''Prisoner'' (known in the UK and the US as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'') is an Australian television
soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
, which broadcast on
Network Ten
Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...
(originally The 0-10 Network) from February 27 (Melbourne) February 26 (Sydney) 1979 to December 1986 (Melbourne), though the series finale would not screen until September 1987 in Sydney, where it aired as a 3-hour film that was split into three 1-hour episodes at the much-later time-slot of 10.30pm, running eight seasons and 692 episodes. ''Prisoner'' was the first Australian series to feature a primarily female-dominated cast and carried the slogan "If you think prison is hell for a man, imagine what it would be like for woman!"
The series, produced by the
Grundy Organisation
Reg Grundy Organisation (founded as Reg Grundy Enterprises, later known as both Reg Grundy Productions and Grundy Television and known informally as Grundy's) was an Australian-based multinational mass media company, primarily involved in tele ...
, was conceived by
Reg Watson
Reginald James Watson (27 August 1926 – 8 October 2019) was an Australian television producer and screenwriter. He was executive producer on ''Crossroads (British TV series), Crossroads'' and created Australian media exports serials such as ' ...
and filmed at the then Network Ten Melbourne Studios at
Nunawading
Nunawading is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 18 km (11 miles) east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Whitehorse local government area. Nunawading recorded a population of 12,413 at the 2021 cens ...
and on location.
The series garnered an international
cult following
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...
, and it was one of Australia's most successful media exports, performing particularly well in the United States and Canada (billed as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' and ''Caged Women'', respectively). It also built a large audience in the United Kingdom and other European countries, most especially Sweden.
Sammy Davis Jr.
Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director.
At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...
was a major fan and visited the set, and wanted to appear in a role, but had other engagements at the time
The cult status of the series has seen many adaptations, including the modern 21st century re-imaging series ''
Wentworth Wentworth may refer to:
People
* Wentworth (surname)
* Judith Blunt-Lytton, 16th Baroness Wentworth (1873–1957), Lady Wentworth, notable Arabian horse breeder
* S. Wentworth Horton (1885–1960), New York state senator
* Wentworth Miller (born 1 ...
'' on Foxtel.
Background
Ian Bradley served as original producer and then executive producer, from series 2, whilst associate producer and screenwriter was
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 1919 – 20 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to ...
, who appeared as an actor in the series as Head of the Department Ted Douglas, prior to becoming famous as the character
Harold Bishop
Harold Wayne Bishop is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera ''Neighbours'', played by Ian Smith. The actor was offered the role by the show's creator and executive producer Reg Watson. Smith made his first screen appearance as H ...
in ''
Neighbours
''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...
''; another screenwriter,
Anne Lucas
Anne Shirley Lucas (born ) billed also as Annie Lucas, is a Malaysian-born Australian actress and TV screenwriter and script editor, best known for her roles on television including '' Bellbird'' as Glenda Chan, ''The Young Doctors'' from 19 ...
, also acted briefly in the series playing prison bookie Faye Quinn.
The series is loosely based on British prison drama series ''
Within These Walls
''Within These Walls'' is a British television drama programme made by London Weekend Television for ITV and shown between 1974 and 1978. It portrayed life in HMP Stone Park, a fictional women's prison. Unlike later women-in-prison TV series, ...
'', although it focuses more on the prisoners or inmates, rather than the prison staff led by officious governor Faye Boswell, played by
Googie Withers
Georgette Lizette Withers, CBE, AO (12 March 191715 July 2011), known professionally as Googie Withers, was an English entertainer who was a dancer and actress with a lengthy career spanning some nine decades in theatre, film, and television. ...
, who was even approached by producers of ''Prisoner'' to play the governor.
The series is set in the fictional ''Wentworth Detention Centre'', in the fictional suburb of Wentworth, in Melbourne, Victoria and follows the lives of the prisoners and staff within cell block H, and to a lesser extent, others on the outside, such as family members, doctors and lawyers. Numerous scenes also took place outside the compound exploring the lives of the inmates and staff outside of the prison - in particular, "Driscoll House", a half-way house where inmates were housed after being released, or neighbouring correction institutions like Barnhurst (a lower-security country prison) and Blackmoor (an aged, yet high-security, prison).
The series gained a positive reception. Initially conceived as a stand-alone miniseries of 16 episodes, its popularity meant it was developed into an ongoing series. It has since endured worldwide, acquiring
cult classic
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...
status, particularly for its somewhat outrageous acting and plotlines.
Creation and production
''Prisoner'' was created by Reg Watson, who had produced the British soap opera ''
Crossroads
Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to:
* Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet
Film and television Films
* ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa
* ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...
'' from 1964 to 1973 and then the Australian soaps ''
The Young Doctors
''The Young Doctors'' is an Australian early-evening soap opera originally broadcast on the Nine Network and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation, it aired from Monday, 8 November 1976 until Wednesday, 30 March 1983.
The series is primar ...
'' and ''
Sons and Daughters'' and post-prisoner soap opera ''
Neighbours
''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...
''
Inspired by the British television drama ''
Within These Walls
''Within These Walls'' is a British television drama programme made by London Weekend Television for ITV and shown between 1974 and 1978. It portrayed life in HMP Stone Park, a fictional women's prison. Unlike later women-in-prison TV series, ...
'', the show was initially conceived as a 16-episode series, with a pilot episode bearing the working title "Women Behind Bars". Its storylines focused on the lives of the prisoners and, to a lesser extent, the officers and other prison staff. When the initial episodes met an enthusiastic reception, it was felt that ''Prisoner'' could be developed into an ongoing soap opera. The early storylines were developed and expanded, with assistance from the Victorian
Corrective Services Department.
The show's themes, often
radical
Radical may refer to:
Politics and ideology Politics
*Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change
*Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...
, included
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
,
LGBT
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is a ...
matters, and social reform. ''Prisoner'' began in early 1979 with the advertising slogan, "If you think prison is hell for a man, imagine what it's like for a woman". The series examined how women dealt with incarceration and separation from their families and friends, and the common phenomenon of released inmates
re-offending. Within the prison, major themes were interpersonal relationships, power struggles, friendships and rivalries. The prisoners became a surrogate family, with the self-styled "Queen Bea",
Bea Smith and the elderly "Mum" (Jeanette) Brooks (
Mary Ward Mary Ward may refer to:
Scientists and academics
* Mary Ward (nurse) (1884–1972) English nurse to the boat people on the waterways
* Mary Ward (scientist) (née King, 1827–1869) Irish amateur scientist, was killed by an experimental steam car ...
) emerging as central matriarch figures. Several lesbian characters were introduced on the show, including prisoners Franky Doyle (played by
Carol Burns
Carol Ann Burns (29 October 1947 – 22 December 2015) was an Australian actress, theatre director and patron of the arts, with a career spanning 50 years. She worked extensively in theatre and television serials, as well as telemovies and min ...
) and Judy Bryant (played by
Betty Bobbitt
Betty Ann Bobbitt (February 7, 1939 – November 30, 2020) was an American actress, director, singer, and playwright based in Australia, with a career that spanned over 60 years, encompassing theatre, television, and film.
Bobbitt was best ...
), as well as corrupt and sinister officer Joan Ferguson (
Maggie Kirkpatrick
Margaret Anne Kirkpatrick (née Downs; born 29 January 1941) is an Australian stage and screen actress who starred in the cult TV series ''Prisoner'' (otherwise known as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' in the UK and North America), where she was bes ...
).
Continuity
Characters and story exposition were often '
retconned
Retroactive continuity, or retcon for short, is a literary device in which established diegetic facts in the plot of a fictional work (those established through the narrative itself) are adjusted, ignored, supplemented, or contradicted by a subse ...
