ABC3

ABC Entertains is an Australian free-to-air television channel owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It was launched on 4 December 2009 as a children's channel called ABC3. It was rebranded on 19 September 2016 to ABC ME. It rebranded once more on 3 June 2024 to ABC Entertains, now focusing on general entertainment programming.

History

In September 2007, the Australian government announced a proposal to launch a new digital-only children's channel, ABC3. A new ABC channel appeared on television receivers on 11 February 2008, as a placeholder for the future ABC3 channel. ABC3 was considered by the Australia 2020 Summit and given as one of the recommendations to the Government. In April 2009, the Government's official response to the Summit approved the idea, and in the 2009–10 Commonwealth Budget $67 million was allocated towards ABC3 as part of the Government's $167 million funding increase to the ABC. The channel would aim to feature at least 50% Australian-produced content. It was not constrained by a local content quota.

On 18 June 2009, the corporation began its first public ABC3 campaign to scout for new hosting talent. On 22 October 2009, eight presenters were announced. Amberley Lobo and Kayne Tremills would host '' Studio 3'', with Ben Crawley as a roving reporter, he later joined the show '' What Do You Know?'' alongside Dr Rhythm. Scott Tweedie would host '' Prank Patrol'', while Hannah Wang and Mitchell Tomlinson were named as co-hosts of '' Rush TV'' and Stephanie Bendixsen and Steven O'Donnell were hosts of '' Good Game: Spawn Point'', made for younger gamers, a spin-off of the ABC2 TV series '' Good Game'', made for older gamers.

On 4 December 2009 at 5pm, the hour-long ''Countdown to 3'' special was broadcast on the channel and was simulcast on ABC1. It featured special performances from Australian artists Cassie Davis and Short Stack, an introduction to various ABC3 presenters and shows and the station's launch around 6pm by then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

In April 2011, James Elmer joined as co-host of ''Studio 3'' along with Tremills and Lobo. On 4 December 2011, the winners from the MeOn3 contest were revealed as Alfie Gledhill and Olivia Phyland. On 14 September 2012, Alfie left ''Studio 3'' to pursue acting dreams. In October 2012, Comedian Khaled Khalafala joined ''Studio 3'', and stayed with the crew until early 2013 before leaving. In March 2013 the Janitor (Dave Cartel) and Bubbles the goldfish supposedly left ''Studio 3'' for Venezuela, with Bubbles being replaced with a new goldfish called Alexis. Tim Matthews, Grace Koh and Ivy Latimer later joined James and Liv in July 2014 after winning ''The 3 Factor'' competition.

In August 2016, it was announced that ABC3 would change its name to ABC Me on 19 September 2016, as more children watched television on a mobile device. The rebranded channel is reported to be "designed to reflect and celebrate the lives, interests and diversity of young Australians" and will increase its focus to primary school children. To mark the rebrand, ABC ME teamed up with 16-year-old Australian singer Angel Tairua to record a new song ''Unique (Me2U)'' to celebrate the launch of ABC ME.

In June 2020, many of the ABC Me staff located in Melbourne lost their jobs after the redundancies at the ABC were announced. The network continued to be broadcast without presenters.

On 9 May 2024, it was announced that ABC Me would change its name to ABC Entertains on 3 June, shifting its format to general entertainment programming (with its launch anchored by premieres of new series of '' Interview with the Vampire'' and '' Wreck''). Youth programming moved to ABC Family; although some programs still air in the morning as the ABC iView brand known as ABC Big Kids. The ABC ME YouTube channel has also rebranded to ABC Big Kids and the ABC Education block (from 9–11am on weekdays) largely remains untouched. The ABC is also promoting ABC iview as the main home of its youth and children's output.

On 19 May 2025, it was announced that ABC Entertains, along with the ABC News channel, would be converted to HD quality (MPEG 4), with the switchover beginning on 11 June and concluding on 26 June.

