AustLit

Set at Sydney's Bondi Beach, the series's storylines and characters are all linked to several establishments located in a majestic building that takes in the grand sweep of the beach boulevard. These are a cafe (Kate's), a community newspaper (The Breaker), a modelling school (BMS), and a volunteer agency (Against the Tide) that finds work and accommodation for the homeless kids who are drawn to the beach suburb.

The main characters are the teenage children of The Breaker's owners, the young models, the clients and volunteers of Against the Tide, the customers and staff of the cafe, and staff of the newspaper.

'Holly is offered a record deal which can only raise her profile sky-high! Blake struggles with his on-screen domestic bliss, while Jessica asks for a bigger acting challenge - and gets it.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Tension mounts for Jessica and Blake as they await the nation's decision: should their characters - Stefan and Emily - stay together? Meanwhile, things just seem to go from bad to worse for poor Holly. Life behind the scenes in a hit TV soap can be demanding.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Jessica, Holly and Blake are ready to launch themselves into the world of advertising. Blake is offered a lucrative deal with "Buzz" cola, and Holly's keeping her fingers crossed for a pimple cream. Meanwhile Jessica has a new rival for Blake's love - on-screen and off!'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Bondi Parade is fast becoming the biggest hit on television, and Jessica, Blake and Holly are on their way to superstardom. If only they could get their personal lives in order!

'Just when it seems as though Blake and Jessica are finally on the right track, an obsessed fan casts a dark and dangerous shadow over their romance. Holly, meanwhile, is given one last chance to resurrect her career, but bitchy Samantha Murdoch is out to get her - the battle of the blondes is on!

'And as if there wasn't enough to worry about, the Remote Control Television Awards have everyone talking. Will one of the new young stars of Bondi Parade take home TV's most celebrated award?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Jessica Fairgate, Blake Dexter and Holly Harrison are three ordinary teenagers who are catapulted into an extraordinary world: the world of television! For each of them, landing a role in the exciting new soap, Bondi Parade, is a dream come true.

However, it doesn't take the new stars long to realise that the road to fame and fortune is not easy. The hours are long, the expectations are great and the criticisms savage.

Thrown together, Jessica and Holly become instant soul mates, even though they are complete opposites. Blake, meanwhile, cuts a cool and mysterious profile. His reckless behaviour earns him an instant enemy in Jessica, igniting the flames of a fiery attraction. But Blake is hiding a painful secret. Will Jessica be able to break down the barriers and help him?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

An American/Australian co-production, this series was a revival of the original 1964 - 1967 series Flipper.

The show's production is sharply divided between seasons one and two on one side and seasons three and four on the other.

Seasons one and two aired in first-run syndication in the US, as American television networks turned away from funding comparatively expensive one-hour dramas in the late 1980s and 1990s. These two seasons were made in Australia and took advantage of local directors and other crew, but, notably, the script-writers were exclusively American (as far as they have been traced).

For seasons three and four, Flipper left first-run syndication and aired in the US on the new network PAX TV (now Ion Television). These two seasons were also made in Australia and directed by Australians, but for the first time, they also used Australian script-writers: of the writers who have been traced for seasons three and four, all of the season three writers and the majority of the season four writers are Australian.

For full information on the script-writers, see the list of episodes on the film details page of this record.

Home and Away is a television serial created by Alan Bateman and produced by the Seven Network. The idea for the series came to Bateman (then head of drama at Seven) after he stopped to buy ice-creams in a small country town in southern NSW. While chatting to some locals, he learned that the town was unhappy about plans to build a home for foster kids from the city. At that time, Channel Seven was still smarting from its decision to let Neighbours go to the Ten Network, where it had become hugely popular, and was looking to create another series to rival its success. Bateman saw in the idea that became Home and Away the potential for plenty of storylines and conflict by having streetwise city kids being relocated to a small regional environment,

In the beginning, the series focused on Pippa and Tom Fletcher, who, being unable to have children of their own, decide to become foster parents. When Tom is retrenched from his city job, the couple buy the rundown Summer Bay Caravan Park and move there with their five foster children. Soon after arriving, they also take in troublesome Bobby Simpson.

The series debuted in January 1988 with an hour-long telemovie. Although this rated well, the series itself took some while to develop an audience. Having learned their lesson from the Neighbours debacle, Network Seven gave its new show time, and its ratings gradually increased. As with Neighbours, the Home and Away series and performers became very popular in the United Kingdom.

A daily television drama series set in the fictional Melbourne suburb of Erinsborough, Neighbours chronicles the lives of the residents of Ramsay Street. The series initially revolved around three families: the Ramsays (at number 24 Ramsay Street), the Robinsons (at number 26), and the Clarkes (at number 28). The scope of the series has since broadened to include new Ramsay Street familes.