' in order to expand potential storylines. Initially there was a men's prison "next door" to Wentworth, but it was never mentioned again after the early episodes. Barnhurst was originally a co-ed prison, soon becoming a women's facility. Its security status varied considerably with it being described as an 'open prison farm' by the end of the run; although it was often described as "low-security", serial murderers Bea Smith and Marie Winter were housed there for long periods. Although Blackmoor Prison was initially described as a brand new, state-of-the-art maximum-security prison, it was depicted as a Victorian-era
workhouse
In Britain, a workhouse () was an institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. (In Scotland, they were usually known as poorhouses.) The earliest known use of the term ''workhouse'' ...
when finally seen. Wentworth was variously described as either new or built during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, with aged infrastructure.
During the show's run, several recurring characters were played by multiple actresses and actors.
[Anderson, Scott. Campbell, Barry. Cope, Rob. Behind the Bars: The Unofficial Prisoner Cell Block H Companion. Tomahawk Press; UK ed. edition (12 August 2013). . Pages 49 & 60] Meg Jackson (later Morris) (
Elspeth Ballantyne
Elspeth Ballantyne (born 20 April 1939) is an Australian retired actress, who appeared in productions in theatre, television and films over a career that spanned nearly 60 years, a veteran of the industry having started her career as a child a ...
) son and stepdaughter, Marty Jackson and Tracey Morris, were each played by multiple different actors—Ronald Korosy,
Andrew McKaige
Andrew McKaige (born 1959) is an Australian actor, most prominent in television soap opera. As well as acting, McKaige is also a voice-artist and singer-songwriter, having played with the country rock band, The Fine Line. In 1994, he won secon ...
, and
Michael Winchester
Michael Winchester is a Malaysian-born Australian actor, best known for being the third actor to play Marty Jackson in the television series ''Prisoner'', after Ronald Korosy and Andrew McKaige had played the character in earlier episodes.
H ...
as Marty, and Sue Devine and Michelle Thomas as Tracey. In the closing year,
Nicki Paull
Nicola Paull (born 1962 Queensland, Australia), is an Australian actress and a registered counsellor. Though predominantly known for her work on television, she has also appeared in films and on stage, as well as performing as a voice-over arti ...
's character Lisa Mullins was taken over by
Terrie Waddell
Terrie Waddell is an Australian former actress best known for her role as Lisa Mullins in the television series ''Prisoner''. She replaced Nicki Paull, who left the role due to ill health. Waddell remained with the series until its final epis ...
.
Synopsis
Viewers' introduction to the Wentworth Detention Centre featured the arrival of two new prisoners, Karen Travers (
Peta Toppano
Peita Margaret Toppano (born 1951)GRO Birth Index EnglandLawson, Valerie. , ''Sydney Morning Herald'' (13 December 2003): "They fell in love and married in 1950 in a church at Golders Green, London. Their daughter, Peta, was born a year later." ...
) and Lynn Warner (
Kerry Armstrong
Kerry Michelle Armstrong (born 12 September 1958) is an Australian actress and author. She is one of only two actresses to win two Australian Film Institute Awards in the same year, winning Best Actress in a Leading Role for ''Lantana'' and B ...
). Travers was charged with murdering her husband in a crime of passion after he was found in-bed with another woman (her flashback featured a shower scene that was a nod to
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
's classic
''Psycho''), whilst Warner insisted she was innocent despite her conviction for the abduction and attempted murder of a child. Both women were sent to the prison's maximum-security wing (H Block), where they were horrified by their new surroundings. Karen was confronted with a former lover—prison doctor Greg Miller (
Barry Quin
Barry Quin (born 1949) credited also as Barry Quinn, is a British-Australian actor and briefly producer who has appeared on stage and television and film, on the small screen he has featured in numerous TV series and mini-series, but he is best ...
)—and was sexually harassed by violent lesbian cellmate Franky Doyle (
Carol Burns
Carol Ann Burns (29 October 1947 – 22 December 2015) was an Australian actress, theatre director and patron of the arts, with a career spanning 50 years. She worked extensively in theatre and television serials, as well as telemovies and min ...
). Lynn was ostracised by the other prisoners because of her crime (prisoners are known for their intolerance of offenders against children) and terrorised by Bea Smith, who burnt her hand in the laundry's steam press in one of the series' most iconic early scenes.
Other, less volatile prisoners included elderly, garden-loving Jeanette "Mum" Brooks who was incarcerated for the
euthanasia
Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering.
Different countries have different eut ...
of her husband who had terminal cancer, teddy-clutching misfit and childlike Doreen Anderson (
Colette Mann
Colette Mann (born 17 February 1950) is an Australian actress, singer, TV and radio presenter, choreographer and author/writer and media personality, she has been in the entertainment industry for over 50 years.
Mann appeared in two Grundy Orga ...
), alcoholic former cook recidivist Lizzie Birdsworth (
Sheila Florance
Sheila Mary Florance (24 July 1916 – 12 October 1991) was an Australian theatre, television and film actress. She was best known for her performance as elderly, alcoholic convict Lizzie Birdsworth in the television series ''Prisoner''.
F ...
), who apparently poisoned a group of shearers, and seductive prostitute Gladys "Marilyn" Mason (
Margaret Laurence
Jean Margaret Laurence (née Wemyss; July 18, 1926 – January 5, 1987) was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, and is one of the major figures in Canadian literature. She was also a founder of the Writers' Trust of Canada, a non-pr ...
), who seduced prison electrician Eddie Cook (
Richard Moir
Richard Moir (born 1950) is an Australian former actor and editor. He is known for many Australian film roles and in TV soap opera ''Prisoner'' (also known as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'') as original character of electrician Eddie Cook and in chi ...
). The prison officers (or "screws", as the prisoners call them) included firm-but--heeled governor Erica Davidson (Patsy King); dour deputy governor Vera Bennett (
Fiona Spence
Fiona Spence is an English Australian stage and television actress and drama teacher. She is known for her television roles including ''Prisoner'' (1979–81) as Gestapo like prison officer Vera Bennett and ''Home and Away'' as the unlucky in lo ...
), who was always wanting to become Governor and was nicknamed "Vinegar Tits" by Franky; and firm but compassionate senior officer Meg Jackson (later Morris) (Elspeth Ballantyne).
Early episodes featured a high level of violence: Lynn Warner's burning in a steam press; a prisoner hanging herself in her cell; a fatal stabbing; and a flashback sequence inspired by which Karen Travers stabbed her abusive husband to death in the shower. The series' first major story arc was the
turf war
A turf war is a fight over territory or resources, or may refer to:
Music
* ''Turf Wars'', a 2007 album by the Canadian band Daggermouth
* "Turf War", a song on the 2001 album ''Filmtracks 2000'' by American composer Bill
Television
* ''Turf Wa ...
between Bea and Franky, in a bid to become the prison's "Top Dog" (unofficial leader), culminating by Episode 3 in a riot where Meg was held hostage and her husband—prison social worker Bill Jackson (
Don Barker)—was stabbed to death by inmate Chrissie Latham (
).
