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''The Newsreader'' is an Australian television drama series created by Michael Lucas, broadcast on
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
. The six-part series, exploring the personal and professional lives of journalists and crew within a 1980s Australian newsroom, premiered on 15 August 2021. It was ABC's most-watched drama programme of 2021, received positive reactions from critics, and achieved the most nominations of any show or film at the
11th AACTA Awards The 11th Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards (generally known as the AACTA Awards) is an award's ceremony to celebrate the best of Australian films and television of 2021. The main ceremony occurred on 8 December 2021 at the ...
. In March 2022, it was renewed for a second series for broadcast in 2023.


Cast


Main

*
Anna Torv Anna Torv (born 7 June 1979) is an Australian actress. She is best known for her role as FBI agent Olivia Dunham on the Fox science-fiction series ''Fringe'' (2008–2013), for which she was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for ...
as Helen Norville, the first female newsreader of the ratings-dominant ''News at Six''. Coming to the position in a time of misogyny and sexism sets up roadblocks in her career, especially as her fragile mental health begins to worsen, and charts a journey of recovery by leaping head-first into a relationship with junior reporter Dale. * Robert Taylor as Geoff Walters, the long-time co-anchor of the ''News at Six'', who is critical of Helen's position, believing it to be a part of the news genre's move towards entertainment and glamour to retain viewers. As a result, he feels he is being pushed out, as part of the old guard, and lets his health suffer as he perseveres on, resolved to not let that happen. * Sam Reid as Dale Jennings, a junior reporter for ''News at Six'' whose eagerness to helm a bulletin sees him become Helen's producer, and the two become romantically involved - to the receptive eyes of the media - as he becomes concerned over his private life, and his personal secrets, potentially leaking onto the screen. *
William McInnes Daryl William Mathew Gabriel McInnes (born 10 September 1963) is an Australian film and television actor and writer. He portrayed the role of Matt Tivolli in '' The Time of Our Lives''. He is best known for his roles as Senior Constable Nick S ...
as Lindsay Cunningham, the overbearing, easily irascible, casually bigoted, and ratings-obsessed head of the ''News at Six'' newsroom. *
Marg Downey Marg Downey (born 5 May 1961) is an Australian comedian and actress best known for her roles in ''The D Generation'', ''Fast Forward'' and '' Full Frontal'' Early life and education Downey grew up in a middle-class Catholic family in the Melbo ...
as Evelyn Walters, Geoff's wife, who diligently manages his career off-screen, often to his irritation. * Stephen Peacocke as Rob Rickards, the sports editor, and former VFL player, for ''News at Six'' who struggles when temporarily promoted to co-anchor/relief anchor. He often asks Noelene for help and is oblivious to the fact that this is unpaid and uncredited work. As he becomes attracted to her, he appreciates her more. *
Chai Hansen Chai Hansen (born Surachai Romruen, February 8, 1989) is a Thai-Australian actor. He is best known for his role as Monkey in ''The New Legends of Monkey'', Zac in ''Mako Mermaids'', Ilian in ''The 100'' and Jordan Kyle in ''Shadowhunters''. E ...
as Tim Ahern, one of the ''News at Six'' cameramen who develops a crush on Dale. * Michelle Lim Davidson as Noelene Kim, the assiduous ''News at Six'' library researcher and autocue operator, determined to try and make her mark. * Chum Ehelepola as Dennis Tibb, the meticulously-working and hot-headed head producer of the newsroom.


Supporting and notable guests

* Maude Davey as Val Jennings, Dale's attentive and doting mother, keen to see her son do well, aware of his past traumas. * Caroline Lee as Jean, the newsroom secretary. *
Bert La Bonté Bert La Bonté is an Australian actor. Early life La Bonté grew up in Melbourne's southeastern suburbs with his parents and two older sisters. His parents migrated from Mauritius in the late 1960s. He discovered a passion for acting at nine wh ...
as Gordon, ''News at Six'' director and camera operator. *
Maria Angelico Maria Angelico is an Australian actress, writer and producer from Melbourne, Victoria. Angelico is best known for her portrayal of Julia Bechly in the TV series ''Sisters'' on Network Ten. She is also known for portraying Miss Tan in '' The In ...
as Cheryl Ricci, ''News at Six'' make-up artist. * John Leary as Murray, ''News at Six'' operator. * Jackson Tozer as Ross, co-cameraman to Tim. * Dom Phelan as Brett, the other sports editor for ''News at Six''. *
Robert Grubb Robert Grubb (born 31 January 1950) is an Australian actor. He studied acting at National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA), where he graduated in 1978. There he was a fellow student of actor Mel Gibson. Grubb played the role of Dr. Geoffrey St ...
as Dr. McCormack, who has Helen as one of her patients and regularly re-fills her sleeping pill prescription despite her increasingly somewhat flimsy excuses. * Tony Rickards as Dr. Shaw, Geoff's doctor, who meets resistance from both him and Evelyn about what changes Geoff must make to improve his health, his recommendations for a long while off-screen to recover are not well-received. *
Tim Draxl Tim Draxl (born 8 October 1981) is an Australian actor and singer, known for his role as Doctor Henry Fox in ''A Place to Call Home''. Early life Draxl was born in Sydney and grew up in Jindabyne where his family was in the ski industry. He ...
as Adam, a former schoolfriend of Dale's, who aims to apologise for a brutal event in their shared past. * Edwina Wren as Cathy Norville, Helen's sister, who pleads with her to join the family in their father's dying days.


