# 2002 in Australian television

"none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]]

## Events

* 25 January – Richard Morecroft reads his last ABC News bulletin. He is replaced the following Monday by Tony Eastley.
* 4 February – Nine cast members from All Saints participate in The Weakest Link: All Saints Special to mark the first and only anniversary of The Weakest Link in Australia. Erik Thomson wins the special, but his winnings are unknown.
* 11 February – The Nine Network's post-Sale of the Century replacement, Shafted hosted by former Hey Hey It's Saturday member Red Symons premieres. After dismal ratings the show is cancelled in April the same year. On the same day the network's post-Burgo's Catch Phrase replacement Pass the Buck, a new game show based on the UK game show containing a word association premieres leading into Nine's most-watched 6pm news bulletin, After dismal ratings the show is cancelled in May the same year.
* 20 February – American science fiction fantasy series Star Trek: Enterprise premieres on the Nine Network.
* 11 March – The Seven Network's Docklands studios in Melbourne open, with the first Seven News Melbourne news bulletin being broadcast from the centre. This leads to a national relaunch of the Seven News brand with new sets and graphics in most cities. Also on that day, the nine remaining contestants from the third season of The Mole take part in a special episode of The Weakest Link for a chance to add $100,000 to the prize kitty. The team performed well against expectations, winning only $14,100, the lowest amount ever won on the Australian version of the show. On The Mole, this figure is rounded up to $15,000. The show was cancelled one month later after dismal ratings.
* 6 March – Foxtel introduces a new sports channel called Fox Footy Channel. It runs until 1 October 2006.
* 20 March – Tim Lane resigns from the Nine Network following a disagreement in regards to commentating AFL matches with Eddie McGuire involving the Collingwood Football Club. Lane defects to rival Network Ten in 2003, where he remained until Ten lost the rights at the end of 2011.
* 28 March – The Nine Network televises its first AFL game until Nine lost the TV rights at the end of 2006.
* 30 March – The Western Front premieres on Network Ten in Perth and was hosted by Tim Gossage and Lachy Reid.
* 30 March – Network Ten televises its first AFL game until Ten lost the TV rights at the end of 2011.
* 8 April – Frasier returns to the Nine Network and the show debuts its 7:00 pm weeknight timeslot.
* 8 April – Australian media analysis television program Media Watch returns to air on the ABC several months after the broadcaster had removed its former managing director Jonathan Shier with David Marr taking over as host as Paul Barry had been sacked by Shier in 2000 following its cancellation.
* 24 April – Crystal-Rose Cluff wins the third season of The Mole, taking home $108,000 in prize money. Alaina Taylor is revealed as the Mole, and Marc Jongebloed is the runner-up.
* 2 May – Final episode of the Australian drama series (which is the very first television series in Australia to be filmed in widescreen) Something in the Air airs on ABC.
* 16 May – Kath & Kim premieres on the ABC and is a surprise hit. It was picked up by the Seven Network in 2007.
* 1 July – Peter Corbett wins the second season of Big Brother.
* 2 July – American science fiction fantasy series Smallville premieres on the Nine Network.
* 26 July – Mixy ends after 4-year run and it will be replaced by children's weekday morning and afternoon blocks on the ABC.
* 6 August – Eddie McGuire and Catriona Rowntree present an all new IQ test television series called Test Australia: The National IQ Test which is airing on Nine Network. It has also been ranked as the most watched television show for 2002 in Australia.
* 8 August – The American action drama series 24 premieres on the Seven Network.
* 12 August –
** After being cancelled in 2001, Burgo's Catch Phrase relaunches on the Nine Network and is a surprise hit, with new graphics, new theme music and new prizes with the contestant backdrop increased to three people with the game show been produced by Southern Star Endemol, leading into Nine's most-watched 6pm news bulletin.
** TV and radio personality Dylan Lewis is voted winner of Celebrity Big Brother.
** The Australian drama White Collar Blue premieres on Network Ten.
* September – SBS launches its first Digital channel, the SBS World News Channel.
* 1 September – The Nine Network undergoes a revamp to change their on-air graphics, including changing their dots back to spears as well as the numeral becoming 3D for the colour-coded days.
* 30 September – The Wiggles return to television with a brand new television series called Lights, Camera, Action, Wiggles! airing for the first time ever on ABC.
* 4 October – Beyblade premieres on Fox Kids and two weeks later on Network Ten as part of Cheez TV. Also that day, David Koch takes over from Chris Reason as co-host of Sunrise, a role which he still holds as of today.
* 29 November – Brian Henderson retires from reading Sydney's National Nine News after four decades. He is replaced the following Monday by Jim Waley, who manages to keep the bulletin on top of the ratings in Sydney for the next two years.