Series extension
''Prisoner'' premiered in Australia on 27 February 1979. Its success prompted the producers to extend the series, first from 16 to 20 episodes and then indefinitely. The production schedule increased from one to two-hour-long episodes per week; Carol Burns left the show after 20 episodes, feeling that she could not continue playing Franky Doyle with the tighter schedule. Her storyline sees her as an escapee from Wentworth with fellow inmate Doreen Anderson, and after being on the run for three weeks, she is shot dead by an officer
New
story arc
A story arc (also narrative arc) is the chronological construction of plot in a novel or story. It can also mean an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, board games, vide ...
s were introduced. Karen Travers appealed against her sentence and was eventually released, allowing her to resume her relationship with Greg Miller and becoming involved in prison reform. As original characters began leaving the series (Mum Brooks, Lynn Warner, Karen and Greg appeared beyond the initial sixteen episodes, but most had left by the end of the 1979 season; Greg left in early 1980), new characters arrived: hulking husband-beater Monica Ferguson (
Lesley Baker
Lesley Baker (born 20 January 1944) is an Australian actress, singer, dancer and comedian. She was well known for her early appearances on In Melbourne Tonight with Graham Kennedy. After which she went on to play several roles for Crawford Pr ...
), career criminal Noeline Bourke (
Jude Kuring
Judith Kuring (born 23 November 1948) known Jude Kuring is an Australian actress who appeared in theatre, film and television during the late 1970s and early 80s. She remains best known for her stint as the recurring character of petty crimina ...
), troubled murderess Roslyn Coulson (
Sigrid Thornton
Sigrid Madeline Thornton (born 12 February 1959) is an Australian film and television actress. Her television work includes ''Prisoner'' (1979–80), ''All the Rivers Run'' (1983), ''SeaChange'' (1998–2019) and ''Wentworth'' (2016–2018). S ...
) and imprisoned mother Pat O'Connell (
Monica Maughan
Monica Cresswell Maughan (née Wood, 15 September 1933 – 8 January 2010) was an Australian actor with roles in theatre, radio, television, film and ballet over a career spanning 52 years.
Early life and education
She was born Monica Cresswell ...
), in addition to shorter-term inmates with brief storylines. Prostitute Chrissie Latham, a minor character in the early episodes, returned in a more central antagonistic role and a male deputy governor,
Jim Fletcher
Jim or JIM may refer to:
* Jim (given name), a given name
* Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James
* Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy
* OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism
* ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring
* ''Jim ...
(
Gerard Maguire
Gerard Maguire (born 25 September 1945) also credited as Gerard McGuire, is an Australian actor, producer and screenwriter best known for his role in ''Prisoner'' as Deputy Governor, ''Jim Fletcher''. Often appearing on Australian television pol ...
), joined the female-dominated cast.
Final season
Ratings had been declining for some time, and when they continued to fall in 1986, Network Ten decided in July not to renew the series. Production ended on 5 September, and the final episode aired in Melbourne on 11 December 1986. The producers had several weeks' notice that the series was ending, enabling them to construct strong concluding storylines (including the ultimate defeat of Joan "the Freak" Ferguson). ''Prisoner'' final episodes dealt with the redemption of the misunderstood Kath Maxwell and concluded the ongoing dynamic between Rita Connors (played by
Glenda Linscott
Glenda Linscott (born 1958) is an Australian actress and director, born in Rhodesia of English descent, she is best known internationally for her performance in cult drama series ''Prisoner'' as tough bikie inmate and top dog Rita "The Beater" ...
) and Joan Ferguson (
Maggie Kirkpatrick
Margaret Anne Kirkpatrick (née Downs; born 29 January 1941) is an Australian stage and screen actress who starred in the cult TV series ''Prisoner'' (otherwise known as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' in the UK and North America), where she was bes ...
).
Main Cast
For extended cast list see article:
''Prisoner'' cast list
Supporting cast
Broadcast sheet
Days and times listed are for
Network Ten
Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...
Melbourne Station
ATV-10
ATV is a television station in Melbourne, Australia, part of Network 10 – one of the three major Australian free-to-air commercial television networks. The station is owned by Paramount Networks UK & Australia.
History
In April 1963, the ...
, days and times may vary in other regions of Australia.
Spin-offs, remakes and specials
Spin-offs
''Willow B: Women in Prison''
A pilot for an unproduced American version of ''Prisoner'' was produced by
Lorimar
Lorimar Productions, Inc., later known as Lorimar Television and Lorimar Distribution, was an American production company that was later a subsidiary of Warner Bros., active from 1969 until 1993, when it was folded into Warner Bros. Televisio ...
in 1980, entitled ''Willow B: Women in Prison''. The cast included
Ruth Roman
Ruth Roman (born Norma Roman; December 22, 1922 – September 9, 1999) was an American actress of film, stage, and television.
After playing stage roles on the east coast, Roman relocated to Hollywood to pursue a career in films. She appeare ...
,
Virginia Capers
Eliza "Virginia" Capers (September 22, 1925 – May 6, 2004) was an American actress. She won the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1974 for her performance as Lena Younger in ''Raisin'', a musical version of Lorraine Hansberry's ...
,
Carol Lynley
Carol Lynley (born Carole Ann Jones; February 13, 1942 – September 3, 2019) was an American actress known for her roles in the films ''Blue Denim'' (1959) and '' The Poseidon Adventure'' (1972).
Lynley was born in Manhattan to an Irish ...
, and
Sally Kirkland
Sally Kirkland (born October 31, 1941) is an American film, television and stage actress and producer. A former member of Andy Warhol's The Factory and an active member in 1960s New York avant-garde theater, she has appeared in more than 250 fi ...
. The pilot aired on
ABC-TV on 29 June 1980.
''Wentworth''
In March 2012, it was announced that
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company—operating in cable television, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April 2018, superseding an earlier company from 1995. The service was establi ...
would produce a contemporary "re-imagining" of ''Prisoner'', ''
Wentworth Wentworth may refer to:
People
* Wentworth (surname)
* Judith Blunt-Lytton, 16th Baroness Wentworth (1873–1957), Lady Wentworth, notable Arabian horse breeder
* S. Wentworth Horton (1885–1960), New York state senator
* Wentworth Miller (born 1 ...
'', set in modern-day Australia. ''Wentworth'' recounts the rise of
Bea Smith (
Danielle Cormack
Danielle Cormack (born 26 December 1970) is a New Zealand stage and screen actress. She was one of the original cast members of the long-running soap opera ''Shortland Street'', though she is also known for her role as the Amazon Ephiny in the ...
) from her arrival at Wentworth as a remand prisoner to "top dog". The series is filmed at a new, purpose-built prison set in the
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
suburb of
Clayton.
''Wentworth'' features contemporary versions of vintage characters along with new characters. Characters and cast members include Bea Smith (
Danielle Cormack
Danielle Cormack (born 26 December 1970) is a New Zealand stage and screen actress. She was one of the original cast members of the long-running soap opera ''Shortland Street'', though she is also known for her role as the Amazon Ephiny in the ...
), crime matriarch Jacs Holt (
Kris McQuade
Kris McQuade (born 1952) is an Australian actress who has had many film, television and theatre roles.
Career
Her film credits include ''The Love Letters from Teralba Road'', '' Kostas'', '' Fighting Back'', '' Lonely Hearts'', ''Goodbye Paradi ...
), Liz Birdsworth (
Celia Ireland
Celia Ireland (born 16 May 1966) is an Australian actress. She is best known for her role as Regina Butcher on the television series '' All Saints'' and her Logie award winning role as Liz Birdsworth on the prison drama series ''Wentworth''.
E ...
), Doreen Anderson (
Shareena Clanton), Franky Doyle (
Nicole da Silva
Nicole da Silva (born 18 September 1981) is an Australian actress, best known for her roles as Stella Dagostino in the series '' Rush'' (2008–2011), and as Franky Doyle in the show ''Wentworth'' (2013–2018, 2019). She has made appearance ...
), Sue "Boomer" Jenkins (
Katrina Milosevic
Katrina Milosevic (born 25 April 1976) is an Australian actress who has appeared in many television programs and theatre productions, including a starring role in the prison drama series ''Wentworth''.
