Geoffrey Rush – our Australian of the Year

Oscar-winning actor Geoffrey Rush (pictured) was last night announced as our Australian of the Year in recognition of his contribution to the arts.

The 60-year-old, who this year celebrates 40 years in the industry, gained international fame in 1996 for his portrayal of pianist David Helfgott in the movie Shine which led to him winning the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Despite much of Rush’s acting work being in the theatre and on film, the Queensland-born actor has also worked in television.  He made his TV acting debut in the ABC mini-series Menotti in 1981.

He later appeared in Twisted Tales and played the lead role of newspaper editor Bill Wyatt in the 1996 series Mercury.

Rush also made a guest appearance in Kath And Kim in 2004.

Also on this Australia Day, a number of television identities were among the hundreds recognised in this year’s Australia Day honours list:

Maggie Beer – “For service to the tourism and hospitality industries as a cook, restaurateur and author, and to the promotion of Australian produce and cuisine.”  Beer was a co-presenter on the popular ABC series The Cook And The Chef for five years and has also been a regular guest on MasterChef Australia.

Jamie Durie – “For service to the community as an ambassador and supporter of a range of charitable and environmental organisations, and as a landscape designer.”  Durie came to national fame as the presenter of Backyard Blitz and The Block.  He has more recently appeared on the Seven Network’s The Outdoor Room and gained international fame when he caught the attention of Oprah Winfrey.

Gus Mercurio (posthumously) – “For service to boxing as an administrator and sports commentator, as a film, television and stage actor, and to the community.”  Mercurio appeared in numerous television series over his career, including period dramas Cash And Company, The Sullivans, Power Without Glory, Tandarra, Five Mile Creek and All The Rivers Run, and was a boxing commentator for 12 years.

Oscar Whitbread – “For service to the Australian film and television industry.”  Whitbread has been a television producer since the 1960s, working on ABC dramas including Bellbird, Marion, And The Big Men Fly, Power Without Glory, Rush, Catspaw, The Truckies, Outbreak Of Love and I Can Jump Puddles.  He later worked on The Flying Doctors, Ratbag Hero, Cluedo and Acropolis Now.

Source: ABC, Governor-General of Australia, IMDB, IMDB.

Aussie TV classics on 7TWO – including an ABC favourite

Although the Seven Network’s digital channel 7TWO tends to feature a line-up heavy in classic British fare of drama, comedy and lifestyle shows, the channel manages to squeeze in some classic Australian content.

With its coverage of the minor tennis tournaments now out of the way – and the Australian Open about to start on the main Seven channel – 7TWO from Monday will resume screening classic soap Sons And Daughters and early episodes of Home And Away in their morning timeslots.

From Monday afternoon, 16 January, 7TWO will also roll-out two more vintage classics.  Young Ramsay, a family drama that ran from 1977 to 1980 starring John Hargreaves (pictured with co-star Barbara Llewellyn) as a country vet, and Five Mile Creek, a period drama set in the early gold rush days of Australia that featured Liz Burch, Gus Mercurio, Michael Caton and a young Nicole Kidman.

Although Young Ramsay is being played out from episode one, Five Mile Creek is being resumed from season three as it had a brief run of episodes on 7TWO last month.

Both dramas were originally screened on Seven and produced by Crawford Productions, though Five Mile Creek was a co-production with the American Disney Channel in the early-‘80s and gained a loyal following in the US.

From Friday, 20 January, 7TWO begins a re-run of one of the most popular dramas to come from the ABC – Seachange.

Seachange told the story of city lawyer Laura Gibson (Sigrid Thornton) who after a string of personal crises adopts a change of lifestyle and moves her family to the fictional seaside town of Pearl Bay, hoping for a more peaceful and less dramatic existence as a local magistrate but finding herself immersed in a town of somewhat eccentric characters.

Although Thornton played the central character in Seachange, the series featured a strong supporting cast of veteran performers and new talent, including John Howard, Kerry Armstrong, David Wenham (pictured with Thornton), William McInnes, Jill Forster, Kevin Harrington, Fiona Corke, Tom Long, Alan Cassell, Shaun Micallef and Mark Mitchell.

