The first season of the Australian drama Sea Patrol

Sea Patrol (TV series)

Sea Patrol is an Australian television drama, set on board HMAS Hammersley, a fictional patrol boat of the Royal Australian Navy . The series focuses on the ship and the lives of its crew members....

premiered on the Nine Network

Nine Network

The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...

on 5 July 2007. The 13-episode season concluded 4 October 2007.

Main cast

Actor	Character	Rank	Position
Ian Stenlake Ian Stenlake Ian Edward Stenlake is an Australian actor.-Television:Stenlake is perhaps best known for the role of Constable Oscar Stone which he played in the Australian police drama series Stingers from 1998 to 2002...	Mike "CO" Flynn Mike Flynn (TV character) Captain Michael "Mike" Flynn, CSC, RAN, is a fictional TV character on the show Sea Patrol, and is portrayed by Ian Stenlake. In the first episode of 'Sea Patrol' season 4 Mike is promoted to Commander and in season 5 is promoted to Captain and is transferred to NAVCOM.-History:Mike, also known as...  RAN Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...	Lieutenant-Commander	Commanding Officer
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...	Kate "XO" McGregor Kate McGregor (TV character) Lieutenant Kate McGregor is a fictional TV character from the show Sea Patrol. She is portrayed by Lisa McCune.-History:Lieutenant Kate McGregor, the Executive Officer of HMAS Hammersley, is cool, beautiful, reserved, always aiming for a perfect 10 in everything she does. She was nicknamed...  RAN Royal Australian Navy The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...	Lieutenant Lieutenant A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...	Executive Officer Executive officer An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
Saskia Burmeister Saskia Burmeister Saskia Burmeister is anAustralian actress. She is most known for her roles in Hating Alison Ashley and Sea Patrol....	Nikki "Nav" Caetano Nikki Caetano (TV character) Lieutenant Nicole "Nikki" Caetano is a fictional TV character on the show Sea Patrol. She is portrayed by Saskia Burmeister.- Personal life:In season one Nikki started a relationship with fellow shipmate ET....	Lieutenant Lieutenant A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...	Navigator Navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation. The navigator's primary responsibility is to be aware of ship or aircraft position at all times. Responsibilities include planning the journey, advising the Captain or aircraft Commander of estimated timing to...
John Batchelor John Batchelor (Australian actor) John David Batchelor is an Australian television and film actor. He is most known for portraying Chief Petty Officer Marine Technical / Chief Engineer Andy 'Charge' Thorpe on the Australian drama series Sea Patrol, and Peeto in the Australian feature film Red Dog.-Career:Beside portraing Andy...	Andy "Charge" Thorpe	Chief Petty Officer Chief Petty Officer A chief petty officer is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards.-Canada:"Chief Petty Officer" refers to two ranks in the Canadian Navy...	Chief Engineer
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....	Chris "Swain" Blake Chris Blake (TV character) Petty Officer Christopher "Chris" Blake, CV was a fictional TV character on the show Sea Patrol. He was portrayed by Matthew Holmes.-Season one :...	Petty Officer Petty Officer A petty officer is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotion OR-6. They are equal in rank to sergeant, British Army and Royal Air Force. A Petty Officer is superior in rank to Leading Rate and subordinate to Chief Petty Officer, in the case of the British Armed...	Coxswain Coxswain The coxswain is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives us a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from cox, a coxboat or other small vessel kept aboard a ship, and swain, which can be rendered as boy, in authority. ... /Chief Medic Medic Medic is a general term for a person involved in medicine, especially emergency or first-response medicine, such as an emergency medical technician, paramedic, or a military member trained in battlefield medicine. Also the term is used toward a Nurse in pre-hospital care and/or emergency...
Jeremy Lindsay Taylor Jeremy Lindsay Taylor Jeremy Lindsay Taylor is an Australian actor. He finished his education at Newington College in 1991 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree, with a major in drama and sociology, from the University of Newcastle...	Pete "Buffer" Tomaszewski Pete Tomaszewski (TV character) Petty Officer Bosun Peter "Pete" Tomaszewski is a fictional TV character on the show Sea Patrol. He is portrayed by Jeremy Lindsay Taylor.- History :...	Petty Officer Petty Officer A petty officer is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotion OR-6. They are equal in rank to sergeant, British Army and Royal Air Force. A Petty Officer is superior in rank to Leading Rate and subordinate to Chief Petty Officer, in the case of the British Armed...	Boatswain Buffer (navy) Buffer is the colloquial title for the senior seaman sailor in a Commonwealth of Nations Navy ship. The formal title is Chief Boatswain's Mate....
Kristian Schmid	Robert "RO" Dixon	Leading Seaman Leading Seaman Leading seaman is a junior non-commissioned rank or rate in navies, particularly those of the Commonwealth. When it is used by NATO nations, leading seaman has the rank code of OR-4. It is often equivalent to the army and air force rank of corporal and some navies use corporal rather than...	Radio Operator
David Lyons David Lyons (actor) David Lyons is an Australian actor. He is best known for his role on the Australian drama series Sea Patrol, in which he played the Leading Seaman Josh Holiday.-Early life and education:...	Josh "ET" Holiday Josh Holiday (TV character) Leading Seaman Joshua "Josh" Holiday was a fictional TV character on the show Sea Patrol. He is portrayed by David Lyons.- Personal life :ET at the end of Season 1 began a relationship with the Navigator, Nikki Caetano...	Leading Seaman Leading Seaman Leading seaman is a junior non-commissioned rank or rate in navies, particularly those of the Commonwealth. When it is used by NATO nations, leading seaman has the rank code of OR-4. It is often equivalent to the army and air force rank of corporal and some navies use corporal rather than...	Electronics Technician Electronics Technician Electronics Technician is a common enlisted occupation in many Militaries. Common duties for ETs include repair, calibration, and basic maintenance of most electronic equipment.-US Navy:...
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...	Toby "Chefo" Jones Toby Jones (TV character) Able Seaman Tobias "Toby" Jones was a fictional character on the show Sea Patrol. He was portrayed by Josh Lawson.- Personal life :Toby Jones was born in Brisbane, Queensland on December 18, 1981. Also known as "Cheffo" Toby was very much a main part of the crew in Series 1...	Able Seaman Able seaman An able seaman is an unlicensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. An AB may work as a watchstander, a day worker, or a combination of these roles.-Watchstander:...	Chef Chef A chef is a person who cooks professionally for other people. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who cooks for a living, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation.-Etymology:The word "chef" is borrowed ... /Assistant Medic Medic Medic is a general term for a person involved in medicine, especially emergency or first-response medicine, such as an emergency medical technician, paramedic, or a military member trained in battlefield medicine. Also the term is used toward a Nurse in pre-hospital care and/or emergency...
Jay Ryan Jay Bunyan Jay Ryan is a New Zealand actor who resides in Australia.-Career:Under his birthname of Jay Bunyan, he appeared as "Glen" in the "Scallywag Pirates" and had a minor role in Xena. He is known for his portrayal of Jack Scully in the Australian soap opera Neighbours from late 2002 until January 2005...	Billy "Spider" Webb Billy Webb (TV character) Seaman William "Spider" Webb is a fictional character on the Australian television show Sea Patrol. He is portrayed by Jay Ryan.-Personal life:Webb is portrayed as rather immature and rash on occasions...	Seaman Seaman Seaman is one of the lowest ranks in a Navy. In the Commonwealth it is the lowest rank in the Navy, followed by Able Seaman and Leading Seaman, and followed by the Petty Officer ranks....	Boatswain's Mate Boatswain's Mate A Boatswain's mate is a job classification in Navies and Coast Guards.*Boatswain's mate , a job classification in the United States Navy*Boatswain's mate , a job classification in the United States Coast Guard...

