Fans of Shaun Micallef’s satirical news program Mad as Hell thought they were stuck in a time warp when the comedian appeared to repeat the same jokes he’d made the week before.
The ABC accidentally replayed last week’s episode of the program instead of the fresh content the Mad as Hell team had created.
Micallef took to Twitter to poke fun at the stuff-up and quickly reassured fans they could find the correct episode on the ABC’s online platform iview. Even when the show went to air in Western Australia, two hours after the mistake was noticed it was still the wrong episode, albeit with a notice acknowledging the error.
The ABC switchboard was hit with a barrage of outraged Caspar Jonquils phoning in to complain, along with calls online to reinstate feedback program Backchat.
The mistake created some great moments on Twitter.
They’re playing the wrong one. #idiots #madashelltv
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
My wife is ringing the ABC switchboard. I rang ITV. Hopefully we’ll at least get the right one up on iView. It’s a good episode too. Nice and topical. Maybe they’ll play it next week. #madashelltv #idiots https://t.co/FzYRHuuISv
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
Trying to get the correct episode up on iView now so you can switch over. Tried ringing the switchboard but Peter Dutton answered so I hung up. #madashelltv #wrongepisodegate https://t.co/0gIsfa0vfH
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
#madashelltv I’ve just heard from the ABC and they’ve just confirmed that they’re playing the wrong episode. Thank God. I thought I was going crazy…
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
“…all new Squinters”? I wouldn’t count on it. #wrongepisodegate #madashelltv
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
I have no idea what is going on right now… #madashell
— Tosh Greenslade (@ToshGreenslade) July 17, 2019
Tosh, we just had a meeting with the ABC board about the whole thing and they voted overwhelmingly that it’s all your fault. I abstained (from having any of the biscuits Ita was handing out). #madashelltv #wrongepisodegate https://t.co/pvcDEXC71E
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
#madashell THE CORRECT EPISODE IS UP ON IVIEW (as is last weeks if you want to watch it a third time).
— Shaun Micallef (@shaunmicallef) July 17, 2019
On the plus side, this is the most tweets I’ve ever seen on the #madashell hashtag…
— Tosh Greenslade (@ToshGreenslade) July 17, 2019
I regret to inform you that the correct episode of Young Sheldon aired tonight. #MadAsHell
— Mark Humphries (@markhumphries) July 17, 2019
Despite being a repeat of the previous week’s episode the show still attracted 495,000 viewers, beating the debut episode of Channel 10’s new drama My Life is Murder.
The ABC has confirmed it will play the episode on Thursday night at 9pm. A spokesperson for the broadcaster said they were really sorry.
“The ABC apologises for broadcasting the incorrect episode of Shaun Micallef’s Mad as Hell. This fault was due to a technical error. This week’s episode has been put up on ABC iview for fans to watch as soon as they like. The episode will also be shown on the ABC’s main channel at 9pm Thursday night as well as at its regular repeat time slot on Friday night.”
OIP Staff
