Hamish & Andy
Encyclopedia
Hamish & Andy are an Australian comedy duo formed in 2003 by Hamish Blake
Hamish Blake
Hamish Donald Blake is an Australian comedian, actor, author and bodybuilder from Melbourne, Australia. Since 2003, he has worked with Andy Lee as part of the comedy duo Hamish and Andy. The pair have performed live and on television and radio, most notably with their drive-time radio program...

 and Andy Lee
Andy Lee (comedian)
Andrew Thomas "Andy" Lee is an Australian comedian. He usually works alongside Hamish Blake as part of the comedy duo Hamish & Andy.-Personal background:...

. They currently host the radio program
Radio programming
Radio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....

 The Hamish & Andy Show
Hamish & Andy (radio show)
The Hamish & Andy Show , is an Australian radio show created by and starring comedic duo Hamish Blake & Andy Lee. It was broadcast on the Today Network to every state in Australia as well as the ACT for two hours in the key weekday afternoon drivetime slot. Since December 3, 2010, it has moved to...

which airs in Australia on the Today Network
Today Network
The Today Network is a network of Contemporary Hit Radio stations run by Southern Cross Austereo in Australia.-Affiliates:-History:The Today Network started when the Austereo Radio Network secured the first commercial FM licence in Adelaide in 1980. Austereo launched a station called Double SA FM,...

.

Most well-known for their work on television as correspondents on Rove from 2007 to 2009, they also created the sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...

 series Radio Karate in 2003 and Real Stories
Real Stories
Real Stories is an Australian satirical television comedy series produced by Carlton Television for Network Ten. It was created by Hamish Blake and Andy Lee. The series was first broadcast on 22 August 2006....

in 2006, and hosted the variety show The Hamish and Andy Show in 2004. They were signed by the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...

 in 2011.

In addition, they have made numerous appearances hosting events, and competing on game shows and in celebrity sporting events.

Background

The two met while studying commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...

 at the University of Melbourne
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...

, and entered comedy competitions.

Radio career

The duo began presenting radio
Radio personality
A radio personality is a person with an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality can be someone who introduces and discusses various genres of music, hosts a talk radio show that may take calls from listeners, or someone whose primary responsibility is to give news, weather,...

 on the Student Youth Network
Student Youth Network
SYN Media is a youth-run media organisation that provides training and broadcast opportunities for young people.Commonly referred to as SYN, the organisation produces new and independent media that is made by and for Melbourne's young people...

, in the Friday afternoon drivetime slot. They hosted a late-night radio program on Fox FM
FOX FM (Melbourne)
Fox FM is a radio station that serves the Melbourne, Australia, broadcasting on the FM band at a frequency of 101.9 MHz. Licensed to Mount Dandenong, Victoria, the station is currently owned by the Austereo Radio Network. The station's transmitter is located on the ATV-10 transmission tower on top...

. The duo then hosted the Fox FM program, Almost Midday. From 2006, they host the two-hour afternoon program, Hamish & Andy
Hamish & Andy (radio show)
The Hamish & Andy Show , is an Australian radio show created by and starring comedic duo Hamish Blake & Andy Lee. It was broadcast on the Today Network to every state in Australia as well as the ACT for two hours in the key weekday afternoon drivetime slot. Since December 3, 2010, it has moved to...

, formerly The Hamish & Andy Show, on the Today Network
Today Network
The Today Network is a network of Contemporary Hit Radio stations run by Southern Cross Austereo in Australia.-Affiliates:-History:The Today Network started when the Austereo Radio Network secured the first commercial FM licence in Adelaide in 1980. Austereo launched a station called Double SA FM,...

 in all states and territories
States and territories of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...

 of Australia and in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. A weekly highlights package is also broadcast in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...

.

