Spicks and Specks is an Australian music-themed comedic television quiz show in which host Adam Hills asks two teams of three people each music-themed questions in different games. Team leaders are Myf Warhurst and Alan Brough. Members of each team vary from episode to episode; one per team generally comes from the world of music and the other from comedy. Scores are kept, but the prize for the winners is simply personal satisfaction. Many games are named after, or otherwise reference, well known song titles.

The series originally aired on ABC1 at 8:30pm on Wednesday nights, with the show repeated on Thursdays on ABC2 at 8pm. The previous year's season was repeated every Friday at 2:30pm on ABC1. After the show's end in 2011, and an unsuccessful 2014 relaunch featuring new hosts, a 2018 reunion special with the original hosts aired, the success of which ensured a few more themed specials, and an eventual revival of the show.

Format

The show's general style, employing a mix of music and comedy, is similar to the British show Never Mind the Buzzcocks and fellow Australian TV show RocKwiz, but the question formats and program style (Satirical vs. Family vs. Pub Quiz) are different.

Although there are no prizes for the winners, on rare occasions Hills decides to award some convenient prop for comedic effect – a "Fools' Gold" sandwich very similar (they used strawberry jam as opposed to grape jam) to that eaten by Elvis, for example.

The show takes both its name and theme music from the Bee Gees' 1966 song, "Spicks and Specks". The theme music was performed and produced by The Dissociatives, a duo consisting of Silverchair singer Daniel Johns and dance musician Paul Mac, and replaced all the lyrics bar the title refrain with scat singing. In addition, Mac once appeared on the show as a panellist.

The show is hosted by stand-up comedian Adam Hills who poses questions to two three-person teams each headed by a permanent team captain, actor/comedian/author Alan Brough and radio announcer Myf Warhurst.

Notable games in the show include: Substitute, in which one member from each team sings three well-known tunes, substituting unrelated words from a text provided by Hills, while the other team members have to name the song; Musician or Serial Killer, in which each team member is shown a photograph of a person and is asked to identify whether that person is a musician or a serial killer; and The Final Countdown, always the final game of each program, in which members of both teams compete to be first to attempt to answer general questions on music.

History

Original series (2005–2011)

Guest team members, who varied from week to week, included some regulars: Hamish Blake, Jason Byrne, Frank Woodley, Colin Lane, Ross Noble, James Morrison, Renée Geyer, Ella Hooper, Meshel Laurie, Denise Scott, Antoinette Halloran and Dave O'Neil. With the exception of Dave O'Neil, Blake appeared more often than any other guest panellist, and his comparative lack of musical knowledge was a running gag.

In 2007 during a game called Kid's Music Special, the question "What children's song is contained in the song Down Under?" led to music publisher, Larrikin Music, taking legal action against Men at Work songwriters Colin Hay and Ron Strykert over the main flute riff. After three years of litigation, the lawsuit was settled in favour of Larrikin Music after Down Under was deemed to have used key elements of the Australian children's nursery rhyme Kookaburra.

The show returned for its seventh season on 4 May 2011. On 25 May 2011, the ABC announced the seventh season would be last, with the last program on 23 November 2011. Hills, Warhurst, and Brough had agreed upon a "one in, all in" plan, and wanted to make sure the show didn't drag on.

Spicks and Speck-tacular In 2011, it was announced that Hills, Warhurst, and Brough would take the popular TV format on a farewell tour, in the "Spicks and Speck-tacular - The Finale" tour. The tour comprised 32 shows in nine cities across Australia, and was "loosely based" on the series.

2014 relaunch The ABC announced on 28 November 2012, during its 2013 program launch, that Spicks and Specks would be returning in the new year with comedian Josh Earl hosting, and musician Ella Hooper and comedian Adam Richard as the team captains. The re-launch of the series was delayed by the broadcaster until 2014, with the first episode airing on 5 February.

The revival was axed after 20 episodes due to low ratings, with the final six recorded episodes airing over the summer non-ratings period.

Themed specials (2018–2020) In August 2018, it was announced that the show would be brought back with Hills, Brough, and Warhurst for a reunion episode later that year. After the episode's success, four more specials, each with a different theme, were commissioned through the end of 2020.

Relaunch (2021–present) In 2021, the ABC announced a new 10-episode series, hosted by Adam Hills and the original team leaders. Much like those specials and the 2014 series, it featured new games along with classic games, with Know Your Product, Look What They've Done to My Song, Ma, Substitute, and The Final Countdown all appearing in every episode.

The series was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic while "stage four lockdown" was occurring, leading to some minor changes to the show's set, which was redesigned to have a curved outline, and solo buzzers instead of a single team buzzer. Physical comedy was frequently used in the rebooted series, which mostly came from Dave O'Neil, who appeared as a guitarist, a banana, a lost luggage collector, an ice cream van owner, a mobile DJ, the sole owner of Kurt Cobain's MTV Unplugged guitar, a Zoom comedian who has a puppet bat, a bootleg merchandise seller, and a "Dave-A-Roo" deliveryman.

