Blue Heelers
Encyclopedia
Blue Heelers is an Australian police drama
series which depicted the lives of police officers stationed at the fictional Mount Thomas police station in a small town in Victoria
.
for the Seven Network
. As well as "everyday" policing matters, the series dealt with many controversial and "touchy" subjects. The series was also the first to examine the stressful world of young police officers who are invariably "thrown into the deep end where they are left to sink or swim". During its 13-season run it won a total of 32 awards and was nominated for a further 50. This included 25 Logie Award
s, five of which were the Gold Logie, the most coveted television award in Australia.
Blue Heelers first aired on 18 January 1994 with the episode "A Woman's Place", and last aired on 4 June 2006 with its 510th episode "One Day More".
It was Australia's most popular television drama, drawing more than 2.5 million viewers every week at its peak. It jointly (with Homicide) holds the Australian record for most episodes produced of a weekly prime time drama. It was also almost the longest-running series, however, Homicide lasted one calendar month longer and, due to five feature-length episodes, had more actual on-air time across the 510 episodes.
Blue Heelers also gained recognition worldwide, particularly in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand and Canada, where it had a strong following in syndication. Worldwide, Blue Heelers has been sold to 108 territories.
Blue Heelers launched the careers of many Australian actors such as Lisa McCune
, Grant Bowler
, Ditch Davey
, Rachel Gordon
, Tasma Walton
, Charlie Clausen
and Jane Allsop
. While many of these actors are still best known for their character on Blue Heelers, some have gone on to bigger roles. Many major actors of today also called Mount Thomas home, including Hugh Jackman
, Charles 'Bud' Tingwell, Peter O'Brien and John Howard
. Blue Heelers veterans actors John Wood
and Julie Nihill
remained with Blue Heelers during its entire 12 year run, portraying Senior Sergeant Tom Croydon
and publican, Chris Riley
respectively (although Croydon is the only character to appear in every single episode of the run).
The series primarily focused on the daily lives of Victorian police officers working at a police station in the semi-rural, fictional town of Mount Thomas. Each episode was presented from the perspective of the officers themselves, as opposed to the criminals and various individuals they dealt with. This was a specific technique creator Hal McElroy mploy.
Mount Thomas and police officers—commonly referred to as "Heelers"—were always active, sorting out the town's many problems. These problems ranged from trivial complaints such as land and fencing disputes, to more serious offenses, such as homicides and assaults. The small town was also faced with many other significant occurrences including bank robberies, escaped criminals, police shootings, kidnappings and the acts of many deluded criminals. Of these, one of the more significant events included the bombing of the police station during the show's eleventh season.
Whenever overwhelmed, the Heelers would call on the assistance of the police in the nearby, larger town of St. Davids, home of the resident police inspector, Russell Falcon-Price. An antagonist in the series, Falcon-Price often tried to terminate the employment of the Mount Thomas sergeant or to close the entire station.
Along with their police work, aspects of the Heeler's personal lives were regularly featured in the series. The most well-known of these plot arcs is the relationship between colleagues Maggie
and PJ
which ended in Maggie's death; one of the most watched moments on Australian television to this day. The environment of Mount Thomas Police station was like that of a big family where everybody usually got along. However, like all families, there were always disagreements. These were usually settled over a beer at the bar at the Imperial Hotel, where Chris Riley
was always ready to listen.
As well as the main (regular) cast members, a number of well-known Australian actors frequently appeared as either recurring or semi-regular characters. These included Terry Gill
as Superintendent
Clive Adamson, Neil Pigot
as Inspector
Russel Falcon-Price, Jeremy Kewley
as Mt Thomas journalist Tony Timms, Frankie J. Holden as Snr. Det. Jack Woodley, Catherine Wilkin
, Debra Lawrance
, Emily Browning
, Josh Lawson
, along with Suzi Dougherty as Dr. Mel Carter, Peta Doodson
as Inspector Monica Draper,
Beth Buchanan
as Susan Croydon, Michael Isaacs
as Clancy Freeman, and the late Reg Evans
as Keith Purvis.
Many other notable actors also had one-off or recurring guest roles in Blue Heelers including Shane Bourne
, Hugh Jackman
, Gerard Kennedy
, David Wenham
, Marcus Graham
, Peter O'Brien, Gary Sweet
, Vince Colosimo
, Alan Cinis
and Alan Dale
.
, a protective and intuitive breed of Australian dog. From the time that McElroy's idea was initially conceived, to the time the programme was ready to air, three years passed.
During Blue Heelers early development, two completely different pilots were shot: one depicting the story from the perspective of a police officer and the other from the perspective of a criminal. When these were presented to the Seven Network, the network committed to 13 episodes of the first pilot. The pilot went on to become the official first episode of Blue Heelers, telling the story of a new cop in town, Maggie Doyle, and her beginnings in Mount Thomas. McElroy chose to discard the second pilot realising it was a fatal mistake to be "with the criminals as they plotted the crime". He also conceived his rule that the producers of the show "couldn't have a camera in a room unless there was a copper there as well" (a rule shared by long-running UK Police drama The Bill
). Hence, the basis of the show being from a police officer's perspective became a firm reality. (The only bending of this rule was with scenes featuring publican Chris).
McElroy tells his police advisor's opinion:
By creating the programme, McElroy and Morphett hoped to close the gap between to police and the public. They hoped to show the human side of the policing and that, like other citizens, police officers have feelings, regrets, aspirations and fears. They also hoped that the show would act as a tribute to the courage of police officers, who risk their lives everyday, never knowing if they'd return home at the end of the day.
police station, which was then a private residence. Scenes at Mount Thomas High School were filmed at Williamstown High School. The town of Castlemaine
was most often used as the backdrop for Mount Thomas, seen in almost every episode. Although the Blue Heelers' pilot was shot in Castlemaine, the cast and crew very rarely returned there to shoot further episodes; images of Castlemaine were usually just establishing shots. Chris Riley's fictional Imperial Hotel, for example, was actually the real Imperial Hotel in Castlemaine. Mount Thomas' fictional Commercial Hotel was filmed at the Willy Tavern in Williamstown. The second Mount Thomas police station, adopted during the programme's reform of 2004, was filmed at Newport Railway workshops. The Mount Thomas Hospital was filmed at the Werribee Mercy Hospital.
meets Cop Shop
", and as "the contemporary cousin of British cop show, Heartbeat", Blue Heelers was not anticipated by critics to become a hugely popular programme. However, it became a hit TV show soon after it began airing. During most of its broadcast, Blue Heelers was very popular in Australia, regularly attracting up to 2.5 million viewers, and up to 3.5 million viewers at its peak. Throughout the show's broadcast it continually drew a strong audience, regularly appearing among the top-rating prime time programmes on Australian television. Viewership of Blue Heelers never dropped below 1 million viewers. The episodes "Gold" and "Fool's Gold" (episodes 140 and 141), which aired during the programme's fourth season, were two of the most popular Blue Heelers episodes. Each drew 2.5 million viewers, considered a huge achievement in 1997.
Blue Heelers' executive producer, Gus Howard believed the show's popularity was due mainly to the quality of the cast.
Much of the show's sixth season, as well as the first 10 episodes of its seventh season, were the most watched episodes of the series. These episodes focus of the death of Maggie Doyle (played by Lisa McCune). Maggie's being shot and left for dead during episode 255, "One More Day", was ranked by TV Week as the third most memorable moment of a drama series on Australian television.
. During 2003 and 2004, Australian television drama was also at its "lowest point in a decade" and many popular shows were cancelled. As the show remained basically unchanged from its debut, ten years earlier, the production team decided that a revamp was in order.
Blue Heelers' revamp started with a new opening credits to make it feel more modern in the 21st century taking out the acoustic putting in an electric guitar which started in the beginning of season 11 and also a broadcast of a live episode which did not feature Ben Stewart, played by Paul Bishop, who did not appear due to film commitments; the episode was titled "Reasonable Doubt", and the producers hoped it would offer a short-term ratings rise and encourage more long-term viewers. Although an immediate success, the live episode did not bring about a sustained increase in ratings. Producers also hoped that a shift in direction, a change of mood and setting, and the addition of four cast members would cement Blue Heelers long-term future. They also wanted the show to remain relevant and more accurately reflect today's modern world:
The main plot, setting and character changes started in July 2004, with the airing of the episode "End of Innocence". In this episode, the main storyline was the bombing of the Mount Thomas police station. The blast killed popular main character Snr. Const. Jo Parrish (Jane Allsop) and recurring cast member Clancy Freeman, and injured the show's main protagonist, Senior Sergeant Croydon. After the bombing it was revealed that Croydon's wife, the Reverend Curtis, was missing. It was later revealed she had been brutally raped and murdered. These events brought about sweeping changes to the mood of not only Croydon, but also the mood of the entire show. The Daily Telegraph
television writer Marcus Casey commented, "Mount Thomas has become a darker, grittier place, the people and cops in it transformed by an invasion of evil".