Episodes


Series 1 (2021)


Series 2 (2023)

Set across 1987 and 1988, the series will revolve around Dale and Helen "contending with rising public profiles, intensifying office politics, and a ruthless new CEO f the network" The series will premiere in 2023, and will consist of six episodes. News events covered in the series include the 1987 federal election, the
stock market crash A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock In finance, stock (also capital stock) consists of all the shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided.Longman Business English Dictionary: "stock - ''especia ...
, the separation of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer, the heroin crisis, and the Hoddle Street shootings. A trailer was released on 24 November 2022.


Production


Series 1

The series was created by Michael Lucas and Joanna Werner and was directed by Emma Freeman. Filmed in
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 ...
, the series was written by Michael Lucas, Jonathan Gavin, Niki Aken and Kim Ho. Joanna Werner and Stuart Menzies, along with Brett Sleigh and Sally Riley on behalf of the ABC, executive produced the series. The series was supported through "major investments" from
Screen Australia Screen Australia is the Australian Federal Government's key funding body for the Australian screen production industry, created under the ''Screen Australia Act 2008''. From 1 July 2008 Screen Australia took over the functions of its predecess ...
and
Film Victoria VicScreen, formerly known as Film Victoria, is the Victoria State Government, Victorian Government’s creative and economic screen development agency. They function behind the scenes, supporting professionals, infrastructure, projects and ev ...
.


Initial development

The inception of what would become ''The Newsreader'' was worked on by Michael Lucas following his six-part series ''
Party Tricks ''Party Tricks'' was an Australian television political drama/comedy series starring Asher Keddie and Rodger Corser. It premiered on Network Ten on 6 October 2014 at 8:30pm. On 3 October 2014 along with ''Offspring'', John Edwards confirmed t ...
'' in 2014/2015 - and had a "long gestation" period. Initial writing for the series - which took place "immediately after" Lucas finished working on the fifth series of ''
Offspring In biology, offspring are the young creation of living organisms, produced either by a single organism or, in the case of sexual reproduction, two organisms. Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny in a more general way. This ca ...
'' in 2015 - was not centred around a newsroom setting, and was simply based on a plan to "write a story with a male lead who felt like there was this particular version of masculinity that he was trying to fulfil, and it wasn't an actual fit but he was just desperate to live up to it," which Lucas describes as "a theme that was close to isheart," and "felt like a personal story" to him. This became the character of Dale, before Lucas realised he "needed to be matched with female character, who was possessed of those traditional masculine qualities: ambitious, risk-taking, volatile", as well as "uncompromising and determined, but she's punished for them, whereas he struggles to fit into that masculine ideal." Lucas talked of how he "liked that they occupied a slight flip on gender stereotypes", and was what he "found really compelling about them." Their relationship formed the basis of the series, with the additional layer of a 1980s setting decided upon due to the fact it would impose "more pressure on he charactersto fulfil certain roles". Lucas then embarked on a year-and-a-half development timeframe, considering what "image of masculinity" the character of Dale would "want oachieve", and chose newsreader for him - and a newsroom as the setting for the series - "a few drafts in", Lucas calling them "lions" and "voice-of-God men". Over the course of 2015 and 2016, Lucas began researching newsrooms of the 1980s, interviewing those who worked in them at the time and hearing "eyepopping stories about the culture". Lucas claimed that the relatively nascent arrival of female newsreaders in the 1980s was something that "caught his attention" in his research; “it was just such an era of change. I was particularly obsessed with female newsreaders because they were a new development in the 80s, prior to that people just liked hearing the news read by very masculine voices of God. There was so much pressure on them. They had to find a way to define how a woman should look in a workplace, and they had such a strong, striking look." Lucas noted the significance of most of his research into the culture of newsrooms of the time being conducted prior to the #MeToo movement, recollecting, in an interview in 2021, how "I started working on this prior to #MeToo. Then of course, when that happened, there was a part of me that felt like, 'will this be a profound change?', and all of the problems that are part of this world...will we have moved on and turned a corner by the time this show airs? Then of course we made it to this year when there's all these stories about the culture in Canberra, and you realise we might have progressed in some ways, but there's still a lot of structural problems and a culture of bullying and misogyny linked to that." Lucas described the depth of research he undertook, potentially exaggerating as he mentioned that he "read nearly every newspaper from 1986" and emphasised the significance of "letters to the editor – they give you the full picture of what people were making of things
hen Hen commonly refers to a female animal: a female chicken, other gallinaceous bird, any type of bird in general, or a lobster. It is also a slang term for a woman. Hen or Hens may also refer to: Places Norway *Hen, Buskerud, a village in Ringer ...
"


