TV EYE

CLASSIC AUSTRALIAN TELEVISION

The first twenty-one years of Australian television drama series.

CHRONOLOGICAL
OVERVIEW
 

INTERVIEWS

F.A.Q.

LINKS

Welcome to CLASSIC AUSTRALIAN TELEVISION.

This site will feature information and episode details for most drama series (including childrens series and sit-coms) from the first twenty-one years of Australian television. Serials (including mini-series and soap operas), anthologies, plays, pilots and telemovies will not be covered here.

'Series' are defined as programs of more than three episodes which have self-contained narratives.

'Serials' are defined as programs having a continuous narrative spanning three or more episodes. 'Serials' includes 'mini-series' and 'soap operas' - 'mini-series' have a predetermined set length, and 'soaps' have an indefinite length.

So what does all that mean? Classic drama such as Homicide, Hunter, Boney and Rush will be covered here, along with sit-coms such as My Name's McGooley and The Last Of The Australians, plus childrens series including Adventures Of The Seaspray, Barrier Reef and the like. What won't be featured are serials such as Power Without Glory and Seven Little Australians, or soaps such as Bellbird and The Box.

The column on the right has links to all the shows. Each series usually covers two pages (article and episode details), but some larger entries (eg Homicide) may have more. Should you be baffled by some of the terms used in the episode details, each of those pages has a link to an explanation page on the left. For a complete listing of all series and serials produced in Australia up to 1977, check the Chronology page.

1977 has been chosen as a convenient cut-off point, as from that time on there was a pronounced shift in emphasis from series to serials. Throughout the 1980's, most drama production was in two extreme forms: high quality mini-series and low-quality soaps, the latter by far the most dominant. From the mid-1990's the trend has balanced out and series (albeit with a higher 'soap' content) once again occupy a major role in programming schedules.

Also, many programs from the 1980's and 1990's are still screened or available on DVD, and information about them is more accessible. Individuals can easily find out what they want to know about most shows, thus obviating the need for them all to be featured here.

 

UPDATES

The last major update was in March 2008, when the remaining feature articles and episode details were added. The site is now basically complete, as every series intended to be covered is now included. However, research is ongoing and minor updates are made on a regular basis as new information comes to light.

 

SITE NAVIGATION

It should be fairly easy to find your way around this site. The major sections are detailed as follows, and each page has links in the left margin (the coloured bit) to every other major section.

HOME
This page, which provides links to all the shows that have been treated in detail. If you are a regular visitor, this is the page you should bookmark, as URL's for the other pages may change. The URL for this page is:
www.classicaustraliantv.com

CHRONOLOGICAL OVERVIEW
A brief table of all Australian drama series and serials (including children's series and sit-coms) produced until 1977.

INTERVIEWS
This section features the interviews with cast and crew members that originally appeared in TV Eye magazine during the 1990's.

F.A.Q.
Frequently asked questions.

LINKS
Links to other Australian TV related sites.

 

CONTACT

If you want to send me an e-mail, point your mouse over here which will show my e-mail addy. Please note that I cannot guarantee a response. The problem is time - I don't have any! Also, please check the FAQ page before asking me a question - it may already be answered.

 

DIVISION 4 / MATLOCK POLICE ON WIN-TV
WIN Television are screening Matlock Police and Division 4 in the early morning hours of Tuesday and Friday respectively. The timeslot has been dedicated four days a week to 'Crawfords Classics', the other two days being filled by Carson's Law and Skyways.

 

BLUE HEELERS AND HOMICIDE
Why let the facts spoil a good story? With the cancellation of Blue Heelers, it has often been reported that, at 510 episodes, it has just pipped the record previously held by Homicide, at 509 episodes, as Australia's longest running series. The fact is that there were actually 510 episodes of Homicide. Although the final episode is numbered 509, there was an earlier episode numbered 24A (in addition to episode 24), making a total of 510. Blue Heelers has equalled Homicide's record, but has not beaten it.

 

 

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This site is researched, written, designed and maintained by Don Storey.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following individuals and organisations for information and assistance (in no particular order):
David Lee, Chris Keating, John McCallum, National Film And Sound Archive, Crawfords Australia, Don Samulenok, Tony Ward, Gary Day, Leonard Teale, Norman Yemm, Ian Jones, Roger Mirams, Wally Ritter, Anton Baker, Jim Brown, David Lyle, Ian Crawford, Gary Gray, Denzil Howson, John Drew, Frank Van Straten, the Grundy Organisation, the Nine Network, the Seven Network, the Ten Network and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

 

 

THE ADVENTURES OF
LONG JOHN SILVER

Article       Episode details

ADVENTURES OF THE SEASPRAY

Article       Episode details

A NICE DAY AT THE OFFICE

Article       Episode details

BARLEY CHARLIE

Article       Episode details

BARRIER REEF

Article       Episode details

BLUEY

Article       Episode details

BOBBY DAZZLER

Article       Episode details

BONEY

Article       Episode details

CASE FOR THE DEFENCE

Article       Episode details

CASH & COMPANY

Article       Episode details

CATWALK

Article       Episode details

CHOPPER SQUAD

Article       Episode details

CONSIDER YOUR VERDICT

Article       Episode details

CONTRABANDITS

Article       Episode details

DELTA

Article       Episode details

DIVISION 4

Article       Episode details

DYNASTY

Article       Episode details

EMERGENCY

Article       Episode details

GLENVIEW HIGH

Article       Episode details

THE GODFATHERS

Article       Episode details

GOOD MORNING, MR. DOUBLEDAY

Article       Episode details

THE GROUP

Article       Episode details

HEY YOU!

Article       Episode details

HOMICIDE

Article       Episode details

HUNTER

Article       Episode details

I'VE MARRIED A BACHELOR

Article       Episode details

JOAN AND LESLIE

Article       Episode details

KING'S MEN

Article       Episode details

THE LAST OF THE AUSTRALIANS

Article       Episode details

THE LINK MEN

Article       Episode details

THE LONG ARM

Article       Episode details

THE MAGIC BOOMERANG

Article       Episode details

MATLOCK POLICE

Article       Episode details

MRS. FINNEGAN

Article       Episode details

MY NAME'S McGOOLEY -
WHAT'S YOURS?

Article       Episode details

NICE 'N JUICY

Article       Episode details

OUR MAN IN CANBERRA
OUR MAN IN THE COMPANY

Article       Episode details

THE OUTSIDERS

Article       Episode details

THE PEOPLE NEXT DOOR

Article       Episode details

PHOENIX FIVE

Article       Episode details

RIPTIDE

Article       Episode details

RITA AND WALLY

Article       Episode details

THE ROVERS

Article       Episode details

RUSH

Article       Episode details

RYAN

Article       Episode details

SHANNONS MOB

Article       Episode details

SILENT NUMBER

Article       Episode details

SKIPPY

Article       Episode details

SNAKE GULLY
WITH DAD 'N' DAVE

Article       Episode details

THE SPOILER

Article       Episode details

SOLO ONE

Article       Episode details

SPYFORCE

Article       Episode details

TANDARRA

Article       Episode details

WHIPLASH

Article       Episode details

WOOBINDA (ANIMAL DOCTOR)

Article       Episode details

YOUNG RAMSAY

Article       Episode details