The Spoonman

Infobox Radio Show
show_name =
"'The Spoonman

---

imagesize = 300px
caption =
format = Talkback (With Music)
audio_format =
record_location = Austereo Sydney
runtime = 180 Minutes / 3 Hours
creator =
developer =
producer = Garfield and Odie
executive_producer =
Host = ( [Brian Carlton] )
narrated =
opentheme = Spoonman - Soundgarden
endtheme =
country = Australia
language = English
home_station = 2MMM
syndicates = Triple M Melbourne
Triple M Brisbane


num_episodes =
Live radio stream = [http://www.triplem.com.au/media/livestream/2mmmlivestream.asx Triple M live broadcast]

website = [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/ www.TripleM.com.au]

Email
[mailto:[e-mail] [e-mail]]

Listen to Triple M
[http://www.triplem.com.au/media/livestream/2mmmlivestream.asx Triple M Webstream]

podcast = [http://austereo.castmetrix.com/rss/162129586585337907 Official Podcasts]

ATFS Podcast (MA15+)
[http://austereo.castmetrix.com/rss/162129586585338140 ATFS Podcast]

Spoonman's Forking Fan Club
[http://spoonmanfanclub.zxq.net spoonmanfanclub.zxq.net]

The Spoonman is an Australian overnight talkback show on the Triple M network. Journalist/broadcaster Brian Carlton is the host, although on air he uses the alias "The Spoonman".

Show Content & Staff

The program is broadcast from Austereo's Sydney studios and networked to Triple M stations throughout the country. With slogans including 'No Topic Taboo' and 'Everything is utterly fair game', it is hosted by The Spoonman and his producers Garfield and Odie . Garfield and Odie are rarely heard, but their regular duties include accepting/sorting through callers, e-mails,SMSs and audio/broadcast engineering often referred to as 'Pushing the buttons'. It's understood that Garfield's nickname originates from an instance whereby he gave a fellow staff member a copy of the movie Garfield for their childs birthday. Odie received his nickname from the popular movie 'Garfield 2's' dog Odie. Garfield was also the producer of Dolphin Juice, a radio show that was on Triple M Sydney 9-11pm on Sunday nights until 2/3/2008. He had a small sporting segment on Dolphin Juice in which he reviews the week in sport. Garfield claims to want to play a part in the "Battlestar Galactica", for which he says he would leave the Triple M studios, to play a minor role. Garfield describes himself as an 'Evil Genius' and can be heard during the show on some occasions.

Listeners contribute to the show's content by phone 13 33 53, SMS 1999 1049 (55c per message), [mailto:[e-mail] Email] and webform via the [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/contact/ Triple M website.] Overseas listeners are able to tune into the show's podcast, via the live stream and can contribute via e-mail.

It is one of the only radio shows with a "traditional" talkback programming style on the (commercial) FM band in Australia, so it has a comfortable niche in the FM market, and more notably in its timeslot, regularly receiving high ratings. it competes with other overnight programs such as "Tony Delroy's NightLife" on ABC Local Radio.

Broadcasting Times

"The Spoonman" is broadcast 10:00pm - 1am (AEST) Tuesday-Friday. (Previously 8pm to 11 Midnight, Monday-Thursday) The show can also be streamed online when on air, using [http://www.triplem.com.au/media/livestream/2mmmlivestream.asx Triple M's Live radio stream.]

how Cancellation in Adelaide

On the 16^th of November 2007, 30min before the show concluded, Spoonman announced that Adelaide, (South Australia) 104.7FM will no longer be broadcasting the show. Reasons given were new station programming. After the announcement, Spoonman stated that the show is only being axed in SA, and would be back in 2008 in the other 3 capital cities. It seems that the timeslot reshuffle is the likely culprit of the axing of the show in SA, as they are behind in time compared to the eastern states meaning the show would start at 7:30pm not 8:30pm like it would have before the change of timeslot in the Eastern States. Some of the content that Spoony discusses would most likely not have been suitable for the 7:30pm timeslot.

The "Across Australia" Radio Show is not aired in Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, Northern Territory or Australian Capital Territory

The Host - Spoonman

Nickname

Spoonman is first and foremost 'The Spoonman' as he is a "self-professed 'stirrer'". Spoonman explains his name was a collaborative effort with management and also the hit song Spoonman was also a factor into the coming of his nickname. Versions of his on air name have been used by callers, the most common (and only confirmable one) is "Spoony", sometimes spelt as "Spoonie".

Views/Opinions

"Religion"

Spoony was born into a Catholic household but chose to become an atheist. He displayed this thoroughly during one of the regular Free-For-All's as well as endorsing Richard Dawkins' book, The God Delusion.