Consequently, the story changed its focus from the old Mount Thomas police station to the new one that was used until the show's cancellation in 2006. The Seven Network feared that in the modern post-9/11 world, a show about country police was no longer what audiences wanted. Storylines of the proceeding five episodes focused on the bombing of the station and the 4 new main characters: Rachel Gordon as Amy Fox, Geoff Morrell as Mark Jacobs, Samantha Tolj as Kelly O'Rourke and Danny Raco as Joss Peroni. Popular former cast member William McInnes also returned to the show, temporarily reprising his role as Nick Schultz. Producers hoped the new tone of the series, the new younger actors, and McInnes's role reprisal would lure back viewers who had stopped watching the programme. This new style of programme that Blue Heelers was embracing was a sign of the show trying to keep up with other larger television shows, particularly the CSI franchise.
The revamp of the series resulted in a 25% ratings increase, bringing the series's weekly viewership to 1.6 million people. Critical response after the event was reassuring, and it appeared that critics were approving of the drastic moves by Seven and Southern Star:
, Sydney's Daily Telegraph
, The Melbourne Herald Sun, The Melbourne Age
and Brisbane's Courier Mail. Two different endings were shot for the final episode, which finished filming on 20 December 2005. The first ending wrapped up all the show's storylines, while the second left the show open for another season; the first was version was used.
For Blue Heelers final season, it was moved from its primetime Wednesday-night timeslot, to a lower rating Saturday-night timeslot. In the Saturday timeslot Blue Heelers competed with The Bill
, a British police drama which had become quite popular in Australia. This move was slammed by leading cast member, John Wood. Blue Heelers cancellation may also be related to Seven's AFL
broadcast, which saw Seven invest $780m for the 5 year broadcasting rights of the game.
. In total, 510 episodes were aired: 509 hour-long standard episodes and one live episode. The live episode, titled "Reasonable Doubts", was filmed to celebrate Blue Heelers 10th year on the air. To prepare, the cast was given six days to memorise their lines.
The final episode of the 13th season aired as a 2-hour tribute. It opened with an introduction from John Wood and concluded with a compilation
of Blue Heelers moments from over its 13-season run.
Australian television quiz-show, The Weakest Link
, hosted by Cornelia Frances
, also aired a Blue Heelers special episode on 9 August 2001. Cast members John Wood, Neil Pigot, Ditch Davey, Jeremy Kewley, Jane Allsop, Suzi Dougherty, Paul Bishop, Caroline Craig and Peta Doodson took part in this special event.
Several episodes of Blue Heelers, including "In The Gun" and "Fair Crack of the Whip" were released on VHS
video cassette format in the later 1990s.
Seasons 1–13 of Blue Heelers have been released on DVD with Season 14 due for release on 2 June 2011. The DVD release is only available in Australia and New Zealand. It is not known if the series will be released on DVD internationally.
In November 2005, Paramount Home Entertainment
released the Blue Heelers—The Complete First Season box set in Australia in Region 4 DVD format. This was shortly followed by Blue Heelers—The Complete Second Season: Part 1 and Blue Heelers—The Complete Second Season: Part 2, which were released together in December 2005. However, the "seasons", as defined by the DVD releases, are markedly different to the original seasons as they aired on television. It appears that the episodes are being released according to what year the episodes were "produced" in, as opposed to the year they aired. For example: The Complete First Season DVDs contain some episodes from season 1 (1994), while The Complete Second Season contains the remainder of season 1 (1994) episodes and some from season 2 (1995).
In January 2007, Paramount Home Entertainment announced that they would be releasing each already released season of Blue Heelers as one complete set, rather than in two parts as they had done prior. These new sets, rather than being box sets with special slipcase packaging, were now just both parts, packed in a standard DVD case, packaged together in plastic. Each of these DVD sets now consists of 10 or 11 discs, rather than 5 or 6 each. The new sets were released on 15 February 2007.
In July 2009, Southern Star announced that seasons 10 – 13 would be released throughout 2010 and season 14 would be released in early 2011.
s, five of which are the prestigious Gold Logie, 3 AFI Television Awards
, 3 People's Choice Awards
, and 1 AWGIE Awards
. Blue Heelers was nominated for a further twelve Gold Logies. Blue Heelers has also won multiple Silver Logies, including numerous Most Popular Actor, Most Popular Actress and Most Popular Programme awards, as well as many Outstanding Awards. Many Blue Heelers cast members have also hosted the Logie Award ceremony. In the 2005 50 Years 50 Shows
poll,Blue Heelers was voted 37th greatest show on Australian television and ranked within the top ten dramas.
Australia Australia
Blue Heelers originally aired on Tuesday nights at 7:30 pm on the Seven Network, thus it was limited to a PG content level restriction. When the series was hailed as a success it began the transition from this timeslot to the 8:30 pm timeslot on the same day. After the move, writers could explore more diverse storylines, as the show was restricted to an M rating. The third and fourth season premiers aired on Monday nights during the 8:30 pm timeslot, but the show moved back to its original slot before the next episode. In its fifth season, Blue Heelers moved to the Wednesday night 8:30 pm timeslot, which it occupied for most of its run, until the end of its twelfth season. This move was made to make way for hospital drama All Saints
.
Starting in 2004, the Seven Network aired Blue Heelers in their weekday "early days drama" slot at 2:00 pm. They aired all the episodes of Blue Heelers, starting from its first season. In this slot, Blue Heelers was a replacement for the broadcast of the early episodes of Home and Away
. Blue Heelers concluded airing in this slot in 2007, with the broadcast of its final episode, and made way for the broadcast of early episodes of All Saints.
Blue Heelers has also screened on Foxtel The Hallmark Channel in Australia in various timeslots.
In New Zealand Blue Heelers screened on TV One in a popular timeslot. However, following the on-screen death of Maggie Doyle, ratings fell, and the show was moved to a 9:30 pm slot on Friday. Following that, the show moved to a late night Thursday slot where the rest of the episodes played out, with the show beginning anywhere between 11:30 pm and midnight. It aired its final episode on TV One on 20 March 2008.
Republic of Ireland Ireland
Irish broadcaster RTÉ
originally began airing Blue Heelers on Friday afternoons at 4:30 pm. Episodes were only a few months behind the Australian broadcast. The series took a two year break in 2000, before re-commencing in a five-day-a-week timeslot at 10:30 am in early 2002. The show quickly caught up with the Australian broadcast; by 2004 the show was scaled back to the original one episode a week, and moved to a late night Thursday–early Friday morning timeslot, typically around 1:00 am. RTÉ commenced broadcasting the final season on 30 May 2008 in a late night Saturday–early Sunday morning timeslot. RTÉ screened the final episode on 30 November 2008. RTÉ began re-airing Blue Heelers weekly from episode one, commencing on 24 June 2009, usually around 4 am. RTÉ screened all episodes in their original unedited state. The drama proved very popular in Ireland and rated very well.
United States United States of America
Blue Heelers aired briefly in the United States of America in the early 2000s on the short-lived cable channel Trio
(carried primarily by DirecTV
). No episode after number 76 was ever shown in the United States, and when Trio changed their programming in 2004, Blue Heelers was dropped from the schedule.
Canada Canada
Blue Heelers was broadcast on Showcase in Canada, last airing on 15 May 1998.
Blue Heelers is broadcasting on IRIB. All episodes were dubbed in Persian
.
Italy Italy
In Italy Blue Heelers was broadcast on Italia 7 Gold (now called 7 Gold
), from the 1st to the 6th season. All episodes were dubbed in Italian.
UK
In the United Kingdom the series was broadcast on most stations on the ITV
Network. Many companies tended to screen the show as hour-long episodes in the afternoon (occasionally with necessary edits to suit the time slot, usually regarding profanity
), however Central Television started with a late night 22.40 slot before following other regions with a typically 14.20 slot. The majority of ITV regions that ran the series broadcast the series on Monday afternoons, typically in a 14.20 timeslot (13.50 in some regions; as was common with many such imported programmes of the era, each region was at a different point in the show's run). Later on in the UK run, some ITV compaines such as Westcountry Television
, and Carlton Television
(who had showed much of the series in the Monday afternoon slot) showed the episodes in two halves, as was common with other Australian soap operas. Blue Heelers was also aired on Meridian Television
and Channel Television
, typically Mondays at 2:20 pm, but some episodes also aired in a morning slot during school holidays. Scottish Television
(STV) aired hour-long episodes, airing on Fridays, and then later on Tuesdays, before being dropped after episode 106.
