SYNOPSIS
Is it ok to spy on your kids online?
If a woman has had a boob job is it an open invitation to have a good look?
Is it alright to tell your kids there’s no God?
If you’re not getting any in the marital bed, are you justi! ed in going elsewhere for sex?
Each week, host, Ian “Dicko” Dickson, will be joined by three guests, a studio audience and Australians from all walks of life to ! nd out what we really think about some very curly questions. Can Of Worms questions are not about politics or current a" airs. They ARE about the things we collide with every day – political correctness, personal values and our unending capacity to make life complicated.
There can never be a ‘wrong answer’ on Can of Worms. Neither will our guests be expected to give an expert opinion or politically correct view. All we ask is that they are honest and candid and come prepared for a lot of fun.
There’s only one catch: They’re not allowed to sit on the fence.
During the program we’ll also reveal the results of our Can Of Worms national polls, run by leading research company Roy Morgan, to ! nd out what Australia really thinks about these questions. Along the way, we’ll have comedians in studio and on the street giving their take on the Can of Worms questions and topics.
From the team that made Enough Rope and Gruen Transfer, Can of Worms promises to be hugely entertaining and highly thought-provoking. HOST BIOGRAPHY
Ian “Dicko” Dickson has had an illustrious career in the record and media industry for over 20 years. Hailing from Birmingham, Dicko graduated from Nottingham University with a degree in Politics but swiftly moved to London and set up home with Mel, his then girlfriend, and started working as a promotions manager for seminal independent label Creation Records, the brainchild of legendary A&R impresario Alan Magee. Creation bands include Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream, Felt, Weather Prophets, My Bloody Valentine, and eventually and most famously, Oasis.
In 1989 Dicko joined Sony Music UK (or CBS Records as it was then) as a press o! cer with a roster of artists that included Public Enemy, LL Cool J as well as Midnight Oil, LA hair band Warrant and Michael Bolton. In 1990 Dicko moved to the Epic Label as a marketing executive looking after Pearl Jam, Ozzy Osbourne, Living Colour, Screaming Trees and Celine Dion.
After establishing a strong reputation for managing and developing some of the most signi" cant names in the music industry, Dicko was promoted to Director of International for Sony UK in 1993 overseeing global strategies for all Epic and S2 label artists including Jamiroquai, Des’ree, Reef, Manic Street Preachers and Basia.
In 1994 he moved to A&M Records UK as Director of International, looking after acts such as Chris De Burgh, Therapy, Del Amitri, The Bluetones and the Mowax label including DJ Shadow, Money Mark and U.N.C.L.E.
1998 sees Dicko move to BMG UK Group as their Vice President of International. Here he enjoys much international success with the likes of Natalie Imbruglia, Five, Westlife, The Eurythmics and M People. It is here that he also enjoys a close working relationship with a suave straight talking posh English bloke that Dicko nicknames ‘The Dark Lord’... we know him as Simon Cowell.
In 2001, now married to Mel and with two daughters, Dicko took up the position of General Manager of Marketing for BMG Australia. Dicko says, “I took a 40% pay cut and a drop of two rungs down the corporate ladder, but the opportunity to bring up my kids in such an amazing country was too good to pass up... and it actually proved to be the most lucrative pay cut imaginable!”
The " rst Australian viewers see of Dicko is when he is cast as a judge on Australian Idol on Network Ten in 2003, bringing his colourful opinions and strong views to a program that became an immediate hit. Australians couldn’t get enough of the straight talking British larrikin and Dicko loved being part of one of the most successful shows of the decade, developing and supporting home-grown and raw talent singers.
It was at this time that Dicko decided to leave the recording industry after 20 years and set up a talent management " rm with his manager/now business partner, David Wilson. The Melbourne based company, Watercooler Talent, quickly established an impressive reputation and now represents some of Australia’s most popular personalities from TV, radio and stage.
Following two record ratings series of Australian Idol, Dicko decided to spread his wings and signed to Channel 7, hosting Celebrity Survivor Vanuatu, and food reality show My Restaurant Rules. He also wowed audiences with his antics as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars. “I came third,” enthuses Dicko, “but I was the last man standing in the competition and they let me keep all my skin tight Lycra out" ts which I now use to embarrass my daughters when they bring their boyfriends around.”
In 2007 Dicko returned to Australian Idol as a judge for Series 5 as well as signing on to judge The Next Great American Band in the US for the Fox Network. Juggling the commitments meant commuting 30 hours a week between the US and Sydney.
In 2008 Dicko joined DMG Radio’s Vega 91.5 in Melbourne alongside Chrissie Swan & Dave O’Neill as part of the breakfast line up, “The Dicko, Dave & Chrissie Show” while continuing to judge Australian Idol series 6 and 7 on Network Ten. He was awarded the ACRA trophy for “Best New Talent” on Australian radio in this debut year. Dicko... Voted... Best New Talent. Anyone else seeing the irony here?
In 2010, the Vega 91.5 breakfast radio rug was pulled swiftly, along with the station’s brand and format. That presented Dicko with a lot of spare time and his business partner/manager David Wilson with the perfect opportunity to develop their idea for a TV series called Can of Worms. They established their new production company, Watercooler Media Pty Ltd and pitched the idea to Andrew Denton and Anita Jacoby at Zapruder’s other " lms.
The two companies have now joined forces to create Can of Worms for Network Ten in 2011 with Dicko also up front as host. BIOGRAPHY: EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS
From his groundbreaking early work on the ABC - BLAH BLAH BLAH, THE MONEY OR THE GUN, LIVE & SWEATY - through to his unforgettable reworking of television’s ‘night of nights’, the LOGIES, his role as Executive Producer of CNNNN, his work hosting and producing the hugely successful ENOUGH ROPE and now as the Executive Producer of THE GRUEN TRANSFER, GRUEN NATION, HUNGRY BEAST and more, Andrew is widely recognised as one of Australian television’s genuine creative forces.
Since 2003 Anita has headed Production and Development at Zapruder’s. Here she has overseen production of the Zapruder’s slate, including ENOUGH ROPE, ELDERS, THE GRUEN TRANSFER, GRUEN NATION, HUNGRY BEAST, AFP and Zapruder’s documentaries including GOD ON MY SIDE, GALLIPOLI and CAN I WRITE THE ENDING. Prior to this, through her award-winning work on programs such as 60 MINUTES, WITNESS, SUNDAY and LAWS, Anita has established herself as one of Australia’s most experienced producers. Away from work, one of her greatest loves is her bull, Horatio.
Managing Director of Watercooler Media Pty Ltd, the company that he runs with his business partner Ian Dickson. David Wilson & Dicko brought the idea for Can of Worms to Zapruder’s in late 2010 and the two companies have worked on developing the program together. David is Executive Producer of Can of Worms alongside Andrew Denton and Anita Jacoby. David’s previous Executive Producer roles include “Tonight Live with Steve Vizard”, “The Australian Music Awards” and a number of special event entertainment programs with Kylie Minogue, John Farnham, Olivia Newton John, Anthony Warlow, Human Nature and Savage Garden. David also runs Watercooler Talent Pty Ltd, the management company that represents Dicko and a roster of other prominent Australian media identities.