New look Sunrise video

DanNews put together this great recap of the new-look Sunrise:



I thought the new look for TV3's Sunrise was really good - a huge improvement and very refreshing.

The more I see that logo, the more it is growing on me; and the new music seems perfect for morning television! The news ticker across the bottom of the screen also looks a lot better.

Well done guys!

Sneak peak at the new Sunrise look

Sunrise's new logo revealed

The new logo for TV3 morning show Sunrise has been revealed, and it is already receiving mixed reviews.

One Facebook user writes: "There's no colour hear. [sic] I don't find it engaging or representative of the character of the show. I think it looks a bit old fashioned."

I am not so sure about it either, but I think perhaps I will reserve judgement until I see it motion with the new music.

Sunrise will launch a new look on Monday, featuring a new studio backdrop, new theme music and new on-screen graphics to go with this new logo. Look out for the television promos over the weekend.

Sacha McNeil gives birth to a girl

Sunrise and 3 News presenter Sacha McNeil has given birth to a baby girl this afternoon.

The new baby has been named Isla and was 6 pound 10.

Congratulations to Sacha and family!

New look coming for Sunrise

From next Monday TV3's Sunrise will re-launch with a brand new look.

The changes are said to give the show a very different look, and will include new on-screen graphics, new music and a new logo.

The presenter line-up will be remaining the same, and it is unlikely that the set will change - perhaps just the graphics on the back screen.

Look out for exciting new promos over the weekend!

Sacha McNeil leaves Sunrise

It was newsreader Sacha McNeil's last day on Sunrise this morning, as she begins her maternity leave.

The show ended with a farewell to Sacha, who has been with the show since it's beginning. Flowers were presented and farewell messages from viewers were also read out by the team - who all seemed rather emotional! A huge basket of toys was also gifted to Sacha by Farmers.

Ingrid Hipkiss will takeover the newsreading position from Monday.

Ingrid Hipkiss joins the Sunrise team

From Monday July 6, Ingrid Hipkiss will officially join the Sunrise team as the news presenter, replacing Sacha McNeil who goes on maternity leave this Friday.

Ingrid Hipkiss was a 3 News political reporter until 2007 when she left to have a baby of her own. She has also been a back-up presenter for Sunrise, 3 News, and Nightline in recent weeks.

"I'm really looking forward to the challenge of presenting with the Sunrise team," says Hipkiss. "I've always been a fan of the show - it's great to start the day with a mix of information and entertainment, and it'll be fun being part of the team making it happen."

Hipkiss will also replace Sacha McNeil as the presenter of 3 News at 12.

Sacha McNeil co-hosted today's Sunrise

Carly Flynn was back presenting segments of Sunrise live from Victoria this morning, so Sacha McNeil took on the dual role of news presenter and co-host in the studio.

I was actually quite impressed with Sacha in the more informal hosting role, and she seemed very relaxed which was great.

There were a few moments where Sacha found herself saying "now it's me with the news" before swivelling her chair around to sit in front of the blue wall, but for just one episode these moments were relatively entertaining.

I wouldn't mind seeing Sacha McNeil in a fill-in role more often, perhaps bringing in Kate Lynch to read the news if she does end up filling in for Carly again.

Sunrise had best Victorian fire coverage

TV3's Sunrise easily had the best coverage of the devastating Victorian fires this morning. Carly Flynn presented large segments of the show live from Melbourne, Australia where she spent time talking with 3 News Australian correspondent Amanda Gillies.

Oliver Driver presented the other segments of the show from the Auckland studio.

From what I have heard, Breakfast only spoke to a reporter via telephone. During the time I spent on TV One this morning all I saw was Paul and Pippa in the studio talking about John Key's cast.

It will be interesting to see tomorrow whether or not an obvious win in coverage for Sunrise will mean any increase in ratings, or if people are only watching their news out of habit.

Carly Flynn live from Australia

As announced at the end of 3 News tonight, tomorrow's edition of Sunrise will feature Carly Flynn presenting live from the scene of the fires and extreme heat in Australia.

