Series synopsis
Love Child is an Australian drama television series that premiered on Nine Network on February 17, 2014. It ended on July 4, 2017. It was created by Sarah Lambert. It stars Jessica Marais, Jonathan LaPaglia, Mandy McElhinney and Ella Scott Lynch.
The lives of staff at the fictional Kings Cross Hospital and the wild streets of Darlinghurst in the 1960s.
Joan Miller is a smart and sophisticated midwife who returns home from London to take a job at the Kings Cross Hospital. Dr Patrick McNaughton is a charismatic head of obstetrics at Kings Cross Hospital. Frances Bolton is the tough matron who also controls the running of Stanton House, a home for unwed pregnant young women.
Premise
The lives of staff at the fictional Kings Cross Hospital and the wild streets of Darlinghurst in the 1960s.
Joan Miller is a smart and sophisticated midwife who returns home from London to take a job at the Kings Cross Hospital. Dr Patrick McNaughton is a charismatic head of obstetrics at Kings Cross Hospital. Frances Bolton is the tough matron who also controls the running of Stanton House, a home for unwed pregnant young women.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Jessica Marais as Joan Miller
- Jonathan LaPaglia as Dr. Patrick McNaughton
- Mandy McElhinney as Matron Frances Bolton
- Ella Scott Lynch as Shirley Ryan
- Sophie Bloom as Vivian Maguire
- Harriet Dyer as Patricia Saunders
- Darcie Irwin-Simpson as Rita
- Ryan Corr as Johnny Lowry
Supporting cast
- Miranda Tapsell as Martha Tennant
- Andrew Ryan as Simon Bowditch
- Gracie Gilbert as Annie Carmichael
- Matthew Le Nevez as Jim Marsh
- Tiarnie Coupland as Maggie
Guest cast
- Les Hill as Captain Bruce
- Alyssa Stringfellow as Mrs. Brady
- Giselle Da Silva as Briony
- Chloe Bayliss as Wanda
- Stan Walker as Singer
- Damian Rice as Gus
- Georgina Anderson as Kath
- Don Halbert as Frank
- Paula Forrest as Helen
- Georgia Adamson as Eleanor
- Ben Turland as Ronnie
- Campbell Smith as Lionel
Episodes
This series spans 4 seasons with 36 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 8 | February 17, 2014 | April 7, 2014 |
| Season 2 | 8 | May 5, 2015 | June 23, 2015 |
| Season 3 | 10 | June 20, 2016 | August 1, 2016 |
| Season 4 | 10 | May 2, 2017 | July 4, 2017 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Kings Cross, 1969: An ambitious midwife returns from London to uncover a system of forced adoptions at the local hospital. A pregnant country girl, Viv, wakes to find she's been drugged by her parents and sent to a home for unwed mothers. |
February 17, 2014 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 June 1969. As the world counts down to the first moon landing, Joan flirts with danger at the hospital and makes a powerful enemy. Annie returns home after giving up her baby, but realises her old life is gone forever. |
February 24, 2014 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Joan risks her career to help Annie get her baby back, unaware of the implications for Dr McNaughton. Patricia's mother visits from Melbourne and offers her daughter an early exit from Stanton House. |
March 3, 2014 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Joan's new career as a doctor is threatened when she helps a pregnant teen. Viv's estranged mother tries to take control of her life. Annie learns a harsh lesson as a single mother in 1970s Kings Cross. |
May 5, 2015 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Joan is obsessed with finding the father of Gail's baby. Viv finds an unlikely ally in Matron as she suffers through a difficult labour. Shirley receives a surprise telegram from Vietnam. |
May 12, 2015 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Patricia refuses to sign adoption papers for her unborn baby, with tragic results. Joan gets closer to finding the family of Gail's orphaned baby. Matron's world is rocked when her biological son is released from prison. Martha is swept off her feet by an admirer. |
May 19, 2015 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 It’s 1970 and the times they are a-changing. Joan is devastated to discover an infection has left her almost certainly infertile while delinquent teen Maggie is determined to discover the identity of her birth mother. |
June 20, 2016 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Shirley fights to keep her job as Maggie learns the truth of their relationship, Joan uncovers McNaughton's part in Greg Mathieson's death, and Viv loses her twins all over again. |
June 27, 2016 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Whilst being blackmailed by McNaughton's estranged wife, Joan rescues Maggie and other abused girls from Tarramar by agreeing to help Matron reopen her 'baby factory', Stanton House. |
July 4, 2016 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 When Joan goes into early labour, the unorthodox new head of obstetrics is the only one who can help her. Matron has her hands full with three new pregnant girls in Stanton House. |
May 2, 2017 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Filled with grief after the death of her best friend Patty, Martha is determined to uncover the truth of Patty's final hours, and drags Viv along with her on a wild goose chase that ends in the last place Martha expected. |
May 9, 2017 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Joan must compete for a permanent doctor's position against her friend Bowditch as well as a sexist rival with wandering hands. Meanwhile, the Stanton House girls steal Martha's car in an attempt to learn more about Elena's betrothed. |
May 16, 2017 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | Nine Network |
|---|---|
| First aired | February 17, 2014 |
| Last aired | July 4, 2017 |
| Runtime | 48 minutes |
| Status | Ended |
| Schedule | Tuesday at 20:40:00 |