The duo have presented two radio specials on BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....

 in the United Kingdom on 21 December 2009 and 26 January 2010. On Friday 11 June it was announced on the Christian O'Connell Breakfast Show that Hamish & Andy would be presenting three shows in London during July 2010 to cover Christian's holiday. Hamish and Andy signed a deal to present a series of shows to air on Absolute Radio Sunday evenings.

The Hamish & Andy Show

The duo have hosted a two-hour weekday show, The Hamish & Andy Show
Hamish & Andy (radio show)
The Hamish & Andy Show , is an Australian radio show created by and starring comedic duo Hamish Blake & Andy Lee. It was broadcast on the Today Network to every state in Australia as well as the ACT for two hours in the key weekday afternoon drivetime slot. Since December 3, 2010, it has moved to...

, since 2006. The show is broadcast in all the seven major cities of Australia, in the afternoon drivetime slot (and a compilation of the past week's best on Saturday mornings in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

). The show is the highest-rated radio series in Australian history, with approximately two million listeners daily. Notable activities include the inventing of a new potato crisp
The People's Chip
The People's Chip is a potato chip flavour discovered and advocated by Australian radio comedy duo Hamish & Andy. The flavour is gravy, derived from roast beef. 60,495 packets of the chips were manufactured by The Smith's Snackfood Company and given away in a promotional exercise...

, and the purchasing of a greyhound
Greyhound
The Greyhound is a breed of sighthound that has been primarily bred for coursing game and racing, and the breed has also recently seen a resurgence in its popularity as a pedigree show dog and family pet. It is a gentle and intelligent breed...

, Fred Basset
Fred Basset (greyhound)
Fred Basset is a greyhound dog which was owned and raced by Australian comedy duo Hamish & Andy. The dog's name is taken from the comic strip character Fred Basset, whose strip featured regularly on the Hamish & Andy radio show...

. In addition, the group has made numerous trips: two domestic and two foreign caravan tours, Bass Strait
Bass Strait
Bass Strait is a sea strait separating Tasmania from the south of the Australian mainland, specifically the state of Victoria.-Extent:The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Bass Strait as follows:...

 sailboat trip, and trips to Afghanistan, Beijing, and India, recording live on location. The program has won 13 Australian Commercial Radio Awards.

The duo released a compilation album of segments from their radio show, Unessential Listening
Unessential Listening
Unessential Listening is a 2-disc compilation album by the comedy duo Hamish & Andy. It features segments included on their radio show between 2006 and 2008...

, in 2008. The album peaked at on the Australian Top 100 Albums Chart
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...

, received platinum
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...

 certification by the Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

 and went on to win Best Comedy Release
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...

 at the ARIA Music Awards of 2009
ARIA Music Awards of 2009
The 23rd Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards took place on 26 November 2009 at the Acer Arena at the Sydney Olympic Park complex. The ceremony was telecast on the Nine Network at 8:30pm that night...

. They released a second compilation album Celebrating 50 Glorious Years
Celebrating 50 Glorious Years
Celebrating 50 Glorious Years is a 2-disc compilation album by the comedy duo Hamish & Andy.It features segments included on their radio show between 2008 and 2010.-Disc 1:# Megaphone# The Double Up Blast from the Past# The Old Internet# Spying...

in 2010. The album debuted at number six and received gold certification.

Blake and Lee announced in August 2010 that they would be cutting down their show to a single program each week from 2011 onward. The final daily program aired on 3 December 2010.

Television career

Blake united with Lee in 2003 when they developed a Channel 31 sketch show, Radio Karate. Blake reunited with Lee in 2004 when they were named hosts of a new Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...

 variety program, The Hamish and Andy Show, a show described as a successor to Big Bite
Big Bite
Big Bite was an Australian sketch comedy television series, which ran on the Seven Network from 8 May, 2003 to 4 March, 2004 in a prime time timeslot on Thursdays...

. It premiered in 2004, and steadily built a moderate cult audience. However, due in part to poor programming, the show did not rate well and was cancelled after its initial run of six episodes.

