''Outback Truckers'' is an Australian

factual television Factual television is a genre of non-fiction television programming that documents actual events and people. These types of programs are also described as observational documentary, fly on the wall, docudrama, and reality television. The genre ...

series which looks at the Australian road-transport industry. It focuses on selected drivers and interesting personalities and shows the problems tackled by some sectors. The show is filmed mostly across Australia, but also takes detour in New Zealand (seasons 3–5) and Weno, Micronesia (season 4). It originally screened on the

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

in 2012 and currently airs on

7mate 7mate is an Australian free-to-air digital television multichannel, which was launched by the Seven Network on 25 September 2010. The channel contains sport and regular programs aimed primarily to a male audience, with programming drawn from a c ...

. It has aired around the world on networks such as

Quest TV Quest is a British and Irish free-to-air television channel available in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Quest provides factual, lifestyle, entertainment programmes and other imported material, as well as sports coverage. The channel is operat ...

(UK) and Discovery Europe. Season 8 is airing in Australia in May 2020.

Cast

* Amanda Kendall – Kendall Trucking & Co, Katanning, WA, oversize pilot (Season 2–5) * Athol Martin- Mactrans heavy haulage, WA, oversize (season 8) * Anthony Haigh – Murranji Water Drilling (Season 6, 7) * Anthony 'Hayesy' Hayes – Murranji Water Drilling (Season 6, 7) * Ashleigh Mackay – Mackay & Sons House Removals & Demolition,

Narangba Narangba is a town and suburb of the Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. It is located 34 km north of Brisbane CBD. This suburb has rural origins, but is being redeveloped as a residential suburb on the outskirts of the greater Bris ...

, Queensland (Season 6, 7) * Belinda Riehl (Season 3) * Bob Fraser (Season 3) * Brad Duckworth – Black Cat Civil Contractors,

Nambour Nambour is a rural town and locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Nambour had a population of 11,187 people. Geography Nambour is north of the state capital, Brisbane. The town lies in the sub ...

, Queensland (Season 5) * Brett Robin (Season 2) * Carl Andrews (Season 3) * Chris Ferris (Season 3) *Chris Parnell – Non-trucking oversize steerer and rearguard guide, Rex J Andrews Pty Ltd., Windfarm transporter, Newcastle, NSW (Season 4–6) * Christian Reynolds (Season 2) * Clare Bolitho (Season 1–2) * Corey Chapman (Season 2) * Craig Oldham (Season 7) * Damo Callan (Season 1) * Danyelle Haigh, Murranji Water Drilling * Darrell Wright (Season 3) * Darren 'Woody' Bryant (Season 4-7) * Dave "Macka" McCready (Season 2–3) * Deb Drew (Season 1) * Dion Fisher (Season 2) * Dougal Brett (Season 1) * Emily Brett (Season 1) * Ewan Stephens (Season 2–3) * Glen Waters (Season 2) * Glenn "Yogi" Kendall, Kendall Trucking, Katanning, WA (Season 2–5) * Gordo Evans (Season 1–2) * Graham Cockerell - Need for Feed Disaster Relief, Beaconsfield Upper, Victoria (Season 2) * Greg Wise (Season 3) * Heather Jones (Season 2) * Jared Baldwin (Season 3) * Jason Ackeroyd (Season 3) * Jeff Elliot (Season 5 ) * Jeff "Bluezy" Barrow (Season 2) (He died due to truck crash) * Joanna Atkins – North Kimberley Transport, Kununurra, WA (Season 6, 7) * Joey Granich (Season 2) * John Harrison (Season 7) * Jonathan Rayner (Season 3) * Josh Beattie – MB Logistics, Adelaide, SA, Industrial Oil and Gas piping (Season 5) * Justin Harrison – KAC Enterprise Pty Ltd, Bundaberg, QLD (Season 7) * Katie Howell (Season 2) * Kaye Ferris (Season 3) * Larry Brewer – North West Express Mobile Butcher (Season 3, 7) * Leanne Brewer – North West Express Mobile Butcher (Season 3, 7) * Luke Hewitt - Narrator (Season 1-8) * Mark Bolitho (Season 1–2) * Mark Cromwell – RJE Global Pty Ltd, Adelaide, SA, Mega-sized trucker (Season 2–5) * Mark King (Season 1) * Mark Sciberras – Windfarm transporter, Rex J Andrews Pty Ltd., Newcastle, NSW (Season 4–6) * Matt Adams (Season 3) * Matt Riches (Season 1–2) *Mick King (season 5–6) * Mike Hoath – RJE Global Pty Ltd * Nick Atkins – North Kimberley Transport, Kununurra, WA (Season 6,7) * Noelene Turner (Season 2) * Paul 'Sludge' Andrews – Paul Andrews Transport, Perth, WA, fuel-tanker (Season 3–7) * Paul 'Blinky' Cunningham – Rex J Andrews Pty Ltd., Windfarm transporter, Newcastle, NSW (Season 4–6) * Peter "Turbo" Teatoff (Season 2-4, 6) * Ray Kennedy (Season 7) * Robbie Mackay – Mackay & Sons House Removals & Demolition, Narangba, Queensland, Australia (Season 5–8) * Rosco Haining (Season 3) * Ross Carrigy (Season 7) * Russell McDonough (Season 2, 5-6) * Shane Burgess – Mackay & Sons House Removals & Demolition, Narangba, Queensland, Australia (Season 5–8) * Sharon Collins (Season 2–3) * Shui Evans (Season 1–2) * Simon Page (Season 3) * Sonya Wise (Season 3) * Steve Grahame – Perth, WA (Seasons 1–8) * Steve Hughes (Season 1) * Wayne Haigh, Murranji Water Drilling