Inclusion of real-life events

The first iteration of ''The Newsreader'' was written
on spec ''On Spec'' is a digest-sized, perfect-bound, Canadian quarterly magazine publishing stories and poetry in science fiction, fantasy, and allied genres broadly grouped under the "speculative fiction" umbrella. History and profile Based in Edmon ...
, and a pilot was scripted, which Lucas approached ABC with, having worked with the network on sitcom ''
Rosehaven ''Rosehaven'' is an Australian television comedy series created and written by Celia Pacquola and Luke McGregor, who also star in the lead roles. Its name derives from the fictional small town in rural Tasmania in which it is set. Premierin ...
'' and "wanted to gauge interest". Lucas also considered taking the series to
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 ...
, but "felt the story was better for a non-commercial broadcaster"; ABC responded positively "really quickly", and "had the advantage of the expansive news library archive that could be used." Brett Sleigh at ABC - who would become an executive producer on the series - suggested using actual, "famous" events as the structure of the series, as it was previously just set around "generic stories" like the more expansive rollout of ATMs; Sleigh was enthusiastic about "making the most of ABC archives", and recommended Joanna Werner, to whom Lucas gave the draft pilot script and was "really connected with it", had "really clear vision about where it would go", was "really passionate about it". Lucas said he "instantly knew wanted to begin with the Challenger explosion" as that was the first major news event he remembered from childhood. Elsewhere, Lucas picked events "just by looking at the first half of 1986", explicating that covering Chernobyl was unavoidable, but also that the series also covers less "date-specific" stories such as the HIV/AIDS epidemic. From this, the decision was made to "tightly stick to a real-life timeframe", with episodes taking place over the course of only a few days at most. The crew received "playouts of actual news bulletins on those days" in order to judge the importance and prioritisation of certain news stories on the days episodes take place on. Freeman "made the artistic choice to really use the dates and markers"; dates on which the episodes are set feature at the start of each. Lucas spoke of the challenges that came with weaving in real-life events into the series - being only experienced in writing "pure fiction" - that "the addition of following real events is what makes ''The Newsreader'' special", and " was a really fun puzzle to take those real life events and keep to the real dates, the real timeline," being aware of the "markers ouhave to hit", and at the same time weave fictional characters around them." Despite this "plotting puzzle", Lucas explained it was "a really fun, enjoyable, compelling challenge to see how I can take these real-life events that have their ebbs and flows that I can't change, and how that can provoke different relationships and turning points for the characters,", and how to link them to elements of characters' personalities. He said that this "engages both sides of your brain, although at times it is a bit maddening." He also claimed that the show does not entirely depend on those events being depicted as "if you remember those events or even if you don't, hopefully the show gives you a really interesting window into what those events were like and how newsrooms navigated them." Discussing the process of writing the third episode, Lucas revealed that "at the plotting stage, e wouldgo into the ABC archives, and take footage of the dates
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, watching "'' The 7:30 Report'' or
Mary Delahunty Mary Elizabeth Delahunty (born 7 June 1951) is an Australian journalist and politician with the Labor Party. Early life Delahunty was born in the Victorian town of Murtoa and educated at Loreto College in Ballarat.''Who's Who in Australia ...
's news report, which would all feed back into the story." He also commented that he "took inspiration from
James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker. A major figure in the post-New Hollywood era, he is considered one of the industry's most innovative filmmakers, regularly pushing the boundaries of cinematic capability w ...
's ''
Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...
'' as to how he placed his characters within the history of real events"; " en it comes to something like Lindy Chamberlain, they found the matinee jacket on this day, then on another day she was released from jail, then another she was back in Mt. Isa. So how do I manoeuvre my fictional characters around all of that to build a story? That was sort of the approach that I took." He explained that the lack of date specificity, relative to the other events depicted in the show, meant he had the "capacity" to place the (fifth) episode focusing on the AIDS crisis anywhere, and was "deliberately positioned" as such "to get maximum emotional impact for the characters". Writing the show meant dealing with the balance between how to convey facts and emotions; Lucas said that the news story could be "really prominent, a famous one" with set dates to operate in and around, and he "would have to think about what to do with the characters," whereas "other times e wouldwant to take characters to an emotional place".


Writing in general

Lucas wrote the series alone for "a long time" while it was on spec, until he was able to form a writers' room around 2017. When he did, he hired those he knew would provide valuable roles to develop the programme, such as Niki Aken - "from a research background", whose invitation came in the form of being asked "to join a brainstorm" for the series, for which she "wrote an outline"; Aken remarked that her contributions to the programme were impacted by the pandemic; she "wrote across the big yuk Melbourne lockdown, whilst holed away in hotel quarantine in Sydney". Lucas also carried on a practice he engaged with during his roles on various programmes as a script co-ordinator, in finding and hiring an emerging writer, Kim Ho; Lucas was impressed by his writing, Ho was asked to "script coordinate and note take", and the two co-wrote the fifth episode together. Debra Oswald also acted as script consultant for the series. The pandemic also afforded Lucas an extended period for development, with the start of pre-production delayed by four months, and spoke of him and production designer Melinda Doring taking advantage of that time for further collaboration; "an extra four months that we filled with Zoom meetings where we filled up
Dropbox Dropbox is a file hosting service operated by the American company Dropbox, Inc., headquartered in San Francisco, California, U.S. that offers cloud storage, file synchronization, personal cloud, and Client (computing), client software. Dropb ...
folders with inspiration," sourcing additional material - what Lucas called "absolute gems" - from museums and online forums, with Lucas in awe of her dedication to the work, lamenting that he "incorporated what ecould in the script". The delay also worked in Lucas' favour with his writing; his style is to "work intensely, go away and come back", attempting to "arrange tso ecan step away" and "pick it up fresh" after potentially "months away from it". Lucas said the writing team were "bouncing back and forth", looking at the timeline and the characters, specifically where character arcs fit into the way in which the real-life events are depicted in the show. Before the writing of each episode, the research and archive footage "would be locked in", and only then would the writing progress onto working on the character arcs, so "that by the time a writer was assigned to write a particular episode, a comprehensive outline of the factual events involved would already be in place". Lucas spoke of how the "emotional arcs and storylines" were less set in stone in the run up to filming, and that they "tend dto evolve a lot even within the timeline structure we had set" and that "was always an ongoing discussion up to and including being on set, and then even to a certain extent in the edit suite", that they "were still honing those emotional beats and moments." Lucas claimed that many of the negative aspects of newsrooms of the era "were pare back" in his writing, being told in his interviews by those who worked there at the time the extent to which " ey were pretty sexist, racist, homophobic workplaces
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a lot of casual harassment", and that if he "had directly translated some of those stories, ... a contemporary audience would be like, 'Are you kidding?'". Lucas expanded on this, saying that "with these things, you walk the line of wanting to be frank about the reality of it, but at the same time you don't want to traumatise viewers" - for instance, depiction of racism was less explicit, choosing not to use racial epithets and "dramatis ngit without forging that pathway", using the example of the character of Noelene being assumed to know how to translate Japanese in spite of being Korean and that the other characters "have put in no effort to find out where her family have come from" - and concluding that " r attempt is to show the full spectrum of that world and to depict the parts that were loaded with bullying and misogyny, and the parts that were exhilarating."