"4-Wheel-Drives & Owners"

Spoony's hate of SUV Type 4-wheel-drives has been shown regularly and is often a segment brought up on the show. Often he says that they are acceptable for off-road vehicles but on the difficult city roads of the city they are overkill, especially of those who drive and attempt to control them as if they were a normal sedan.

"Advanced Driver Training"

Spoony is a huge fan of Advanced driving courses and has stated on several occasions that he wants every "L Plate driver" to do a defensive driving course before they even get out on the road. He believes that this would ensure that they would learn what a car can do in a safe environment, rather than on the road.

"Cyclists"

Spoony has regularly criticised cyclists, saying that they should be made to have a licence plate and registration just like other road users so that they can be easily identified on the road. 'The cyclists say they are doing their part for the environment, well the is nothing environmentally friendly about a queue of 50 cars doing 20kms/p behind a cyclist!'

"Baby Boomers"

Spoony has on occasion cited a dislike for baby boomers. Such an attitude arises from, as Spoony argues, the selfishness of the baby boomers and their concern for themselves over concerns for future generations.

Show Segments

The show usually begins with Spoony discussing the major news topics and current events for the day and setting an agenda for discussion. Each show from Tuesday to Wednesday typically revolves around two or three topics. Fridays are open to any topic (see below) that a listener calls in about, SMS's, or emails to the show.

The show also includes a number of regular and semi-regular segments including Brush with Fame, Get It off Your Chest and Spoony's War on Error. (Both Spoony's War on Error and Get It off Your Chest seem to have been phased out.)Spoonie has also proclaimed himself a dreamweaver and has consequently incorporated this talent into his show as an occasional late night segment although recently, it has been phased out. Also, sometimes he will do a rant on matters that bug him, such as his war against business ties.

"Friday Monster Free-for-All"

Every Friday night, The Spoonman turns the show over to his listeners to talk about whatever topic they like. Although he begins the show by briefly talking about the day's major news headlines, listeners are free to call in and talk about anything of their interest or concern (he stated that this was in response to the media criticism that he had complete control over the subject matter of the show on 22 May, 2007Fact|date=January 2008).

It is common for topics to include anything from current events to previous topics of discussion or something going on in a caller's personal life. Callers will often raise topics near the beginning of the program which are then sometimes continued by other callers wishing to give their opinions on the matter. Spoony stresses that this is one of the most "dangerous things in talkback radio", as he hands the show completely over the listeners. It is consequently a favourite with listeners as they get to voice their opinions and views on the air.

Occasionally on other days of the week free for alls may occur. On every day during the final week of broadcast a free for all happens every night.

"Brush with Fame"

Brush with Fame is an occasional segment on a Tuesday night for callers to talk about their encounters with celebrities. Callers are encouraged to talk about who they met, how and where they met them, and what they were like when they met; were they nice to them, or did they give them "the brush"... hence the name of the segment. This segment, however, is not always on Tuesday night due to other topics.

"Spoony's Bulging Sack"

In this segment, The Spoonman reads and replies to off-topic emails and emails regarding previous topics that are received throughout the week.

"Get It off Your Chest"

Get It off Your Chest is an occasional segment that allows callers to call in and "confess their sins". Spoony describes the segment as "radio's most dangerous confessional". The confessions vary from caller to caller, and can vary in seriousness. Most calls are typically for minor acts, such as petty thefts (or borrowing without returning) or lies.

In one instance, a caller confessed to an elaborate lie to an ex-boyfriend about giving birth to a child of his (which was actually miscarried) and subsequently putting the child up for adoption. [ [http://podcasts.triplem.com.au/audio/060703_sp_bb.mp3 "Should Big Brother Be Cancelled and Jane's Disgusting Confession"] 2006-07-03 podcast (MP3)] The caller admitted to faking documentation (such as borrowing a friend's ultrasounds and photos) and that she never intends to confess the truth to him, despite losing significant sleep over it.

As of the 10th of July 2008, "Get it off your chest", has returned and will become a regular Thursday segment. The same night marked the first time ever on the show, where no callers had called for the topic. After Spoonman went back on air, he explained it was the first time no callers had called up. Soon after a full switchboard of callers appeared. [ [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/podcasts/ Triple M Sydney - The Spoonman Podcasts ] ]

"Letters to Spoonman"

This is an infrequent segment that Spoony does whenever a listener sends him a "Letter to Spoonman". The letters are usually from a listener asking for advice (from both Spoony and other listeners) about a personal issue in their lives. Such issues are often about a relationship of some kind, such as an unfaithful partner or a partner caught-in-the-act of doing something unsettling, and in some cases if they feel they have been mistreated by society.

