[Jonathan Leane]

Dark secrets revealed! Dannii Minogue pulls back the curtain on the dark side of Young Talent Time​

For anyone who grew up in Australia in the 70s and 80s, Young Talent Time was must-see TV. Every week, a group of talented youngsters would take to the stage and perform classic songs and contemporary hits, while hopefuls competed in a weekly talent quest in the hopes of becoming the next big thing.

The show was hosted by 1960s pop sensation Johnny Young, airing from 1971 to 1988. The original program launched the careers of several Australian performers including Sally Boyden, Jamie Redfern, Vikki Broughton, Debra Byrne (billed then as Debbie), Tina Arena and Dannii Minogue, and produced numerous hit singles, fifteen Young Talent Time albums, a film, as well as merchandise including swap cards, board games, toys, and mugs. Not bad, eh?

But what many fans don't know is that there was a dark side to the beloved program. In a recent interview, Dannii Minogue - who starred on the show from 1982 to 1988 - opened up about the challenges she faced at such a young age.

'I was the biggest nerd when I was on Young Talent Time. I was in the library at lunch doing my homework so I could go straight to rehearsals after school,' she explained during an interview on The Kyle and Jackie O show on Tuesday.

'I was obsessed with getting good grades and if I didn't finish [my homework] at lunchtime I'd have to do it when I got home and I wouldn't sleep till 11 pm.'

Dannii isn't the only one who has spoken out about the dark side of Young Talent Time. In 2017, former cast member Nikki Webster revealed that the young stars were constantly under pressure to meet strict deadlines.

'We would work long hours, sometimes 12 hours a day, six days a week,' she told news.com.au at the time. 'It was full-on.'

Despite the gruelling schedule, we suspect most of the former cast would do it all again.

Last year, Channel 10 celebrated the show's 50th anniversary with a one-off reunion special, which saw Dannii join forces with some of her former co-stars for an emotional performance, belting out classics like 'Celebration', 'Neutron Dance', '1999', 'We Are Family', 'She Loves You', ‘Get Ready’, 'Physical', 'All You Need is Love' and ‘You're the One That I Want’.

The last song, 'All My Loving', was the show's signature number that the team and host Johnny Young sang at the end of every show.

The star-studded cast included Tina Arena, Jamie Redfern, Vikki Broughton, Debra Byrne, Sally Boyden, John Bowles, Joey Dee, Robyn Loau, Scott Michaelson, John O'Neill, Johnny Young, and Nikki Webster.

Check out the performance here.

Were you a fan of Young Talent Time? Let us know what your favourite performances were in the comments below.

 

[TomDevine55]

I was a big fan of YTT. I dont know what Danii is complaining about, she wanted to be famous and now she is complaining about YTT. She is and will never be the star Kylie is and thats probably why she finds fault with YTT because she hasnt lived up to her full potential because she has nowhere near the talent of her sister. The fact she had to work long hours was on her parents and perhaps they should be looked at for child abuse..if that is not the issue. I suggest she shuts up because no-one forced her to join YTT, just her ego. No smypathy here.

 

[DrChip]

How it works is if you have the right head line " The Dark Side of Young Talent Time" you get the head lines. Sells papers, which helps when your career is waning and all you can do is scream on a tertible show that is/was "The Masked Singer". Says it all

 

[JayKay]

I don't believe Nikki Webster was ever in Young Talent Time. She was only born in 1987!
(YTT stopped in 1988.)
Karen Knowles was in YTT.....she was a gorgeous young girl. Karen replaced Judith Durham in the Seekers, they became The New Seekers.

 

[tanny1416]

I used to take my kids to the taping of the show at the studio at Nunawading, Victoria. Amazing performances and enjoyed it all

 

[CarolynRae]

I am a Y.T.T. life long fan. I loved the show and enjoyed watching each of the young stars perform. I can still clearly remember Tina Arena singing Somewhere Over The Rainbow, she was amazing. Karen Knowles was one of my favourites, too. Tanny1416 was so lucky to be able to go to the taping of the show.