In 2005, they were recruited by comedian Rove McManus
Rove McManus
John Henry Michael "Rove" McManus is an Australian comedian, television presenter, producer and media personality. He was the host of the self-titled variety show Rove, and is the owner of the production company Roving Enterprises...

, to develop the satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...

 television comedy series, Real Stories
Real Stories
Real Stories is an Australian satirical television comedy series produced by Carlton Television for Network Ten. It was created by Hamish Blake and Andy Lee. The series was first broadcast on 22 August 2006....

, which aired on Network Ten in 2006 and 2007. From 2007 to 2009, the duo appeared fortnightly on Rove in pre-recorded segments. They hosted the Logie awards in 2007 and 2008, and the ARIA awards
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...

 in 2008. They appeared on Joker Poker
Joker Poker
Joker Poker was a late night Australian poker program on Network Ten which aired in 2005 and 2006. Series one was hosted by Adam Spencer, with series two hosted by Mike Goldman. Both series were co-hosted by New Zealand poker pro Lee Nelson and Australian model Laura Weston acted as hostess...

and Australia's Brainiest Comedian
Australia's Brainiest
Australia's Brainiest is a television game show series produced in Australia by Crackerjack Productions, a FremantleMedia company; and currently airing on Network Ten. The format was taken from the British series entitled Britain's Brainiest Kid...

in 2005, Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?
Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? is a television game show format based on asking grade-school level questions to adults, hosted by Jeff Foxworthy...

in 2009 and Good News Week
Good News Week
Good News Week is an Australian satirical panel game show hosted by Paul McDermott that initially aired from 19 April 1996 to 27 May 2000, and resumed on 11 February 2008 to 9 May 2011. The show aired first on ABC TV before it was bought by Network Ten in 1999...

in 2010. The group appeared on The Jay Leno Show
The Jay Leno Show
The Jay Leno Show is an American comedy show created by and starring Jay Leno, that aired from September 14, 2009 to February 9, 2010 on NBC following the May 29, 2009 conclusion of Leno's first tenure as host of The Tonight Show...

twice in 2009, and on The 7PM Project
The 7PM Project
The Project is an Australian talk show television program airing weeknights across Australia on Network Ten. The formerly half hour long show premiered on 20 July 2009, and is hosted by Charlie Pickering, Carrie Bickmore and Dave Hughes, with a rotating daily guest panelist...

numerous times from 2009, in a similar manner as they did on Rove. They appeared on UKs The Graham Norton Show
The Graham Norton Show
The Graham Norton Show is a British comedy chat show that is broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom. It was originally shown on BBC Two from February 2007 to May 2009 until it moved to BBC One from October 2009...

in June 2010.

Network Ten Specials

The duo have presented numerous televised clip show
Clip show
A clip show is an episode of a television series that consists primarily of excerpts from previous episodes. Most clip shows feature the format of a frame story in which cast members recall past events from past installments of the show, depicted with a clip of the event presented as a flashback. ...

 specials
Television special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...

 on Network Ten: Hamish and Andy: Re-Gifted on 19 November 2008 that was viewed by 1.136 million, Hamish & Andy's American Caravan of Courage
Caravan of Courage (series)
Caravan of Courage is an annual road trip, travelled by Australian comedians Hamish Blake and Andy Lee. There have been a total of four road trips, the latest two being both aired on their radio show and combined into a television special, the first two were broadcasted as a segment on the talk...

on 10 September 2009 that was viewed by 1.307 million, Hamish & Andy: Re-Gifted, Another Very Early Christmas Special on 23 November 2009 that was viewed by 1.052 million and Hamish & Andy's Caravan of Courage: Great Britain and Ireland
Caravan of Courage (series)
Caravan of Courage is an annual road trip, travelled by Australian comedians Hamish Blake and Andy Lee. There have been a total of four road trips, the latest two being both aired on their radio show and combined into a television special, the first two were broadcasted as a segment on the talk...

on 17 June 2010 that was viewed by 1.749 million. The Re-Gifted specials consisted primarily of excerpts from the duo appearances on previous episodes of Rove. The pair presented a special for Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...

 for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
2010 Commonwealth Games
The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games, were held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 2010. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games till date...

 entitled Learn India with Hamish and Andy.

