melbourne-based show in 2022 amid reported budget cuts and declining viewership at the free-to-air broadcaster.
The struggling program currently features a rotating line up of regular presenters including Aly, Sarah Harris, Sam Taunton and Georgie Tunny from Sunday to Friday.
Meanwhile, industry website TV Blackbox is reporting a new show is being shaped to only air four nights a week — Monday to Thursday — to replace The Project by August.
The new show will reportedly run for just 30 minutes as opposed to The Project's current one-hour timeslot.
It is understood Ten will be broadcasting the new show from Sydney to save on costs and already broadcasts The Project from Sydney on Sundays.
The update comes days after it was revealed Ten has wooed several prominent journalists away from rival Seven with generous salary bumps.
Among the shiny new names at Ten are ex-Spotlight producer and Sunday Night reporter Denham Hitchcock and former Seven correspondent Amelia Brace.
has reached out to Channel 10 for comment.
