Wikipedia

The Assembly (TV series)

The Assembly is a seven-part Australian television documentary series on ABC TV, which premiered on 20 August 2024.

The Assembly
GenreDocumentary television
Based onLes Rencontres du Papotin
by Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache
Directed byMelissa Maclean
Presented byLeigh Sales
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes7
Production
Executive producers
  • Melissa Maclean
  • Mark Fennessy
  • Therese Hegarty
  • Vanessa Oxlad
  • Julie Hanna
ProducerMark Fennessy
Running time60 minutes
Production companyHelium Pictures
Original release
NetworkABC TV
Release20 August 2024 (2024-08-20) –
present

Format

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Hosted and mentored by Leigh Sales,[1] the documentary series focuses on a group of 15 autistic journalism students and lecturers at Macquarie University[2] as they prepare for and eventually interview some of Australia's best-known personalities.[3] The students have been given paid internship at the ABC.[4] The series' format is based on French series Les Rencontres du Papotin [fr], created by Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache.[1]

Production

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The seven-part series[5] is produced by Mark Fennessy's Helium Pictures for the ABC, with production beginning in May. Fennessy also executive produces the Australian version alongside director Melissa Maclean, Therese Hegarty,[1] Vanessa Oxlad and Julie Hanna.[6]

Season overview

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Season Episodes Originally aired
Season premiere Season finale
1 7 20 August 2024[6] 30 September 2024[7]

Episodes

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Season 1 (2024)

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No.
overall		No. in
season		Interviewee
Title		Original air dateAus. viewers
(national)
11Sam Neill[8]20 August 2024 (2024-08-20)577,000[9]
22Hamish Blake[10]27 August 2024 (2024-08-27)486,000[11]
33Anthony Albanese[12]3 September 2024 (2024-09-03)435,000[13]
44Delta Goodrem[14]10 September 2024 (2024-09-10)415,000[15]
55Adam Goodes[16]17 September 2024 (2024-09-17)415,000[17]
66Amanda Keller[18]24 September 2024 (2024-09-24)381,000[19]
77Becoming the Assembly[7]30 September 2024 (2024-09-30)298,000[20]

Reception

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The first episode of The Assembly received an overnight average audience of 577,000 viewers,[21] alongside a national audience reach of 859,000 viewers.[9]

David Knox of TV Tonight gave the series four out of five stars.[12] Debi Enker of The Sydney Morning Herald wrote about the series' tone, "The tone of The Assembly, like other ABC factual productions, is warm. ... So in addition to being a worthwhile and engaging undertaking, it represents a breath of fresh air in terms of TV interviews, particularly those featuring politicians, but not confined to them.[22] The show has also been criticised as ableist,[23] with further criticism over the fact that the journalism students, initially, were not to be paid.[24][25]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Whittock, Jesse (9 May 2024). "'The Assembly', Groundbreaking Interview Format That Sent Michael Sheen Viral, Set For Australian Remake". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  2. ^ Rugendyke, Louise (15 August 2024). "Leigh Sales on the bold show that puts 15 autistic students in charge". TV & radio. The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney: Nine Entertainment. Archived from the original on 15 August 2024. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  3. ^ Laidlaw, Kyle (10 May 2024). "ABC announces 10 additional new series still to come in 2024". TV Blackbox. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  4. ^ Vann-Wall, Silvi (12 June 2024). "ABC offers internships to cast of The Assembly". ScreenHub. Creative Hubs Group. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  5. ^ Sales, Leigh (15 August 2024). "Leigh Sales on what she learned about interviewing from autistic journalism students on The Assembly". ABC Backstory. ABC News. Sydney: Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 24 August 2024. While The Assembly's official guest list is six people long — Sam Neill, Hamish Blake, Anthony Albanese, Delta Goodrem, Adam Goodes and Amanda Keller — as it turns out, there was a seventh interview.[non-primary source needed]
  6. ^ a b Knox, David (22 July 2024). "Airdate: The Assembly". TV Tonight. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  7. ^ a b Knox, David (30 September 2024). "The Assembly: Sept 30". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  8. ^ Ellis, Scott (15 August 2024). "Actor Sam Neill fields fabulous questions on 'The Assembly'". Now To Love. Are Media. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  9. ^ a b Knox, David (21 August 2024). "Tuesday 20 August 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  10. ^ Knox, David (26 August 2024). "The Assembly: Aug 27". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  11. ^ Knox, David (28 August 2024). "Tuesday 27 August 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  12. ^ a b Knox, David (18 August 2024). "The Assembly". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  13. ^ Knox, David (4 September 2024). "Tuesday 3 September 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  14. ^ Knox, David (9 September 2024). "The Assembly: Sept 10". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  15. ^ Knox, David (11 September 2024). "Tuesday 10 September 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  16. ^ Knox, David (16 September 2024). "The Assembly: Sept 17". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  17. ^ Knox, David (18 September 2024). "Tuesday 17 September 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  18. ^ Knox, David (23 September 2024). "The Assembly: Sept 24". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  19. ^ Knox, David (25 September 2024). "Tuesday 24 September 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  20. ^ Knox, David (1 October 2024). "Monday 30 September 2024". TV Tonight. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
  21. ^ Knox, David (21 August 2024). "The Assembly doubles Made in Bondi debut". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  22. ^ Enker, Debi (22 August 2024). "Real people in unreal situations: why series like The Assembly engage". Green Guide. The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney: Nine Entertainment. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  23. ^ Delmenico, John (11 October 2024). "ABC's assembly of ableist tropes". The Shot. The Shot. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  24. ^ Delmenico, John (11 October 2024). "John Delmenico's tweet". Twitter. Twitter. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  25. ^ Knox, David (11 October 2024). "Auditions: Autism-friendly interview program". TV Tonight. TV Tonight. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
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