Biography
Katrina Milosevic was born in ...
), social worker Erica Davidson (
Leeanna Walsman
Leeanna Walsman is an Australian actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Zam Wesell in '' Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones'' (2002), for playing Carly Bishop in the Australian film '' Looking for Alibrandi'' (2000), fo ...
), officer Will Jackson (
Robbie Magasiva
Robbie Joseph Magasiva (born 21 May 1972) is a Samoan-New Zealander actor who has starred in several films and as a member of the Naked Samoans comedy troupe. He has also appeared on television and in theatre, and was the co-presenter of New Z ...
), officer Matthew Fletcher (
Aaron Jeffery
Aaron C. Jeffery is a Logie Award-winning New Zealand-Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Terry Watson in '' Water Rats'', as Alex Ryan in ''McLeod's Daughters'', and as Matt "Fletch" Fletcher in ''Wentworth''.
Early and personal ...
), deputy governor Vera Bennett (
Kate Atkinson Kate Atkinson may refer to:
* Kate Atkinson (actress) (born 1972), Australian actress
* Kate Atkinson (writer)
Kate Atkinson (born 20 December 1951) is an English writer of novels, plays and short stories. She is known for creating the Jac ...
), and governor Meg Jackson (
Catherine McClements
Catherine McClements is an Australian stage, film and television actress and television presenter. She is known for her TV roles in '' Water Rats'' and ''Tangle'', for which she won Logie Awards, and has performed in stage productions for theat ...
), as well as Linda Miles (
Jacquie Brennan
Jacqueline Brennan is an Australian stage, television and film actress with a career that has spanned over 30 years appearing in film, theatre and voice-over roles. Jacquie Brennan is known for her roles on '' Bullpitt!'', '' The Hollowmen,''an ...
), Joan Ferguson (
Pamela Rabe
Pamela may refer to:
*''Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded'', a novel written by Samuel Richardson in 1740
*Pamela (name), a given name and, rarely, a surname
*Pamela Spence, a Turkish pop-rock singer. Known as her stage name "Pamela"
* MSC ''Pamela'', ...
), Sean Brody (Rick Donald), Greg Miller (
David de Lautour
David Hugh de Lautour (born November 28, 1982) is a New Zealand television actor. He was born in Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand and attended King's College, then The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) to which he received a $50 ...
), Marie Winter (
Susie Porter
Susie Porter (born 1970 or 1971) is an Australian television, film and theatre actress. She made her debut in the 1996 film '' Idiot Box'', before rising to prominence in films including '' Paradise Road'' (1997), ''Welcome to Woop Woop'' (1997) ...
), Rita Connors (
Leah Purcell
Leah Maree Purcell (born 14 August 1970) is an Aboriginal Australian stage and film actress, playwright, film director, and novelist. She made her film debut in 1999, appearing in Paul Fenech's ''Somewhere in the Darkness'', which led to role ...
).
None of the original cast was initially scheduled to return for the first series, but on 29 November 2012 it was confirmed that
Anne Charleston
Anne Charleston (born 30 December 1942) is an Australian actress, notable for her career locally and in the United Kingdom in theatre and television. Charleston started her career in theatre in the mid 1950's, and has been a staple of the small ...
(who appeared in the original series) would make a guest appearance, as well as
Sigrid Thornton
Sigrid Madeline Thornton (born 12 February 1959) is an Australian film and television actress. Her television work includes ''Prisoner'' (1979–80), ''All the Rivers Run'' (1983), ''SeaChange'' (1998–2019) and ''Wentworth'' (2016–2018). S ...
who was in the original series as Ros Coulson, Thornton would play Sonia Stevens. ''Wentworth'' premiered in Australia on Foxtel's SoHo channel on 1 May 2013.
As of 2018, the series was still in production, with a sixth season premiering on 19 June 2018, while a seventh season had been announced and due to air in 2019. Season 7 aired in May 2019. While ''Wentworth'' was confirmed for a 2021 ending, it won't surpass ''Prisoner'' in episodes, but will surpass the show in years on air.
Spoofs
In 1980 ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' aired a parody of the series, "Debs Behind Bars". In the sketch, the inmates (including guest host
Teri Garr
Teri Ann Garr (born December 11, 1944) is an American former actress, dancer, and comedian. She frequently appeared in comedic roles throughout her career, which spans four decades and includes over 140 credits in film and television. Her accola ...
) are spoiled debutantes who complain about "icky" living conditions in prison. During the early 1990s, Seven Network's comedy sketch program ''
Fast Forward
To fast-forward is to move forwards through a recording at a speed faster than that at which it would usually be played, for example two times or two point five times. The recordings are usually audio, video or computer data. It is colloquially ...
'' parodied ''Prisoner'';
Gina Riley
Gina Riley (born 6 May 1961) is an Australian actress, writer, singer and comedian, known for portraying Kim Craig in the television series ''Kath & Kim'', and for her work in musical theatre.
Television and film
Riley became a popular televisi ...
(Bea Smith),
Jane Turner
Jane Turner (born 1 December 1960) is an Australian actress, comedian and Logie Award-winning comedy series creator and screnwriter.
Career
Turner, although best known as a comedy performer, made her acting debut in the internationally ren ...
(Lizzie Birdsworth),
Magda Szubanski
Magdalene Mary Therese Szubanski ( ; born 12 April 1961) is an Australian comedy actress, author, singer and LGBT rights advocate. She performed in ''Fast Forward'', '' Kath & Kim'' as Sharon Strzelecki and in the films ''Babe'' (1995) and ' ...
(Doreen) and Marg Downey as officer (Joan Ferguson) gave scenes from the series a comedic twist.
Other series to have featured ''Prisoner'' spoofs included ''
The Paul Hogan Show
''The Paul Hogan Show'' was a popular Australian comedy show which aired on Australian television from 1973 until 1984 for a total of 12 seasons and 60 episodes. It made a star of Paul Hogan, who later appeared in ''Crocodile Dundee.'' Hogan' ...
'', ''
Let the Blood Run Free'', ''
Naked Video
''Naked Video'' is a BBC Scotland sketch show that was aired on BBC2 from 12 May 1986 to 18 November 1991. The show was created by Colin Gilbert who had previously created ''A Kick Up the Eighties'' and ''Naked Radio'' (the latter being a radio ...
'' and ''
The Krypton Factor
''The Krypton Factor'' is a British game show produced by Granada Television for broadcast on ITV. The show originally ran from 7 September 1977 to 20 November 1995, and was hosted by Gordon Burns and usually broadcast on the ITV network on ...
''.
''Prisoner''-inspired shows
In 1991, ''Prisoner'' was reprised for the American market as ''
Dangerous Women''. The US version borrowed heavily from the Australian original for characters and was created and written by Reg Watson, who had also created the original Australian series. In ''Dangerous Women'', the emphasis was outside the prison, focusing on prisoner relationships in a halfway house. It is remembered now mainly for the early appearance of actor
Casper Van Dien
Casper Robert Van Dien Jr. (born December 18, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for his lead role as Johnny Rico in the 1997 science-fiction action film ''Starship Troopers''. He has also appeared in a large number of television and ...
in the role of Brad Morris. In 1997, ''Prisoner'' was revised in a German-language version, ''
Hinter Gittern – Der Frauenknast
Hinter Gittern – Der Frauenknast (English language, English: "Behind bars - The Women's Prison", in short: HG or HiGi) was a German language, German television series in the form of a soap opera and told the dramaturgically oversubscribed-life ...
'' (''Behind Bars''). The series ran from 1997 to 2007 for 16 series and 403 episodes.
