Geoffrey John Atherden , credited also as Geoff Atherden, is an Australian television

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

, especially of comedy. He is best known for creating the sitcom '' Mother and Son''.

Early life and education

Atherden attended the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one o ...

in the 1960s. He trained as an architect.

Architectural career

Atherden practised as an architect until he was in his mid-thirties. He worked for the architectural firm of McConnel Smith & Johnson, and was responsible for designing the Law Courts building in

Queen's Square, Sydney Queen's Square is a public square in central Sydney, Australia. The square is located at the junction of King Street with Phillip Street and Macquarie Street. It is bounded on the south by St James Road and Prince Albert Road. Description ...

Writing career

In 1969, the founders of Producers Authors Composers and Talent (now PACT Centre for Emerging Artists) attended a

Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

Architecture Revue, with sets by Atherden and Grahame Bond, and invited Bond, Atherden, Peter Weir and his friend, composer Peter Best, a chance to do a show at the

National Art School The National Art School (NAS) is a tertiary level art school, located in , an inner-city suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The school is an independent accredited higher education provider offering specialised study in studio arts ...

's Cellblock Theatre. Sir

Robert Helpmann Sir Robert Murray Helpmann CBE ( Helpman, 9 April 1909 – 28 September 1986) was an Australian ballet dancer, actor, director, and choreographer. After early work in Australia he moved to Britain in 1932, where he joined the Vic-Wells Ballet ...

saw the show and took it to the

Adelaide Festival The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...

, and soon afterwards Weir and Best were commissioned to write a Christmas special TV show for ABC Television, called ''Man on a Green Bike''. Atherden was later a contributor to '' The Aunty Jack Show'', which starred Bond. He was script editor on a four-part sketch series, ''Jokes'', which ran on ABC-TV in early 1979. In the middle of the same year he scripted a seven-part comedy, ''One-Day Miller''. In 1981 he was writer on the series ''Ratbags'' (1981) and the soap opera ''Sons and Daughters'' the following year. In 1976, Atherden designed sets for the rock opera ''Hero'', produced by Bond. Atherden has written a number of plays. Prior to working in television he wrote ''Balloon Dubloon'' – the revue in 1965 and theatre show in 1970. He then concentrated on screenwriting, but continuing in writing for theatre again from 1994 onwards, including ''Hotspur'' (1994) and ''Black Cockatoo'' (2020). He is perhaps best known for creating and writing the sitcom '' Mother and Son'', which ran for over 10 years (January 1984 to March 1994). Other work includes the comedy-drama '' Grass Roots'' and the

mockumentary A mockumentary (a blend of ''mock'' and ''documentary''), fake documentary or docu-comedy is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events but presented as a documentary. These productions are often used to analyze or comment on ...

BabaKiueria ''Babakiueria'' (also known under the video-title ''Babakiueria (Barbeque Area)'') is a 1986 Australian satirical film on relations between Aboriginal Australians and European Australians. Synopsis ''Babakiueria'' revolves around a role-reversa ...

''.

Other roles

Atherden served as the president of

Australian Writers' Guild The Australian Writers' Guild (AWG) is the professional association for Australian performance writers for film, television, radio, theatre, video and new media. The AWG was established in 1962. The AWG is a member of the Australian Council of ...

and Australian Writers' Foundation. In 2016, Atherden joined the Screenrights Board, which licenses secondary users of broadcast content, along with other secondary functions. He has also served two terms on the board of Screen NSW.

Recognition and awards

Atherden was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia on 26 January 2009, "For service to the television industry as a scriptwriter, and to the advancement of writers for performance through executive roles with professional organisations.". ''Mother and Son'' won several awards.

Television scripts

Selected theatre

References

External links

*
Geoffrey Atherden
at

Australian Screen The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national co ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Atherden, Geoffrey Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Australian television writers Australian comedy writers Members of the Order of Australia Australian dramatists and playwrights Australian male television writers