Adam Hills
Alan Brough, Adam Hills & Myf Warhurst from Spicks & Specks.
TV quiz shows have been around forever, but in 2005 one particular music quiz show captured lightening in a bottle. That show was ABC's Spicks & Specks, which will a glorious return to Australian TV screens this month. Prior to the show’s return comedian & host of the show, Adam Hills, sat down with Pario to chat about the now 17-year journey with Spicks & Specks.
Although the 2022 iteration of Spicks & Specks comes 17 years after its debut season in 2005 it is in fact only the shows 8th full season. When asked how he felt about the show returning all these years later Adam said, "It feels like we've very very slowly worked our way back towards doing a full season... We did a one-off special a few years back & then the year after that we did 4 specials. So we kind of dipped our toe in & then the rest of the foot."
During our conversation with Adam we wondered what it was that he felt made the show so special to which he said, "Honestly, the show is greater than the sum of its parts. It was a perfect storm."
The parts that Adam speaks of were undoubtedly the trio of himself & the two team captains, Alan Brough & Myf Warhurst, but also the dedicated crew working behind the scenes as well. For this reason, it was so important for everyone involved that they were able to get the band back together for the 2022 season.
The Importance of Chemistry
The new season of Spicks & Specks sees Adam, Alan & Myf reuniting to recapture the "genuine love & chemistry" which permeated through the screen during the show's early years. For dedicated viewers of the show, Adam said you may have picked up on subtle little nuance that Adam incorporated into his hosting when introducing Alan & Myf at the beginning & end of each episode.
"At the beginning & end of each show when I introduce them [Alan & Myf] I always sit back because I know they will look at each other & wink."
Although Adam highlights the importance of the chemistry of the trio on screen he was also quick to highlight all of the dedicated people behind the scenes during his chat with Pario.
"The producers & researchers behind the scenes have a genuine love of music & really wanted to showcase Australian legends as well as new music," Adam explained. "All of those things put together led to us walking out into a field during a thunderstorm holding up a golf club & we were lucky enough to be hit by lightning."
True Music Nerds
Another area which has made Spicks & Specks such a special & enduring show has been the almost encyclopaedic knowledge of Alan, Myf & surprisingly some of the celebrity guests. As Adam said with a proud smile, "It's absolutely ridiculous" how much music knowledge Alan & Myf have.
"There would often be questions that I would look at in rehearsal & think 'no one is going to know the answer to this' but then either Myf or Alan would just bust it out. Alan almost goes into this zone where he'll just get question after question after question where he will know every answer."
Perhaps more shockingly though it has been some of the guests who have truly blown Adam away with their music knowledge.
"Jimmy Barnes was a surprise packet," recalled Adam. "With Jimmy, you think that he is going to be the drunken, out of control, reprobate but I think by not drinking he has unlocked a whole bunch of areas in his mind. His knowledge of music is so unexpected because he just doesn't seem like a music nerd & yet here he was coming out with obscure answers to really tricky questions."
Keeping The Show Fresh After 17 Years
One of the trickiest parts about having such a long-standing television show is keeping it fresh & exciting for everyone involved - from the hosts to the guests to the viewers at home. To achieve this Adam explained that there was always one core philosophy that every idea for the show was filtered through, "Can people play this game at home?"
Bearing that in mind when Spicks & Spicks planned its return this year, with a new 45-minute format as opposed to the original 30-minute format, the introduction of a new game was conjured up. For this new season, the show has introduced a game called Secret Song, which Adam explained to Pario.
"The idea with Secret Song is that throughout the show I drop hints & clues as to what the Secret Song is & then the last question of the show is for the teams to name the Secret Song & if they get it right they get an extra 5 points.
"It was a real trial & error thing because we weren't sure how many references were too many or what would make it too obvious. What we realised though by the end was that most of the teams would pick up on about 3-4 clues but then when I'd go back & point out all of the clues in the episode they we blown away."
Bringing The Music World Together
According to Adam one of the most enjoyable elements of Spicks & Specks has been witnessing a wide spectrum of musicians & celebrities come together over their mutual bond & love of music.
"I love that we can have such a ridiculous cross-section of musicians that are on the show. You'll have Casey Donovan, you'll have a country & western singer, you'll have Brooke McClymont & you'll have Reuben Styles mixing on Spicks & Specks... What I love is when you see an episode with someone like Reuben Styles & then someone on the other side who might be a classical musician. So, you wouldn't think they would have anything in common but then they both go out for beers together afterwards, which really sums up what Spicks & Specks is all about. Musicians who would never normally come into each other's orbits going out for beers."
Keep up with Adam on social media at: @AdamHillsComedy
Watch Spicks & Specks on ABC TV & ABV iView every Sunday at 7:40pm
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