1985 in Australian television

List of years in Australian television
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Events

Television

• 11 February – Ray Martin takes over Mike Walsh's old daytime slot, replacing The Mike Walsh Show with Midday with Ray Martin. The Mike Walsh Show continues and moves to 10:30pm weekdays as a late night talk show until Walsh departs the network in November.
• 18 February – Network 0/28 becomes known as SBS.
• 4 March – The ABC launches a one hour news and current affairs program called The National as a replacement for the traditional 7:00pm state-based news bulletins as well as its former current affairs program Nationwide. The new format, costing the national broadcaster a budgeted $25 million, turned out to be an expensive failure and lasted less than twelve months.
• 18 March – Neighbours premieres on the Seven Network. Six months later Neighbours is axed by HSV-7, but Network Ten bought the rights and picks up the soap and it becomes a massive hit for them.
• 25 March – Neighbours debuts in Brisbane.
• 8 June – Hey Hey It's Saturday moves to 6:30pm Saturdays. Then Hey Hey It's Saturday Night rebrands back to its original title.
• 30 June – SBS expands to Brisbane, Adelaide, Newcastle, Wollongong and the Gold Coast.
• 13–14 July – ABC televises the worldwide Live Aid event, featuring concerts held around the world.
• Seven Network screens a late night sketchy comedy series called The Eleventh Hour featuring a number of performers who later appear in The Comedy Company and Fast Forward.

Debuts

• February – The Cartoon Connection (Channel Seven)
• February – The Early Bird Show (Network Ten)
• 4 March – The National (ABC)
• 4 March – News Overnight (Channel Seven)
• 18 March – Neighbours (Channel Seven in 1985, Network Ten from 1986 onwards)
• The Eleventh Hour (Channel Seven)

New international programming

• 4 March – Bananaman (ABC)
• 22 April – Danger: Marmalade At Work (ABC)
• 29 April – Ulysses 31 (ABC)
• 9 May – Murder She Wrote (Nine Network)
• 29 October – Voltron: Defender of the Universe (ABC)
• 31 December – The Max Headroom Show (ABC TV)
• Alvin and the Chipmunks (Ruby-Spears version) (Network Ten)
• Muppet Babies (Network Ten)
• She-Ra: Princess of Power (Channel Seven)

Television shows

1950s

• Mr. Squiggle and Friends (1959–1999)

1970s

• Hey Hey It's Saturday (1971 – present)
• Young Talent Time (1971 – present)

1980s

• Wheel of Fortune (1981 – present)
• Sale Of The Century (1980–2001)
• Sunday (1981–2008)
• Today (1982 – present)
• Perfect Match (1984 – present)
• Neighbours (1985 – present)

Ending this year

Date	Show	Channel	Debut
November	New Faces	Nine Network	1963
November (Late Night)	The Mike Walsh Show	Nine Network	1973
November	The Ernie Sigley Show	Nine Network	1968