The series, produced by Artist Services (best known for producing Fast Forward), delivered high ratings for ABC in the competitive 7.30pm Sunday timeslot and its popularity led to the initial batch of thirteen episodes in 1998 being followed by another in 1999 and a third in 2000. 

Over its three-year run Seachange collected nine TV Week Logies – including three for Most Outstanding Drama Series – and three AFI awards.

The series has been repeated on a number of occasions on ABC but this is its first airing on a commercial channel.

Other ABC titles to have featured on 7TWO since its inception are Mother And Son and Barry Humphries’ Flashbacks.

Young Ramsay and Five Mile Creek, weekdays from 12.00pm, starting 16 January.  Seachange, Fridays 7.30pm, starting 20 January.  7TWO.

Source: Five Mile Creek, Seachange, Australian Television Information Archive

Obituary: Jon Blake

Jon Blake, the promising young actor whose career was cut short following a road accident which rendered him paralysed with permanent brain damage, has died from pneumonia at the age of 52.

Blake was still a teenager when he was cast as Alan Archer in the 0-10 Network soap The Restless Years in 1977.  He later appeared in TV series Boy In The Bush, Five Mile Creek, A Country Practice and the landmark mini-series Anzacs.

He appeared in movies including Freedom, Cool Change, Running From The Guns and The Lighthorsemen. It was in 1986 while driving home from South Australia after The Lighthorsemen’s final day of filming that he was involved in the tragic accident, about 40 kilometres from Port Augusta, that led to him being in a coma for months and with permanent brain damage, leaving him totally incapacitated.

His compensation payout from the accident was partly calculated based on his estimated potential earnings in Hollywood.

For many years Blake was in the care of his mother Mascot until she died in 2007.  Recently, Blake’s son Dustin won a legal battle to take care of his father and also took his father to finally see a cinema screening of The Lighthorsemen.

Blake’s family have extended thanks to all the volunteers, carers and nurses that assisted in his care over the past 25 years.

A funeral is expected to be held later this week.

Source: IMDB, The Age, Network Ten, Herald Sun. TV Week, 19 September 1987.

Obituary: Gus Mercurio

Gus Mercurio, actor and boxing identity, has died in Melbourne.

The 82-year-old died from complications arising from an operation for a chest aneurism at a Melbourne hospital.

Born in Wisconsin, USA, Mercurio came to Australia in the 1950s.  A professional boxer, he became deeply involved with the game in Australia as an administrator, referee and commentator.

In the 1970s he made a break into acting, appearing in TV series including The Long Arm, Division 4, Homicide and Matlock Police but became probably best known for his roles in historical dramas, including Cash And Company (pictured), Tandarra, Power Without Glory, All The Rivers Run and Five Mile Creek.

Mercurio also featured on the big screen in titles including Crocodile Dundee II, The Man From Snowy River and The Blue Lagoon.

Gus Mercurio is survived by his current partner Rita and six children, including TV presenter and performer Paul Mercurio.

Source: Herald Sun, ABC, IMDB.

Ray Barrett

Veteran Australian film and television actor Ray Barrett has died in a Queensland hospital after suffering a brain haemorrhage.  He was 82.

Starting his career in Brisbane radio at 16, Barrett moved to Sydney in his early 20s and then took his career abroad.  A ten-month stint in the early British TV series Emergency Ward 10 led to other roles in series including The Troubleshooters, The Avengers, Doctor Who, Z Cars, The Saint and even as a voice artist on The Thunderbirds and Stingray.

Returning to Australia in the 1970s, Barrett became a familiar face with appearances in films including Don’s Party, The Chant Of Jimmie Blacksmith, Goodbye Paradise, Hotel Sorrento and the 1995 remake of Dad And Dave: On Our Selection.

Television appearances included Golden Soak, The Timeless Land, Sporting Chance, Five Mile Creek, Waterfront, The Flying Doctors, GP, Medivac, All Saints, White Collar Blue and mini-series After The Deluge.

Barrett also had an ongoing role in the ABC drama series Something In The Air.

His last acting credit was in the film Australia.

Source: The Age, IMDB