"Special guests"

Spoony occasionally has guests on his show. Notable guests include porn star Belladonna, Ziggy Switkowski, Weird Al Yankovic, 2007 Australian of the Year Dr Tim Flannery, celebrity scientist Dr. Karl Kruszelnicki, Hunters and Collectors frontman, Mark Seymour and Henry Rollins.

Phased-out segments

Over the history of the radio program, several segments have been phased out.

"30 Second Soap Box"

This segment usually happened on a Monday night. The basis for this segment is to give the listeners 30 seconds to speak about anything without being interrupted by Spoony. However, after the 30 seconds are over, the listener is automatically cut off, regardless of their topic discussed. This segment came about after criticism that he "cuts and drones out listeners". As the listener speak without being interrupted, this makes it more dangerous than the "Free-For-All" so Spoony has set a few rules. He can cut your call if you:
*Break the Law
*Break the Broadcasting Act
*Advertise.

"Cruel Quiz"

The first Cruel Quiz was held on Monday, 2006-06-26 [ [http://podcasts.triplem.com.au/audio/060626_sp_quiz.mp3, and the final quiz (as announced be Spoony) was on the 13-12-2007. "The First Ever Spoonman Quiz"] 2006-06-26 podcast (MP3)] and had become a regular segment, which ran most nights. This quiz comprised of five general knowledge questions. At the beginning, 10 callers are lined up ready to play. Each caller is allowed five seconds to answer each question (known as the five-second fudge factor). The short time limit is designed to reduce the ability of a caller to quickly Google or Wikipedia the answer. In one instance, a caller by the name of Edwin attempted to Google the Austrian capital when Spoonman heard his light typing and cut him off the line.

If a caller answered a question correctly, they moved on to the next question. If not, Spoony moved onto the next caller. The caller to answer the fifth and final question correctly won a limited edition Spoonman singlet, whose value peaked at $105 on eBay. If a caller answerd all five questions correctly, they also won a bonus pack of CDs and DVDs—this first happened on 13 Feb 2007.

If, by the end of the set of 10 callers, questions remained and the final question has not been asked, a new set of callers were lined up over the break. If the final question has been asked, but was not correctly answered, the quiz entered a penalty shoot out. (This is usually implemented when the show is running short on time.) In this situation, rather than lining up 10 callers, listeners were asked to keep calling and one caller was be picked of the switchboard at random after the break. This is to make it fair because the listeners have time to look up the correct answer. This "Shoot out" method had rarely been used in the quiz's more recent times. On one occasion, the last question of the quiz was not answered before the show's end, so it was finished the following day.

Since its inception, the Cruel Quiz has been both praised and panned by listeners. On Tuesday, 2006-09-12, after Spoony received an SMS stating that everybody hated the quiz, he ran an e-mail and SMS poll to determine how people really felt about it. During the course of the evening, he mentioned that it was roughly a 50/50 split and that he would put the topic on the agenda for Wednesday's show. The exact results of the poll are unknown. The quiz has become an "on occasion" segment on the show, and is no longer an every night segment.

The current record holder is Akhil Bangia with three Spoonman limited edition singlets.Fact|date=August 2007

By far the most popular Cruel Quiz caller is William of Melbourne; he rings every night and almost always is the first caller through. William was lucky enough to win a free holiday to Queensland as one listener liked him so much that he deserved to be rewarded.

As of the 13th of December 2007 (the last show of the year) The Cruel Quiz has finished. Spoony stated live on air that the "Cruel Quiz" will not be returning in 2008.

"Dreamweaver"

Usually on a Wednesday night, Spoony will open up the phones and take calls from people who have recurring dreams, but are unable to work out what they mean. His job as the "dreamweaver" is to work out what the dreams mean, and suggest a way for the person to remove the dream or change the dream, when it occurs again. Spoony says that recurring dreams are usually our subconscious trying to alert us to something in our life. Spoony informs the listeners that he has had successful experience with work colleagues etc. Spoony says that not being able to see the caller's body language or facial expressions when he is talking to them on the air, makes it more difficult to examine people's dreams.

"Spoony's War on Error"

The War on Error is dedicated to exposing errors spotted by listeners, anywhere they happen to see them. Sometimes, this will even include errors made by Spoony himself. This segment is usually run on Wednesday nights, although Spoony will occasionally mention minor errors throughout the week.

Editorials

On Fridays a set of short editorials recorded by Spoony (approx. one minute each) are played throughout the day, giving his final opinion of the week's major topics. They are archived on the Triple M website for listeners to download. [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/listen/spoonmaneditorials.html] . Spoony has not released any new editorials as of 2008 and it is uncertain whether they will continue.

