''Carson's Law'' is an Australian

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...

series made by

Crawford Productions Crawford Productions is an Australian media production company, focused on radio and television production. Founded in Melbourne by Hector Crawford and his sister, actress and voice artist Dorothy Crawford, the company, also known as Crawfo ...

for the

Ten Network 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 fi ...

between 1982-1984. The series was a

period piece A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and sw ...

set in the 1920s and starred

Lorraine Bayly Lorraine Daphne Bayly AM (born 16 January 1937) is an Australian actress of film, television and theatre, presenter, singer, dancer, pianist and theatre director and writer. She is perhaps best known to small screen audiences for her soap ...

as progressive solicitor Jennifer Carson. The episodes revolved around the cases taken on by Jennifer, and the various personal intrigues of her family.Albert Moran, ''Moran's Guide to Australian TV Series'', AFTRS 1993 p 100

Brief Synopsis

The series' premiere was billed as a 90-minute "movie-length" episode on 24 January 1983, with another two-hour episode in the same timeslot the following night, before settling into its twice-weekly 60-minute format the following week. ''Carson's Law'' was noted for its quality scripts and period production values. Despite being popular 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 me ...

, where the series was based and filmed, it did not succeed in Sydney. Attempts to revamp the series to make it appeal more to Sydney audiences eventually alienated the programme's core audience, and it was cancelled in 1984 after 184 episodes. The final episode aired on ATV-10 on 1 December 1984; after being shuffled around the TEN-10 schedule, then reduced to one episode per week, then pushed back from 8:30pm to 9:30pm and, finally, to the even later 10:40pm slot, the final episode eventually aired in Sydney on 18 April 1985. ''Carson's Law'' was bought by several members of the UK ITV network.

TVS TVS may refer to: Mathematics * Topological vector space Television * Television Sydney, TV channel in Sydney, Australia * Television South, ITV franchise holder in the South of England between 1982 and 1992 * TVS Television Network, US dis ...

aired edited half-hour episodes on Thursdays and Fridays at 3.30pm in 1987 and 1988. At the same time,

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 network. Until 1974, this was prima ...

showed a considerable number of episodes on Thursdays at 1.30pm between 1984 and 1988 while Television South West screened a slightly lower number in their 6.35pm slot on Tuesdays during 1984. Ulster Television aired episodes on Monday nights at 11.10pm up until at least October 1992. ''Carson's Law'' was also shown in Portuguese television, and is being currently re-played at RTP memoria (trans. "RTP Memory"). ''Carson's Law'' was shown in Catalan television (TV3) as well. The Catalan name for the series is ''Carson i Carson advocats''. ''Carson's Law'' was also shown in the Netherlands for its entirety by the NCRV broadcasting company. The company adapted the title to simply 'The Carsons'. It ran in the afternoon, and was quite popular. ''Carson's Law'' was also shown in Israeli television ( Channel 2, experimental broadcasting). It was called ''The race to the top of Jennifer Carson'' ("''Ha-Merotz La-Tzameret Shel Jennifer Carson''"). It ran on a weekly basis for about two years. ''Carson's Law'' was also shown in Germany in the early 90s. It ran daily in the afternoon and was called "Carson & Carson".

DVD Releases

The first 13 episodes of the series was released onto Region 2 DVD in the Netherlands in September 2009. The disc set has removable Dutch subtitles with all audio in English. In Australia seven volumes covering the entire series of 184 episodes are available to purchase from the Crawford Australia website (Region 4). From November 2015 all seven volumes can be purchased in the rest of the world through Crawford's UK distributor, Eaton Films Ltd.

Filming

The series was filmed at the Global Television Studios in Nunawading, Melbourne in the set next to where ''

Prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

'' was filmed with only a partition separating the two programmes.

Cast

*'' Kevin Miles'' as ''Godfrey Carson'' *''

'' as ''Jennifer Carson'' *''Jon Sidney'' as ''William Carson '' *''Greg Caves'' as ''Billy Carson'' *'' Melanie Oppenheimer'' as ''Sarah Carson'' *''Edward Upjohn'' as ''Sam Carson'' *'' Christine Amor'' as ''Felicity Carson'' *''Ross Thompson'' as ''Robert Carson'' *'' Louise Pajo'' as ''Margery Carson'' *''Chris Orchard'' as ''Thomas Carson'' *'' Christine Harris'' as ''Amy Carson'' (later Garrick) *''

Anna Maria Monticelli Anna Maria Monticelli is an Australian actress, screenwriter and producer. Monticelli won the 1994 AFI Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her role in '' Silver City''. In 2001 she was nominated for the AFI Award for Best Original ...