Ulster Television (UTV) began airing Blue Heelers in early 1995. The show initially screened 3 times a week, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons at 1:50 pm. They then moved it to the 2:20 pm slot later in the series. A few episodes also ran at 11:40 pm on Thursday nights, as they were considered unsuitable for daytime viewing. UTV cancelled Blue Heelers in 1998
HTV
, Yorkshire Television
and Tyne Tees Television
all chose not to import the show. When the English ITV
contractors reformatted as one company in 2002, regionally-run programmes such as Blue Heelers (which were at different points of the series in each region) disappeared from screens. No ITV region ever screened the series in full. The show also aired on UK cable channel Carlton Select
in the late 1990s, first screening the early episodes daily and then in a weekly slot Fridays at 20.00 as episodes became more recent. Episodes to the later part of the 1997 season were shown before the series was dropped.
Police procedural
The police procedural is a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes. While traditional detective novels usually concentrate on a single crime, police procedurals frequently depict investigations into several...
series which depicted the lives of police officers stationed at the fictional Mount Thomas police station in a small town in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
.
Overview
Blue Heelers was produced by Southern StarSouthern Star Group
Southern Star Group is Australia's largest independent television production and distribution group....
for 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...
. As well as "everyday" policing matters, the series dealt with many controversial and "touchy" subjects. The series was also the first to examine the stressful world of young police officers who are invariably "thrown into the deep end where they are left to sink or swim". During its 13-season run it won a total of 32 awards and was nominated for a further 50. This included 25 Logie Award
Logie Award
The TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
s, five of which were the Gold Logie, the most coveted television award in Australia.
Blue Heelers first aired on 18 January 1994 with the episode "A Woman's Place", and last aired on 4 June 2006 with its 510th episode "One Day More".
It was Australia's most popular television drama, drawing more than 2.5 million viewers every week at its peak. It jointly (with Homicide) holds the Australian record for most episodes produced of a weekly prime time drama. It was also almost the longest-running series, however, Homicide lasted one calendar month longer and, due to five feature-length episodes, had more actual on-air time across the 510 episodes.
Blue Heelers also gained recognition worldwide, particularly in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand and Canada, where it had a strong following in syndication. Worldwide, Blue Heelers has been sold to 108 territories.
Blue Heelers launched the careers of many Australian actors such as Lisa McCune
Lisa McCune
Lisa McCune , is a four-time Gold Logie Award winning Australian actress, best known for her role as Senior Constable Maggie Doyle in Blue Heelers, and as Lt...
, Grant Bowler
Grant Bowler
Grant Bowler is a New Zealand actor who has worked in American, Australian and New Zealand films and television.He is known for playing the role of Constable Wayne Patterson in Blue Heelers and also appeared as Wilhelmina Slater's love interest Connor Owens in Ugly Betty.In November 2010, he was...
, Ditch Davey
Ditch Davey
Ditch Davey is an Australian actor.He was born Kristian Lind, but legally changed his name to Ditch when he was 18. Ditch came about because his older sister could not pronounce Christian, so instead she ended up calling him 'Ditchin'...
, Rachel Gordon
Rachel Gordon
Rachel Gordon Rachel Gordon Rachel Gordon (born 10 May 1976 in Brisbane, Australia is an actress.Gordon is a 1996 graduate of the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney. Since her graduation, she has combined stage acting with various roles in Australian television and films.In late...
, Tasma Walton
Tasma Walton
Tasma Walton is an Australian television and film actress.-Acting career:Walton joined local radio station 6GE and trained as a production assistant and copy writer in her home town...
, Charlie Clausen
Charlie Clausen
Charlie Clausen is an Australian actor most known for his role as Jake Harrison on McLeod's Daughters in 2003 and as Acting Sergeant Alex Kirby on the police drama series Blue Heelers, which he starred in for the majority of Season 12 and Season 13...
and Jane Allsop
Jane Allsop
Jane Claire Allsop is an Australian actress, best known for her role as Jo Parrish on Blue Heelers.-Personal life:...
. While many of these actors are still best known for their character on Blue Heelers, some have gone on to bigger roles. Many major actors of today also called Mount Thomas home, including Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman is an Australian actor and producer who is involved in film, musical theatre, and television.Jackman has won international recognition for his roles in major films, notably as action/superhero, period and romance characters...
, Charles 'Bud' Tingwell, Peter O'Brien and John Howard
John Howard (Australian actor)
John Howard is an Australian stage and screen actor. Howard is best known for his appearances in the film The Club, and the television series SeaChange, Always Greener, All Saints and Packed To The Rafters.-Film:Howard's first role was in 1978's My Boys Are Good Boys, in a minor role...
. Blue Heelers veterans actors John Wood
John Wood (Australian actor)
John Wood is a Gold Logie Award-winning Australian actor, best known for his role as Senior Sergeant Tom Croydon in the Seven Network's long running police drama Blue Heelers.-TV career:...
and Julie Nihill
Julie Nihill
Julie Nihill is an Australian actress.-Biography:After early roles in 1980s soap operas such as The Young Doctors, Prisoner and Sons and Daughters and the miniseries Bodyline .Nihill was cast in the role for which she became a household face: as bartender and local councilor Chris...
remained with Blue Heelers during its entire 12 year run, portraying Senior Sergeant Tom Croydon
Tom Croydon
Thomas Arthur Croydon is a fictional character in the long running Australian television police drama Blue Heelers. He is one of two characters to appear in all thirteen seasons, 1994 to 2006, and is an original character...
and publican, Chris Riley
Chris Riley (Blue Heelers character)
Councillor Christine Bridget "Chris" Riley is a fictional character in the long running police show Blue Heelers played by Julie Nihill. She is one of only two characters who were in the show from 1994 to 2006. She is good friends with Tom Croydon and his late wife Nell....
respectively (although Croydon is the only character to appear in every single episode of the run).
Plot
- For more information on each season, see the individual season pages
The series primarily focused on the daily lives of Victorian police officers working at a police station in the semi-rural, fictional town of Mount Thomas. Each episode was presented from the perspective of the officers themselves, as opposed to the criminals and various individuals they dealt with. This was a specific technique creator Hal McElroy mploy.
Mount Thomas and police officers—commonly referred to as "Heelers"—were always active, sorting out the town's many problems. These problems ranged from trivial complaints such as land and fencing disputes, to more serious offenses, such as homicides and assaults. The small town was also faced with many other significant occurrences including bank robberies, escaped criminals, police shootings, kidnappings and the acts of many deluded criminals. Of these, one of the more significant events included the bombing of the police station during the show's eleventh season.
Whenever overwhelmed, the Heelers would call on the assistance of the police in the nearby, larger town of St. Davids, home of the resident police inspector, Russell Falcon-Price. An antagonist in the series, Falcon-Price often tried to terminate the employment of the Mount Thomas sergeant or to close the entire station.
Along with their police work, aspects of the Heeler's personal lives were regularly featured in the series. The most well-known of these plot arcs is the relationship between colleagues Maggie
Margaret 'Maggie' Doyle
Maggie Doyle is a fictional character portrayed by Lisa McCune in the long-running Australian police show Blue Heelers. She first appeared in 1994, and exited in 2000....
and PJ
Patrick Joseph 'P.J.' Hasham
P.J. was a fictional character in Australia's police series Blue Heelers.He was an original character in 1994 and left in 2005.He was portrayed by Martin Sacks....
which ended in Maggie's death; one of the most watched moments on Australian television to this day. The environment of Mount Thomas Police station was like that of a big family where everybody usually got along. However, like all families, there were always disagreements. These were usually settled over a beer at the bar at the Imperial Hotel, where Chris Riley
Chris Riley (Blue Heelers character)
Councillor Christine Bridget "Chris" Riley is a fictional character in the long running police show Blue Heelers played by Julie Nihill. She is one of only two characters who were in the show from 1994 to 2006. She is good friends with Tom Croydon and his late wife Nell....
was always ready to listen.