Recurring/semi-regular cast

Actor	Character
Sibylla Budd Sibylla Budd Sibylla Budd is an Australian actress best known for her role in the television series The Secret Life Of Us.-Early life and education:...	Dr. Physician A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...  Ursula Morrell
Steve Bisley Steve Bisley Steve Bisley is an Australian film and television actor, who attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art .-Acting career:...	Commander Commander Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...  Steven 'Steve' Marshall
Morgan O'Neill Morgan O'Neill Morgan O'Neill is an Australian television and film actor, writer, director, and producer. He is also a singer and has his own band. O'Neill is best-known for his continuing role as Lieutenant Darryl Smith on Australia's hit drama, Sea Patrol...	Lieutenant Lieutenant A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...  Darryl Smith
Christopher Stollery Christopher Stollery Christopher Stollery is an Australian television actor. He graduated from Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1987. He has had guest roles on many TV series and miniseries and is most well known for his role on Sea Patrol as Federal Agent Greg Murphy, a role he has held since the...	Federal Agent Australian Federal Police The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...  Gregory 'Greg' Murphy
Martin Lynes Martin Lynes Martin Lynes is an Australian actor.-Biography:Lynes is known for his work as Dr. Luke Forlano on All Saints, an Australian hospital drama. On the series he tried many times to become the Chief medical officer but failed. He was a primarily surgeon but spent time helping in ward 17. He has also...	Richard 'Rick' Gallagher
Tye Harper Tye Harper Tye Harper is an Australian television actor. He is most known for his role on Sea Patrol as Seaman John Jaffah which he held during the series first season. He has also had guest parts on All Saints and The Sleepover Club.- External links :...	Seaman Seaman Seaman is one of the lowest ranks in a Navy. In the Commonwealth it is the lowest rank in the Navy, followed by Able Seaman and Leading Seaman, and followed by the Petty Officer ranks....  John 'Jaff' Jaffah
Pearl Tan Pearl Tan Pearl Tan is an Australian television and film actress, writer, director and producer. She is most well known for her role on Sea Patrol as Federal Agent Alicia Turnbull, a role she held during the series first season.- External links :...	Federal Agent Australian Federal Police The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...  Alicia Turnball

