It's in the news today, but it was actually on TV Reload the podcast past week. They might welcome back guys to TV Reload. My name is Benjamin Norris, and this is your podcast to get all the inside goss on the popular TV shows you may be watching from around the world. Undeniably, our TV sets are a major part of our home entertainment, and yet very little is
known about how our favorite shows get made. So each episode, I've been finding guests that want to dive just that little bit deeper into the shows they're currently making, so that you can hear all their exclusive stories and gain access to the biggest names in television. I want to thank you for downloading or subscribing to this podcast however you've found it. I love hearing your feedback, so make sure you leave a review or a comment on your
chosen podcast platform. This chat, I'm joined by Ali Langdon from Channel nine, who has proven to be one of
the network's most popular personalities. Allie Langdon made a big splash when she joined Karl Stefanovick a couple of years ago on The Today Show, and then she kind of graduated to aca the host of a Current Affair, but Today, we'll be talking about her return to the reality series Parental Guidance as season two premieres on Monday, June fifth, at seven thirty pm on Channel nine and nine Now.
In this fresh and thought provoking reality series, parents with twelve remarkably distinctive methods and approaches to parenting take center stage. The diverse range of parents do bring unique perspectives, differing greatly from one to another, so watching them critically, examine, compare, and reassess their own parenting styles with fresh eyes is very engaging television. I will talk to Ali about how hard it is to get families to agree to being on the show and how important it is to get
different parenting techniques. Ali will talk about her own parenting techniques and if this show can at times make her feel a little self conscious. Plus, we will discuss how the show has evolved and will take a sneak peek at one of the twists added to series two. Plus, we will get plenty of exclusives from behind the scenes of Parental Guidance, which I can tell you is really enjoyable.
Even if you don't have kids. You sell anyway. Let's bring Allie into the podcast and guys, I really hope you enjoyed this episode of TV reload yod Avan.
How are you.
I'm really well, I'm very excited about this.
Oh my god, so am I. It's just it's the funniest bloody show I know.
And I went out with my two best girlfriends last night who have parents, like they're both parents, and was talking about this series and they're like one of them is like I love this show, and the other one's like, no, I can't. I can't deal with how are these parents being on this show. I don't understand.
No, well, I mean that's that's it, right, And I have moments when they shine, and then they have moments when it all fours apart. So you know, there's moments to get Oh, you can get annoyed rhythm because they're doing really well, and then they're like, nah, you're normal like the rest of us. You have good days and bad days. It's fine.
It's also really quite intoxicating because I just because because on the screening room there was like six episodes I think, you know, all of a sudden, I just sat there with a cold and watched like all of them in one go, and then I just was upset. Yes, So anyway, why were you obsessed? Why don't have kids? But I'm a gay uncle basically to all of my girlfriend's children. So we just have We have a permanent car seat in our car and have done for the last six years.
So we are like kind of like on the peripheral of watching how parents parent and seeing how different children are. So this show's very fascinating to me.
I love it your uncle Ben, Uncle, yes, exactly, the love Uncle Ben.
Yeah, sat late, give you too much chocolate?
Well, I let them watch. I let one of them. He loves Minecraft. Have you heard about this about Minecraft?
Yeah?
I know, Yeah, I've got to know about Minecraft.
Oh so they love Most of these kids want to watch other people play Minecraft. They don't want to play it themselves. They're youtubing other kids playing Minecraft that are talking about.
It and oh wow.
Yeah, And none of the parents want them because there's no None of my friends, none of the women that I'm friends with, think that there's any educational value in that at all, So won't let them work at home. However, Uncle Ben's house is called Minecraft House, so there's no rules. And once we tried to see how long it would take before minecraft would get boring, and it turned out it never did. At at twelve o'clock a night, we had a four year ol go to bed. My girlfriends
will be like, don't ever talk. There's a contract now, don't ever talk about our children ever again. So Parental Guidance is back for series two. You're obviously back, which is very exciting. What is it about this show that you really enjoyed from series one and then came back for series two.
I think it's just a great opportunity right to celebrate parenthood. And by saying celebrate parenthood, it means like those joyous moments when we see our kids have a win and what have you, and also kind of celebrate the mess and the chaos and the failures. And it's just really cool for me to look at all these different parenting
styles because I don't really think I have one. What I've probably learned through the show is that monsters really consistent and what I do one day, I don't do when they says I'm probably totally stuffering the kids up. But it's just cool to see all the different ways these parents, you know, parent their kids and will be one challenge where you go, wow, that's that's the best parenting style, like that they made us now that out of the park perfect, and then the next one they
just everything falls apart. And so while there's lots of funning the show too, we talk about someone's really serious stuff like screen time and what are our kids doing on when they're on their screens that the parents do or don't know about, and so all of the challenges we have, like we work with like child psychologists and
the strange Federal police. And in episode one, we kind of hit everyone between the eyes with this online gaming and the kids are playing and there's one set of parents they sort of say, look, we haven't really talked to our kids about it because we wanted to be kids as long as they possibly can. We don't want
to open that can of worms. And then you see an adult so through strong federal police so pretending to be a kid, acting like you know, a predator, and how they get this kid to talk, and the information that this child gives up and what this child agrees to do as in like meet up with this person or within a couple of minutes, and I think that's really it's kind of scary to watch how quickly it can happen, and how easily our kids are manufay, and
we all sit in the room and we're actually really angry. Ye're angry that there are people like them to actually do this and target our kids. But that's the reality. It's just about giving our kids, like the best tools to kind of to sort of navigate that and realize what doesn't look right. And some of the kids nail it.
