Acropolis Now
Encyclopedia
- For the Lynne TrussLynne TrussLynne Truss is an English writer and journalist, best known for her popular book Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation.-Early life:...
radio series see Acropolis Now (radio)Acropolis Now (radio)Acropolis Now is a BBC Radio sitcom set in Ancient Greece, written by the author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves, Lynne Truss. It was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in two series in 2000 and 2002, with subsequent reruns on BBC 7 in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010....
.
Acropolis Now was an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n sitcom set in a Greek bar of the same name that ran for 63 episodes from 1989 to 1992 on the Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
. It was created by Nick Giannopoulos
Nick Giannopoulos
Nick Giannopoulos is a Australian stand-up comedian, film and TV actor. He is best known for his comedy stage show Wogs Out of Work alongside George Kapiniaris and the television sitcom Acropolis Now and is an exponent of wog comedy.-Early life:Nick is an actor/writer/producer/director...
, George Kapiniaris
George Kapiniaris
George Kapiniaris is Greek Australian television actor, stage actor and comedian.-Career:Kapiniaris broke through in the stage show Wogs Out of Work with Nick Giannopoulos. He then starred in the Melbourne based television sitcom Acropolis Now with Giannopoulos, Simon Palomares and Mary Coustas...
and Simon Palomares
Simon Palomares
Simon Palomares is a Spanish-Australian comedian and actor, best known for his character "Ricky" in Acropolis Now.-Biography:...
, who also starred in the series. They were already quite well known for their comedy stage show, Wogs out of Work. The title is a play on the film Apocalypse Now
Apocalypse Now
Apocalypse Now is a 1979 American war film set during the Vietnam War, produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The central character is US Army special operations officer Captain Benjamin L. Willard , of MACV-SOG, an assassin sent to kill the renegade and presumed insane Special Forces...
. Each episode was 30 minutes in length and filmed in front of a live audience.
Jim's father asks him to run the family business, the Acropolis café, when he suddenly leaves Australia to return to his homeland Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. The series centres around the activities of the cafe staff. Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
Jim Stephanidis (Giannopoulos), is the immature owner and his best friend, Spaniard Ricky Martinez (Palomares) is the sensible manager. Memo (Kapiniaris) is the traditional Greek waiter, Liz is the liberated Australian waitress. Skip is the naïve new cook from the bush and Manolis is the stubborn cook from the old cafe. Hilarity prevails from the clash of cultures and beliefs.
Jim's hairdresser cousin Effie
Effie
"Effie" is an outrageous comedic character played by Australian actress Mary Coustas. Coustas depicts a stereotypical second-generation Greek Australian....
, played by Mary Coustas
Mary Coustas
Mary Coustas is an Australian television personality. Originally from Melbourne, Coustas often performs as the character "Effie": a stereotypical second-generation Greek Australian...
, became a hugely popular and enduring character during the run of the show. Coustas later reprised the role for several TV specials and series including Effie, Just Quietly
Effie, Just Quietly
Effie, Just Quietly was a satirical television series that screened on Australia's Special Broadcasting Service in 2001.It featured the iconoclastic Effie, played by Mary Coustas...
, an SBS
Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
/ interview
Interview
An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
show, and Greeks On The Roof
Greeks on the Roof
Greeks on the Roof was an Australian television talk show that ran for 11 episodes on the Seven Network in 2003. It was hosted by Greek-Australian character Effie and her "family"....
, a short-lived Greek-Australian version of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
The Kumars at No. 42
The Kumars at No. 42
The Kumars at No. 42 was a British television show. It won an International Emmy in 2002 and in 2003. It ran for seven series totalling 53 episodes.-Plot:...
.
Acropolis Now helped popularise the term "skippy" or "skip" to refer to peoples of white Australian descent. This term became popular with Mediterranean-Australians, and to a lesser extent non-Mediterranean people, especially in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
.
The program was produced by Crawford Productions
Crawford Productions
Crawford Productions is an Australian television production company founded by Hector Crawford; the present incarnation of the company, Crawfords Australia, is now a subsidiary of the WIN television corporation.-History:...
which is presently owned by WIN Television
WIN Television
WIN Television is an Australian television network owned by the WIN Corporation that is based in Wollongong, New South Wales. WIN commenced transmissions on 18 March 1962 as a single Wollongong-only station, and has since expanded to 24 owned-and-operated stations with transmissions covering a...
.
Cast
- Nick GiannopoulosNick GiannopoulosNick Giannopoulos is a Australian stand-up comedian, film and TV actor. He is best known for his comedy stage show Wogs Out of Work alongside George Kapiniaris and the television sitcom Acropolis Now and is an exponent of wog comedy.-Early life:Nick is an actor/writer/producer/director...
– Jim Stephanidis - George KapiniarisGeorge KapiniarisGeorge Kapiniaris is Greek Australian television actor, stage actor and comedian.-Career:Kapiniaris broke through in the stage show Wogs Out of Work with Nick Giannopoulos. He then starred in the Melbourne based television sitcom Acropolis Now with Giannopoulos, Simon Palomares and Mary Coustas...
– Agamemnon (Memo) Aristotle Hatzidimitropoulos - Simon PalomaresSimon PalomaresSimon Palomares is a Spanish-Australian comedian and actor, best known for his character "Ricky" in Acropolis Now.-Biography:...
– Ricardo "Ricky" Martinez - Tracey Callander – Elizabeth "Liz" Wilson
- Mary CoustasMary CoustasMary Coustas is an Australian television personality. Originally from Melbourne, Coustas often performs as the character "Effie": a stereotypical second-generation Greek Australian...
– Effie Stephanidis - Simon Thorpe – Gavin "Skip" Farrell
- George VidalisGeorge VidalisGeorge Vidalis is an Australian actor who has appeared in many television series and films. George is best known for his role as Manolis in the comedy series Acropolis Now....
– Manolis - Sheryl MunksSheryl MunksSheryl Munks is an Australian actress.She is best known to audiences for her role as "Brumby" Tucker in the television series Prisoner....
– Sophie - Nick CarrafaNick CarrafaNick Carrafa is an Australian actor best known for his television roles as Tony Romeo on the Australian soap opera Neighbours and Alfredo on the comedy series Acropolis Now.-Career:...
– Alfredo - Nicki Wendt – Suzanna Martin
- Georgie ParkerGeorgie ParkerGeorgina "Georgie" Parker is an Australian television actress. She grew up in the suburb of St. Ives.-Personal life:...
– Despina Hatzipapadopoulos - Simon Wilton – Lars
- Katerina KotsonisKaterina KotsonisKaterina Kotsonis is an Australian stage actress, also known for her role as Mrs Papasavas in the children's television series Short Cuts.-Stage:...
– Julia - Russell CroweRussell CroweRussell Ira Crowe is a New Zealander Australian actor , film producer and musician. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor, a...
– Danny O'Brien - Gina RileyGina RileyGina Riley is an Australian actress, writer, singer and comedian.Riley became a popular television performer in the sketch shows Fast Forward, its successor Full Frontal, Big Girl's Blouse and Something Stupid. In the latter she was also a producer and writer...
– Demi Cashimides - Rhys MuldoonRhys MuldoonRhys Muldoon is an Australian actor, writer and director who has worked extensively in film, television, theatre and radio.-Television:...
– Yuri