The ABC renewed the series for a second season in 2022, this time with a live audience. The second season premiered on 7 August 2022. Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the season's sixth episode was pushed back by a week. The show returned in 2024 with shorter episodes.

Games

In the majority of games, each team gets its own questions to answer — although the other team members may answer the question if the first team doesn't know it. In the remaining games, both teams can answer the questions.

Original series (2005–2011)

Games begun in the original series included:

Know Your Product: Each team captain chooses one of four given topics. There are three questions from the topic that either team can answer. The questions are usually ordered by points allocated and the number of answers needed (i.e., the first question is worth one point and requires one answer, the second question is worth two points and requires two answers, and the final question is worth three points and requires three answers). This is the first game in every episode. In special episodes the topic is the show's theme which has five questions of which the fourth and fifth questions have four and five answers respectively. The game is named after the song by The Saints. The Final Countdown: Teams partake in a general round of music trivia and must buzz in before the other team to answer a question. This is the only game in which points are deducted for incorrect responses. The final question of the round is sometimes a joke question (such as having to name the members of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young). This is the final game of each episode and is named after the song by Europe. Substitute: One member from each team sings three well-known tunes, substituting words from a text provided by Hills. This is usually a technical manual or some kind of text that is humorous given the context (texts used have included Datsun 180B Service Manual, 2004 Australian Government Tax Pack, A Guide to Yabbie Farming and Be Bold with Bananas). The other members of that team then guess the songs. This game is loosely based on One Song to the Tune of Another from the BBC Radio 4 panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue and Adam Hills's own minor hit with "Working Class Anthem", in which he sang the lyrics of the Australian National Anthem to the tune of Jimmy Barnes's "Working Class Man". The game is named after the song by the Who. A variation of this game is Dancing Substitute, in which one member from each team is chosen to perform well-known dance moves for the other members to name. Cover Versions: One team member is chosen to draw pictures (in silence), in initial episodes representing album covers and in later episodes representing song titles. The other team members attempt to name the album/song. The drawings are not allowed to contain words or numbers. Axel F is played in the background during this game. Samplemania/Videomania: Several songs or music video clips are edited into one 30-second clip. Players must identify the different songs/videos in the clip after they have all been played, and are not allowed to take notes. Turning Japanese: The lyrics of well-known song are translated into Japanese using an online web translator and then translated back into English using the same translator. Contestants must name the title of the original song. The game is named after the song by the Vapors. Please Please Tell Me Now: The teams must answer detailed questions about an excerpt of a music video clip after watching it. The game is named after a line in "Is There Something I Should Know?" by Duran Duran. Musician or Serial Killer: Each team is shown photographs and is asked whether that person shown is a musician or a serial killer. Early episodes tasked individual panelists with a question each, which was replaced by opening the questions to the whole team. The game has also used different groups in some episodes, such as showing pictures of either ARIA Award winners or audience members. Sir Mix'n'Matchalot: Each team has to match three famous people with three obscure facts about them. The game is named after rapper Sir Mix-a-Lot. Bottom 100: Each team is given two popular but generally divisive songs (for example, Macarena or MMMBop) and is asked which was rated worse in a certain list. The title of this game is a play on the Triple J Hottest 100. You Can Buy Me Love (retitled Can Buy Me Love in the 2021 reboot): Three celebrity-themed items found on eBay (e.g., a tour jacket, keychain with artist/band name) are presented and teams are asked to place each item in order from cheapest to the most expensive. The game is named after the song "Can’t Buy Me Love" by the Beatles. Common People: Teams must identify the commonality between three musicians, musical personalities, songs or albums. The game is named after the song by Pulp. Malvern Stars on 45: One team member rides a bicycle that powers a record player, with the rotation speed of each record governed by the team member's pedalling speed. The other team members must name as many songs as possible in the time limit. The game is a portmanteau of the bicycle manufacturer Malvern Star and the band Stars on 45. Mondegreens: Teams are given a short piece of text that sounds similar to a set of lyrics. Teams must then identify the real lyrics. Looking for Clues, in which teams have to name a band from a cryptic clue given by Hills. The game is named after the song by Robert Palmer. Look What They've Done... (occasionally called Name That Tune): Teams must identify songs from clips that have been changed in some way. The most common method has been having a guest artist use unconventional methods or styles. Other iterations played the song backwards (which later became its own game, Step Back In Time), through headphones on maximum volume, as a ringtone, over the top of another song, or on a malfunctioning radio. The game is named after the song What Have They Done to My Song Ma by Melanie Safka.