Sunrise has been rather interesting lately - Carly Flynn also spent time with the family of Halatau Naitoko, and there was a whole episode dedicated to 'P' addiction.

What surprises me though is the lack of advertising for these special features. I usually only see the one quick ad during 3 News each evening - this should be played more often throughout primetime.

In tonight's case, even the ad didn't mention Carly would be in Australia (as the ad was filmed on Friday) - the only mention of it that we got was a quick sentence from Carolyn Robinson at the end of the news bulletin.

Huge ratings growth for Sunrise

TV3 have reported really positive growth for Sunrise in the key demographics for the month of November.

In TV3's key demographic of 18-49 year-olds Sunrise's ratings increased by 24.1%. The figure was even higher in the Auckland Urban area for this demographic, with a growth of 31.8% recorded there.

In rival Breakfast's key demographic of 25-54 year-olds Sunrise recorded a ratings increase of 25.6%.

The introduction of Oliver Driver seems to be having a really positive effect for the show. It looks as though calls by some to cancel Sunrise may have been premature as ratings continue to grow.

The sun is shining on TV3

The surprise arrival of Oliver Driver on TV3's struggling Sunrise show has proved a hit, according to the latest ratings.

Driver's pairing with Carly Flynn helped boost last month's average audience in the show's target 18-49 demographic by 23 per cent nationwide and by 50 per cent in Auckland. The total audience in the same demographic increased by 18 per cent, from 52,200 to 61,600.

But its TV One rival, Breakfast still led the October ratings, with the 18-49 audience up 30 per cent on last year, and an average audience of more than 130,000 viewers.

In the 6pm slot, 3 News continued to outperform One News in the 18-49 demographic with nearly a third of the audience share.

But One News remained most popular in the 25-54 demographic, with a year-on-year increase of nearly 8 per cent, compared to a 14 per cent drop for 3 News.

TV One's Close Up made gains in its target 25-54 demographic, with a 12 per cent increase on last year. Mark Sainsbury and his team also outshone Campbell Live in the 18-49 sector, rising more than 26 per cent.

Source: NZ Herald

Oliver Driver may interview Barack Obama

Oliver Driver is ready to begin his Sunrise presenting role this week, and many are already singing him praises.

Media commentators are saying that replacing James Coleman with Driver could be the saving of the TV3 morning show. Driver has proven himself to be both funny and quick thinking, but has also shown he has a great journalistic quality to add to the TV3 brand.

In his role at Alt TV, Driver has performed successful interviews with Helen Clark, John Key, Robert Fisk and Phil Goff - he was the one who got Goff to reveal he would like to lead the Labour Party.

Rumour has it that if Barack Obama wins the US elections, Oliver Driver will get a one-on-one interview with the new President. It seems that an Alt TV staff member's mother is one of Obama's advisers and has pulled a few strings to get Driver the interview. If this interview does actually eventuate then it will be a big win for both Alt TV and Sunrise.

Oliver Driver joins Carly Flynn to host Sunrise tomorrow at the new time of 7.00am.

Oliver Driver to co-host Sunrise

TV3 announced this morning that Oliver Driver is to replace James Coleman as the co-host of Sunrise.

Driver will begin hosting alongside Carly Flynn from Monday, October 6 - the same day that ASB Business begins at 6.30am and Sunrise moves to screen between 7.00am and 9.00am. Coincidence? I think not.

Driver, perhaps best known for his presenting roles with TVNZ and NewstalkZB, said in a media statement that "TV3 have offered me a challenge I couldn't resist and after years of hassling mainstream news it looks like it's time to put my money where my mouth is."

Mark Jennings, Director of News & Current Affairs at TV3, stated that "Oliver has shown that he has a very good grasp of the news agenda and is skilled at drawing out fresh information in interviews, he also has a wide knowledge of other areas of New Zealand life and most essentially, a wicked sense of humour."

Will the addition of Oliver Driver provide the ratings boost that Sunrise needs? And will the NZ Herald ever stop using the "rigor mortis" quote in every Sunrise-related article? Only time will tell.

