As 10’s breakout success Hunted wraps up for the year, the production company behind the show has found itself in hot water for failing to get permission to film on Melbourne trains.
Victoria’s Andrews government and Metro Trains are looking into Endemol Shine after the first episode of Hunted breached the transport network’s policies around shooting on the station grounds.
The show began with 18 people being set free as fugitives in Melbourne’s Federation Square. A number of the contestants took off across the road to Flinders Street railway station, with cameras filming them as they bought Myki cards, travelled around the station property, and boarded trains to make their escape from the Hunters that were after them.
A Metro spokeswoman told The Herald Sun that “The Hunted production company did not apply for a permit prior to filming on Metro’s network.
“This is not acceptable as Metro has strict protocols in place for filming which should have been followed to ensure the safety of staff and passengers.
“We have written to the production company involved to remind them of their obligation to apply for a permit before filming.”
Also speaking to the masthead, Victoria’s public transport minister Ben Carroll said that “appropriate action” had been taken to make sure there wasn’t a repeat of the breach in the future.
The Metro Trains website has a number of rules regarding filming on the property, with the very first being that “You must obtain express permission from Metro Trains Melbourne before accessing Metro premises for filming and photography.”
The second rule is that “On arrival, all third parties with permission to engage in station activities must check in with the relevant Station Master.”
The launch episode of Hunted finished the night as the #1 entertainment program with 619,000 viewers as well as being #1 in all key demos.
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