Main cast
| Actor/Actress | Character | Tenure | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Wood John Wood (Australian actor) John Wood is a Gold Logie Award-winning Australian actor, best known for his role as Senior Sergeant Tom Croydon in the Seven Network's long running police drama Blue Heelers.-TV career:... |
Thomas 'Tom' Croydon Tom Croydon Thomas Arthur Croydon is a fictional character in the long running Australian television police drama Blue Heelers. He is one of two characters to appear in all thirteen seasons, 1994 to 2006, and is an original character... |
1993–2006 Ep. 1 – 510 |
Sergeant, Senior Sergeant |
| Julie Nihill Julie Nihill Julie Nihill is an Australian actress.-Biography:After early roles in 1980s soap operas such as The Young Doctors, Prisoner and Sons and Daughters and the miniseries Bodyline .Nihill was cast in the role for which she became a household face: as bartender and local councilor Chris... |
Christine 'Chris' Riley Chris Riley (Blue Heelers character) Councillor Christine Bridget "Chris" Riley is a fictional character in the long running police show Blue Heelers played by Julie Nihill. She is one of only two characters who were in the show from 1994 to 2006. She is good friends with Tom Croydon and his late wife Nell.... |
1993–2006 Ep. 1 – 510 |
Civilian Civilian A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation... (Publican Public house A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller... ) |
| Martin Sacks Martin Sacks Martin Colin Sacks is an award-winning Australian actor, chiefly known for his 12-year role on Blue Heelers from 1993–2005.-Career:... |
Patrick Joseph 'P.J.' Hasham Patrick Joseph 'P.J.' Hasham P.J. was a fictional character in Australia's police series Blue Heelers.He was an original character in 1994 and left in 2005.He was portrayed by Martin Sacks.... |
1993–2005 Ep. 1 – 484 |
Detective Detective A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"... Senior Constable, Senior Detective Senior detective A Senior Detective is a police officer who is a detective with a high level of seniority or the Detective in charge of a partnership in a Detective Group/Department.... , Acting Sergeant |
| Lisa McCune Lisa McCune Lisa McCune , is a four-time Gold Logie Award winning Australian actress, best known for her role as Senior Constable Maggie Doyle in Blue Heelers, and as Lt... |
Margaret 'Maggie' Doyle | 1993–2000 Ep. 1 – 256 |
Constable, Senior Constable, Acting Sergeant |
| William McInnes William McInnes William McInnes is an Australian film and television actor and writer.-Television:After a recurring role on A Country Practice in 1990, McInnes appeared in series such as Bligh, Ocean Girl, and Snowy before making his name as Senior Constable Nick Schultz on Blue Heelers in 1994... |
Nicholas 'Nick' Schultz | 1993–1998, Ep. 1 – 207 2004 (guest), 2005 (guest)season 11 & season 12 |
Senior Constable, Acting Sergeant, Sergeant, Detective Sergeant |
| Grant Bowler Grant Bowler Grant Bowler is a New Zealand actor who has worked in American, Australian and New Zealand films and television.He is known for playing the role of Constable Wayne Patterson in Blue Heelers and also appeared as Wilhelmina Slater's love interest Connor Owens in Ugly Betty.In November 2010, he was... |
Wayne Patterson Wayne Patterson Wayne George Patterson was a fictional character on the long-running Australian police drama Blue Heelers, played by actor Grant Bowler. He starred in the show from its beginning until he was hit by a car and killed in episode 96 in 1996.... |
1993–1996 Ep. 1 – 96 |
Constable Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:... |
| Ann Burbrook Ann Burbrook Ann Burbrook, sometimes credited as Annie Burbrook, Ann Burbrook, sometimes credited as Annie Burbrook, Ann Burbrook, sometimes credited as Annie Burbrook, (born 23 November 1965 in Jesselton, Sabah, Malaysia, is an Australian actress.Burbrook trained at the Australian Ballet School and the WA... |
Roz Patterson Roz Patterson Roz Patterson was a fictional character in the Australian police drama series ‘Blue Heelers’. She was a starring character in the series since it began; but was the first character to leave the series, staying not even a year... |
1993–1994, Ep. 1 – 30 1996 (guest) season 3's episode 97 |
Civilian (Mount Thomas police station admin. officer) |
| Damian Walshe-Howling Damian Walshe-Howling Damian Walshe-Howling is an Australian actor, best known for his role as Andrew "Benji" Veniamin in the Australian underworld drama, Underbelly, for which he won the Best Supporting or Guest Actor in a Drama Series at the 2008 AFI Awards.-Biography:He also starred on Blue Heelers as Constable Adam... |
Adam Cooper | 1994–1998, Ep. 34 – 211 2006 (guest) season 13 |
Probationary Constable, Constable |
| Tasma Walton Tasma Walton Tasma Walton is an Australian television and film actress.-Acting career:Walton joined local radio station 6GE and trained as a production assistant and copy writer in her home town... |
Deirdre 'Dash' McKinley Deirdre 'Dash' McKinley Dash McKinley was a fictional character from Blue Heelers. She entered the series in 1996 and left in 1999, as she resigned from the police force. One of her major storylines occurred during the 1998 season, when she was diagnosed with cancer. Dash was the youngest of nine children. She had a kind... |
1996–1999 Ep. 107 – 236 (guest) 1995 season 2 |
Probationary Constable, Constable |
| Paul Bishop Paul Bishop (actor) Paul Bishop is an Australian television and theatre actor and company director of ArtsEvolution.com.au Pty Ltd.-Acting career:Born in in Gladstone, Queensland, Bishop's film debut was in Bruce Beresfords 1997 movie Paradise Road, and appeared as Sergeant Ben Stewart on Blue Heelers from 1998 to... |
Benjamin 'Ben' Stewart Benjamin 'Ben' Stewart Benjamin 'dog' Stewart was a fictional character in the long running police series Blue Heelers. He was portrayed by Paul Bishop.He came into the series in the middle of season 5 as a guest before coming back to the series as a full time cast member of the show and stayed from season 5-season 11... |
1998–2004 Ep. 198 – 451 1998 (guest) season 5 190–193 |
Detective Acting Sergeant, Senior Constable, Acting Sergeant, Sergeant |
| Jane Allsop Jane Allsop Jane Claire Allsop is an Australian actress, best known for her role as Jo Parrish on Blue Heelers.-Personal life:... |
Joanna 'Jo' Parrish Jo Parrish Joanna "Jo" Parrish was a fictional character on the Australian police series Blue Heelers. She arrived in 1999 and left in 2004 when she was killed in an explosion.She was portrayed by Jane Allsop.... |
1999–2004 Ep. 239 – 440 1997 (guest) season 4 |
Probationary Constable, Constable, Senior Constable |
| Rupert Reid Rupert Reid Rupert Reid is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Declan on the Australian TV show Heartbreak High and later, Constable Jack Lawson on the Australian TV show Blue Heelers from 1999 to 2001.- Filmography :... |
Jack Lawson | 1999–2001 Ep. 212 – 313 |
Probationary Constable, Constable |
| Caroline Craig Caroline Craig Caroline Craig is an Australian television and stage actress, and television director, based in Sydney Australia... |
Teresa 'Tess' Gallagher Teresa 'Tess' Gallagher Tess Gallagher was a Blue Heelers character that lasted from 2000 to 2003. She arrived after Maggie Doyle's death.She arrived as the new Sergeant at Mount Thomas, taking Ben Stewart's assumed position. This and her emotionally withdrawn and critical character initially fuelled animosity between... |
2000–2003 Ep. 270 – 407 |
Detective Sergeant, Sergeant |
| Ditch Davey Ditch Davey Ditch Davey is an Australian actor.He was born Kristian Lind, but legally changed his name to Ditch when he was 18. Ditch came about because his older sister could not pronounce Christian, so instead she ended up calling him 'Ditchin'... |
Evan 'Jonesy' Jones Evan 'Jonesy' Jones Evan 'Jonesy' Jones is a fictional character from Blue Heelers. He was introduced in 2001 and remained until the show ended in 2006. He was portrayed by Ditch Davey.... |
2001–2006 Ep. 316 – 510 |
Probationary Constable, Constable, Senior Constable, Detective Senior Constable |
| Simone McAullay Simone McAullay Simone McAullay is an Australian actress.She auditioned for the Actors Centre in Sydney from where she graduated in 2000. From 2003 to 2006, when the programme was canceled, she played the role of Senior Constable Susie Raynor on Blue Heelers.In 2007, she has played a guest role on Home and Away... |
Susie Raynor Susie Raynor Susie Raynor is a fictional character in the long-running television show Blue Heelers. She first appeared in 2003 and remained until the show's cancellation in 2006.-Description:... |
2003–2006 Ep. 409 – 510 |
Probationary Constable, Constable, Senior Constable, Acting Sergeant |
| Geoff Morrell | Mark Jacobs Mark Jacobs (Blue Heelers) Mark Jacobs was a fictional character in the long-running Australian police drama series, Blue Heelers. He was portrayed by Geoff Morrell and appeared in the series from 2004 to 2005.... |
2004–2005 Ep. 441 – 489 |
Sergeant |
| Rachel Gordon Rachel Gordon Rachel Gordon Rachel Gordon Rachel Gordon (born 10 May 1976 in Brisbane, Australia is an actress.Gordon is a 1996 graduate of the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney. Since her graduation, she has combined stage acting with various roles in Australian television and films.In late... |
Amy Fox Amy Fox (T.V. character) Amy Fox is a fictional character in the long running television show Blue Heelers. She first appeared in 2004 and remained until the show was cancelled in 2006. Fox was portrayed by Rachel Gordon. Amy entered the show in season 11 after the bombing of the Mount Thomas Police Station.She is... |
2004–2006 Ep. 441 – 510 |
Detective Senior Constable |
| Samantha Tolj Samantha Tolj Samantha Tolj is an actress.Her father is Croatian and mother is Anglo Celtic Australian.Tolj began professional acting guest starring on Stingers, MDA, and a bit part in an episode of Blue Heelers... |
Kelly O'Rourke Kelly O'Rourke Kelly O'Rourke was a fictional character from Blue Heelers. She came into the show in 2004 after the bombing of the Mount Thomas Station and stayed until the show finished in 2006.She was portrayed by Samantha Tolj.... |
2004–2006 Ep. 442 – 510 2002–2003. (guest) |
Probationary Constable, Constable |
| Danny Raco Danny Raco Danny Raco is an Australian actor and director, known for his television work.Raco was born in Rome, Italy. He got his start playing Marco Vialli on the teenage soap opera Heartbreak High from 1998 to 1999. In 2001, he joined the cast of a primetime soap opera, Home and Away, playing Alex Poulos... |
Giuseppe 'Joss' Peroni Joss Peroni Joss Peroni was a fictional character who appeared in Blue Heelers between July 2004 and June 2006. He was portrayed by Danny Raco.... |
2004–2006 Ep. 442 – 510 |
Probationary Constable, Constable |
| Charlie Clausen Charlie Clausen Charlie Clausen is an Australian actor most known for his role as Jake Harrison on McLeod's Daughters in 2003 and as Acting Sergeant Alex Kirby on the police drama series Blue Heelers, which he starred in for the majority of Season 12 and Season 13... |
Alexander 'Alex' Kirby | 2005–2006 Ep. 461 – 510 |
Leading Senior Constable, Acting Sergeant "Sk" |
| Matthew Holmes Matt Holmes Matthew Theodore Holmes is an Australian actor.-Early life:Holmes attended Newington College . He gained an Advanced Diploma in Acting at the Actors College of Theatre and Television.... |
Matthew 'Matt' Graham Matthew 'Matt' Graham Matthew Graham is a fictional character in the long running Australian television police drama Blue Heelers. He joined the cast of Blue Heelers in 2005 after the farwell of Sergeant Mark Jacobs.... |
2005–2006 Ep. 490 – 510 |
Probationary Constable, Constable |
Recurring/semi-regular cast
Each episode featured a range of guest cast members, and over the run of the series hundreds of actors featured in these roles.As well as the main (regular) cast members, a number of well-known Australian actors frequently appeared as either recurring or semi-regular characters. These included Terry Gill
Terry Gill
Terry Gill is a British-born actor who carved a nichè in Australian television playing police officers.He was a recurring cast member in the women's prison drama Prisoner as Det. Insp. Jack Grace, a regular cast member as Sgt...
