Joanna Hunkin: Boxing clever

Last year, when I moved into my downtown apartment, I was forced to buy a FreeView box to get any TV reception.

Something about gullies and high rises meant it was impossible to get anything resembling a clear picture through UHF.

At the time, it was a means to an end. I only wanted the standard free-to-air channels and never bothered flicking past "4" on my remote.

But as time's gone on, and the calibre of other channels has dropped, I found myself slowly starting to explore the upper spectrum of my FreeView menu.

For some weeks now, I have stopped watching the news (to be fair, I work at a newspaper, I've already heard it all before ... ) and started watching a fantastic local quiz show - filmed 20 years ago.

Some of you may recall it - The Krypton Factor. It was hosted by the terrifically pompous Dougal Stevenson (he of the Primo Extremo ads these days) and is fabulously entertaining.

And not simply in a "gosh, look at that perm" sort of way (although that does add another level of amusement, along with the super sweet adidas tracksuits).

The contestants, supposedly average New Zealanders, test their mental and physical agility against one another in a bid to be named champion.

There are memory tests and trivia rounds, as well as an intense obstacle course (filmed on an army assault course) which sees the contestants haul themselves over walls, crawl under barbed wire and wade through waist-high sludge.

No brightly coloured foam and sanitised water for them. This is hardcore.

As are the trivia rounds.

Forget listing 20 Tom Hanks movies - these questions will make even the brightest sparks sweat.

Debate may rage over whether humans are getting smarter or not, but The Krypton Factor proves that television definitely isn't.

Try putting those questions to the average reality TV competitor today and their brains would implode.

But before we begin bagging the great unwashed of reality television, let us focus on the positive. For there is some salvation to be found, just a step further up the FreeView spectrum, on TVNZ7.

As someone who considered Sunset Tan quality television, I took some time to warm to the slightly rugged (read: untelegenic) charms of the news and current affairs channel.

But warm I did, especially once I discovered Wallace Chapman's Back Benches.

A political panel discussion and debate may not sound like riveting telly, but when you host it in a pub with a drunken, baying audience, it soon becomes the intelligentsia's answer to Jerry Springer.

The Mt Albert by-election special was a particular doozie as Chapman attempted to hush the naughty crowd, insisting they simmer down.

And as of last night, Chapman has gone supersized, as Back Benches was extended to an hour, from its previous half-hour duration, to coincide with the launch of TVNZ7 on Sky Digital.

Yes, it is no longer the negligible residents of FreeView land who are privy to these delights. Now all Sky subscribers can explore the strange compendium of treasures (and some trash - don't think it's all quality viewing, it's really not ... ) that are TVNZ6 and 7.

With an estimated 200,000 FreeView boxes in circulation, the move to SkyDigital means nearly three times as many homes will have access to the two channels.

Which means there is hope yet.

Television may just be getting a little bit smarter.