## Channels
### New channels

* 6 March – Fox Footy Channel

### Defunct channels

* 30 November – Oh! (replaced by FOX8 on Optus Television)

## Premieres
### Domestic series

| Program | Channel | Debut date |
| The Garden Gurus | Nine Network | 2 February |
| Shafted | Nine Network | 11 February |
| Pass the Buck | Nine Network | 11 February |
| Auction Squad | Seven Network | 13 February |
| Australian Survivor | Nine Network | 13 February |
| Fear Factor | Nine Network | 19 February |
| Saturday Night Footy | Network Ten | 30 March |
| Kath & Kim | ABC TV | 16 May |
| Old Tom | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 6 June |
| Young Lions | Nine Network | 17 July |
| Celebrity Big Brother | Network Ten | 21 July |
| MDA | ABC TV | 23 July |
| Test Australia: The National IQ Test | Nine Network | 6 August |
| White Collar Blue | Network Ten | 12 August |
| Creature Features | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 9 September |
| CNNNN | ABC TV | 19 September |
| Lights, Camera, Action, Wiggles! | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 30 September |
| Don't Blame Me | Nine Network | 6 October |
| Fairy Tale Police Department | Seven Network | 18 October |
| Mornings with Kerri-Anne | Nine Network | 28 October |
| Bad Cop, Bad Cop | ABC TV | 18 November |

