13 October 2005 (2005-10-13) – 12 April 2011 (2011-04-12)
Release
31 May 2016 (2016-05-31) – 5 August 2019 (2019-08-05)
20 to One (known as 20 to 1 before 2016) is an Australian television series on the Nine Network from 2005, that counts down an undefined "top 20" of elements or events of popular culture, such as films, songs, or sporting scandals. The format mixes archival footage of the listed events with comments from various Australian celebrities.
Originally the show was hosted by Bud Tingwell and narrated by David Reyne; the pair were replaced by Bert Newton as host for the second season. The series was rebooted by the Nine Network and returned for its eleventh season on 31 May 2016 with new hosts, Australian radio presenters Fitzy and Wippa.[1][2][3] From 2017, the show was hosted by Erin Molan and Dave Thornton.[4][5]
Format
Each episode counts down the "top twenty" events following a particular theme, from position 20 down to number 1. Media clips depicting the event are played as the host provides background information of the entry. This is followed by clips of celebrities providing judgment on the clip or event.
Controversy
During the segment aired on 19 June 2019, co-hosts Erin Molan and Nick Cody stated that the South Korean boy band BTS was "so popular it could heal the rift between North and South Korea."[6] She also mentioned the band's success in the United States, even though "only one band member actually speaks English." among other comments.[6] Many other celebrities made similar comments during the segment. Most notably was comedian Jimmy Carr, who jokingly compared the band's international success to the explosion of a nuclear bomb in North Korea, saying: "When I first heard something Korean had exploded in America, I got worried. So I guess, it could've been worse – but not much worse."[7] Subsequently, the hashtags #channel9apologize and #channel9racist started trending as fans of the band demanded an apology from Channel 9.[8] The BTS Australia Twitter fan account wrote: "This is unfair and presenting inaccurate information. You disregarded their achievements, and instead let your xenophobic, racist mindsets be biased instead. We want an apology."[8] On 20 June 2019, Channel 9 issued a non-apology apology, writing: "We apologize to any who may have been offended by last night's episode."[9]