Programming

Current programming

Domestic

=Children

=
* '' 100% Wolf: The Book of Hath''
* '' Behind the News'' (Classroom, 2014–present; Newsbreak, 2009–2024)
* '' The Deep''
* '' Hardball''
* '' The Strange Chores''

=Adults

=
* '' rage'' (2014–present)

Foreign

=Children

=
* '' Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!''
* '' Bionic Max''
* '' Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs''
* '' Dragon Ball Super''
* '' Horrible Histories''
* '' Hotel Transylvania: The Series''
* '' Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness''
* '' Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir''
* '' My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic''
* '' Odd Squad''
* '' Open Season: Call of Nature''
* '' Operation Ouch!''
* '' The Penguins of Madagascar''
* '' Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl series''
* '' The Rubbish World of Dave Spud''
* '' Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?''
* '' Slugterra''
* ''Teen Titans Go!''
* '' Total Drama Island (2023)''
* '' Total DramaRama''
* '' Transformers: EarthSpark''
* '' We Bare Bears''

=Adults

=
* '' Absolutely Fabulous'' (2024–present)
* '' Car SOS'' (2024–present)
* '' The Cleaner'' (2024–present)
* '' ER'' (2024–present)
* '' George Clarke's Amazing Spaces'' (2024–present)
* '' Live At The Apollo'' (2024–present)
* '' My Family'' (2024–present)
* ''MythBusters'' (2024–present)
* '' Not Going Out'' (2024–present)
* '' Penn & Teller: Fool Us'' (2024–present)
* '' Portlandia'' (2024–present)
* '' QI'' (2024–present)
* '' Speechless'' (2024–present)
* '' Wreck'' (2024–present)
* '' Would I Lie to You?'' (2024–present)

Former programming (ABC3 / ABC Me)

* '' 100% Wolf: Legend of the Moonstone'' (2020)
* '' 6Teen''
* '' The Adventures of Puss in Boots''
* '' All Hail King Julien''
* '' Almost Naked Animals''
* ''Animalia''
* ''Arthur''
* '' Atomic Puppet''
* '' Astro Boy''
* '' The Bagel and Becky Show''
* '' Barney's Barrier Reef''
* '' Best Bugs Forever''
* '' Best Ed''
* '' Best Of RollerCoaster'' (2009–2010)
* '' Big Blue'' (2022)
* '' Bindi's Bootcamp''
* '' Blue Water High''
* '' Born to Spy'' (2021)
* '' Boruto: Naruto Next Generations''
* ''Built to Survive'' (2022)
* '' Bushwhacked!''
* '' Camp Lakebottom''
* '' Canimals''
* ''Cartoon It Up'' (2016)
* '' Charlie and Lola''
* '' Chop Socky Chooks''
* '' CJ The DJ''
* '' Class Of The Titans''
* ''Create'' (2017)
* ''Dance Academy''
* '' Danger Mouse''
* '' Dani's House''
* '' The Day My Butt Went Psycho!''
* '' Deadly 60''
* '' Degrassi: The Next Generation''
* '' Deltora Quest''
* '' The Dengineers''
* '' Dennis and Gnasher''
* '' Dennis & Gnasher: Unleashed!''
* '' Dex Hamilton: Alien Entomologist''
* '' Dogstar''
* '' Dorg Van Dango''
* '' Dragon Booster''
* '' DreamWorks Dragons''
* '' Droners''
* '' Dwight in Shining Armor''
* '' Edgar And Ellen''
* '' Escape From Scorpion Island''
* '' Erky Perky''
* '' The Fairly OddParents''
* '' The Flamin' Thongs''
* '' Find Me in Paris''
* '' First Day'' (2020–2022)
* '' Flipper And Lopaka''
* ''Fruits Basket'' (2001 series)
* ''Fruits Basket'' (2019 series, Season 1 only)
* '' Get Blake!'' (2015)
* '' Good Game: Spawn Point'' (2010–2023)
* '' GG: Spawn Squad'' (2023–2024)
* '' Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids''
* ''Grojband''
* '' Half Moon Investigations''
* '' Heartbreak High''
* '' Horrible Histories'' (2015 series)
* ''I, Elvis Riboldi''
* '' The InBESTigators'' (2019–2024)
* '' Iron Man: Armored Adventures''
* ''Itch'' (2020)
* '' Jade Armor''
* '' Jibber Jabber''
* '' K-On!''
* '' Kamisama Kiss''
* '' Kid vs. Kat''
* '' King Arthur's Disasters''
* ''Kratt Bros: Be The Creature''
* '' Kuu Kuu Harajuku''
* '' Lab Rats Challenge''
* '' Larry the Wonderpup''
* ''The Legend of Korra''
* '' Little Big Awesome''
* '' Lizzie McGuire''
* '' Log Horizon''
* '' MaveriX'' (2022)
* ''M.I. High''
* '' Mighty Mike''
* ''Mikki vs The World'' (2021)
* '' Mortified''
* '' Mustangs FC'' (2017)
* '' My Goldfish Is Evil''
* ''Naruto''
* '' The New Legends of Monkey'' (2018)
* ''News To Me'' (2016–2018)
* '' Oddbods''
* '' Oggy and the Cockroaches'' (Seasons 1–3) (2010–2011)
* '' Old Tom''
* '' Ouran High School Host Club''
* '' Outback 8''
* ''The Pinky & Perky Show''
* '' The PM's Daughter'' (2022)
* '' Potatoes And Dragons''
* '' Puella Magi Madoka Magica''
* '' Radiant''
* '' Richard Hammond's Blast Lab''
* ''Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles''
* '' Robot Wars''
* '' RollerCoaster''
* '' Ruby Gloom''
* '' Rugrats''
* '' Rush TV''
* '' Sadie Sparks''
* '' Sailor Moon Crystal''
* '' School of Rock''
* '' Scream Street''
* '' Secret Life of Boys''
* '' SheZow''
* '' Sidekick''
* '' The Slammer''
* '' The Sleepover Club''
* '' Slugterra''
* '' So Awkward''
* '' Space Nova'' (2021–2024)
* '' Spectacular Spider-Man''
* ''Spellbinder''
* '' Spirit Riding Free''
* ''Spongo, Fuzz and Jalapeña'' (2019)
* '' Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures''
* '' Stoked''
* '' Summer in Transylvania''
* '' Summer Memories''
* ''Sumo Mouse''
* ''The Super Hero Squad Show''
* ''Supernoobs''
* '' Survive This''
* ''Sword Art Online''
* ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (2012 series)
* '' Thalu'' (2020)
* '' Thunderbirds Are Go''
* '' Total Drama'' (seasons 1–5)
* '' Trapped!''
* ''The Tribe''
* '' The Twisted Whiskers Show''
* '' The Unstoppable Yellow Yeti''
* '' Vampire Knight''
* '' The Wannabes''
* '' Wishfart''
* '' Wolfblood''
* '' Wolverine And The X-Men''
* '' Yakkity Yak''
* '' Yoohoo and Friends''
* ''You're Skitting Me''
* '' Young Dracula''
* '' The Zoo''