### International series

| Program | Channel | Debut date |
| Level 9 | Nine Network | 4 January |
| Yizo Yizo | SBS TV | 5 January |
| Two Thousand Acres of Sky | Seven Network | 6 January |
| The Strip | Nine Network | 7 January |
| Hitler's Holocaust | SBS TV | 10 January |
| / Secrets of the Dead | SBS TV | 13 January |
| The Cindy Margolis Show | Nine Network | 14 January |
| Vampires, Pirates and Aliens | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 30 January |
| Atlantis High | ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 February |
| Merlin the Magical Puppy | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 February |
| Busy Buses | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 February |
| The Hoobs | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 February |
| Eddy and the Bear | ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 February |
| Little Ghosts | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 February |
| The Famous Five (1995) | ABC Kids (digital only) | 5 February |
| The Adventures of Dawdle the Donkey | ABC Kids (digital only) | 9 February |
| Black Books | ABC TV | 14 February |
| The Six Wives of Henry VIII | ABC TV | 17 February |
| North Square | ABC TV | 20 February |
| Star Trek: Enterprise | Nine Network | 20 February |
| Digimon Tamers | Network Ten | 26 February |
| / Don't Eat the Neighbours | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 7 March |
| The Kumars at No. 42 | ABC TV | 21 March |
| Connie the Cow | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 17 April |
| / Guinevere Jones | Network Ten | 4 May |
| Rescue Heroes | Network Ten | 6 May |
| Night and Day | ABC TV | 7 May |
| The Legend of Tarzan | Seven Network | 18 May |
| Angelina Ballerina | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 27 May |
| Fourways Farm | ABC Kids (digital only) | 6 June |
| / Starhill Ponies | ABC Kids (digital only) | 6 June |
| / Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001) | Network Ten | 9 June |
| Sir Gadabout: The Worst Knight in the Land | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 10 June |
| Molly's Gang | ABC Kids (digital only) | 10 June |
| Dog and Duck | ABC Kids (digital only) | 10 June |
| Construction Site | ABC Kids (digital only) | 12 June |
| Teacher's Pet | Seven Network | 22 June |
| / Queer as Folk | SBS TV | 1 July |
| Smallville | Nine Network | 2 July |
| The Way We Live Now (2001) | ABC TV | 7 July |
| The Book Group | ABC TV | 12 July |
| / Cyberchase | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 15 July |
| SpongeBob SquarePants | Network Ten | 12 August |
| Caillou | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 15 August |
| Baby Blues | Nine Network | 31 August |
| Band of Brothers | Nine Network | 2 September |
| Medabots | Network Ten | 14 September |
| The Ripping Friends | Fly TV (digital only) | 14 September |
| Pongwiffy | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 16 September |
| Olliver's Adventures | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 16 September |
| Engie Benjy | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 16 September |
| Zoids: Chaotic Century | Network Ten | 17 September |
| Curb Your Enthusiasm | Nine Network | 23 September |
| Small Potatoes (1999) | ABC TV | 3 October |
| Beyblade | Network Ten | 14 October |
| Anne of Green Gables: The Animated Series | Network Ten | 12 October |
| The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius | Network Ten | 18 October |
| Dr. Phil | Nine Network | 21 October |
| / Ace Lightning | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 22 October |
| Bounty Hamster | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 4 November |
| Andy Pandy (2002) | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 7 November |
| Foyle's War | ABC TV | 8 November |
| Teletubbies Everywhere | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2 December |
| / The Dead Zone | Nine Network | 2 December |
| Mr. Bean: The Animated Series | ABC TV | 3 December |
| Archie's Weird Mysteries | Seven Network | 7 December |
| Funny Little Bugs | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 9 December |
| / X-DuckX | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 23 December |
| The Adventures of Mole | Seven Network | 26 December |
| The Adventures of Toad | Seven Network | 27 December |
| Animal Ark | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| // Anthony Ant | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| /// Upstairs, Downstairs Bears | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| // Blazing Dragons | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Buzz and Poppy | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Oscar Charlie | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Binka | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Snailsbury Tales | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Oswald | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| / Slim Pig | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| The Wheels on the Bus | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| / Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings (2002) | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| / Henry's World | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| The Fantastic Flying Journey | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Mopatop's Shop | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Skipper & Skeeto | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Microscopic Milton | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Letters from Felix | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Coupling | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Scrubs | Seven Network | 2002 |
| 24 | Seven Network | 2002 |
| Sheena | Network Ten | 2002 |
| The Queen's Nose | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| / Clifford the Big Red Dog | Nine Network | 2002 |
| Footballers' Wives | Network Ten | 2002 |
| Amazon | Nine Network | 2002 |
| Dog Eat Dog | Seven Network | 2002 |
| Really Wild Animals | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Freakylinks | Nine Network | 2002 |
| // Dark Realm | Nine Network | 2002 |
| Hollywood 7 | Seven Network | 2002 |
| / The Amazing Adrenalini Brothers | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |
| Hype | Nine Network | 2002 |
| Big Bag | ABC Kids (digital only) | 2002 |

#### Subscription television
##### Domestic

| Program | Channel | Debut date |
| A Day in the Life | Arena | 20 February |

##### International

| Program | Channel | Debut date |
| Osbournes, The The Osbournes | MTV | 4 April |
| Shinzo | Fox Kids | 8 April |
| Time Squad Time Squad | Cartoon Network | 3 May |
| Justice League Justice League | Cartoon Network | 8 June |
| // The Cramp Twins | Cartoon Network | 1 July |
| The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius | Nickelodeon | 26 July |
| Zoids: Chaotic Century Zoids: Chaotic Century | Cartoon Network | 2 September |
| Beyblade | Fox Kids | 4 October |
| Story of Tracy Beaker, The The Story of Tracy Beaker | Nickelodeon | 18 October |
| Fun at the Funeral Parlor | UKTV | 22 October |
| Anna Nicole Show, The The Anna Nicole Show | Arena | 5 November |
| Lenny Henry in Pieces | UKTV | 9 November |
| Yu-Gi-Oh! | Nickelodeon | 2002 |
| The Fairly OddParents! | Nickelodeon | 2002 |
| Invader Zim | Nickelodeon | 2002 |
| Kim Possible | Disney Channel | 2002 |

