New host not cut from the same cloth

 
Megan Gale promises not to be too harsh as host of Project Runway.
'GET ready for a Gale force, Australia,'' purrs the male voice-over on the promo clip for the third season of Project Runway Australia. He is, of course, referring to Megan Gale, taking over from Kristy Hinze as host.
Gale assumes the roles of co-executive producer and judge. Signing off the promo, Gale deadpans: ''We've got this season all stitched up,'' all smoky eyes and uncompromising stare. Her Australian twang reminds us the local version is very much a home-grown product.
The structure is the same as the hugely successful American series, now in its ninth season, with 18 international versions. ''But, with any format, the mere fact that we're Australians makes it so different,'' executive producer Anna Gregory says.

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Six male and six female fashion designers are given a creative challenge in each episode, culminating in a runway show and elimination. The final three compete in a large parade at season's end, where the winner takes home a bundle of prizes.
It's Gale's first appearance on the small screen in five years. ''With Project Runway - especially with designing and starting a new label [swimwear label Isola] - I felt it was something I could contribute a lot to and learn a lot from,'' she says.
The opportunity to produce was an added incentive. ''For me, it's important to have a little bit of creative control of whatever I'm involved in.
''It's my image and brand attached, so I have to be happy with the end result.''
Gale sees herself as a more empathetic figure than the American version's Heidi Klum. ''I try to give what I think is constructive criticism but I don't want to come across as harsh or bitchy,'' she says.
In the Melbourne shoot, gown designer Alex Perry replaces Henry Roth as mentor to the designers and Gale, fashion designer Kirrily Johnston and industry expert Jarrad Clark comprise the judging panel.
Perry says his Runway persona differs significantly from the judge he plays on Australia's Next Top Model. ''I'm in the workroom the majority of the time and that's where I feel most comfortable - mentoring designers of all ages,'' he says. ''On Top Model I get to be a bit naughty and controversial and tell people stuff to get a bit of a rise out of them.''
Perry took the Runway auditions seriously: ''For me, it was about getting really good designers.
''Then, the personalities will be there.''
Green Guide visited the Runway set on elimination day in the third week of filming. ''It's the longest part of the episode to film,'' Gale says. ''It's usually anywhere from a 14 to 16-hour day; we wrap at 10.30 or 11pm.''
It doesn't end there for the designers. For the duration of the shoot, they're confined to a hotel room. ''They've got no phones or contact with the outside world,'' Gregory says.
''The idea is they don't get any inspiration from anywhere and they're so close to one another, they're forced to form friendships.''
Or enemies. Melbourne contestant Craig Braybrook says there wasn't ''too much tension'' but admits it was much harder than he'd anticipated. ''It was heaps of fun, I've never laughed so much in my life,'' he says. ''At the same time, I've probably never cried so much either; it was like a roller-coaster.''
Prime reality fodder, then.
Project Runway Australia screens from Monday, July 4, at 8.30pm on Arena