''Talking Prisoner''
On June 18, 2021 producer Matt Batten created the ''Talking Prisoner'' podcast and YouTube channel. Batten's co-host Ken Mulholland served as head cameraman on ''Prisoner'' from the series debut until episode 692. Mulholland and Batten interview cast and crew from ''Prisoner'' in depth. The podcast however also features interviews with cast and crew from other popular Australian internationally successful series like ''
Sons and Daughters'' and ''
Neighbours
''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...
''.
The channel can be found on YouTube, and the official website "Talking Prisoner.com", and is also broadcast on social media sites such as Facebook.
Merchandise
There have been several tie-in books and video and DVD releases. ''Prisoner'' theme song ("
On the Inside", sung by
Lynne Hamilton
Lynne Hamilton (born 1950) is an English-born singer, notable for her career in Australia, particularly during the 1970s and 1980s having recorded the single " On the Inside", the theme to the television series ''Prisoner''.
Early life and car ...
) reached number four in Australia in 1979 and peaked at number three on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
in 1989. "On the Inside" was re-released as a digital download and CD single in March 2012. The song was featured as a B-side on
punkabilly
Psychobilly is a rock music fusion genre that fuses elements of rockabilly and punk rock. It's been defined as "loud frantic rockabilly music", it has also been said that it "takes the traditional countrified rock style known as rockabilly, ram ...
group
The Living End
The Living End are an Australian punk rockabilly band from Melbourne, formed in 1994. Since 2002, the line-up consists of Chris Cheney (vocals, guitar), Scott Owen (double bass, vocals), and Andy Strachan (drums). The band rose to fame in 199 ...
's EP, ''
Second Solution / Prisoner of Society
"Second Solution" / "Prisoner of Society" is the third EP by Australian rock band The Living End. It was the best selling Australian single of the 1990s, and spent a record-breaking 69 weeks on the ARIA Top 100 singles chart. N.B. The TI co ...
''.
Books (tie-in publications)
Based on the Series
There have been numerous publications on the series, including tie-in paperback novels, including publication's by
Pinnacle Books
Kensington Publishing Corp. is an American, New York-based publishing house founded in 1974 by Walter Zacharius (1923–2011)Grimes, William"Walter Zacharius, Romance Publisher, Dies at 87,"''New York Times'' (MARCH 7, 2011). and Roberta Bender ...
, which in 1980, led by the actors union the
Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance
The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA), also sometimes referred to as the Alliance, is the Australian trade union and professional organisation which covers the media, entertainment, sports and arts industries.
Its Musicians section c ...
and represented by cast member
Val Lehman
Valerie Kathleen Lehman (née Willis; born 15 March 1943) is an Australian actress and director, best known locally and internationally for her role as the antagonist "Top Dog" and self-styled Queen Bea Smith in the Australian TV series ''Pri ...
(Bea Smith), which saw the cast go on strike due to the content in the United States: soft-core pornography at odds with the series. Six books were published: ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'', ''The Franky Doyle Story'', ''The Karen Travers Story'', ''The Frustrations of Vera'', ''The Reign of Queen Bea'' and ''The Trials of Erica''.
Two behind-the-scenes books were published in the UK during the early 1990s. ''Prisoner: Cell Block H – Behind the Scenes'' was written by Terry Bourke and published by Angus & Robertson Publishers, who published similar books about soap opera's ''
Neighbours
''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...
'' and ''
Home and Away
''Home and Away'' (often abbreviated as ''H&A'') is an Australian television soap opera. It was created by Alan Bateman and commenced broadcast on the Seven Network on 17 January 1988. Bateman came up with the concept of the show during a trip ...
''. Bourke documents the show's genesis and development, and the book has many stills and character profiles. Hilary Kingsley's ''Prisoner Cell Block H – The Inside Story'' emphasises more on plot and characters.
A limited-edition book, ''The Inside Story'', was published in 2007 as part of the full-series DVD release in Australia. Written by TV journalists Andrew Mercado and Michael Idato, the commemorative book has the series' background, year-by-year storylines, character details and quotes by cast and crew. It was available as part of ''The Complete Collection'' DVD set.
Biographies and memoirs of cast members
There are also several published autobiographies, biographies and memoirs of cast members:
*
Colette Mann
Colette Mann (born 17 February 1950) is an Australian actress, singer, TV and radio presenter, choreographer and author/writer and media personality, she has been in the entertainment industry for over 50 years.
Mann appeared in two Grundy Orga ...
published 2 books, ''It's a Mann's World'' in 1990 and ''Give Me a Break'' in 2002
*
Betty Bobbitt
Betty Ann Bobbitt (February 7, 1939 – November 30, 2020) was an American actress, director, singer, and playwright based in Australia, with a career that spanned over 60 years, encompassing theatre, television, and film.
Bobbitt was best ...
self-published ''From the Outside'', in 2011, which are her memoirs of her career which included playing the role of Judy Bryant on ''Prisoner''.
*
Sheila Florance
Sheila Mary Florance (24 July 1916 – 12 October 1991) was an Australian theatre, television and film actress. She was best known for her performance as elderly, alcoholic convict Lizzie Birdsworth in the television series ''Prisoner''.
F ...
biography titled "On the Inside" was published in 2016 by Helen Martineau, which details her career as an actress and performer, including her role as Lizzie Birdsworth on Prisoner.
*
Maggie Kirkpatrick
Margaret Anne Kirkpatrick (née Downs; born 29 January 1941) is an Australian stage and screen actress who starred in the cult TV series ''Prisoner'' (otherwise known as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' in the UK and North America), where she was bes ...
, published her own autobiography in 2019, about her performing career, titled ''The Gloves Are Off'', named after the iconic leather gloves that she occasionally worn as Joan Ferguson on ''Prisoner''.
DVD releases
The complete series of ''Prisoner'' is available on DVD format in both Australia and the United Kingdom. On Region 4 in Australia, distribution company
Shock Records
Shock Records (now part of Shock Entertainment) is an Australian independent record label.
History
The three founding members had all previously worked in music retail or distribution: Williams for a Melbourne distribution company called "Musi ...
released the series over forty volumes, and a complete collection, comprising these volumes; the UK editions, from
FremantleMedia
Fremantle (; formerly FremantleMedia) is a British multinational television production and distribution company based in London. Fremantle takes its name from Fremantle International, acquired by predecessor company All American Television in ...
, made the series available over twenty volumes (doubling-up on the Australian sets). In 2016, ViaVision acquired the rights to re-release the series in Australia and made the decision to release the series in their original season formats. See above for a full listing of VHS and DVD sets available. The following is an overview of ''Prisoner'' releases in their seasons formats.
Theatre and musicals
A stage version of ''Prisoner'', based on the original scripts, was produced in 1989 and toured the United Kingdom.
Elspeth Ballantyne
Elspeth Ballantyne (born 20 April 1939) is an Australian retired actress, who appeared in productions in theatre, television and films over a career that spanned nearly 60 years, a veteran of the industry having started her career as a child a ...
(Meg Morris) and
Patsy King
Patsy King (born 16 September 1930) is an Australian retired actress known for work in both theatre and television. She has been a children's television presenter, theatre director, playwright and worked in commercials, and in radio and voice ...
(Erica Davidson) reprised their characters and
Glenda Linscott
Glenda Linscott (born 1958) is an Australian actress and director, born in Rhodesia of English descent, she is best known internationally for her performance in cult drama series ''Prisoner'' as tough bikie inmate and top dog Rita "The Beater" ...
(Rita Connors) played a new character, Angela Mason. A second tour, with
Fiona Spence
Fiona Spence is an English Australian stage and television actress and drama teacher. She is known for her television roles including ''Prisoner'' (1979–81) as Gestapo like prison officer Vera Bennett and ''Home and Away'' as the unlucky in lo ...