Commission and filming

Securing international distribution for the series proved troublesome at first. While prospective distributors were "keen" when shown scripts for the series, the "Australian specificity" of the series, as well as the era chosen for the period setting, made them hesitant. As a result, Lucas "became conscious of picking stories that have some international resonance"; for example, the Azaria Chamberlain case - covered in the third episode - is a "quintessential Australian story, but means something overseas as well". Despite this, Werner spoke of how the accuracy with which they aimed to recreate the period setting was significant to "partners involved" in the series, describing how they took reference from movies in the late 1980s such as ''
Tootsie ''Tootsie'' is a 1982 American satirical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Dustin Hoffman. Its supporting cast includes Pollack, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, Bill Murray, Charles Durning, George Ga ...
'' and ''
Working Girl ''Working Girl'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols, written by Kevin Wade, and starring Harrison Ford, Sigourney Weaver, and Melanie Griffith. Its plot follows an ambitious secretary from Staten Island who t ...
'' to implement a neutral palette of "biege and browns" in the show - what she deemed a "grounded approach", in contrast to the brash and bold colours in many depictions of the 1980s, invoking
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
music videos as one example, as "we wanted to look like
t was T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is deri ...
made in the '80s - not a show made about the '80s". To accentuate this, cameras for filming were fitted with vintage lenses. The series' commission was announced in April 2020, entered pre-production by October, with the casting announced that November; six episodes were ordered by ABC, despite the series being originally developed for eight. The series was filmed over 54 shoot days during late 2020 and early 2021, under COVID-19 restrictions. As a result, plans for expansive location filming could not take place, such as being unable to film in Darwin, in the
Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...
, for the third episode, which is partly set there, and instead restricted to the state of
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 ...
. Scenes in the episode, where Dale and Helen, among other journalists, are camped outside a house they believe Lindy Chamberlain is staying at, were filmed in
Mildura Mildura is a regional city in north-west Victoria, Australia. Located on the Victorian side of the Murray River, Mildura had a population of 34,565 in 2021. When nearby Wentworth, Irymple, Nichols Point and Merbein are included, the area had ...
, with many local residents having been chosen to portray extras and offered up the exterior of their homes to use for filming, which took place in March 2021. The scenes in the episode where Dale, Helen, Tim, Ross, and other assorted journalists and cameramen, are waiting outside
Berrimah Prison Berrimah may refer to: * Berrimah, Northern Territory, suburb * Electoral division of Berrimah * Berrimah Power Station * Berrimah Prison Berrimah may refer to: * Berrimah, Northern Territory, suburb * Electoral division of Berrimah * Berrimah Pow ...
for Lindy Chamberlain's release were also filmed in Mildura, with stills during the filming shot by Adrian Chiarella, husband to Lucas. Scenes in the fourth episode depicting the Russell Street bombing were filmed at the site of the bombing itself, Lucas commenting that the filming "shut down an entire city block"; Niki Aken, writer of the fourth episode, played an extra during the scenes in the aftermath of the bombing. Creator Lucas himself cameoed during the second episode, portraying a DJ at Geoff's birthday party; scenes for that were shot over three days, and the experience of cameoing - of which Lucas commented "I swear the director pushed me into that" - allowed Lucas the chance to become more accustomed with the cast. Filming of the News at Six studio was done at the NEP Studios in Southbank, South
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 ...
, with the newsroom offices set in a disused chemical warehouse/factory in
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
, west of Melbourne. Creator Lucas and director Freeman worked closely and collaboratively on- and off-set, with clear roles set out for the two; during the writing process, Freeman provides Lucas with notes on the script from cast and other crew, and during her directing, he acts as "a support" for her on set. Lucas described Freeman as the "prime storyteller" on set, his presence to "help with speedbumps with the script or to troubleshoot". He later said that, the way in which he engages in constant communication with other cast members, with their input, during the process of writing and filming, that the series was a "mutual creation".


