Ftn buys in some exclusivity

Going some way to dispel the idea that Flextech's new free-to-air channel Ftn is just a trailer for its pay networks, channel controller Richard Woolfe has imported some exclusive shows for March and April.

Tomorrow the digital channel unveils a themed weekend based around a new Australian import, Kath & Kim (pictured). Launched down under last June, the show was the highest rating locally produced sitcom for Australia's ABC.

The female-skewing sitcom, acquired from ABC Content Sales, follows a mother and daughter, played by Aussie comediennes Jane Turner and Gina Riley. With eight half-hours already made, a further eight start production in April.

Another exclusive import for Ftn is NBC's Tonight With Jay Leno, {which we'll have beamed over each day,{ Woolfe told C21. The talkshow kicks off on Ftn on April 1.

Woolfe has also picked up rerun rights to MGM's yuppie drama Thirtysomething, which ran for four seasons on ABC in the US in the late 1980s and later on Channel 4 in the UK. Ftn airs the show from March 3.