(
Vera Bennett) and
Jane Clifton
Jane Clifton (born 10 April 1949) is a Gibraltar-born Australian actress, singer, writer and voice artist.
She is best known for her role in TV serial ''Prisoner'' as tough prison bookie Margo Gaffney.
As a singer, she had a stint with Jo Jo ...
(Margo Gaffney), followed in 1990;
Jacqui Gordon
Jacqui Gordon (born 1962, Melbourne) credited also Jacqui Lockhead, is an Australian actress. She appeared in television dramas, including ''Prisoner'' as Susie Driscoll, ''Cop Shop'', '' Homicide'', ''Matlock Police'' , ''Division 4'', ''The S ...
(Susie Driscoll) played new character Kath Evans.
A musical version followed, with
Maggie Kirkpatrick
Margaret Anne Kirkpatrick (née Downs; born 29 January 1941) is an Australian stage and screen actress who starred in the cult TV series ''Prisoner'' (otherwise known as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' in the UK and North America), where she was bes ...
reprising her role as Joan (the Freak) Ferguson and
Lily Savage
Paul James O'Grady MBE DL (born 14 June 1955) is an English comedian, broadcaster, actor, writer and former drag queen. He achieved notability in the London gay scene during the 1980s with his drag queen persona Lily Savage, very popular in ...
as an inmate. The musical, a
parody
A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its subj ...
of ''Prisoner''
kitsch
Kitsch ( ; loanword from German) is a term applied to art and design that is perceived as naïve imitation, overly-eccentric, gratuitous, or of banal taste.
The avant-garde opposed kitsch as melodramatic and superficial affiliation with ...
ier aspects, toured and had a
West End run in 1995 and 1997. Val Lehman (Bea) was critical of the production, questioning why a
drag queen
A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have usually been gay men, and part o ...
would be in a women's prison.
Due to ''Prisoner'' popularity in the UK during the late 1980s, its British fan club organised personal-appearance tours for several actresses including Val Lehman (Bea Smith), Carol Burns (Franky Doyle), Betty Bobbitt (Judy Bryant), Sheila Florance (Lizzie Birdsworth),
(Chrissie Latham) and
Judy McBurney
Judith McBurney (19 May 1948 – 1 December 2018) was an Australian actress and model. She is best known for serial ''The Young Doctors'' in 1,300 episodes as Tania Livingstone and also appeared in cult series'' Prisoner'' as Sandra" Pixie" Mas ...
(Pixie Mason). A TV special, ''The Great Escape'', was produced in 1990. The programme, which featured Val Lehman, Sheila Florance, Amanda Muggleton and Carol Burns on their 1990 UK visit, includes extensive footage of their on-stage interview with TV presenter
Anna Soubry
Anna Mary Soubry (; born 7 December 1956) is a British barrister, journalist and former politician who was Member of Parliament (MP) for Broxtowe from 2010 to 2019. Known for her support of pro-European policies, she was originally elected a ...
in which the cast members discuss their time on the series. Recorded at the Derby Assembly Rooms in
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
, it was briefly available in the UK on VHS video.
Several ''Prisoner'' actors have appeared in British stage drama and pantomime, including Val Lehman (''The Wizard of Oz'', ''Beatrix Potter'' and ''Misery''),
Peta Toppano
Peita Margaret Toppano (born 1951)GRO Birth Index EnglandLawson, Valerie. , ''Sydney Morning Herald'' (13 December 2003): "They fell in love and married in 1950 in a church at Golders Green, London. Their daughter, Peta, was born a year later." ...
, Fiona Spence,
Maggie Dence
Margaret Helen Dence (born 1 February 1942) is an Australian actress of stage and screen, with a career spanning some seven decades. She is equally at home in both comedy and drama roles, and is best known to early audiences for her roles in t ...
(Bev Baker),
Debra Lawrance
Debra Lawrance (born 1 January 1957) is an Australian actress.
She is best known for her role on '' Home and Away'', as Pippa Ross, which she played from 1990 to 1998, and has made a number of return appearances as the character, the most re ...
(Daphne Graham),
Linda Hartley
Linda Hartley-Clark (born 28 December 1967) is an Australian actress who played Kerry Bishop on the Australian soap opera '' Neighbours'' from 1989 to 1990. She also did a guest stint in 2005 playing Gabrielle Walker, who in the storyline was ...
(Roach Waters),
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 1919 – 20 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to ...
(Ted Douglas) and
Maggie Millar
Maggie Millar (born 6 January 1941) alternatively Maggie Miller, is an Australian former actress, artist, writer, radio personality and public relations officer. She is known for her television series roles in '' Bellbird'', ''The Sullivans'' ...
(Marie Winter).
Popular culture references
In 1997 a ''Prisoner'' clip from its second episode (Franky Doyle and Lynn Warner's fight in the garden) appeared on the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
sitcom ''
Birds of a Feather'', and the series was mentioned several times during ''Birds of a Feather'' seven-and-a-half-year run.
The theme song was played briefly in episode three of BBC sitcom ''
One Foot in the Grave
''One Foot in the Grave'' is a British television sitcom written by David Renwick. There were six series (each consisting of six half-hour shows) and seven Christmas specials over a period of ten years from early 1990 to late 2000. The first fi ...
''.
''Prisoner'' has also been referenced in British sitcoms ''
2point4 Children
''2point4 Children'' is a BBC Television sitcom that was created and written by Andrew Marshall. It follows the lives of the Porters, a seemingly average, working-class London family whose world is frequently turned upside-down by bad luck and ...
'', ''
Absolutely Fabulous
''Absolutely Fabulous'' (also known as ''Ab Fab'') is a British television sitcom based on the ''French and Saunders'' sketch, "Modern Mother and Daughter", created by Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. The show was created and written by Saund ...
'' and ''
Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps
''Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps'' is a British sitcom that ran from 26 February 2001 to 24 May 2011. First broadcast on BBC Two, it starred Sheridan Smith, Will Mellor, Natalie Casey, Ralf Little, Kathryn Drysdale and Luke Gell. Cr ...
'', as well as the soap operas ''
Coronation Street
''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford.
Origi ...
'', ''
Brookside Brookside may refer to:
Geography Canada
* Brookside, Edmonton
* Brookside, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Brookside, Nova Scotia
United Kingdom
* Brookside, Berkshire, England
* Brookside, Telford, an area of Telford, England
United States
* Br ...
'' and ''
EastEnders
''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
''.
International broadcast
United Kingdom
''Prisoner'' began airing on
Yorkshire Television
ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...
on 8 October 1984, with the franchise cutting scenes involving hanging (including the attempted hanging of Sandy Edwards and the hanging of Eve Wilder). Yorkshire also heavily edited the episode 326 fight scene with Joan and Bea. Several other regions also cut scenes deemed inappropriate despite its time slot, well past the 9 pm
watershed
Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to:
Hydrology
* Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins
* Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...
.
The
TVS region followed in October 1985. In 1987
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
,
Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
,
Scottish and
TSW began the series; most other regions began broadcasting it in 1988, nearly two years after it finished production.
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
began broadcasting ''Prisoner'' in late 1989, usually airing after their Friday night local talk show "Kelly" which aired at 10.40pm, would have a tradition of "Prisoner" following at 11.40pm. When the Kelly Show extended to a 90-minute version from the autumn of 1990, ''Prisoner'' would air at 12.10am. Maggie Kirkpatrick and Val Lehman both appeared on the Kelly Show on occasions, such was the popularity of the show airing after "Kelly" every Friday night.
