• Alone Australia in Western Tasmania 
• The Idea of Australia, Australia: An Unofficial History, The Secret DNA of Us
• Eurovision in Switzerland
• Great Australian Road Trips, 2.6 Seconds
• Who Do You Think You Are? returns
• Rogue Heroes, Handmaid’s Tale, Vigil, Blue Lights
• Final Michael Mosley series
• No decision on Shaun Micallef’s Origin Odyssey, The Jury.

EXCLUSIVE: 

SBS isn’t wasting any time getting the party started on its 50th year in 2025.

Officially SBS Television launched as Channel 0/28 in 1980 when Bruce Gyngell introduced a program on multiculturalism Who Are We? by Peter Luck.

But its roots go back to 1975 radio when 2EA in Sydney and 3EA in Melbourne began as a three month experiment.

In 2025 SBS is still reflecting a mirror back on who we are and how we see ourselves.

“It’s our 50th year this year, so we’ve really tried to plan across the entire year a consistent slate of really Australian stories,” says Natalie Edgar, Channel Manager, SBS and SBS VICELAND.

“But of course, we’re doing the best international series as well. We’ve got a number of bold and daring series that really tries to continue that long tradition of having content on SBS that is purpose-driven.

“The thing that I’m most excited about in Q1 would be Alone Australia. I don’t want to be predictable, but I’m a really I’m a big fan! Series two last year really cemented itself as a ratings powerhouse,” she says.

This time, 10 survivalists will be dropped into the rugged landscape of The West Coast Ranges, Tasmania, lutruwita. With no camera crews they must try to survive by their own wits and ingenuity to be the last person standing. It will launch with a double episode.

“I’ve only seen the first couple of episodes. I’m one of those dinosaurs that likes to watch the rest as it goes out. But we’re back in Tasmania. It’s so stunning. It’s actually the highest elevation we’ve ever had for Alone Australia. But of course, with that comes some very interesting weather -even in thatvery first episode. The wind, my goodness! I don’t know how people survive down there in Tasmania, but the survivalists this time show some innovation and ingenuity that I don’t think we’ve seen before,” Edgar continues.

“It wouldn’t be a place where I would like to be dropped off and left on my own. I think I would have lasted a couple of hours!”

Popular UK drama Rogue Heroes returns for a second series with the troops in Spring 1943.

“We get audience feedback every day from the switchboard and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many questions from our audience asking when the next series of Rogue Heroes is going to drop, but it’s coming next month. We’ve got Jack O’Connell, Connor Swindells and Dominic West all returning.  The conflict has moved from the Egyptian desert landscape to mainland Europe, so it has a slightly different look and feel. But it’s still such a fun romp.”

Key SBS drama slots are 9:30pm Wednesday and Thursday, with “softer” crime such as The Good Ship Murder, expected later this year, at 7:30 Friday.

Ever-popular Michael Portillo is an SBS staple, but there are many armchair travel titles coming this year.

“We’ve got Ancient Greece by Train. We’ve got a series set on The Scotsman (Scotland’s Poshest Train With Alan Cumming) a two-parter coming up,” says Edgar. “We’ve also got an Orient Express series coming up. But if you want Michael Portillo, he is coming up on Monday night next month. We’ve got him traveling to Madrid, Sicily, Lisbon, Prague, I think he also goes to Stockholm.”

Fear not, his train titles will still screen on Tuesdays, but SBS is again changing up Mondays.

“Mondays are really tough for us. We’re up against the ABC (current affairs) line-up and obviously the big Realities. So (last year) we thought about counter programming, and it was actually very successful. We did 8 Out of 10 Cats, Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Have I Got News For You? We saw triple digit increases amongst our 25 to 54 audience, which was fantastic. But it’s proved a challenge to try and maintain that volume. But keep an eye out, because those shows will all return on Monday nights later this year,” she tips.

Mastermind Series 7 screens across Q1 / Q2 with another 85 episodes while Insight and Dateline both return in March.

Now in its 16th season Who Do You Think You Are? screens in Q2 featuring Claudia Karvan, Marc Fennell and Mark Coles Smith while Fennell hosts The Secret DNA of Us, testing the DNA of everyday Australians in both urban and regional communities.

“They’re testing across four Australian towns to try and reveal historical information about the country as a whole. So, think of Who Do You Think You Are, but on a mass scale.”

There are two other 2025 documentary commissions which echo the legacy of Who Are We? being
The Idea of Australia presented by Rachel Griffiths and Australia: An Unofficial History presented by Jacki Weaver.

“The Idea of Australia? asks some challenging questions around how can we evolve? How can we become richer and more robust going into the 21st century and beyond? It’s a four part documentary series, and we’re really thrilled to have Rachel Griffiths, obviously an acclaimed Australian actress, presenting. I think it’ll start a national conversation about our past, and how that speaks to where we are in the present,” explains Edgar.