Cast updates, losses and notes

In July 2017 one of the cast members, Sonya Wise, died. Sonya and her husband, Greg, featured in season 3 of Outback Truckers. Outback Truckers Noelene Turner died in 2014. She left behind her outback trucking husband Bluesy. In 2015, season 1 trucker Dougal Brett was killed when the helicopter he was piloting, crashed on his cattle station. Jeff Elliot from Season 5 is also a well renowned airbrush and abstract artist as well as one of the founding members of the British and European Custom Truck Scene, and won many awards at major shows in the 1980s for his custom fabrication and airbrush skills. Later in the 1980s he concentrated on international truck driving and did many long trips, with destinations as far and wide as Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Russia, and even did regular trips from Italy to the Chinese border at Corgos. In the late 1990s he moved to Australia and operated a very successful air brush business, but has now returned to full-time truck driving, as well as running Tasmanian Landscape Studio.com On his debut in season 5, he was a fresh seafood freighter.

Relation to other series

In season 5, government has released land to

Coober Pedy Coober Pedy () is a town in northern South Australia, north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway. The town is sometimes referred to as the "opal capital of the world" because of the quantity of precious opals that are mined there. Coober Pedy is ...

(South Australia) for the mining of

opal Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica (SiO2·''n''H2O); its water content may range from 3 to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6 and 10%. Due to its amorphous property, it is classified as a mineraloid, unlike crystalline forms ...

s in 2017, and Mark Cromwell was seen sending mining machinery to the mines. In 2018, it spawned the spinoff series: ''

Outback Opal Hunters ''Outback Opal Hunters'' is an Australian factual television show which follows opal miners across various sites in the Australian states of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia. The series is produced by Prospero ...

''.

Reception

''Outback Truckers'' was favourably reviewed by the press. Melinda Houston from The

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

's 'Critics Choice' noted that "they're great stories well told from a part of the country and a way of life most of us will never otherwise experience". It was also praised in ''

The West Australian ''The West Australian'' is the only locally edited daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia. It is owned by Seven West Media (SWM), as is the state's other major newspaper, ''The Sunday Times''. It is the second-oldest continuousl ...

'' for its various close ties with

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. News Limited's 'Switch On' gave it a 4/5 rating, one of the week's highest scores.

Viewers

Season 1 (2014)

International broadcasting

The following table lists the countries in which ''Outback Truckers'' airs outside Australia.

Episodes

Series overview

Series 1 (2012)

Season 2 (2014)

Season 3 (2015)

Season 4 (2016)

Season 5 (2017)

Season 6 (2018)

Season 7 (2019)

Season 8 (2020)

References

External links

*
Outback Truckers on 7plus
{{DEFAULTSORT:Outback Truckers English-language television shows 2010s Australian reality television series Australian factual television series 7mate original programming 2012 Australian television series debuts Television shows set in Western Australia Television shows set in the Outback 2020s Australian reality television series