Created by Dave Broome Original language(s) English No. of episodes 6 First episode date 20 June 2016 Network Nine Network Number of episodes 6 Genre Reality | Country of origin Australia No. of seasons 1 Running time 60 minutes Final episode date 9 August 2016 Number of seasons 1 Program creator Dave Broome | |
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The briefcase australia promo
The Briefcase is an Australian reality television series, based on the American series of the same name, which airs on the Nine Network. Each episode sees two Australian families, struggling financially, each given $100,000 in cash that they must decide either to keep for themselves or to give all or in part to help out the other family, unaware that their counterparts are also faced with the same dilemma.
Contents
The six episode series debuted on 20 June 2016. It received a generally negative reception from audiences and critics both before and after its premiere broadcast, with one commentator calling it "exploitative poverty porn at its worst". After two episodes, the program was moved from its 7:30pm timeslot to after 9:30pm following low ratings which also resulted in a poor lead-in for Nine's marquee drama Love Child which followed immediately after. The last episode was burnt off as counter-programming against the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Development and production
The Australian rights to the show was secured before the American series began broadcasting. The Nine Network's Head of Development later criticised the American version for its "stunt" casting and called it a "freak show", saying the Australian version will be "fundamentally different" and feature "average families", following negative reaction and the ultimate cancellation of the original US version.
The contestants on the series were initially not informed about the true nature of the show. Instead they were informed that they would be appearing on a programme titled Making Ends Meet, and would receive financial advice about their situation. The contestants had mixed feelings over being misled, but ultimately had a positive experience filming the show.