Jul 20 2021
Actress Mary Ward, best known as Jeanette “Mum” Brooks in Prisoner, has died peacefully in a nursing home at the age of 106. Born in Western Australia in 1915, she went to the United Kingdom in the 1930s to pursue a successful acting career. She had just signed a long term contract to work at …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2021/07/obituary-mary-ward.html
Jan 29 2021
In the decade following the end of The Sullivans and The Young Doctors, the Nine Network had little success in establishing a successful serial drama. The TV graveyard of the 1980s and early ’90s is littered with Nine’s drama corpses — Starting Out, Kings, Possession, Prime Time, Taurus Rising, All The Way, Family And Friends. …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2021/01/30-years-since-chances.html
Dec 12 2020
In the late 1970s, ABC entered into a joint venture with Trans-Atlantic Enterprises in the US to produce six telemovies for broadcast in Australia and for sale overseas. While the telemovies were filmed in Australia, they would feature American actors in lead roles — a common tactic to attract overseas interest in selling Australian-made productions. …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2020/12/shimmering-light-took-abc-to-the-surf.html
Jan 20 2020
By the turn of the ’80s it was the unofficial benchmark for each commercial network to have two successful soapie dramas in the schedule. Seven had Cop Shop and Skyways, and Nine had The Sullivans and The Young Doctors. The then 0-10 Network had the popular Prisoner and teen drama The Restless Years. For some reason, …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2020/01/arcade-going-from-hero-to-zero.html
Mar 03 2019
Last week marked the 40th anniversary of the debut of Prisoner. Most of the actors from the series had come from established acting backgrounds, though for many it was Prisoner that made them household (and even international) names even though they were not necessarily strangers to television. So what were some of the Prisoner cast …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2019/03/prisoner-stars-before-prisoner.html
Feb 27 2019
It is 40 years ago this week that Prisoner first graced our screens, and a thankful 0-10 Network was relieved to have a ratings hit. In an era where it was almost mandatory for a commercial network to have two hit soaps on the go, the struggling network had teen drama The Restless Years and …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2019/02/40-years-of-prisoner.html
Jan 26 2019
Writer, comedian, actress and activist Magda Szubanski is among the hundreds to be honoured this Australia Day. Szubanski has been awarded Officer in the Order of Australia (AO) “For distinguished service to the performing arts as an actor, comedian and writer, and as a campaigner for marriage equality.” Szubanski started in the comedy series The …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2019/01/magda-szubanski-in-australia-day-honours.html
Dec 02 2018
Judy McBurney, best known for roles in The Young Doctors and Prisoner, has died at the age of 70 after a four-year battle with cancer. With an early career in modelling, she moved into acting with appearances in Catwalk, Barrier Reef, Seven Little Australians, Behind The Legend, The Box, Homicide, Bluey and Bellbird. In 1973 …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2018/12/obituary-judy-mcburney.html
Jun 30 2018
The Nine Network‘s Midday host Ray Martin won the Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television at the 35th annual TV Week Logie Awards. The awards were held at Melbourne’s Grand Hyatt Hotel on 19 March 1993 and telecast on Network Ten. For Martin (pictured on TV Week‘s front cover with Silver Logie …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2018/06/tv-week-logie-awards-25-years-ago-8.html
Jun 02 2018
The Eighties and Nineties sure brought some soapie clunkers to the otherwise top-rating Nine Network. After the demise of former hit series The Young Doctors and The Sullivans, each year brought the promise of a new arrival that would, inevitably, die a ratings death and play out its remaining episodes in the summer non-ratings period. …
Permanent link to this article: https://televisionau.com/2018/06/paradise-beach-where-sand-gets-in-the-soap.html
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