as Superintendent
Superintendent (police)
Superintendent , often shortened to "super", is a rank in British police services and in most English-speaking Commonwealth nations. In many Commonwealth countries the full version is superintendent of police...
Clive Adamson, Neil Pigot
Neil Pigot
Neil Pigot is an Australian actor, best known to audiences as Inspector Falcon-Price on Blue Heelers.Pigot began his career in theatre, and after a long apprenticeship moved to guest starring roles in television shows such as The Games , The Secret Life of Us , Marshall Law and Stingers...
as Inspector
Inspector
Inspector is both a police rank and an administrative position, both used in a number of contexts. However, it is not an equivalent rank in each police force.- Australia :...
Russel Falcon-Price, Jeremy Kewley
Jeremy Kewley
Jeremy Leo Kewley is an Australian actor, based in Melbourne, who made his professional acting debut at the age of 14 in the feature film The Devil's Playground .-Early life:...
as Mt Thomas journalist Tony Timms, Frankie J. Holden as Snr. Det. Jack Woodley, Catherine Wilkin
Catherine Wilkin
Catherine Wilkin is an actor who has worked in New Zealand and Australia.Wilkin has acted in many Australian television shows, with a mix of guest and multi-episode recurring roles....
, Debra Lawrance
Debra Lawrance
Debra Lawrance is an Australian actress best known for her role as Pippa Ross on Home and Away, which she played from 1990 to 1998. She continues to guest star to this date- her last appearance was in 2009.-Biography:...
, Emily Browning
Emily Browning
Emily Jane Browning is an Australian film actress and fashion model, known for her roles as Violet Baudelaire in Brad Silberling's 2004 film Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, as Anna Ivers in the 2009 film The Uninvited, as Babydoll in Zack Snyder's 2011 action thriller Sucker...
, Josh Lawson
Josh Lawson
Joshua Lawson is an Australian actor. He grew up in Brisbane and attended St. Joseph's College, Gregory Terrace. He graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 2001. He also spent one year studying improvisation techniques in Los Angeles at The Second City, The Groundlings, ACME...
, along with Suzi Dougherty as Dr. Mel Carter, Peta Doodson
Peta Doodson
Peta Doodson is an Australian television actress. She was more commonly known as playing the hardlined Inspector of police, Inspector Monica Draper, on the hit TV show Blue Heelers....
as Inspector Monica Draper,
Beth Buchanan
Beth Buchanan
Beth Buchanan is an Australian actress. She is best known for the television roles of Gemma Ramsay in Neighbours, in the early '90s, and Susan Croydon in Blue Heelers from 1994. She is also a long-standing member of the Ranters Theatre company.-Early life:Buchanan is the daughter of musician Tony...
as Susan Croydon, Michael Isaacs
Michael Isaacs
Michael Isaacs is an Australian actor best known for his semi-regular role as the intellectually disabled Clancy Freeman in the TV series Blue Heelers ....
as Clancy Freeman, and the late Reg Evans
Reg Evans
Reginald "Reg" Evans was a British-born actor active in Australian television, theatre, and cinema from the 1960s....
as Keith Purvis.
Many other notable actors also had one-off or recurring guest roles in Blue Heelers including Shane Bourne
Shane Bourne
Shane Bourne is an Australian stand-up comedian, actor and a television host.-1980's / 1990's:...
, Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman is an Australian actor and producer who is involved in film, musical theatre, and television.Jackman has won international recognition for his roles in major films, notably as action/superhero, period and romance characters...
, Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Kennedy (actor)
Gerard Kennedy is an Australian actor and two-time Gold Logie winner. He played six different characters in guest appearances in Homicide, all in 1966...
, David Wenham
David Wenham
David Wenham is an Australian actor who has appeared in movies, television series and theatre productions. He is known in Hollywood for his roles as Faramir in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, Carl in Van Helsing and Dilios in 300 and Neil Fletcher in Australia...
, Marcus Graham
Marcus Graham
Marcus Graham is an Australian television and stage actor who has also starred in several films, including Mulholland Drive and Josh Jarman. He was known as a teenage heartthrob in the early 90s while starring in the Australian TV soap E Street as the character "Wheels"...
, Peter O'Brien, Gary Sweet
Gary Sweet
Gary Sweet is an Australian film and television actor known for his roles in Alexandra's Project , Police Rescue, Cody, Big Sky, The Battlers, Bodyline and Stingers....
, Vince Colosimo
Vince Colosimo
Vincenzo Colosimo is an Australian AFI Award winning stage, television and screen actor. He has worked in both Australia and the United States.-Personal life:...
, Alan Cinis
Alan Cinis
Alan Cinis , an Australian politician and actor, is a Councillor on Leichhardt Council, Sydney, New South Wales representing the NSW Greens since 2008. As an actor, Cinis has starred in television, musical drama and film.-Acting career:Cinis commenced his acting career in October 1969, aged nine...
and Alan Dale
Alan Dale
Alan Hugh Dale is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale developed a love of theatre and also became a rugby player. After retiring from the sport he took on a number of professions to support his family, before deciding to become a professional actor at the age of 27. With work limited in New...
.
Opening & Closing Credits
Blue Heelers throughout the series kept up to date with the graphics used in their Opening & Closing Credits. The major change was most notable beginning in Season 4 then again in season 6 where they reverted to a blue background, it looked modern and related more to Blue Heelers. They remained the same until the beginning of Season 11 where the theme tune and credits were updated.Production
On average, 42 episodes of Blue Heelers were broadcast per year on Australian television, with each episode comprising fifty scenes. One episode was made every week. The scripts were written to a formula which allowed one day for rehearsal, two days on location and two days in the studio. Episodes were shot eight to ten weeks ahead of their scheduled broadcast date. There were 16 episodes in various stages of production at any one time (from the conception of new storylines to post-production). In addition, there were always seven complete episodes waiting to go to air. Apart from the regular cast members, the show employed 4,300 guest actors annually, plus 30 extras every week. A total of 150 people were involved in some way with the show's production each week, including cast members, crew, wardrobe, publicists and writers.Conception and development
Blue Heelers creator/producer, Hal McElroy, conceived the idea of Blue Heelers when he heard that a eighteen-year-old friend was planning to become a police officer. Intrigued, McElroy his inquired as to why this young boy, fresh out of school, would want to become a police officer, as opposed to the many other opportunities he had open to him. McElroy soon discovered that, at the time, a staggering 60% of Australian police officers were under the age of 26. This, coupled with McElroy's desire to create a country cop show, formed the basis of the programme. When this same young officer left the force only a year later due to the shooting death of his colleague, McElroy was even more intrigued to learn about the very fickle, yet rewarding job of policing the community. McElroy continued his quest by asking ex-police officer Michael Winter to write down what it was like to be a city cop who transferred to a country town. These became the ideas that Blue Heelers was based around. Michael Winter also conceived the name of the programme by recounting the common names for a country police officer: "tyre-biters"—referring to the fact that country cops are often involved in car chases—and "blue heelers"—referring to their blue uniforms and overall similar appearance and persona to a Blue Heeler dogAustralian Cattle Dog
The Australian Cattle Dog is a breed of herding dog originally developed in Australia for droving cattle over long distances across rough terrain. In the 19th century, New South Wales cattle farmer Thomas Hall crossed the dogs used by drovers in his parents' home county, Northumberland, with...
