For a man of such average height, Rove McManus casts a long shadow over Australian TV. Since Rove Live ended in 2009 – probably the last example of a successful talkshow on our screens – the TV landscape has become unrecognisable: the internet got invented, streaming took over, and televisions themselves got bigger but, conversely, much flatter.
McManus also manages to loom over Network 10’s new talkshow gamble, Sam Pang Tonight. In his opening monologue to last night’s premiere, Pang pointed out that this was the network’s first late night foray since Rove. In a line that was sadly indicative of the calibre of jokes to follow, Pang then called himself the “Asian Rove: say ni hao to your mum for me”.
