Series synopsis
A Country Practice is an Australian soap drama television series that premiered on 10 on November 18, 1981. It ended on November 5, 1994. It was created by James Davern. It stars Shane Porteous, Helen Scott, Lorrae Desmond and Grant Dodwell.
A Country Practice was an Australian television drama series. At its inception, one of the longest-running of its kind, produced by James Davern of JNP Productions, who had wrote the pilot episode and entered a script contest for the network in 1979, coming third and winning a merit award. It ran on the Seven Network for 1,058 episodes from 18 November 1981 to 22 November 1993. It was produced in ATN-7's production facility at Epping, Sydney. After its lengthy run on the seven network it was pic ...
Premise
A Country Practice was an Australian television drama series. At its inception, one of the longest-running of its kind, produced by James Davern of JNP Productions, who had wrote the pilot episode and entered a script contest for the network in 1979, coming third and winning a merit award. It ran on the Seven Network for 1,058 episodes from 18 November 1981 to 22 November 1993. It was produced in ATN-7's production facility at Epping, Sydney. After its lengthy run on the seven network it was picked up by network ten with a mainly new cast from April to November 1994 for 30 episodes, although the ten series was not as successful as its predecessor . The Channel Seven series was also filmed on location in Pitt Town, while, the Channel Ten series was filmed on location in Emerald, Victoria.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Shane Porteous as Terence Elliot
- Helen Scott as Marta Kurtez
- Lorrae Desmond as Shirley Dean/Gilroy
- Grant Dodwell as Simon Bowen
- Joyce Jacobs as Esme Watson
- Penny Cook as Victoria "Vicki" Dean/Bowen
- Syd Heylen as Vernon 'Cookie' Locke
- Brian Wenzel as Frank Gilroy
Supporting cast
- Gordon Piper as Robert 'Bob' Hatfield
- Nicholas Bufalo as Benjamin 'Ben' Green
- Anne Tenney as Melissa 'Molly' Jones
- Di Smith as Dr. Alex 'Fraser' Elliott
- Shane Withington as Brendan Jones
- Joan Sydney as Margaret 'Maggie' Sloane
- Mark Owen-Taylor as Peter Manning
- Caroline Johansson as Donna Manning
- Josephine Mitchell as Josephine 'Jo' Loveday/Langley
- Emily Nicol as Chloe Jones
- Kate Raison as Cathy Hayden
- Annie Davies as Kelly Shanahan
Guest cast
- Wendy Strehlow as Judy Loveday
- Charles Tingwell
- Baz Luhrmann
- Debra Lawrance as Anna Harris
- Toni Pearen as Patty Morrison
- Kate Ferguson as Gloria Simpson
- Sarah Lambert as Sandy Crosby
- Nadine Garner as Bonnie Stewart
- Rebekah Elmaloglou as Christina Agapitos
- Sophie Heathcote as Stephanie 'Steve' Brennan
- Paul Smith as Marty Warren
- Arkie Whiteley as Jenny
Episodes
This series spans 14 seasons with 1048 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 50 | November 18, 1981 | November 17, 1982 |
| Season 2 | 92 | May 1, 1982 | September 1, 1983 |
| Season 3 | 84 | January 2, 1983 | October 31, 1984 |
| Season 4 | 90 | December 10, 1984 | |
| Season 5 | 84 | November 6, 1986 | |
| Season 6 | 88 | January 7, 1986 | October 15, 1987 |
| Season 7 | 88 | January 5, 1987 | December 22, 1987 |
| Season 8 | 90 | November 9, 1988 | |
| Season 9 | 86 | November 13, 1990 | |
| Season 10 | 90 | November 26, 1991 | |
| Season 11 | 86 | January 20, 1992 | November 24, 1992 |
| Season 12 | 90 | January 18, 1993 | November 22, 1993 |
| Season 13 | 30 | April 13, 1994 | November 5, 1994 |
| Season 14 | 0 | April 13, 1994 | November 5, 1994 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
In General Practice (1) A pregnant woman from out of town admits herself to Wandin Valley Hospital with signs of foetal distress. Despite his reluctance, Terence is forced to operate when another doctor is unable to reach the town in time. Delivering a baby girl, the hospital staff are surprised by Mrs Myers' disinterest and apathy toward her daughter, whom she says is ""not mine"". Meanwhile, Simon has to refuse local girl Jenny Secombe's request for the birth control pill. At fifteen, Jenny needs parental consent to obtain the pill, but is afraid to ask her father. Shirley finds she is receiving unwanted attention from the recently widowed Frank Gilroy, while Simon continues to pursue Vicky, despite her insistence that they remain friends. |
November 18, 1981 |
| 2 | In General Practice (2) | November 19, 1981 |
| 3 |
Town Tragedy (1) Ladies' Auxiliary President and part-time hospital administrator Elaine MacKay is killed in a car accident at the Five Mile Bridge. As the town grapples with the loss, speculation begins as to why Elaine was in a car with her husband's friend—Ian Sutton—heading out of town. Molly and Brendan Jones arrive in town. |
November 25, 1981 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Golden Fleece (1) | May 1, 1982 |
| 2 | Golden Fleece (2) | June 1, 1982 |