Each ITV region decided when (and how often) ''Prisoner'' would be broadcast.
Central Television screened three episodes weekly, finishing on 16 December 1991 before rerunning the first 95 episodes (from 1993 to 1995). Most other stations also completed the series:
Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...
and
Border Television
ITV Border, previously Border Television and commonly referred to as simply Border, is the Channel 3 service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the England/Scotland border region, covering most of Cumbria, Dumfries and Galloway, the S ...
on 9 February 1995,
Grampian Television
Grampian Television was the original name of the Channel 3 service for the north of Scotland founded in 1961 and now named STV. The northern region's coverage area includes the Northern Isles, Western Isles, Highlands (except Fort William and ...
on 11 March 1996,
HTV on 25 April 1996,
STV on 19 November 1996,
Yorkshire Television
ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...
and
Tyne Tees Television
ITV Tyne Tees, previously known as Tyne Tees, Channel 3 North East and Tyne Tees Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire.
Tyne Tees launched on 15 January 1959 from stud ...
on 7 April 1997. When Border, Grampian and Granada TV screened the final episode in the UK, continuity announcer John McKenzie conducted a telephone interview with Maggie Kirkpatrick (Joan "the Freak" Ferguson).
Some UK regions did not see the entire series;
Channel Television
ITV Channel Television, previously Channel Television, is a British television station which has served as the ITV contractor for the Channel Islands since 1962. It is based in Jersey and broadcasts regional programme for insertion into the ...
began the series on 16 January 1986 with episode 10, when it aligned its schedule with TVS; it was previously aligned with TSW, which did not broadcast the series in its own region until 1987. Regional alignment meant that around the end of 1992, some episodes were skipped;
Tyne Tees skipped 293 and 294 and
Border Television
ITV Border, previously Border Television and commonly referred to as simply Border, is the Channel 3 service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the England/Scotland border region, covering most of Cumbria, Dumfries and Galloway, the S ...
omitted 71 episodes, 477 to 547. Furthermore, in some regions, the series was discontinued prior to its final episode in later runs: in
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
, ''Prisoner'' ended on
Ulster Television
UTV (formerly Ulster Television, branded on air as ITV1) is the ITV region covering Northern Ireland, ITV subsidiary and the former on-air name of the free-to-air public broadcast television channel serving the area. It is run by ITV plc an ...
with episode 562 on 15 December 1997. In
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, where the series ran on
Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
and subsequently
Carlton Television
Carlton Television (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties from 9.25am every Monday to 5.15pm every Friday. The company is now managed with London Weekend Televi ...
, viewers were told after episode 598 on 20 August 1998 that the series would resume after a summer break however the series was then discontinued from screening in London. The last ITV ''Prisoner'' episode was shown on
Meridian
Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to
Science
* Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon
* ...
, which finished an initial run with episode 586 on 12 July 1999.
Early on 31 March 1997
Channel 5, which had begun broadcasting at 6 p.m. the previous evening, began a full run of ''Prisoner''
while later episodes were still appearing in many ITV regions. Except for an airing of the fire episode (326), as part of a 1995
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
soap weekend, it was the series' first UK network broadcast and gave some areas their first full run of the series. Although the schedule varied during the Channel 5 run, episodes were typically shown about five times a week in the 4:40 a.m. slot.
It briefly moved to a late-night slot, usually around 11:30pm,
before returning to the 4:40 a.m. slot. The Channel 5 run ended on 11 February 2001, with a double bill of the penultimate and final episodes. Channel 5 have no plans to re-run the series, despite viewer requests. For most of the Channel 5 run the programme was
sponsored by
Pot Noodle
Pot Noodle is a brand of instant noodle snack foods, available in a selection of flavours and varieties. This dehydrated food consists of noodles, assorted dried vegetables and flavouring powder. It is prepared by adding boiling water, which r ...
, with humorous ''Prisoner''-esque sequences (set in a prison cell and playing on the series' wobbly scenery and props) played before and after the episodes and in the leads into and out of
commercial breaks.
The Channel 5 broadcasts included commentary over the closing credits, usually from chief
continuity announcer
In broadcasting, continuity or presentation (or station break in the U.S. and Canada) is announcements, messages and graphics played by the broadcaster between specific programmes. It typically includes programme schedules, announcement of the ...
Bill Buckley but sometimes from deputy announcers such as Stuart McWilliam. This began in the early-100s episodes (when ''Prisoner'' briefly moved to the late-night slot), when Buckley would deliver a quip about the episode before making
continuity announcements. This developed into humorous observations about the episode just shown, and the reading of letters and depicting of trivia sent in by viewers (which Buckley called "snippets"). Due to its early-morning slot, when most viewers relied on
VCRs
A videocassette recorder (VCR) or video recorder is an electromechanical device that records analog audio and analog video from broadcast television or other source on a removable, magnetic tape videocassette, and can play back the recordin ...
to follow the series,
upcoming schedule changes were announced as part of the commentary.
United States
The series was first aired in the United States on
KTLA
KTLA (channel 5) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of The CW. It is the largest directly owned property of the network's majority owner, Nexstar Media Group, and is the seco ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
on 8 August 1979, initially under the original name, ''Prisoner''. Shown Wednesdays at 8pm, it was the first Australian series broadcast in
prime time
Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
in the United States. The series, whose first two episodes were screened as a two-hour special, was viewed by a quarter of all television viewers in the Los Angeles market and was in second place for the night, beaten only by ABC's ''
Charlie's Angels
''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series that aired on ABC from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, producing five seasons and 115 episodes. The series was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts and was produced by Aa ...
''.
The series would later be repackaged into a daily half-hour format, as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'', KYW-TV ran this format under the title ''The Women of Cell Block H.'' It was
syndicated directly to local stations through Firestone Program Syndication Company during the early 1980s (particularly 1980 to '81). In
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, where ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' was telecasted on
WPIX
WPIX (channel 11) is a television station in New York City. Owned by Mission Broadcasting, it is operated under a local marketing agreement (LMA) by Nexstar Media Group, making it a ''de facto'' owned-and-operated station and flagship (broadcas ...
, it was rated higher than late-night staple ''
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' was an American late-night talk show hosted by Johnny Carson on NBC, the third iteration of the ''Tonight Show'' franchise. The show debuted on October 1, 1962, and aired its final episode on May 22, ...
'' on
WNBC
WNBC (channel 4) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Linden, New Jersey–licensed Telemundo station WN ...
and reruns of legendary series ''
M*A*S*H
''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker.
The ...
'' on
WNEW-TV
WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secaucus, New Jersey–licensed MyNetworkTV flagship ...
, it paved the way for other popular Australian produced shows including miniseries ''
Against the Wind'' and serial ''
The Sullivans
''The Sullivans'' is an Australian period drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran on the Nine Network from 15 November 1976 until 10 March 1983. The series tells the story of a fictional average middle-clas ...
'' to be sold to international markets.
Under the half-hour format, the original episodes were broadcast in two parts, though some scenes were censored or removed for the US telecast.
KTLA, however, continued to broadcast the series in a weekly hour format, though now Tuesdays at 8pm, and under the ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' name. Picked up in at least 38 markets in early 1980, the program would leave the American airwaves by spring 1982, after the few stations that were still carrying the program, such as KOB-TV and WGN-TV, removed ''Prisoner'' from their schedules.
During the spring and summer of 1985, the series was screened nationally on
USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...
,
weekdays at 11am
ET, also in a half-hour format. It is unknown which episodes were televised.
Stations that aired ''Prisoner: Cell Block H''
Canada
In Canada, ''Prisoner'' began on 10 September 1979 as ''Caged Women'' on
Global Television Network
The Global Television Network (more commonly called Global, or occasionally Global TV) is a Canadian English-language terrestrial television network. It is currently Canada's second most-watched private terrestrial television network after ...
