Australian screens have been blessed with plenty of unique reality shows over the years but there has always been one series that I’ve never been able to stop thinking about — The One: The Search For Australia’s Most Gifted Psychic.
The series first aired on Channel Seven in July 2008, and saw a group of seven Australian psychics test their supernatural prowess weekly. The series was hosted by Andrew Daddo and featured a life member of the Australian Sceptics, Richard Saunders, and spiritual practitioner Stacey Demarco, who would discern which contestants stayed and which contestants were voted out.
After making it through a casting process and eight episodes of mystical tasks and challenges, it was medium Charmaine Wilson who was eventually crowned as Australia’s Most Gifted Psychic in the show’s first season.
“I really enjoyed being on The One,” Charmaine reflected to TV WEEK.
“I put my soul into it. I was really determined that I was going to take this thing home. I enjoyed challenging my gifts and seeing if I could do it, but also to platform the possibilities of what mediumship is and what psychic work is capable of. Is it always accurate? No, but I think there’s a real use in this world for mediums and psychics to help people through grief
Was the show actually legit?
Of course, when it comes to the paranormal, there are always sceptics. While the series platformed one in Richard Saunders, many people at home wondered whether the psychics were really relying on their God-given gifts, or whether sneaky producers gave them tips and tricks to keep the show interesting.
According to Charmaine, the conditions for the psychics were pretty strict with no special treatment from producers. However, she felt that some challenges could have been even more controlled.
“There was one challenge where we had to hold onto items which belonged to celebrities. It was confusing to me because I don’t think we were meant to know any of the names, but we did get a couple of names revealed about that,” Charmaine recalled.
“I complained. I like to go in cold when I do my readings. I think they tightened up the processes after that.”
While Charmaine took the show — and what it proved seriously — to Richard Saunders, the series was always first-and-foremost entertainment.
“I was never under any illusions. It was a television show for entertainment,” Richard states.
“If it was a television show to truly probe if there are psychic abilities and people have them, it would have been a completely different show. People shouldn’t confuse it with a serious investigation.”
You might be thinking, if Richard was such a nay-sayer, why did he sign up to a show about psychic abilities in the first place? Well, he felt — and the network felt — that it was important for a logical voice to be heard amongst the spiritual discourse.
“I was aware that the show wasn’t going to be particularly sceptical but they wanted people to argue in a nice way and share their point of views strongly,” Richard explained.
“I felt it was better for me to be a voice of reason — and ultimately I thought, ‘Wow this might be fun’.”
Admittedly, Richard acknowledges that the challenges set were not real, scientific measures of paranormal success. However, he says he did work to find a middle ground with producers to create a measured yet entertaining viewing experience on The One.
“I was a consultant on the challenges and tests, as far as I could be on a TV show,” he says.
“If you wanted me to construct a proper test for paranormal ability, no one was going to pass. You’d have a very boring show and the contestants will fail every one so I said, ‘Let’s compromise’ and we decided on a one-off test which is purely interesting.”
Richard explained that for real testing to take place, the psychics would have to be tested multiple times, with the odds looked at in total. For example, if someone claimed they could predict the roll of a dice 90 per cent of the time, you couldn’t roll it once to prove their claim. You’d have to roll it 100 times and calculate the percentage that they were correct.
“The one-off test is not really conclusive,” Richard continued.
“Sometimes they might do well and sometimes they won’t. But it allowed for me and the other judge, Stacey, to argue about how valid it was.”
What about the criticisms?
While the show had its fans, it also copped some serious criticism — most notably for the ethics surrounding the challenge in the season one finale.
In the final episode of season one, the remaining five contestants were sent to the Northern Territory, 200km from Alice Springs, in an effort to connect with and locate the missing body of British tourist Peter Falconio, who was murdered in 2001.
The high-profile nature of the challenge drew in plenty of viewers and press, but it also received significant pushback from British MP Kali Mountford who had worked with the Falconio family, and the British BBC, who referred to the challenge as being in “bad taste”.