## Specials

| Program | Channel | Debut date |
| 2002 Country Music Association Awards | Main Event | 7 November |

### Free-to-air premieres

This is a list of programs which made their premiere on Australian free-to-air television that had previously premiered on Australian subscription television. Programs may still air on the original subscription television network.

#### International

| Program | Free-to-air network | Subscription network | Date |
| The Osbournes | Network Ten | MTV | 1 July |

### Subscription premieres

This is a list of programs which made their premiere on Australian subscription television that had previously premiered on Australian free-to-air television. Programs may still air on the original free-to-air television network.

#### Domestic

| Program | Subscription network | Free-to-air network | Date |
| Li'l Horrors | Fox Kids | Seven Network | 2002 |

#### International

| Program | Subscription network | Free-to-air network | Date |
| / The Saddle Club | Fox Kids | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Saved by the Bell: The College Years Saved by the Bell: The College Years | Nickelodeon | Seven Network | 5 October |
| Mary-Kate and Ashley in Action! Mary-Kate and Ashley in Action! | Nickelodeon | | 14 October |

### Changes to network affiliation

This is a list of programs which made their premiere on an Australian television network that had previously premiered on another Australian television network. The networks involved in the switch of allegiances are predominantly both free-to-air networks or both subscription television networks. Programs that have their free-to-air/subscription television premiere, after previously premiering on the opposite platform (free-to air to subscription/subscription to free-to air) are not included. In some cases, programs may still air on the original television network. This occurs predominantly with programs shared between subscription television networks.

#### Domestic

| Program | New network(s) | Previous network(s) | Date |
| Elly & Jools | ABC Kids (digital only) | Nine Network | 23 February |
| Lizzie's Library | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |

#### International

| Program | New network(s) | Previous network(s) | Date |
| The Zack Files | ABC TV | ABC Kids (digital only) | 27 February |
| / George Shrinks | ABC TV | ABC Kids (digital only) | 1 April |
| Sailor Moon | Network Ten | Seven Network | 12 April |
| Percy the Park Keeper | ABC TV, ABC Kids (digital only) | Nine Network | 1 August |
| The Forgotten Toys (TV special) | Seven Network | ABC TV | 21 December |
| The New Adventures of Madeline | Seven Network | ABC TV | 22 December |
| The First Snow of Winter | Seven Network | ABC TV | 24 December |
| Harry and the Hendersons | Network Ten | ABC TV | 2002 |
| The Kids of Degrassi Street | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Katie and Orbie | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| / The Animals of Farthing Wood | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| / Babar | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Koki | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Barney & Friends | ABC Kids (digital only) | Nine Network | 2002 |
| Bananaman | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Byker Grove | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Bump in the Night | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| The Greedysaurus Gang | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Degrassi Junior High | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| Monty | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |
| True Tilda | ABC Kids (digital only) | ABC TV | 2002 |

## Ending / resting this year

| Date | Show | Channel | Debut |
| 11 January | Cybergirl | Network Ten | 21 July 2001 |
| 22 April | The Weakest Link | Seven Network | 5 February 2001 |
| 2 May | Something in the Air | ABC TV | 17 January 2000 |
| 7 July | Halifax f.p. | Seven Network | 9 October 1994 |
| 26 July | Mixy | ABC TV | 16 February 1998 |
| 29 September | All Aussie Adventures | Network Ten | 5 August 2001 |
| 14 November | BackBerner | ABC TV | 19 August 1999 |
| 18 December | Young Lions | Nine Network | 17 July 2002 |