, at the time a small television network serving southern and eastern Ontario;
the program was seen weekly on Monday nights at 9pm
The show would move to Tuesdays at 9 p.m. in the fall of 1980, continuing with the ''Caged Women'' title. The show would be off the schedule by the 1981–1982 television season, but by the fall of 1982, Global would reintroduce the show to the schedule, still as ''Caged Women'', in the half-hour format, weeknights at midnight and 12:30am. The program would be off the schedule by the start of the 1983–1984 season.
Curiously, Global's use of ''Caged Women'' would continue even after the show debuted in the United States as ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'', which led to viewers in the communities along the
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
/
Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
border to watch the same program under two different titles: ''Caged Women'' on Global, and ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' on WKBD-TV Detroit.
In
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
and the
Lower Mainland
The Lower Mainland is a geographic and cultural region of the mainland coast of British Columbia that generally comprises the regional districts of Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley. Home to approximately 3.05million people as of the 2021 Canadia ...
of
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, ''Prisoner: Cell Block H'' was telecasted under that title weekdays at 1pm during 1980 and 1981 on
KVOS-TV
KVOS-TV, virtual channel 12 ( UHF digital channel 14), is a Heroes & Icons owned-and-operated television station licensed to Bellingham, Washington, United States. Owned by Chicago-based Weigel Broadcasting, it is part of a duopoly with Seatt ...
, an independent station in
Bellingham, Washington
Bellingham ( ) is the most populous city in, and county seat of Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It lies south of the U.S.–Canada border in between two major cities of the Pacific Northwest: Vancouver, British Columbia (locat ...
that included the greater Vancouver / Victoria region as part of its viewing area.
Sweden
The series was shown in Sweden where it was a cult broadcast on TV4, from 7 September 1994 and entitled ''Kvinofangelset'' (The Women's Prison). a fan club organised a regular get together and collected several thousands of signatures from fans to repeat the series in again, which TV4 did so in 2000, After the series ended that year, work began to persuade the network to repeat the series a third time. The network originally screened the series three times a week (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) in the late night program slot of 1am, with the final episode airing on 3 February 2000.
During the repeat run from 2000 until October 2004, the network screening was four times a week (Monday to Thursday) at 2:15 am. The episodes were then repeated on weekends with both the Monday and Tuesday episode on Saturday and the Wednesday and Thursday episodes on Sunday.
The second rerun began in May 2014, by station
TV4 Guld
TV4 Guld is a Swedish television channel devoted to "classic" programmes such as older television dramas.
The channel launched on November 3, simultaneously with its sister channel TV4 Komedi, on satellite from Canal Digital and cable from Com He ...
and again airing Monday through to Thursdays, and screening at 10:00pm, with episode 32 on July 3.
The broadcast schedule was later changed to five nights a week airing at midnight. Season 8 began broadcasting Sjuan in September 2017 at 3:00 pm.
Other countries
The series began in New Zealand in March 1981 on
TV2, showing twice a week at 2:30 p.m., and was later rerun on
SKY 1
Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non-terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...
.
In
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, public television network
SABC 1
SABC 1 is a South African public television network operated by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) which carries programming in English and Nguni.
It was created in 1996, after the SABC restructured its television channels. SABC 1 ...
began airing the series in 1998, screening Thursday nights at 9 p.m. and a repeat showing on Fridays at 10:45;
it was cancelled on 2 October 2000, after episode 156.
In
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, ''Prisoner'' aired as ''As Prisioneiras'' around the end of 1980 and early 1981 by TVS (since renamed
SBT
sbt is an open-source build tool for Scala and Java projects, similar to Apache's Maven and Gradle.
Its main features are:
*Native support for compiling Scala code and integrating with many Scala test frameworks
*Continuous compilation, t ...
), Sundays at 10 p.m. The show was dubbed into
Brazilian Portuguese
Brazilian Portuguese (' ), also Portuguese of Brazil (', ) or South American Portuguese (') is the set of varieties of the Portuguese language native to Brazil and the most influential form of Portuguese worldwide. It is spoken by almost all of ...
locally by TVS and was cancelled after episode 82 had screened.
Australian reruns
Network Ten
Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...
began rerunning ''Prisoner'' on 8 May 1995; the series was cancelled, despite promises that it would return after the 1996 Christmas break.
BBC UKTV
BBC UKTV is an Australian pay television channel in Australia and New Zealand, screening British entertainment programming, sourced mainly from the archives of the BBC, RTL Group (mainly Talkback Thames material) and ITV plc. The channel was or ...
began airing it from the beginning on 30 November 1997, at 12:15am on Tuesday and Thursday and 11:30pm on Saturday and Sunday. A repeat was broadcast at 2pm on Monday.
Foxtel channel
111 channel began airing the series on 7 March 2011 at 6:30pm
AEDT
Australia uses three main time zones: Australian Western Standard Time (AWST; UTC+08:00), Australian Central Standard Time (ACST; UTC+09:30), and Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST; UTC+10:00). Time is regulated by the individual state ...
, later moving to 5:30pm AEDT on 10 December 2012. Each episode was repeated the following afternoon, with the final episode on the initial run airing on 11 November 2013. The next day, the channel began a repeat run from episode one at 3:00pm AEDT, later moving to 1:00pm AEST on 7 July 2014.
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company—operating in cable television, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April 2018, superseding an earlier company from 1995. The service was establi ...
held unlimited screening rights to the series until 2019, airing the series 4 times back to back (from 2011 to 2019). Foxtel's final broadcast was on September 11, 2019.
The series' popularity on Foxtel inspired plans for a modern-day remake.
Believing that ''Prisoner'' would resonate with new audiences, in 2010 111 group programming director Darren Chau planned to replay the series against the introduction of digital channel
Eleven
Eleven or 11 may refer to:
*11 (number), the natural number following 10 and preceding 12
* one of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011, or any year ending in 11
Literature
* ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn
*'' ...
and Network Ten's plan to move ''
Neighbours
''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...
'' to Eleven. The channel ran a promotional campaign highlighting the rerun, with a new version of the theme song by
Ella Hooper
Ella Keighery Hooper (born 30 January 1983) is an Australian rock music singer-songwriter, radio presenter and TV personality. Hooper is the lead singer of Killing Heidi. The band formed in 1996 (when Ella was 13) and also featured her older bro ...
and a cast reunion.
Awards and nominations
See also
* ''
Bad Girls''
* ''
Orange Is the New Black
''Orange Is the New Black'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''OITNB'') is an American comedy-drama streaming television series created by Jenji Kohan for Netflix. The series is based on Piper Kerman's memoir '' Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Wo ...
''
Explanatory notes
References
External links
*
On the Inside– official fan club
Who's who in Wentworth?– fan site with complete episode guide
Prisoner Cell Block H World– fan site with news and more
– overview and review
{{Logie Award for Most Popular Drama Series on Australian Television
1979 Australian television series debuts
1986 Australian television series endings
1970s Australian crime television series
1970s Australian drama television series
1970s crime drama television series
1970s LGBT-related television series
1970s prison television series
1970s television soap operas
1980s Australian crime television series
1980s Australian drama television series
1980s crime drama television series
1980s LGBT-related television series
1980s prison television series
1980s television soap operas
Australian LGBT-related television shows
Australian prison television series
Australian television soap operas
English-language television shows
Imprisonment and detention of women
LGBT-related drama television series
Network 10 original programming
Television shows set in Melbourne
Television series produced by The Reg Grundy Organisation
Lesbian-related television shows