Casting and characterisation

Actress Marg Downey reported " e won the role after submitting an audition tape from home", and that the first scene she shot was with William McInnes and filmed out-of-order, featuring early in the sixth episode. For Robert Taylor, a vocal coach "from the era" was hired, due to the need to "sharply define his vocal style, versus the more relaxed style ... he has". Chum Ehelopa claimed that when the show was pitched to him, he was unaware the show was "using actual events" and "just thought it was an '80s newsroom show". Michelle Lim Davidson spoke of how the role of Noelene was adapted for her, and that she was hesitant to audition to play the part of a Korean woman due to concerns about whether Australian television was open to such representation; it was the first time she had auditioned to play the part of a Korean woman in her decade-long television career, and commented that she "never envisioned the day that hewould play the first Korean Aus ralianwoman in a major drama on Aus ralianTV". Lim Davidson spoke of the sense of '' jeong'' she felt on set of the family home of her character, Neolene, and that she had "an overwhelming sense that hehad arrived home", praising the "care and detailed accuracy of the Kim home" by the design, arts and props department - especially production designer Melinda Doring, and aided by writer/director and friend of hers, Undi Lee - and actress Hany Lee in helping her learn her Korean/Hangul dialogue. She said that " owing up in Australia and not being submerged in ercultural heritage eant she hadstruggled with erKorean identity," while lamenting how " r a long time it felt like hewas running away from ercultural identity" and she had long experienced an expectation that she "wouldn't be able to find a safe space to be erelf in the industry" and expressed her hopes her portrayal would lead to expanding Korean representation on television. Anna Torv received the first two scripts of the series before she decided to take up the role, and was cast in early 2020. In an interview with ''
Stuff Stuff, stuffed, and stuffing may refer to: *Physical matter *General, unspecific things, or entities Arts, media, and entertainment Books *''Stuff'' (1997), a novel by Joseph Connolly (author), Joseph Connolly *''Stuff'' (2005), a book by Jere ...
'', it was revealed Torv "went to great lengths to make sure she truly represents female newsreaders of the time", saying that her character of Helen is "an amalgamation of a bunch of different people," and that she "grew up watching these people every night on the news but hedid do a deep dive into it and started to watch people (from the era)", having "put most of erenergy into what it was to be a newsreader"; including learning the significance of the autocue, and how it was "the best way to perfect her delivery", realising "how connected the autocue was with the intonation and all the rest of it. So we did all of the news stuff with the autocue – legit." She explained - in an interview with ''Guardian Australia'' - she became aware of this through taking part in "a couple of sessions with a beautiful person they'd brought in to teach the newsreading" and learned "that the phrasing, and all that kind of stuff, comes purely through the autocue. The way you speak as a newsreader is because you can't see the next word." The process of "developing the texture of the character", according to Torv, "was everything you dream of, to be honest, as an actor", alongside working with creator Lucas - whom Torv praised as "one of those incredibly beautiful and confident writers, and also confident creators, who sits at the table and is open ... you feel like you're a part of the development," which "becomes invigorating ... I say that because it doesn't happen for actors all that often” - and producer Joanna Werner and director Emma Freeman (who Torv has worked with
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) - saying that she "loved the collaboration" she was able to partake in with both, which was behind why she was "so keen to do ''The Newsreader''", acclaiming Freeman as "a brilliant director and she just creates such a fantastic environment for, like, play – honestly." Torv commented that " king ''The Newsreader'' was one of the most satisfying and joyous creative experiences that I've ever had". Torv also revealed that the ending of the series was not known from the beginning of production, and that the cast were only aware of the show's general direction for a time.


Historical accuracy

Some elements of the series have been observed to be lightly historically inaccurate. Lucas himself admitted "the only thing that maybe I'm slightly playing with is the first visibility of Halley's Comet, which is a little bit compressed," which was picked up on by the ABC in an article wherein Matt Neal noted "the unlikely but dramatically convenient feat of seeing a brilliant and highly visible Halley's Comet in the Melbourne sky on February 1, 1986", as " e optimal viewing time for Australia was in April," and citing the fever among the public surrounding the return of the comet being diluted at that time due to "the comet's distance from Earth and our planet's tilt meant it wasn't very bright, plus cloudy skies and light pollution meant city-dwellers' best chance to see the comet was with a telescope somewhere more rural." Neal also noted that a small claim in the first episode surrounding
Melbourne Zoo Melbourne Zoo is a zoo in Melbourne, Australia. It is located within Royal Park in Parkville, approximately north of the centre of Melbourne. It is the primary zoo serving Melbourne. The zoo contains more than 320 animal species from Austra ...
's Butterfly House receiving its millionth visitor was "unlikely given the attraction only opened two months earlier in December 1985 and the zoo averages about 1.5 million visitors per year." Neal and Flora Carr, from the UK's ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'', also wrote that the decision to call the Chernobyl disaster "the worst nuclear disaster ever" in the sixth episode may have been overly premature, and the positioning of the announcement of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson's engagement was also compressed, featuring during the opening to the fourth episode, which was set over a week after the news was actually made public in reality.


Series 2

On 30 March 2022, ABC confirmed that ''The Newsreader'' had been renewed for a second series, to be set in 1987.