| 3 | Teamwork (1) | December 1, 1982 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Little Voices (1) | January 2, 1983 |
| 2 | Little Voices (2) | February 2, 1983 |
| 3 | Grace and Favour (1) | August 2, 1983 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Part of the Family (1) | January 24, 1984 |
| 2 | Part of the Family (2) | January 2, 1984 |
| 3 | Second Chance (1) | July 2, 1984 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Follow the Leader (Part 1) Maggie informs Bob that she will be making alternative living arrangements, which Bob takes as a personal insult. An attractive female doctor arrives at the clinic to help while Terence is away. Shirley is involved in a bad car accident, and Simon decides it's time he and Vicky took a holiday. |
February 19, 1985 |
| 2 | Follow the Leader (Part 2) | February 6, 1985 |
| 3 |
Comes a Stranger (Part 1) A colourful character comes to the Valley and creates quite a stir with his potions and magic cures. Bob and Cookie believe they have stumbled across a magic cure that will make them rich. There is a state of emergency in the Valley when they get a freak rain storm and some of the local farmers have to be |
February 12, 1985 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Friends for Life (Part 1) Kelly and Cookie think up a fund-raising idea for the club and decide on a darts competition. Matron Sloane and Shirley are set to challenge each other at the darts competition. |
January 7, 1986 |
| 2 | Friends for Life (Part 2) | January 8, 1986 |
| 3 |
Illusions (Part 1) Terence gets a surprise when his son arrives earlier than expected. Simon is worried that Shirley may be getting too involved with other people's problems. |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Rocking the Boat (Part 1) Jo is saddened to learn her mother has moved away and left no forwarding address. Donna and Jo travel to Rottnest Island and see the native Quokka firsthand. |
January 5, 1987 |
| 2 | Rocking the Boat (Part 2) | January 6, 1987 |
| 3 |
Bitter Sweet (Part 1) Frank and Shirley travel to the United States to see Vicky, Simon and the twins. Ben is victimised by irate farmers when he announces that the whole milk supply of the Valley will have to be dumped. |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
A Clean Slate (Part 1) An itinerant farm labourer's reluctance to settle down is putting a strain on his marriage and prompting his wife to hit the bottle. The locals have conflicting views on how best to put Lover's Gully to good use. Michael helps Pam Allen forget her problems but lands himself in trouble with her husband and receives a black eye. |
January 5, 1988 |
| 2 | A Clean Slate (Part 2) | January 6, 1988 |
| 3 |
Mixed Blessings (Part 1) When Leanne learns that she is pregnant, her husband, Dave, isn't exactly overjoyed. They already have one child with Down's Syndrome and Dave is fearful they could end up with another. Terence asks Alex to accompany him to a medical seminar in Canberra. Christopher feels rejected when he overhears his parents talking about a new baby. |
January 12, 1988 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Sanctuary (Part 1) A Chilean refugee tries to make a new life for himself in Wandin Valley, but ghosts of his past come back to haunt him. |
January 3, 1989 |
| 2 | Sanctuary (Part 2) | |
| 3 |
Message In A Bottle (Part 1) A mysterious stranger arrives in town and confuses everyone with his various stories. All is revealed later at Camelot when a party game turns ugly. |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Puppy Love (Part 1) Matt and Lucy are in love and Cathy finds it amusing that they are trying to hide it from her. |
January 2, 1990 |
| 2 |
Puppy Love (Part 2) Matt and Lucy are in love and Cathy finds it amusing that they are trying to hide it from her. |
|
| 3 |
Anna and the King (Part 1) Former pop idol Martin Glass injures himself riding Cris’ new motorcycle. |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heartbreaker 1 | January 20, 1992 |
| 2 | Heartbreaker 2 | January 21, 1992 |
| 3 | Feet Of Clay 1 | January 27, 1992 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Something Of Value 1 | January 18, 1993 |
| 2 | Something Of Value 2 | January 19, 1993 |
| 3 | A Fine Balance 1 | January 25, 1993 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Straight From The Heart | April 13, 1994 |
| 2 | Love Potion Number Nine | April 20, 1994 |
| 3 | The Trouble With Women | April 27, 1994 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Straight From The Heart | April 13, 1994 |
| 30 | Future Perfect | November 5, 1994 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | 10 |
|---|---|
| First aired | November 18, 1981 |
| Last aired | November 5, 1994 |
| Runtime | 48 minutes |
| Status | ended |
| Schedule | Tuesday, Wednesday at 19:30:00 |