Nine Network

Following a series of media reports, the pair confirmed in February 2011 that they had joined the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...

 on a two-year contract, to produce Hamish and Andy's Gap Year
Hamish and Andy's Gap Year
Hamish and Andy's Gap Year is a 2011 comedy series following Hamish Blake and Andy Lee, a pair of Australian comedians, on their trip to New York.- History :...

. The show first aired on 28 July, 2011.

Other projects

On 7 July 2007 they presented the Australian leg
Live Earth concert, Sydney
The Live Earth concert in Australia was held at Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney on 7 July 2007, in front of around 45,000 people. It was the first of the Live Earth concerts to kick-off the day-long event & promoted by Michael Chugg, Amanda Pelman of Chugg Entertainment, Joe Segreto of IMC /...

 of Live Earth
Live Earth
-Background:Founded by Emmy-winning producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Live Earth was built upon the belief that entertainment has the power to transcend social and cultural barriers to move the world community to action...

. They played in the 2008 and 2009 E. J. Whitten Legends Game
E. J. Whitten Legends Game
The E. J. Whitten Legends Game is an annual charity Australian rules football All-star game, where retired star players are reunited, along with selected non-footballing celebrities, in a State of Origin interstate game, between Victoria and the All Stars .-History:E. J...

. They also made a mockumentary short film The Greystone 2800, that won the 2005 Melbourne Comedy Festival Short Film competition. They also hosted FHM
FHM
FHM, originally published as For Him Magazine, is an international monthly men's lifestyle magazine.- History :The magazine began publication in 1985 in the United Kingdom under the name For Him and changed its title to FHM in 1994 when Emap Consumer Media bought the magazine, although the full For...

's Search for Australia's Funniest Man.

They had a minor acting role on soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...

, Neighbours
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...

, portraying radio presenters Fred and Big Tommo on the episode dated 27 August 2008. The episode featured them promoting university drop-out Ty Harper
Ty Harper
Ty Harper is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by singer Dean Geyer. He made his first appearance on-screen on 27 March 2008. He was introduced to the show as the cousin of Taylah Jordan and as a potential romantic interest for Rachel Kinski...

's (Dean Geyer
Dean Geyer
Dean Stanley Geyer is an Australian Singer-Songwriter and Actor who came third in the 2006 season of the talent show television series, Australian Idol.-Early life:...

) band, and interviewing schoolgirls Rachel Kinski
Rachel Kinski
Rachel Kinski is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Caitlin Stasey. She made her first on-screen appearance on 18 August 2005. She is the middle child of Alex Kinski and sister to Zeke and Katya. Rachel's storylines ranged from parental bereavement and first...

 (Caitlin Stasey
Caitlin Stasey
Caitlin Jean Stasey is an Australian actress from Melbourne, who is best known for her previous role as Rachel Kinski in Neighbours. Previously she played Francesca Thomas in The Sleepover Club...

) and Donna Freedman
Donna Freedman
Donna Jane Brown is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Margot Robbie. She made her first on-screen appearance on 2 June 2008. Donna was initially a guest character, but Robbie was promoted to regular cast member shortly after she made her debut...

 (Margot Robbie
Margot Robbie
Margot Robbie is an Australian actress. She is known for her role as Donna Freedman on the soap opera Neighbours, which earned her two Logie Award nominations. In 2011, Robbie began appearing as Laura Cameron in the ABC drama series Pan Am.-Early life:Robbie was born on 2 July 1990 and grew up on...

) about their situation with Harper. They make a cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...

in the upcoming 2010 short film IA: Interview Artist.

External links

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