Casting

Alongside the confirmation of the series' renewal, it was revealed
Daniel Gillies Daniel John Gillies (born 14 March 1976) is a New Zealand-Canadian actor, film producer, director and screenwriter. He played the role of Elijah Mikaelson on the television series '' The Vampire Diaries'' and its spin-off '' The Originals,'' as ...
and
Philippa Northeast Philippa Northeast (born 23 September 1994) is an Australian actor, known for her role as Evelyn MacGuire in the soap opera '' Home and Away'' from 2013 until 2017. After leaving ''Home and Away'', Northeast starred in the 2019 romantic comedy fil ...
had joined the cast. In July 2022, creator Lucas advertised on Twitter and Instagram for potential extras for a gay bar scene set to shoot in Melbourne in late August. Another casting call was made in July, for
First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...
extras "to help recreate the 1988 Bicentennial Protests that were based in
Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
and
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
", suggesting series 2 will cover events in 1988. A trailer was released in late November 2022, which also revealed that
Rory Fleck Byrne Rory Fleck Byrne (born 1988) is an Irish actor and composer, known for ''Vampire Academy'', ''Harlots'', '' The Foreigner'' and '' This Is Going to Hurt''. Early life Rory Fleck Byrne was born in England but moved to Ireland when he was nine y ...
would guest-star this series, as a variety show host. There will also be a further expansion of the cast with an introduction to extended family members of the main ensemble.


Production and filming

In September 2021, before the first series was broadcast, when speaking about the prospect of a second series, Lucas claimed that he would like "to start writing from a point where
e had E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plur ...
all the archival footage sourced first", and mentioned that the archives team within ABC had "already sent ima bunch of great stuff so
e was E, or e, is the fifth letter and the second vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''e'' (pronounced ); plu ...
sitting on a goldmine", and they were "brainstorming ideas
o be O, or o, is the fifteenth letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''o'' (pronounced ), pl ...
ready when the time comes". Lucas later revealed that development of the second series was commissioned by ABC prior to the broadcast of the first, which Lucas praised as allowing him to have "time to imagine what I wanted and what the team wanted without knowing how people were going to respond", something he was "grateful" for, and found "liberating" in the sense that "you know who you're writing for", and he had the "ensemble's voices in ishead". Production and filming began in Melbourne in July 2022, as announced during the March 2022 announcement of the series 2 order. Filming for the second series lasted 56 days, over 11 weeks and ended in late September 2022. The eighth week of filming involved the shooting of the newsdesk studio scenes, which were done back-to-back; the preference of director Freeman "to block
hem A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the ga ...
as one sequence" like a play, with cast "perform ngfor six minutes at a time unbroken". Filming of such scenes means that the cast are "often shooting eight pages or more a day," with the scenes shot using "full cinematic cameras" alongside "old
Betacam Betacam is a family of half-inch professional videocassette products developed by Sony in 1982. In colloquial use, "Betacam" singly is often used to refer to a Betacam camcorder, a Betacam tape, a Betacam video recorder or the format itself. All ...
cameras" - a mix of vintage and new technology - so as to render the footage resembling television of the 1980s. Lucas said that it was essentially a "functional newsdesk set".


Release

On 12 July 2021, the first trailer was released for the series. The series was broadcast on
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
, premiering on 15 August 2021. Alongside, and in the run-up to, the series' launch, the ABC released videos on YouTube and across social media interviewing cast and crew about the specific news events that would be covered in the series.
Entertainment One Entertainment One Ltd., trading as eOne, is an American-owned Canadian multinational entertainment company. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the company is primarily involved in the acquisition, distribution, and production of films and television se ...
acquired international distribution rights to ''The Newsreader'' in late 2020, and has sold broadcast or streaming rights to the series to
Arte Arte (; (), sometimes stylized in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European public service channel dedicated to culture. It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE, plus ...
in France and Germany, the
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 exam. ...
...
in the UK,
Cosmo Cosmo may refer to: Business and media * Cosmopolitan (magazine), ''Cosmopolitan'' (magazine), a magazine for women, sometimes referred to as "Cosmo" * ''Cosmo's Cosmic Adventure'', a 1992 video game * Cosmo On-Line, a Brazilian generic Intern ...
in Spain,
Filmin Comunidad Filmin S.L., doing business as Filmin, is a Spanish subscription video on demand streaming service, primarily dedicated to streaming independent films, as well as a production company and film distributor. The company headquarters is loc ...
in Portugal and Spain, NBCUniversal International Networks in Latin America,
Now TV Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * No ...
in Hong Kong,
RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...
in Ireland,
The Roku Channel The Roku Channel is an American over-the-top video streaming service owned and operated by Roku, Inc., which launched in September 2017. History In September 2017, Roku, Inc. launched a free, ad-supported streaming channel for its digital media ...
in the United States, Telus Presents in Canada, and
Viaplay Viaplay is a streaming service owned by Viaplay Group which is based in Stockholm. History Originally owned by Modern Times Group, it was launched in May 2007 as Viasat On Demand. It was rebranded as Viaplay in 2011. Viaplay released its first ...
in Poland, the Netherlands and the Nordic and Baltic regions. In Spain, the series premiered on 10 March 2022 on Cosmo, as part of their Women's Month programming, with the remaining episodes airing weekly, apart from the fifth and sixth airing together on 7 April 2022. In the United States, the series premiered on the Roku Channel on 18 March 2022, in New Zealand on Eden and on-demand platform ThreeNow on 24 March 2022, and in Brazil on
Universal TV Universal TV, formerly Universal Channel, is an international pay television network specializing in movies and television series in the thriller, drama, comedy, horror, crime and investigation genres, owned by NBCUniversal International Netwo ...
on 6 April 2022, with an earlier premiere of 30 March 2022, for subscribers of Universal+. The show premiered in Mexico on 2 May 2022, on premium channel Universal Premiere and paid on-demand platforms. The series was subtitled "The Other Side of the News" (''La otra cara de las noticias''); the launch was commemorated by a special event of the same name on 11 May, that highlighted the "transformative role emale journalistscan perform nachiev nggender equality in and out of the newsroom". It was helmed by Belén Sanz Luque, representative of the
UN Women The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women, is a United Nations entity working for gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN Women advocates for the rights of women and girls, and focu ...
in Mexico, and attended by many experienced female Mexican journalists (including
Paola Rojas Paola Rojas (born Paola Rojas Hinojosa; November 20, 1976) is a Mexican television news anchor. Born in Mexico City, Rojas' education started in the fine arts at a very young age. Her father was Jorge Rojas. Biography Rojas' career started at ...
, Denise Dresser, Pamela Cerdeira, Rossana Fuentes Berain, Bárbara Anderson and Adela Navarro). A photo exhibition and gallery featuring "prominent female journalists" was also featured at the Oasis Coyoacan Mall for the week following the event, in collaboration between Universal Plus and female-run media outlet Opinión 51. In both the UK and Ireland, the show was made available on-demand in its entirety alongside a linear broadcast; in Ireland, it premiered on
RTÉ2 RTÉ2 is an Television in the Republic of Ireland, Irish free-to-air television channel operated by public service broadcaster RTÉ. It was launched in 1978 as the Republic of Ireland's second television channel. History In the 1970s, the Iri ...
on 7 June 2022 in a double-bill with all six episodes available on
RTÉ Player RTÉ Player is an on demand video service provided by Irish public media broadcaster RTÉ. The service provides live and recorded RTÉ television programmes, and content exclusive to the player as well as content from other international broad ...
after the first episode's broadcast, and in the United Kingdom premiered on
BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...
on 24 July 2022, with the entire series available from earlier that day on
BBC iPlayer BBC iPlayer (stylised as iPLAYER or BBC iPLAYER) is a video on demand service from the BBC. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tablets, personal computers and smart televisions. iPlayer services del ...
.