Interestingly, Charmaine agrees.
“I copped it, I really did. And rightfully so,” she admits, noting that she flagged the sensitivity with the parents before the challenge was filmed.
“The task was to locate his bones and we had a helicopter for 20 minutes to do so. I didn’t like the substance of that. To be honest with you, I felt that we would’ve had a better success rate if we had talked to the parents. Unfortunately for me, that’s the challenge everyone was fascinated with. Everyone I’ve spoken to, that was the challenge they loved the most.”
Following the episode airing, Charmaine revealed that she received a phone call from Mountford.
“They rang me, and said, ‘How could you do something like that? What about Peter Falconio’s mother?’ Well, 40 years ago almost I lost my daughter. She was four and a half. So when they rang me, I just stopped him in his tracks and said, ‘I agree’. I think it was the worst thing we could have done.
“I think we should have been speaking to them rather than what we did. I’ve lost a daughter, and I cannot understand how Mrs. Falconio goes on without knowing where her son is or what exactly happened.”
Is there an appetite to bring The One back?
There has always been an appetite for the paranormal, and throughout generations, people have always chosen to believe in a higher power, or special human abilities as a form of hope. While this belief has always been around, in recent years, spirituality has shifted.
From tarot readers on TikTok using the algorithm to convince people that “this message found them for a reason” to witches on Etsy selling spells to believers on the other side of the world, spirituality has shapeshifted — and continues to be a source of income for many. With mysticism finding its way online to a huge, algorithm-driven audience, the woo-woo genre has had a big revival.
No longer is Tarot and psychic readings confined to a tiny, adorned room in tucked away locations. Now, it’s available at at the press of a touch-screen button. Whether you believe it or not, there’s no denying that the emergence has created a thriving economy. Yet, it’s worth questioning the legitimacy of the online oracles.
Richard, however, argues that the accessibility of online spirituality has created new opportunities for exploitation.
“There are thousands of people out there who would think nothing of conning people out of their hard-earned money. That’s why around the world, thousands of people lose millions of dollars to romance scams online,” Richard states.
“Some people have discovered that one of the easiest ways to make money is to pretend to be psychic because even if I come along, or the Australian Sceptic Society comes along, they will still have an army of followers who will believe in their psychics abilities.”
But with this resurgence of psychic content (whether you think it’s legit or fraudulent) could it mean an opportunity for The One to come back to our screens?
Charmaine certainly thinks so.
“I think it would go really well,” Charmaine admits.
“I think seeing a real medium in work is something special. Some of them [online] are not real mediums unfortunately. Some of them have different skills, but to see a real medium in action is really great and it opens up a whole new world for people. Especially people who have lost someone.”
Meanwhile, Richard is in two camps. While he admits that the show is undeniably entertaining, he’s unsure whether he would return for another iteration of the series.
“I would have to consider what would the point be for scepticism within a show for entertainment,” he explains. “I would rather do a show which truly examined people’s claims. But again, that wouldn’t be too entertaining. For the last 40 years, the Australian Sceptics have had a $100,000 prize for anyone who can prove that they can do what they say they can do. No one has claimed it yet.”
Despite chatting to Richard, as a long-time fan of the show, I’m still firm in my belief that The One; The Search For Australia’s Most Gifted Psychic should return to our screens.
Yes, The One was never designed to be the gold standard of paranormal investigation. The same way that The Bachelor or Married at First Sight have never been the perfect environments to manufacture lasting love. As a genre, reality television has never promised scientific conditions, nor is it known for its truth. Instead, reality television promises curiosity, a pinch of conflict and heap of entertainment.
To expect perfect truth and science from a show like The One would be naïve, but that doesn’t mean there’s no value in bringing it back. We still love watching people claim they have all the answers. If TikTok can make a fortune off viral tarot pulls, Channel Seven might just find that Australia is ready to tune back in and let the spirits decide.
And if they do, I’m more than happy to put my hand up to host.
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