, a protective and intuitive breed of Australian dog. From the time that McElroy's idea was initially conceived, to the time the programme was ready to air, three years passed.
During Blue Heelers early development, two completely different pilots were shot: one depicting the story from the perspective of a police officer and the other from the perspective of a criminal. When these were presented to the Seven Network, the network committed to 13 episodes of the first pilot. The pilot went on to become the official first episode of Blue Heelers, telling the story of a new cop in town, Maggie Doyle, and her beginnings in Mount Thomas. McElroy chose to discard the second pilot realising it was a fatal mistake to be "with the criminals as they plotted the crime". He also conceived his rule that the producers of the show "couldn't have a camera in a room unless there was a copper there as well" (a rule shared by long-running UK Police drama The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
). Hence, the basis of the show being from a police officer's perspective became a firm reality. (The only bending of this rule was with scenes featuring publican Chris).
McElroy tells his police advisor's opinion:
By creating the programme, McElroy and Morphett hoped to close the gap between to police and the public. They hoped to show the human side of the policing and that, like other citizens, police officers have feelings, regrets, aspirations and fears. They also hoped that the show would act as a tribute to the courage of police officers, who risk their lives everyday, never knowing if they'd return home at the end of the day.
Filming locations
Only about half of the footage for each episode was shot on location. Most of the scenes, including scenes in the police station and pub, were filmed at the Seven Network studios in Melbourne. Much of the filming on location was carried out in towns such as Williamstown, and the more established parts of Werribee. The scenes of the outside of the Mount Thomas police station were actually filmed at the old, disused WilliamstownWilliamstown, Victoria
Williamstown is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 8 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Hobsons Bay. At the 2006 Census, Williamstown had a population of 12,733....
police station, which was then a private residence. Scenes at Mount Thomas High School were filmed at Williamstown High School. The town of Castlemaine
Castlemaine, Victoria
Castlemaine is a city in Victoria, Australia, in the Goldfields region of Victoria about 120 kilometres northwest by road from Melbourne, and about 40 kilometres from the major provincial centre of Bendigo. It is the administrative and economic centre of the Shire of Mount Alexander. The...
was most often used as the backdrop for Mount Thomas, seen in almost every episode. Although the Blue Heelers' pilot was shot in Castlemaine, the cast and crew very rarely returned there to shoot further episodes; images of Castlemaine were usually just establishing shots. Chris Riley's fictional Imperial Hotel, for example, was actually the real Imperial Hotel in Castlemaine. Mount Thomas' fictional Commercial Hotel was filmed at the Willy Tavern in Williamstown. The second Mount Thomas police station, adopted during the programme's reform of 2004, was filmed at Newport Railway workshops. The Mount Thomas Hospital was filmed at the Werribee Mercy Hospital.
Reception
Described by critics before its launch as "A Country PracticeA Country Practice
A Country Practice is an Australian television drama series. One of the longest-running of its kind, produced by James Davern of JNP Productions, 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,...
meets Cop Shop
Cop Shop
Cop Shop was an Australian police drama television series produced by Crawford Productions that revolved around the everyday operations of both the uniformed police officers and the plain-clothes detectives of the fictional Riverside Police Station....
", and as "the contemporary cousin of British cop show, Heartbeat", Blue Heelers was not anticipated by critics to become a hugely popular programme. However, it became a hit TV show soon after it began airing. During most of its broadcast, Blue Heelers was very popular in Australia, regularly attracting up to 2.5 million viewers, and up to 3.5 million viewers at its peak. Throughout the show's broadcast it continually drew a strong audience, regularly appearing among the top-rating prime time programmes on Australian television. Viewership of Blue Heelers never dropped below 1 million viewers. The episodes "Gold" and "Fool's Gold" (episodes 140 and 141), which aired during the programme's fourth season, were two of the most popular Blue Heelers episodes. Each drew 2.5 million viewers, considered a huge achievement in 1997.
Blue Heelers
Much of the show's sixth season, as well as the first 10 episodes of its seventh season, were the most watched episodes of the series. These episodes focus of the death of Maggie Doyle (played by Lisa McCune). Maggie's being shot and left for dead during episode 255, "One More Day", was ranked by TV Week as the third most memorable moment of a drama series on Australian television.
2004 Revamp: The Station Bombing
After low ratings in 2003 and 2004, the producers and executives of Blue Heelers realised that there were apparent problems which could potentially lead to the series's downfall. In 2004 Blue Heelers lost the top ratings spot to McLeod's DaughtersMcLeod's Daughters
McLeod's Daughters is a Logie award-winning Australian drama series that aired on the Nine Network from 2001 to 2009. It tells the story of two sisters, Claire and Tess McLeod, who are reunited after they inherit the family farm...
. During 2003 and 2004, Australian television drama was also at its "lowest point in a decade" and many popular shows were cancelled. As the show remained basically unchanged from its debut, ten years earlier, the production team decided that a revamp was in order.
Blue Heelers
The main plot, setting and character changes started in July 2004, with the airing of the episode "End of Innocence". In this episode, the main storyline was the bombing of the Mount Thomas police station. The blast killed popular main character Snr. Const. Jo Parrish (Jane Allsop) and recurring cast member Clancy Freeman, and injured the show's main protagonist, Senior Sergeant Croydon. After the bombing it was revealed that Croydon's wife, the Reverend Curtis, was missing. It was later revealed she had been brutally raped and murdered. These events brought about sweeping changes to the mood of not only Croydon, but also the mood of the entire show. The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
television writer Marcus Casey commented, "Mount Thomas has become a darker, grittier place, the people and cops in it transformed by an invasion of evil".
Consequently, the story changed its focus from the old Mount Thomas police station to the new one that was used until the show's cancellation in 2006. The Seven Network feared that in the modern post-9/11 world, a show about country police was no longer what audiences wanted. Storylines of the proceeding five episodes focused on the bombing of the station and the 4 new main characters: Rachel Gordon as Amy Fox, Geoff Morrell as Mark Jacobs, Samantha Tolj as Kelly O'Rourke and Danny Raco as Joss Peroni. Popular former cast member William McInnes also returned to the show, temporarily reprising his role as Nick Schultz. Producers hoped the new tone of the series, the new younger actors, and McInnes's role reprisal would lure back viewers who had stopped watching the programme. This new style of programme that Blue Heelers was embracing was a sign of the show trying to keep up with other larger television shows, particularly the CSI franchise.
The revamp of the series resulted in a 25% ratings increase, bringing the series's weekly viewership to 1.6 million people. Critical response after the event was reassuring, and it appeared that critics were approving of the drastic moves by Seven and Southern Star:
Cancellation
In the hope that viewing would increase, an 11-episode season in 2006 was commissioned by the Seven Network. However, the ratings spike begun in 2004 was not sufficient for the Seven Network to commit to continuing to produce the show. In January 2006, Seven officially announced that they had cancelled Blue Heelers, but would air a final shortened season of 11 episodes in mid-2006. At the time the show was still drawing 1.2 million viewers per week on average, down from the 3.5 million it was drawing at its peak. The announcement was front-page news on nearly all of Australia's major newspapers including The Sydney Morning HeraldThe Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
, Sydney's Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
, The Melbourne Herald Sun, The Melbourne Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
and Brisbane's Courier Mail. Two different endings were shot for the final episode, which finished filming on 20 December 2005. The first ending wrapped up all the show's storylines, while the second left the show open for another season; the first was version was used.
For Blue Heelers final season, it was moved from its primetime Wednesday-night timeslot, to a lower rating Saturday-night timeslot. In the Saturday timeslot Blue Heelers competed with The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
, a British police drama which had become quite popular in Australia. This move was slammed by leading cast member, John Wood. Blue Heelers cancellation may also be related to Seven's AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
broadcast, which saw Seven invest $780m for the 5 year broadcasting rights of the game.
Episodes
Seasons generally ran in Australia from early February to late November. Each season generally consisted of 41 to 42 episodes. The eleventh season however, only consisted of 39 episodes, as the Seven Network had gained the rights to televise the 2004 Athens Olympic Games2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...
. In total, 510 episodes were aired: 509 hour-long standard episodes and one live episode. The live episode, titled "Reasonable Doubts", was filmed to celebrate Blue Heelers 10th year on the air. To prepare, the cast was given six days to memorise their lines.
