''While the Men are Away'' is an Australian television drama series broadcast on SBS and follows Francesca ( Michela De Rossi) who is left in charge of an apple farm after her husband enlists in

World War 2 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 opposing ...

. Francesca recruits local women and "certified coward" Robert (

Matt Testro Matthew Testro (born 5 February 1996) is an Australian actor. He played Jake Riles in ''Nowhere Boys'' and Freddie Hopkin in '' The Gloaming''. Testro has appeared in the TV shows '' Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries'', ''Glitch'', '' Neighbours'', ...

) to help her. The series explores patriarchy, racism and homophobia. Julie Eckersley, Head of Scripted said, "''While the Men Are Away'' is an absolutely delightful revisionist history with a twist of truth. It is warm hearted and clever and full of characters you will fall in love with." The series was promoted as an "often (but not always) wildly historically inaccurate" dramedy about the

Women's Land Army The Women's Land Army (WLA) was a British civilian organisation created in 1917 by the Board of Agriculture during the First World War to bring women into work in agriculture, replacing men called up to the military. Women who worked for the ...

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 ...

and premiered on 27 September 2023 with double episodes.

Production

The series was announced in December 2022 as an Arcadia production with major production investment from Screen Australia and finance with support from Screen NSW. It was filmed in

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

and Central West of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. Filming took place commenced in January 2023. The trailer was released on 22 August 2023.

Cast

* Michela De Rossi as Francesca (Frankie) * Max McKenna as Gwen * Phoebe Grainer as Kathleen *

as Robert * Jana Zvedeniuk as Esther * Shaka Cook as Murray * Benedict Hardie as Des

Episodes

Reception

Clare Rigen from ''

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

'' said "While so much of television about this era chooses to focus on our involvement in World War II, SBS' new eight-part dramedy instead takes a look at the stories of those left to hold down the fort at home — and it's great fun" Rigen said " tis about people who don't normally hold the reins of power suddenly having them shoved in their hands and told to giddy the hell up". Rigen concluded saying "This is a silly, funny and surprisingly poignant series about a fascinating time in Australian history." Wenlei Ma 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 ...

'' gave the series 3 out of 5 stars saying, "The first two episodes are a little wobbly as it tries to settle on a tone that is farcical without being slight. But once the series hits its stride, the jaunty story maintains a springy pacing. And, without realising it, you become invested in the characters. They're more than just archetypes, even though their individual journeys chart familiar emotional challenges." Mel Campbell from ''Screenhub'' gave the series 3½ out of 5 stars saying, "I found an earnest period drama that champions today's progressive values – economic independence, sexual freedom, and allyship across race, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation – in opposition to a straight, white, bourgeois, Christian monoculture." Suzy Wrong from ''

Joy 94.9 JOY 94.9 (official call sign 3JOY), stylised as JOY or JOY 94.9, is a community radio station broadcasting at 94.9 FM in Melbourne. It is Australia's first and only LGBTQI+ community radio station. __TOC__ History JOY 94.9, originally incorpo ...

'' said, "The series is beautifully shot featuring gorgeous costumes and scenery. The story is well conceived, it is clear that very smart and modern brains are behind its creation, but I never really connected with any of the characters." Wong persisted with and said it offered a "rewarding experience".

References

External links

* * on SBS On Demand {{SBS Television programming 2023 Australian television series debuts 2020s Australian drama television series 2020s LGBT-related drama television series Special Broadcasting Service original programming Australian English-language television shows Television series set in the 1940s