Reception


Viewership

''The Newsreader'' was ABC's most-watched drama programme of 2021, achieving an average audience of 1.5 million viewers across linear and on-demand platforms. It was ABC's highest-rated new drama premiere of the year in the 25-54 age demographic. In the UK on BBC2, the series opened with 620,000 viewers, with the entire series (broadcast in double-bills over three weeks) averaging 350,000 viewers among those watching the linear broadcast only; these figures are only of those who watched on the night of broadcast, and including those who watched in the seven days post-broadcast, the first episode rose to 1.1 million viewers - with an average 133% increase from viewership on the night of broadcast across the six episodes - the show became the channel's most-watched Sunday night drama in over four years, and was the most-watched new series across on-demand/streaming services of the public service broadcasters in the UK in the week post-launch. No viewership statistics, however, that include those who watched on-demand prior to linear broadcast have been publicly reported.


Critical reception

;In Australia The series was critically praised. ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''s Luke Buckmaster, in a four-star review, praised Torv and Reid in "deliver ngfine performances as characters you want to keep spending time with, though you're not sure exactly why", the cinematography in lending the series a "placid and non-confronting tone, reflected in the graceful camerawork and scaled-back colour schemes", and the writing for "using real-life media stories as the scaffolding for character-related fiction, the former complementing the latter, without big-noting the subjects or rearranging history". He did, however, offer critique, opining that "the show is pretty toothless in terms of industry and cultural commentary", noting anachronistic diversity in representation of Australian newsrooms of the time; Helen Vatsikopoulos in ''
The Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in ...
'', who worked as a journalist during ''The Newsreader''s temporal setting, also observed that newsrooms of the era "were not as diverse as the program pretends". Buckmaster then included ''The Newsreader'' in a list of the top 10 Australian television shows of 2021, ranking it ninth; he expanded on his opinion of the series further, saying it "has a slightly glossed-over vibe – evoking a feeling that some of the rough edges of history have been smoothed", but that the series is "crafted with a dignified sensibility and uses historical events as dramatic scaffolding", with "elegance of the show's compositions and the relatability of its well-developed characters keep ngit a pleasure to watch". Karl Quinn, in a five-star review for ''
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 ...
'', called the series "brilliant" and a "terrific ensemble piece", "beautifully handled by director Emma Freeman, working from series creator Michael Lucas' incisive, empathetic and funny scripts", and concluded it was "the most fun e'dhad watching telly in a long time." David Free, also in ''The Sydney Morning Herald'', commented it was "the best show e'dseen in yonks", lavishing praise on the attention-to-detail in the series, in the clothes, language and propwork. However, Marama Whyte, in an article for ''History Australia'' journal, wrote that such details were relatively facile, saying "the period setting is style without much substance. It wants the shoulder pads and typewriters, without engaging with the fact that this was an industry on the cusp of colossal change. It gives the distinct sense of being a setting chosen for aesthetics and convenience, rather than any reason directly related to the plot or argument." ;International Rachel Aroesti from ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' in the United Kingdom also wrote similarly, claiming that "it is hard to feel fully enveloped in ''The Newsreader''s world", and that, despite its "news-heavy plotlines", it holds a "generic backdrop that smoothes out the quirks of the period and the setting". On other matters, she opined that the show appeared to "shrink away from its fascinating, disruptive female lead", with Torv and the character of Helen Norville more deserving of being the focus of the show. Nevertheless, she praised the leads as "brilliant", and how the series allows for a "trip down memory lane
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
complements a subtler, mysterious and slower-paced set of character-driven storylines", and considered it "a classy, well-acted period drama" that "is excellent at capturing the weird, restrained elation that a large-scale tragedy can bring to a newsroom ... and neatly sums up something decidedly murky about journalism in the process". James Croot for ''Stuff'' in New Zealand had similar thoughts, saying "for all Reid's ... understated impressiveness, this is really Torv's ... show. Looking almost like a dead ringer for Cate Blachett ic she delivers a performance of power, grit and authority that her more illustrious countrywoman would be proud of. In Torv's hands, maybe Helen Norville is actually Australia's answer to
Murphy Brown ''Murphy Brown'' is an American television sitcom created by Diane English that premiered on November 14, 1988, on CBS. The series stars Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news anchor for ''FYI'', a ...
or
Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), which ...