The final episode of the 13th season aired as a 2-hour tribute. It opened with an introduction from John Wood and concluded with a compilation
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
of Blue Heelers moments from over its 13-season run.
Australian television quiz-show, The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link (Australian game show)
The Weakest Link was an Australian game show based on the successful UK format, which aired from February 2001 until April 2002 and was broadcast on the Seven Network. Presented by Cornelia Frances, the show featured nine contestants competing for a potential prize of $100,000...
, hosted by Cornelia Frances
Cornelia Frances
Cornelia Frances is a British-born actress based in Australia since the early 1970s. Frances is best known for her recurring role as judge Morag Bellingham on Home and Away.-Early life and personal life:...
, also aired a Blue Heelers special episode on 9 August 2001. Cast members John Wood, Neil Pigot, Ditch Davey, Jeremy Kewley, Jane Allsop, Suzi Dougherty, Paul Bishop, Caroline Craig and Peta Doodson took part in this special event.
| Season | Ep. # | Season Premiere | Season Finale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 Blue Heelers (season 1) The first season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 18 January 1994 and aired on Tuesday nights at 7:30 PM... |
45 | 18 January 1994 | 22 November 1994 |
| Season 2 Blue Heelers (season 2) The second season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 21 February 1995 and aired on Tuesday nights at 8:30 PM. The 41-episode season concluded 21 November 1995... |
41 | 21 February 1995 | 21 November 1995 |
| Season 3 Blue Heelers (season 3) The third season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 12 February 1996 and aired on Monday nights, and later Tuesday nights, at 8:30 PM... |
41 | 12 February 1996 | 26 November 1996 |
| Season 4 Blue Heelers (season 4) The fourth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 10 February 1997 and aired on Tuesday nights at 8:30 PM... |
42 | 10 February 1997 | 25 November 1997 |
| Season 5 Blue Heelers (season 5) The fifth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 24 February 1998 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 PM. The 41-episode season concluded 25 November 1998.... |
41 | 24 February 1998 | 25 November 1998 |
| Season 6 Blue Heelers (season 6) The sixth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 10 February 1999 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 PM... |
42 | 10 February 1999 | 24 November 1999 |
| Season 7 Blue Heelers (season 7) The seventh season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 9 February 2000 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 pm... |
41 | 9 February 2000 | 22 November 2000 |
| Season 8 Blue Heelers (season 8) The eighth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 21 February 2001 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 PM... |
41 | 21 February 2001 | 28 November 2001 |
| Season 9 Blue Heelers (season 9) The ninth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 13 February 2002 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 pm... |
41 | 13 February 2002 | 20 November 2002 |
| Season 10 Blue Heelers (season 10) The tenth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 12 February 2003 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 PM... |
42 | 12 February 2003 | 26 November 2003 |
| Season 11 Blue Heelers (season 11) The 11th season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 4 February 2004 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 PM. The 39-episode season concluded 5 November 2004.-Overview:... |
39 | 4 February 2004 | 5 November 2004 |
| Season 12 Blue Heelers (season 12) The twelfth season of the Australian police-drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 2 February 2005 and aired on Wednesday nights at 8:30 PM. The 42-episode season concluded 26 November 2005.- Casting :... |
42 | 2 February 2005 | 26 November 2005 |
| Season 13 Blue Heelers (season 13) The thirteenth and final season of the Australian police drama Blue Heelers premiered on the Seven Network on 1 April 2006 and aired on Saturday nights at 8:30 pm. The 11-episode season concluded 4 June 2006, due to its cancellation by the Seven Network as a result of its sharp decline in ratings... |
11 | 1 April 2006 | 4 June 2006 |
Merchandise
The first full Blue Heelers novel, Maggie's Story, was written by Roger Dunn and released in 1997 by Coronet Books. In August 1998, a second novel, Tom's Story, written by Cassandra Carter was released by Bolinda Publishing.Several episodes of Blue Heelers, including "In The Gun" and "Fair Crack of the Whip" were released on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
video cassette format in the later 1990s.
DVD releases
- Further information: see the individual season pages
Seasons 1–13 of Blue Heelers have been released on DVD with Season 14 due for release on 2 June 2011. The DVD release is only available in Australia and New Zealand. It is not known if the series will be released on DVD internationally.
In November 2005, Paramount Home Entertainment
Paramount Home Entertainment
Paramount Home Entertainment is the division of Paramount Pictures dealing with home video founded in late 1975.-History:...
released the Blue Heelers—The Complete First Season box set in Australia in Region 4 DVD format. This was shortly followed by Blue Heelers—The Complete Second Season: Part 1 and Blue Heelers—The Complete Second Season: Part 2, which were released together in December 2005. However, the "seasons", as defined by the DVD releases, are markedly different to the original seasons as they aired on television. It appears that the episodes are being released according to what year the episodes were "produced" in, as opposed to the year they aired. For example: The Complete First Season DVDs contain some episodes from season 1 (1994), while The Complete Second Season contains the remainder of season 1 (1994) episodes and some from season 2 (1995).
In January 2007, Paramount Home Entertainment announced that they would be releasing each already released season of Blue Heelers as one complete set, rather than in two parts as they had done prior. These new sets, rather than being box sets with special slipcase packaging, were now just both parts, packed in a standard DVD case, packaged together in plastic. Each of these DVD sets now consists of 10 or 11 discs, rather than 5 or 6 each. The new sets were released on 15 February 2007.
In July 2009, Southern Star announced that seasons 10 – 13 would be released throughout 2010 and season 14 would be released in early 2011.
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| DVD Name | Release Date | Episodes |
| Complete First Season | 2 November 2005 | Season 1 episodes 1 -> 17. |
| Complete Second Season | 1 December 2005 | Season 1 episodes 18 -> 45, Season 2 episodes 46 -> 54. |
| Complete Third Season | 16 February 2006 | Season 2 episodes 55 -> 86, Season 3 episodes 87 -> 96. |
| Complete Fourth Season | 6 April 2006 | Season 3 episodes 97 -> 128, Season 4 episodes 129 -> 139. |
| Complete Fifth Season | 6 June 2006 | Season 4 episodes 140 -> 170, Season 5 episodes 171 -> 181. |
| Complete Sixth Season | 10 August 2006 | Season 5 episodes 182 -> 211, Season 6 episodes 212 -> 223. |
| Complete Seventh Season | 31 July 2008 | Season 6 episodes 224 -> 253, Season 7 episodes 254 -> 265. |
| Complete Eighth Season | 1 October 2008 | Season 7 episodes 266 -> 287, Season 8 episodes 288 -> 306. |
| Complete Ninth Season | 5 November 2009 | Season 8 episodes 307 -> 335, Season 9 episodes 336 -> 348. |
| Complete Tenth Season | 6 May 2010 | Season 9 episodes 349 -> 376, Season 10 episodes 377 -> 388. |
| Complete Eleventh Season | 5 August 2010 | Season 10 episodes 389 -> 418, Season 11 episodes 419 -> 428. |
| Complete Twelfth Season | 4 November 2010 | Season 11 Episodes 429 -> 457. |
| Complete Thirteenth Season | 3 March 2011 | Season 12 Episodes 458 -> 499. |
| Complete Fourteenth Season | 2 June 2011 | Season 13 Episodes 500 -> 510. |
Awards
In terms of awards, Blue Heelers is regarded as one of the most successful programmes on Australian television. Blue Heelers has been the recipient of many awards, including 25 Logie AwardLogie Award
The TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
s, five of which are the prestigious Gold Logie, 3 AFI Television Awards
Australian Film Institute Television Awards
The Australian Film Institute Television Awards are annual awards presented for excellence in Australian television annually as part of the AFI Awards by the Australian Film Institute. The AFI Awards cover non-feature films, films, television, and special awards...
, 3 People's Choice Awards
People's Choice Awards (Australia)
-1999:Favourite TV Star-1999:Favourite TV Star-1999:Favourite TV Star:Winner:::Lisa McCune, Blue Heelers, Seven Network:Nominated:::Colin Friels, Water Rats, Nine Network::Rebecca Gibney, Halifax f.p., Nine Network...
, and 1 AWGIE Awards
Australian Writers' Guild
The Australian Writers' Guild is the professional association for all performance writers, that is, writers for film, television, radio, theatre, video and new media. The AWG was established in 1962 and is recognised throughout the industry in Australia as being the voice of performance writers...
. Blue Heelers was nominated for a further twelve Gold Logies. Blue Heelers has also won multiple Silver Logies, including numerous Most Popular Actor, Most Popular Actress and Most Popular Programme awards, as well as many Outstanding Awards. Many Blue Heelers cast members have also hosted the Logie Award ceremony. In the 2005 50 Years 50 Shows
50 Years 50 Shows
50 Years 50 Shows is a television special that marked 50 years of television in Australia. Broadcast on Sunday 25 September 2005 on the Nine Network and hosted by Eddie McGuire, the special counted down the top 50 greatest Australian television programmes....
poll,Blue Heelers was voted 37th greatest show on Australian television and ranked within the top ten dramas.