'' as ''Eva Tarrant'' *''Irene Inescort'' as ''Eileen Brennan'' *''Gordon Glenwright'' as ''Sgt. Vic Brown'' *''Noel Trevarthen'' as ''Gerard Kent'' *''Christian Horsley'' as ''Carson's love''

Episode list

Note: the first episode "The Clan" has been designated as episodes 1&2, as per the numbering on the Crawford Productions DVD release. 1. The Clan, Part 1 2. The Clan, Part 2 3. The Witness 4. Requiem 5. Case Deferred 6. The Royston Trial 7. An English Gentleman 8. Foxtrot 9. The Medicine Man 10. Which Doctor 11. Swan Song, Part 1 12. Swan Song, Part 2 13. Happy Families 14. To The Future 15. Lost Soul 16. Pre-Selection 17. On The Fence 18. A Family Concern 19. Mistress 20. Reputations 21. Cause 22. Trial And Error 23. Dead Men's Tales 24. Dead End 25. Candidate 26. Strange Bedfellows 27. Donnegan's Wake 28. Confession 29. Aftermath 30. Waywards From The Bush 31. All God's Children 32. Blessed Are They 33. A Useful Life 34. Greater Good 35. Chopsticks 36. In A Market Garden 37. The Prodigal 38. Razorman 39. Christmas Cheer 40. Wedding 41. Honeymoon 42. Private Life 43. Birthright 44. Heritage 45. Policeman's Lot 46. True Colours 47. Pound Of Flesh 48. In Service 49. Soiree 50. Best Laid Plans 51. The Sins Of The Sons 52. The Perfect Gentleman 53. Future Horizons 54. Happy Events 55. Scent Of Battle 56. The Fortune Teller 57. Fortune's Child 58. Fire And Misfire 59. St. Patrick's Day 60. The Masquerade 61. All That Glitters 62. Laugh, Clown, Laugh 63. Guardian Angels 64. Lost Opportunities 65. A Country Dance 66. Faith, Hope And Fencing Wire 67. A Matter Of Confidence 68. The Tender Trap 69. A Case For Compassion 70. From Small Acorns 71. Street Games, Night Moves 72. Deceptions 73. Orphans Of The Storm 74. Falling Star 75. Means To An End 76. Teapots And Tears 77. Seeing Stars 78. Mirrors And Dreams 79. The Americans Are Coming 80. Picking Up The Pieces 81. The Bolshevik 82. The Comeback 83. A Scent Of Lavender 84. Changes 85. Preferential Treatment 86. Growing Pains 87. A Weak Resolve 88. The Catch 89. Butcher's Picnic 90. Child Of The Storm 91. A Cat Among The Carsons 92. A Change Of Heart 93. Lunatic 94. The Sisters 95. A Chinese Puzzle 96. Humanitarian Grounds 97. A Case To Answer 98. Scarlet Fever 99. The Duel 100. Vale 101. Prelude 102. Power Games 103. Verdict: Not Innocent 104. The Portrait 105. A Small Misunderstanding 106. The Outsider 107. Lady Luck 108. Win Some, Lose Some 109. The Innocent 110. A Crime Of Passion 111. Virtue Undefiled 112. The Lost Weekend 113. The Tender Past 114. A Question Of Circumstance 115. White Knights 116. New Friends 117. Infatuation 118. Snakes In The Grass 119. A Man's Pride 120. Gentlemen's Agreement 121. Self Defence 122. Flash Point 123. Blood And Fire 124. Wedding Vows 125. An Anxious Advocate 126. The Devil's Work 127. The Last Goodbye 128. A Fond Concept 129. Luck Of The Draw 130. A Lucky Investment 131. Strike Me Lucky 132. The Performance 133. A Hold On Life 134. The Old People's Friend 135. The Last Enemy 136. A Small Favour 137. Throw A Seven, Part 1 138. Throw A Seven, Part 2 139. The Comeback 140. Wild Oats 141. Misalliance 142. The Arrangement 143. Hideous Night 144. Gambits 145. Smile For The Camera 146. Malpractice 147. Fear Is The Key 148. Fire And Ice 149. Fallen Into Darkness 150. Seeds Of Doubt 151. The Ivory Tower 152. To The Future 153. Heroic Deeds 154. Another Mrs. Carson 155. Desperate Measures 156. The Long Farewell 157. A Bob Each Way 158. The Lesson 159. One Step Ahead 160. The Wages Of Sin 161. The Mis-Shapen Effigy 162. Trial By Editorial 163. Ploys 164. Baying For Blood 165. The Dominant Gender 166. The Man's Rights 167. La Cenicienta 168. All Is Fair 169. Hell Hath No Fury 170. Beyond All Reason 171. The Break 172. End Of The Road 173. Wild Violets 174. Divide And Conquer 175. Blood On The Straw 176. Buying Time 177. A Question Of Liberty 178. The Scapegoat 179. Hide And Seek 180. My Father, My Son 181. Requiescat 182. The Heir Apparent 183. The Dark Tunnel 184. Daylight

References

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External links

Aussie Soap Archive: Carson's LawCrawford ProductionsCarsons Law at the National Film and Sound Archive
Network 10 original programming Australian television soap operas Australian legal television series Television shows set in Victoria (Australia) 1983 Australian television series debuts 1984 Australian television series endings Television series set in the 1920s Television series by Crawford Productions