The ATFS Podcast

ATFS, or "After the Forking Show" is a podcast only segment, introduced in 2008, which one could argue is a separate show in itself. It contains explicit content and language, so much that it cannot be broadcast over the airwaves, as it would be in breach of the broadcasting act. These rules (in Australia) need not apply to podcasts. Even still, some of the first podcast was censored out (which was Odie naming Britney Spears' genitalia a "bulldog chewing mayonnaise") In a special ATFS podcast (where Spoony was not included because he was ill), Garfield and Odie remarked that there would be no more censorship in future podcasts, confirmed by using the derogatory word cunt. This podcast revealed what was censored out of the first podcast but subsequently got taken down due to "a request from Britney's Management". The word cunt is still used in future podcasts. The topics raised are mostly things on the news and stuff going on in the guys lives, and the podcast is basically a "rant" (talk) between Spoony, Garfield and the little heard Odie. Running themes in ATFS are "Garfield's Bible Quote of the Week" and Odie's "Challenges", in which one was not to swear an entire podcast, and punishment being per profanity was to eat a banana paddle pop and lick the stick, two things he hates. The ATFS podcasts can be found at [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/podcasts/atfs.html this page.] WARNING: THEY CONTAIN EXPLICIT CONTENT MA15+. As noted by panel operator Garfield on 13th of February, 2008, the ATFS podcast made its way onto the top 10 podcast list on iTunes.

Biggest Fan Award

The 'Official Spoonman Fanclub' officially voted young William of Melbourne 'The Biggest Fan of the Spoonman'. He is a regular caller. Spoonman announced this on the radio June 12, 2007. After a Bad experience on a Connex Melbourne Train, a person only known as the Aldi man, gave William and his mother a free trip to the Gold Coast.

William - Missing person

William was reported as a missing person on Tuesday the 25h of August, 2008.He had left his house at 2:30 pm Monday, and It was believed he was going to the local park to kick a football, and check his savings account at an ATM in the northern suburbs of Melbourne.William has brown, curly hair, was wearing a black and red 'Holden racing team' jacket, Grey tracksuit pants with white piping, and black 'Nike' football boot. He was also carrying a yellow football.

It was announced on the 28th of August show that William has been found alive and well, after walking into a police station in the morning.

Spoonman's Forking Fan Club

A Few Listeners have teamed together to create the official fan club of the show, including the ATFS podcast, entitled "Spoonman's Forking Fan Club", a fan club for the Spoonman on Myspace, Facebook, and Bebo.

URL's Are in the external links section, at the bottom of this page.

Controversial Comments

The show is sold as a "controversial talk show", as Spoony always reminds his listeners, and he freely admits that he speaks his mind and raises his opinions with much vigour. There have been occasions where his comments have created some controversy from the media and some of the show's listeners, which he has said is inevitable as he expresses his own opinions, and explains this on multiple occasions. Prominent comments of this nature are the discussion that was created on the suicide attempt of the then leader of the NSW opposition, and Spoonman's opinions expressed on the day of Steve Irwin's death.

August 2005 - John Brogden

In August 2005, he was criticised after discussing the suicide attempt of the then-leader of the NSW Opposition, John Brogden, describing the method, wrist-cutting, as 'half-arsed'. [ [http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/triple-m-defends-show-on-suicide/2005/09/01/1125302688177.html "Triple M defends show on suicide"] by Liz Minchin, "The Age", September 2, 2005]

September 2006 - Steve Irwin

In September 2006, on the evening after Steve Irwin's death, he raised issues concerning Irwin's treatment of animals, criticising Irwin for regularly harassing and provoking them in his documentaries. He did however merit his contribution to animal and habitat conservation at a species level. The following day, he apologised for "putting a narrow focus" on Irwin's Death and accepting that he was incorrect in believing that Steve Irwin was not seen by many people as someone of respect or celebrity in Australia, claiming that "plenty of Aussies thought he was just a wanker". He came to the conclusion that he was incorrect for saying these comments the following day after he received hundreds of emails and SMSes in fact showing the opposite ideals. He allowed callers to speak their mind about Irwin on this second night.

Footnotes

External links

* [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/index.html "The Spoonman - Triple M"] official website.
* [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/podcasts/index.html "The Spoonman - Triple M"] podcasts.
* [http://www.triplem.com.au/sydney/shows/thespoonman/podcasts/atfs.html "The Spoonman - Triple M"] ATFS Podcasts. (MA15+)

"Spoonman's Forking Fan Club" (Spoonman fan club) links:

* [http://spoonmanfanclub.awardspace.com/ Official Homepage of fan club]
* [http://groups.myspace.com/spoonmanfanclub SFFC Myspace]
* [http://www.bebo.com/spoonmanfanclub SFFC Bebo.]
* [http://groups.to/spoonmanfanclub SFFC Facebook.]