Their brilliant they spotted a mile away and they like and and sort of do something else, and so it's you know, it's great and sing in seeing that which we tackle some really tricky issues.
I guess, well, yeah you do. I mean, and you know what's really interesting about this show is when I first saw it Ti, I was like, oh, that's a show for you know, people who've got children, But I think, you.
Know, oh for everyone.
It's for everyone because I think people who don't have kids can be even more opinionated on what is right and wrong of what other people are doing with their parenting, which means that you can sit in that in that zone watching the show, because you know, I think parents are are very conscious where you know, people who are not parents, they're very maybe too opinionated. I would say yeah, And I think.
Even like grandparents to sit there and sort of stay you know, there's sometimes a bit of a simplistics the wrong way, but you know, it was easy at a parent before all the screen time and all of these kind of dramas. It's modern day issues that parents face. It's great for grandparents and and everyone can just sort of have a view on it.
I think parenting can be also quite taboo. I always think of talking about styles of parenting around the table can be a bit like politics and religion, you know, but you've kind of way, you've kind of made a way to talk about this in mainstream media with such integrity, which I think must have been really hard for them to work out how to do this show. To do that, I think it's why.
We haven't seen a show like this until now, because it's tricky to do because you're filming with kids. You've got to protect kids, but you've also got to see how these parenting styles, what works and what doesn't. So
to get that right. Where you are at the end of the day, just celebrating parenthood, and the room's pretty supportive, Like there are some epic fails in certain challenges and it's not at any point people in the room like, haha, see you, you know what happened here even kind of wrap their arms around the other parents when that happens, because we all want to see all of our kids succeed, right, And it's kind of hard when we see the opposite
of that tape play out. So just so in many ways, like it gets fiery and people defend their parenting styles, but there's also a lot of like kindness, and there's a lot of laughs, like it's just a fun show.
The thing about the show that really shocks me his even more so the marrit at first sight, is how do you even find parents that are willing to do this show? I mean, putting yourself out there with your parental guidance, I mean, with your parental style must be you'd have to be very courageous. This is what I think.
Well, I think you know a lot of people have thought a lot about how a parent. I'm like me, I haven't thought a lot about it, but you know, they really think about it, and I think it's not there. We've counter that and you know, and they wanted sort of share what they do. But also a lot of them come on with the idea of like, we do this and we love how we parents ourselves, but they're open to becoming better parents, like okay, what additional kind
of tools? And a Ciners doctor Justin Coolson opens his mouth with advice. You see everyone in the room lean forward and take everything in. They're very different when I speak for some reason, I.
Have no idea why, but when they're sharing his wisdom and what he's like. And he also has six girls, so he's in a house with seven females, that's a lot of female energy, so he knows.
What he's talking about. Everyone is there to be better because we just want to raise good, kind humans who go out and live their very best life.
How many changes did you guys make to the format? I mean, did you listen to what parents might have said last year and tried to evolve certain things. I mean, you're probably not a producer, so you're probably not working on the format, But what did you notice about the evolution from series one to series two?
Look, I think it was tweaked a little because what we did in season one had never been done before. It was a new formats, Like we look at something that was happening overseas and said, okay, let's do it here. It was brand new, so none of us really knew what we were doing, and a lot of it worked, and then I think we looked at it and went, okay, what's you know what could work better this time around? And so that's been tweaked. We've got a few more
parenting styles involved. We don't throw them all in the house together at the end, but there is a big challenge that sort of the winning team to have to take part in, which is just very fun.
Did you feel do you find this is why I kept thinking? I kept looking at your face the whole time. Do you feel self conscious about not coming across as to opinionate it or upsetting any of the parents? I mean, I'm always looking at you thinking, because I mean you're so famous and so recognizable. I'm assuming that they all want to be your friend and have you weigh in on it and say, you know, you're the parents that I believe in, and I don't feel like you're able
to or you should be doing that. Are you self conscious about how you're interacting and watching everything that's going on?
Okay, if you saw how our parents home do you realize that there is no judgment coming from me in anything that we do. I'm happy. I'm very happy to sort of, you know, challenge a parenting style if I feel it needs to be. But that's also what the room does. The other parenting styles do that, so I can almost you know, I almost leave it up to them.
What is something from behind the scenes, something that we won't see on the show, kind of like a behind the scenes secret on making this show.
Ooh, it's the secret that at the end of the day or these all be having parents, have a little last champagne and a little dance before we go home.
That's the best way to finish it. Come here and show us your parenting and then have a few drinks that'll make you feel Allie, thank you so much for your time.
It was gorgeous to talk to you.
I'm a huge fan.
Really, no, thank you lovely to chat. Thanks a lot.
Look after yourself.