“Australia: An Unofficial History is breaking open the very weird but very wonderful films from the 1970s to try and tell the story of Australia that hasn’t been presented before. We’re so thrilled to have the icon that is Jacki Weaver presenting. I think it’s really going to remind Australians of what life was like back then,” she observes.

“You’ll get a peek of her in one of the films from the 70s.”

Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Basel, Switzerland and there are changes for Australia with new hosts to be announced.

“I think you’ll be super excited. The announcement is soon, I believe,” Edgar teases.

SBS production will now be produced by Beyond with Creative Director Paul Clarke, after he departed Blink TV in 2024.

Expected in Q2 is UK drama Sherlock & Daughter starring David Thewlis as Sherlock Holmes, Dougray Scott as Professor Moriarty, and Blu Hunt as a young Californian who learns her missing father may be the legendary Sherlock Holmes.

Set to conclude in 2025 is The Handmaid’s Tale but the timing and storyline is under wraps.

“Elisabeth Moss is obviously returning as June Osborne, and I imagine that last series is going to be explosive and epic as it has ever been for the fans.”

Other international dramas in 2025 include Blue Lights S3, detective series Virdee, Smilla’s Sense of Snow, S2 of Vigil, and this week Playing Nice with James Norton.

Following internal executive changes, SBS is yet to announce a flagship local drama for 2025 but there are 3 new Digital Dramas from emerging talents, Moonbird, Warm Props & Moni, to screen on NITV or SBS VICELAND.

In the second half of the year is true crime documentary series 2.6 Seconds, a truth-telling of a fatal meeting between two young men in an isolated community in Australia’s central desert. One black, the other white.

“It’s a story of a 19 year old Indigenous teenager and a young police officer, and how their paths crossed. I think the story is relatively well known, but it’s about how their families and their lives are just completely torn apart. It’ll be compelling, insightful, really confronting but it’s really about the country that those two individuals were born into,” she continues.

There is lighter fare from Great Australian Road Trips, from Mint Pictures.

“It’s kind of an evolution of Great Australian Walks. We’ve paired Claudia Karvan and Steph Tisdale in one car, and then we’ve got Melissa Leong with Nazeem Hussain in another car to look at some untold Australian stories. It’ll be one pit stop at a time. I love a road trip, particularly at this time of the year,” Edgar reflects.

“It’ll be stunning, but funny and light, going on a road trip with your friends.”

Also coming later this year is a docudrama based around Robodebt (working title).

“This is a really significant. landmark series. It’s coming to us from CJZ who obviously produced, Go Back to Where You Came From for us. It’s an unusual, kind of hybrid show, using a combination of a hard-nosed factual, but at the same time it’ll have some high-end drama in there as well. I think it’s going to shine a light on such a significant part of Australian history. It was shocking, and remains shocking,” she insists.

Other international titles include Wilderness with Simon Reeve, The Wonders of Europe, Irresistible: Why We Can’t Stop Eating and hopefully Travels with Agatha Christie with Sir David Suchet, which has been delayed.

SBS also has one more title featuring the late Dr Michael Mosley based on his podcast, Just One Thing with Michael Mosley.

“It’s only a 2×30 minute factual but that is the final Michael Mosley project we’ll have on air.”

In Sport are Tour de France, Tour de France Femmes, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España, CONMEBOL FIFA World Cup qualifying matches, World Athletics, Indoor Volleyball, Sail GP, International Gymnastics and Figure Skating and a raft of Motorsport events.

NITV also has its own commissions, with some such as Our Medicine to have an SBS broadcast, probably around Reconciliation Week.

Not returning this year are Great Australian Walks, Celebrity Letters & Numbers and SBS advises no update on more for Every Family Has a Secret. Ditto for any further Slow TV.

“We talk about it a lot, but nothing on the slate at this point,” she reveals

What about more for Shaun Micallef’s Origin Odyssey?

“We were really excited by the numbers, particularly in that younger, under 50 demo. We’re just kicking the tyres at the moment on those numbers and we’d obviously love to work with Shaun again.”

Natalie Edgar Channel Manager, SBS and SBS VICELAND

Another 2024 success story was The Jury.

“It got a lot of critical acclaim too, not just audience feedback, and that series was our best performing documentary series on On Demand last year. We hadn’t dipped our toe into that true crime genre, and I think it was really exciting for us to lean into that. It’s such a unique format, we’re talking about the audience figures at the moment, because it has picked up a little bit more over that summer break. So we’re talking about it,” Edgar observes.

Original British format The Jury Murder Trial will be seen in late February.

And SBS of course has further new and returning titles on SBS Food, VICELAND and World Movies while WorldWatch continues international news. Still bringing the world back home.