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| Award | Wins | Nominations |
Gold Logie Awards |
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Silver Logie Awards Logie Award The TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a... |
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AFI Television Awards Australian Film Institute Television Awards The Australian Film Institute Television Awards are annual awards presented for excellence in Australian television annually as part of the AFI Awards by the Australian Film Institute. The AFI Awards cover non-feature films, films, television, and special awards... |
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AWGIE Awards Australian Writers' Guild The Australian Writers' Guild is the professional association for all performance writers, that is, writers for film, television, radio, theatre, video and new media. The AWG was established in 1962 and is recognised throughout the industry in Australia as being the voice of performance writers... |
||
People's Choice Awards People's Choice Awards (Australia) -1999:Favourite TV Star-1999:Favourite TV Star-1999:Favourite TV Star:Winner:::Lisa McCune, Blue Heelers, Seven Network:Nominated:::Colin Friels, Water Rats, Nine Network::Rebecca Gibney, Halifax f.p., Nine Network... |
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Australian Screen Editors' Awards |
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TOTAL |
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Broadcasting
Blue Heelers had a strong following not only in Australia, but also worldwide; it has been sold to 108 territories and is shown in over 70 countries. Australia AustraliaBlue Heelers originally aired on Tuesday nights at 7:30 pm on the Seven Network, thus it was limited to a PG content level restriction. When the series was hailed as a success it began the transition from this timeslot to the 8:30 pm timeslot on the same day. After the move, writers could explore more diverse storylines, as the show was restricted to an M rating. The third and fourth season premiers aired on Monday nights during the 8:30 pm timeslot, but the show moved back to its original slot before the next episode. In its fifth season, Blue Heelers moved to the Wednesday night 8:30 pm timeslot, which it occupied for most of its run, until the end of its twelfth season. This move was made to make way for hospital drama All Saints
All Saints (TV series)
All Saints is an Australian medical drama which first screened on the Seven Network. The series debuted on 24 February 1998 and concluded its run on 27 October 2009...
.
Starting in 2004, the Seven Network aired Blue Heelers in their weekday "early days drama" slot at 2:00 pm. They aired all the episodes of Blue Heelers, starting from its first season. In this slot, Blue Heelers was a replacement for the broadcast of the early episodes of Home and Away
Home and Away
Home and Away is an Australian soap opera that has been produced in Sydney since July 1987 and is airing on the Seven Network since 17 January 1988. It is the second-longest-running drama and most popular soap opera on Australian television...
. Blue Heelers concluded airing in this slot in 2007, with the broadcast of its final episode, and made way for the broadcast of early episodes of All Saints.
Blue Heelers has also screened on Foxtel The Hallmark Channel in Australia in various timeslots.
In New Zealand Blue Heelers screened on TV One in a popular timeslot. However, following the on-screen death of Maggie Doyle, ratings fell, and the show was moved to a 9:30 pm slot on Friday. Following that, the show moved to a late night Thursday slot where the rest of the episodes played out, with the show beginning anywhere between 11:30 pm and midnight. It aired its final episode on TV One on 20 March 2008.
Republic of Ireland IrelandIrish broadcaster RTÉ
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
originally began airing Blue Heelers on Friday afternoons at 4:30 pm. Episodes were only a few months behind the Australian broadcast. The series took a two year break in 2000, before re-commencing in a five-day-a-week timeslot at 10:30 am in early 2002. The show quickly caught up with the Australian broadcast; by 2004 the show was scaled back to the original one episode a week, and moved to a late night Thursday–early Friday morning timeslot, typically around 1:00 am. RTÉ commenced broadcasting the final season on 30 May 2008 in a late night Saturday–early Sunday morning timeslot. RTÉ screened the final episode on 30 November 2008. RTÉ began re-airing Blue Heelers weekly from episode one, commencing on 24 June 2009, usually around 4 am. RTÉ screened all episodes in their original unedited state. The drama proved very popular in Ireland and rated very well.
United States United States of AmericaBlue Heelers aired briefly in the United States of America in the early 2000s on the short-lived cable channel Trio
Trio (TV network)
Trio was an American cable and satellite television network.Trio went on the air in 1997, then originally owned and operated jointly by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and Power Broadcasting Inc. as a venue for airing the CBC's arts, culture and entertainment programming in the U.S...
(carried primarily by DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
). No episode after number 76 was ever shown in the United States, and when Trio changed their programming in 2004, Blue Heelers was dropped from the schedule.
Canada CanadaBlue Heelers was broadcast on Showcase in Canada, last airing on 15 May 1998.
Blue Heelers is broadcasting on IRIB. All episodes were dubbed in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
.
Italy ItalyIn Italy Blue Heelers was broadcast on Italia 7 Gold (now called 7 Gold
7 Gold
Founded on January 1, 2000 by the Italian business people Giorgio Tacchino, Giorgio Galante and Luigi Ferretti, 7 Gold is an Italy-based television network, owned by some its affiliated, and broadcast as TV Syndication....
), from the 1st to the 6th season. All episodes were dubbed in Italian.
UK
In the United Kingdom the series was broadcast on most stations on the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
Network. Many companies tended to screen the show as hour-long episodes in the afternoon (occasionally with necessary edits to suit the time slot, usually regarding profanity
Profanity
Profanity is a show of disrespect, or a desecration or debasement of someone or something. Profanity can take the form of words, expressions, gestures, or other social behaviors that are socially constructed or interpreted as insulting, rude, vulgar, obscene, desecrating, or other forms.The...
), however Central Television started with a late night 22.40 slot before following other regions with a typically 14.20 slot. The majority of ITV regions that ran the series broadcast the series on Monday afternoons, typically in a 14.20 timeslot (13.50 in some regions; as was common with many such imported programmes of the era, each region was at a different point in the show's run). Later on in the UK run, some ITV compaines such as Westcountry Television
Westcountry Television
Westcountry Television, is the ITV franchise holder in the South West of England, replacing its predecessor, TSW , from the 1 January 1993...
, and Carlton Television
Carlton Television
Carlton Television was the ITV franchise holder for London and the surrounding counties including the cities of Solihull and Coventry of the West Midlands, south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire,...
(who had showed much of the series in the Monday afternoon slot) showed the episodes in two halves, as was common with other Australian soap operas. Blue Heelers was also aired on Meridian Television
Meridian Broadcasting
Meridian Broadcasting is the holder of the ITV franchise for the South and South East of England. The station is owned and operated by ITV plc, under the licensee of ITV Broadcasting Limited....
and Channel Television
Channel Television
Channel Television is a British television station which has served as an Independent Television contractor to the Channel Islands since 1962. It is based in Jersey...
, typically Mondays at 2:20 pm, but some episodes also aired in a morning slot during school holidays. Scottish Television
Scottish Television
Scottish Television is Scotland's largest ITV franchisee, and has held the ITV franchise for Central Scotland since 31 August 1957. It is the second oldest ITV franchisee still active...
(STV) aired hour-long episodes, airing on Fridays, and then later on Tuesdays, before being dropped after episode 106.
Ulster Television (UTV) began airing Blue Heelers in early 1995. The show initially screened 3 times a week, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons at 1:50 pm. They then moved it to the 2:20 pm slot later in the series. A few episodes also ran at 11:40 pm on Thursday nights, as they were considered unsuitable for daytime viewing. UTV cancelled Blue Heelers in 1998
HTV
HTV
HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...
, Yorkshire Television
Yorkshire Television
Yorkshire Television, now officially known as ITV Yorkshire and sometimes unofficially abbreviated to YTV, is a British television broadcaster and the contractor for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV network...
and Tyne Tees Television
Tyne Tees Television
Tyne Tees Television is the ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. As of 2009, it forms part of a non-franchise ITV Tyne Tees & Border region, shared with the ITV Border region...
all chose not to import the show. When the English ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
contractors reformatted as one company in 2002, regionally-run programmes such as Blue Heelers (which were at different points of the series in each region) disappeared from screens. No ITV region ever screened the series in full. The show also aired on UK cable channel Carlton Select
Carlton Select
Carlton Select was a British digital television channel, owned by Carlton Television. It was launched in February 1997, and closed down in March 2000. Its sister channels were Carlton Cinema, Carlton Food Network, Carlton Kids and Carlton World....
in the late 1990s, first screening the early episodes daily and then in a weekly slot Fridays at 20.00 as episodes became more recent. Episodes to the later part of the 1997 season were shown before the series was dropped.
See also
- List of Australian television series
- Mount Thomas
- Victoria PoliceVictoria PoliceVictoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of Victoria, Australia. , the Victoria Police has over 12,190 sworn members, along with over 400 recruits, reservists and Protective Service Officers, and over 2,900 civilian staff across 393 police stations.-Early history:The Victoria Police...
External links
- Blue Heelers at the Australian Television Information Archive
- Blue Heelers at the National Film and Sound Archive