James Coleman leaving Sunrise

In a shocking announcement, TV3 has revealed James Coleman is leaving the morning show Sunrise effective immediately.

Coleman has presented the show alongside Carly Flynn since it began in October 2007.

"I’ve been with the show for a year now and I feel that it’s an appropriate time to pursue some exciting new opportunities that have arisen within MediaWorks, both in radio and television," Coleman said in a media release.

Will a change of presenter have a positive effect on the shows ratings? One agency puts Sunrise's ratings at around 30,000 while it's rival Breakfast has been receiving 140,000.

Ali Ikram will present the show with Flynn until an announcement regarding a permanent host will be made "in the coming weeks".

TV3 expands ASB Business

Due to the recent success of Michael Wilson's business coverage during Sunrise and 3 News at 12, TV3 are expanding ASB Business to a half hour show starting Monday 6 October at 6.30am.

Mark Jennings, TV3's Director of News and Current affairs says "The current turmoil on financial markets affects us all and ASB Business will play an important role in providing the latest information and timely analysis for a wide range of viewers. This is a good time to start a programme that will look at all the issues around personal investment as well as business and the economy."

Sunrise will move forward and now screen between 7.00am and 9.00am.

New look for TV3 news and current affairs

The brand new TV3 set has now been completely revealed and I must say that it is pretty impressive.

The new set is excellent and really does fit the "ultra-modern" description given by TV3's director of news and current affairs Mark Jennings. Presenters sit at the same long glass-top desk in each show, and you are able to see under the bottom half of the desk - no getting away with wearing jeans now guys! It seems that the same desk is used for both 3 News and Sunrise, and the couch area of Sunrise transforms into the Campbell Live set at night. However, with clever background changes it doesn't look as blatantly obvious that they are using the same set as it did with the previous one. The wide shot of the set at the beginning of 3 News at 6pm looks amazing!

Sunrise and Campbell Live have kept the same graphics and they suit the new set perfectly fine. 3 News has completely updated theirs, however in my opinion the graphics have really let down the makeover. The set looks perfect but the graphics look like they have been created in Microsoft Paint and the tones of green and blue are extremely harsh on the eyes. The split screen looks like it was created at the last minute, and the text on the straps looks a little large.

Overall, the new set is perfect and is a real improvement yet it is let down by a poor graphics package for 3 News. Sunrise and Campbell Live seem to have come out as the major winners in the change of appearance - my absolute favourite part was the interactive screen John used on Campbell Live. Check out the screen shots I took below:

TV3 relaunch videos

3 NEWS & CAMPBELL LIVE RELAUNCH:

SUNRISE RELAUNCH:


3 NEWS AT 12 RELAUNCH:

Courtesy of dannewsvideo.

New Sunrise set on TV3

TV3 have unveiled their new set this morning with a very flash looking Sunrise.

I must say I am pretty impressed so far! The backdrop behind Carly and James at the main desk gives the impression that they are in front of a big window overlooking the city, and there is a new couch area to the left of the Sunrise desk with a white couch and dark orange backdrop. Sacha and Rod now both sit to the right of the two main hosts. One thing I was a bit worried about was the fact that you would be able to see underneath the bottom hald of the desk, however it didn't look so bad on screen. ASB Business also looked good in the new Sunrise area - so good that I thought it was in a different part of the studio to begin with.

Interestingly, they have not changed the graphics package for Sunrise and the presenter lineup has remained the same despite many rumours Carly Flynn would be replaced with Jacquie Brown or Petra Bagust.

Drama on the Sunrise set

Sources have told Media Fetish that work on the new Sunrise set has hit an unexpected bump in the road. It seems the large Sunrise logo from the front of the old desk has gone missing, perhaps taken by somebody who thought it was no longer going to be used and wanted a souvenir.

However, Sunrise bosses have asked staff to return the sign if they know of its whereabouts, as it apparently is needed as part of the new set.

This strange story provides at least one answer to morning show enthusiasts - the Sunrise logo will be staying the same. While we can confirm that 3 News will receive a new graphics package, development at Sunrise is staying rather more secretive.