. Regardless of any such futile comparisons, she is what drives ''The Newsreader''." Croot nevertheless called the show "excellent", claiming "what grounds the show ... and makes it compelling viewing – is the seemingly unlikely relationship between Helen and Dale nd that tching them combine and spark off one another during a key broadcast was potentially as enthralling as if it had been the real thing." Most other reviews upon its premiere in the United Kingdom were largely positive. Carol Midgley, in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' four-star review, also observed, and praised, the attention-to-detail with the features of the period setting, calling the series "nostalgic", while also commenting on "the quickfire writing" and "strong performances" in the series, calling it a "joy to watch" primarily due to Torv's "complex" performance as Helen "with fabulous nuance". Also in a four-star review, for the '' i'' newspaper, Rachael Sigee wrote that the show's two leads are "excellent", with "a strong ensemble cast", yet admitted there was "a slight soapiness to some elements of the plot", but that the "set-up lends itself to melodrama", and overall was a "fun but flinty story that revels in its 80s setting". Dan Einav, in another four-star review, in the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'', also lauded Torv's performance and "organic rapport with Reid", stating that "what
he show He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
lacks in grand themes, tmore than makes up for in the strength of the characterisations and performances". Helen Hawkins of ''
The Arts Desk ''The Arts Desk'' (theartsdesk.com) is a British arts journalism website containing reviews, interviews, news, and other content related to music, theatre, television, films, and other art forms written by journalists from a variety of tradition ...
'', in her four-star review, noted the diversity of ethnic and cultural backgrounds of some of the characters, calling it "a mini melting pot that allows the script to probe the unattractive hidden currents of Australian corporate life", and that a strength of the show is "the unshowy way it goes about stirring this pot. There are no unearned crises or implausible twists. Life itself is left to provide those. The writing carves out niches for the characters inside the potential stereotypes, and the actors rise to it". She also wrote that the "period feel of the piece is masterfully done, a filter giving it a dingy look that accentuates the browns, beiges and dirty greens of the spot-on decor and fashions. It's all the better for not screaming, "Look how authentic we've made it!"", and that what "the script also gratifyingly gets right" is one of the underlying issues explored in the show of the "emergence of the data-driven approach ... at this stage, the data are the station's all-important ratings, which Upstairs tracks with a grim religiosity" with " rious news ... doomed if the ratings say people don't watch it readily and want only entertainment." In a positive review in '' Público'', María José Arias wrote that " e ins and outs of television and the journalism that is done in it are a universe as interesting as it is dynamic that, well planned and explored, can give way o true television jewels". ''The Newsreader'' ... is a good example of how to do it", claiming the series' hook is its "ability to give a fast and agile rhythm to the drama ... without forgetting to take care of the details that make the viewer connect and empathize with what happens to their characters", adding "although it is still a drama, it has its touches of humour and hooks you from the first moment with its touch of romance and its plots of business politics". She spoke further of how the character of Geoff "perfectly embodies that old glory of journalism addicted to the spotlight and being in the limelight unable to retire (although he is old enough to do so) to make way for new generations." The series ranked fourth in ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
''s top 13 list of The Best International TV Shows of 2021.


Response

In response to criticism over the show's perceived misunderstanding of the level of diversity and minority representation in newsrooms of the time, Chum Ehelepola responded on Instagram, writing:


Awards

At the
11th AACTA Awards The 11th Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards (generally known as the AACTA Awards) is an award's ceremony to celebrate the best of Australian films and television of 2021. The main ceremony occurred on 8 December 2021 at the ...
, the show was nominated for more awards than any other program.


References


External links

* * on
ABC iview ABC iview is a video on demand and catch-up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Currently iview video content can only be viewed by users in Australia. As of 2016, ABC iview attracts around 50 million plays monthly and ac ...
*
''The Newsreader''
at Werner Film Productions * {{DEFAULTSORT:Newsreader, The 2021 Australian television series debuts 2020s Australian drama television series 2020s LGBT-related drama television series Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming English-language television shows Television productions postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Television series about journalism Television series about television Television series set in the 1980s Television series set in 1986