Saturday Disney was a long-running Australian television block which aired on Saturday mornings from January 27, 1990 to September 24, 2016. Produced by Buena Vista International and the Seven Network Australia, the show was a television block which consisted mainly of Disney television series dispersed between hosted content.
History of the show and series that aired[]
Originally proposed to be an Australian edition of the international franchise, The Disney Club. The producers convinced Disney to allow them to use the Saturday Disney title to avoid confusion with The Mickey Mouse Club.
Saturday Disney was originally a two-hour program airing three programs.
The show had three hosts at any one time, always consisting of two females and one male. The only exception of having more than three hosts on air at one time was whenever a co-host was leaving and their replacement was introduced on screen either a number of weeks beforehand, or during the final episode of the co-host who was leaving. The presenters were also credited as 'segment producers', and wrote and researched their own stories, they were also featured in the Australian edition of the Disney Adventures magazine.
TaleSpin, Darkwing Duck, Goof Troop, Raw Toonage, Marsupilami, and Bonkers all had their Australian premieres on this block.
The show was originally filmed in Brisbane, but moved production to Sydney. The show has filmed in Disneyland several times, most notably for its 1000th show.
At first, the show only aired Disney animated series while the live action series Disney made aired afterwards, it eventually started airing live action series starting with Hannah Montana.
From 2012 to 2016, the show expanded to three-hours airing five programs.
Saturday Disney aired its final episode on September 24, 2016.
Interstitial Segment[]
The Assistant — a parody of reality television series The Apprentice.
Double Dog Dare — Each host took turns (one each week) to complete ridiculous, embarrassing or challenging tasks which may have resulted in eating unusual food punishments upon failure, regularly ingredients mixed in a blender. Ideas for dares and punishments were regularly sent in by viewers. This popular segment was a prominent feature of the show for many years.
Hazard Man — A comedy segment about a childish superhero, played by host Marc Buhaj.
Letter of the Week — A chosen fan letter which could be letters, drawings, or art sent in by viewers. Winners usually received many prizes, and the artwork was displayed around the set.
Shows[]
Trivia[]
- Series that were not made by Disney, but still distributed by them, like Sabrina the Animated Series and Science Court also aired on this show.
- During the mid-90s, Channel 7 would air Dinosaurs after the block.
- While Gargoyles premiered on the block, Channel 7 would later air it later in the morning due to it being more mature than the other shows on the block.