Presenters

* Kayne Tremills (2009–2015, 2019–2022)
* Amberley Lobo (2009–2015)
* Elliot Spencer (2009–2010)
* Scott Tweedie (2009–2013)
* Ben Crawley (2009–2011)
* Dave Cartel ("The Janitor") (2009–2013)
* Mitch Tomlinson (2009–2012)
* Hannah Wang (2009–2012)
* Stephanie "Hex" Bendixsen (2009–2016)
* Steven "Bajo" O'Donnell (2009–2017)
* Gus "Goose" Ronald (2011–2018)
* James Elmer (2011–2016)
* Alfie Gledhill (2011–2012)
* Olivia Phyland (2011–2015)
* Khaled Khalafalla (2012–2013)
* Grace Koh (2014–2018, 2020)
* Ivy Latimer (2014–2015)
* Tim Matthews (2014–2017)
* Pip Rasmussen (2016–2020)
* Angharad "Rad" Yeo (2017–2022)
* Lawrence Gunatilaka (2018–2019)
* Dallas Reedman (2018–2019)
* Ilai Swindells (2018)
* Gemma "Gem" Driscoll (2018–2024)
* Drew Parker (2019–2020)
* Jael Wena (2019)
* Ava Madon (2019–2020)
* William Yates (2019–2020)

Logo history

File:ABC3 logo.svg , 4 December 2009 – 18 September 2016
File:ABC ME logo.svg , 19 September 2016 – 2 June 2024
File:ABC Entertains logo.svg , 3 June 2024 – present

Notes

References

External links

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{{Free-to-air television channels in Australia

Australian Broadcasting Corporation television
Digital terrestrial television in Australia
English-language television stations in Australia
Television channels and stations established in 2009
Commercial-free television networks in Australia
2009 establishments in Australia