Plot

The first season story arc involves the Australian Federal Police

Australian Federal Police

The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...

's investigation into the death of marine biologist Dr. Lisa Holmes, Kate's relationship with freighter Captain Rick Gallagher, Mike's relationship with Lisa's partner, Dr. Ursula Morrell, and the deaths of two fishermen, Carl Davies and Sam Murray. These threads increasingly intertwine throughout the season, culminating in the final two episodes, in which it is revealed that Gallagher hired Ursula and Lisa to manufacture a deadly toxin from a unusual toxic, venomous crab

Xanthidae

Xanthidae is a family of crabs known as mud crabs, pebble crabs or rubble crabs. They are often brightly coloured and are poisonous, containing toxins which are not destroyed by cooking and for which no antidote is known...

 that he planned to sell on the black market. The plot is thwarted, the boat carrying the poison is sunk, Gallagher is killed and Ursula's death is staged as she enters a witness protection

Witness protection

Witness protection is protection of a threatened witness or any person involved in the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during and after a trial, usually by police...

 program.

During the season, Nav and ET develop a relationship despite adversities: Chefo becomes engaged to his girlfriend; Swain's wife, Sally, gives birth; Charge reluctantly gets help for, and recovers from, an eye injury; Spider loses friend and shipmate Jaffah to a jellyfish sting; Robert comes to terms with his father's death and Lt. Daryl Smith has a mostly off-screen and implied relationship with AFP Agent Alicia Turnball.

Production

Filming for this season started on 9 October 2006 and concluded on 20 February 2007. The Pacific Film and Television Corporation offered the producers $750,000 as an incentive to film the series in Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

.

Much of the filming was carried out off tropical Queensland on a R.A.N. patrol boat. This boat was built to accommodate 24 people, but up to 60 members of cast and crew were aboard the small boat, and a vast catamaran

Catamaran

A catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hulls, or vakas, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of akas...

 was used by the wardrobe department.

was used to film Sea Patrol.

Filming Schedule:

• Dunk Island (tropical island, Queensland) for eight weeks
• Sydney
  Sydney
  Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
  
   for six weeks
• Gold Coast
  Gold Coast, Queensland
  Gold Coast is a coastal city of Australia located in South East Queensland, 94km south of the state capital Brisbane. With a population approximately 540,000 in 2010, it is the second most populous city in the state, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous...
  
   Movie World Studios for six weeks.

Critical response

In 2007, Sea Patrol was one of the most eagerly-awaited television series in Australia. The series marked Lisa McCune's return to television and the Nine Network

Nine Network

The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...

's attempt to reclaim its former ratings.

Almost 2 million viewers watched the first episode; first place in the ratings. It was the second most popular series premiere in Australian history. Sea Patrol's premiere drew a larger audience than the NRL State of Origin match broadcast the same week, a rarity for an untested local drama. Critics described the script as "...dated, unsophisticated and a little clichéd". In the Sun Herald, the television critic stated that "...the series is let down by a somewhat sinking script that fails to quickly engage". Hal McElroy was disappointed; he believed the Australian drama industry failed due to a lack of good writing and a "...fail[ure] to create stories that connected with mass audience". Another common complaint from critics was the "safety" of the story-lines. The series was developed as a 7:30 pm drama; story-lines had to be appropriate for that time-slot. These complaints lasted throughout the season. In The 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...

, for example, Sea Patrol was described as "Decent but safe drama". This was not what the Nine Network had hoped from their $15 million drama.

The show was given a promising review from the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

 (RAN), published in Navy News

Navy (newspaper)

Navy News is the newspaper published for the Royal Australian Navy. The paper is produced fortnightly and is uploaded online so that members can access it when deployed overseas.- External links :*...

, which stated that Navy personnel were glad the show did not "...embarrass the service or give false perceptions" and were also happy with the portrayal of life in the RAN. Regardless of the critical comments of Sea Patrol, Nine commissioned a second season before the first was broadcast.
While the critical response improved, ratings continued to drop throughout the season.

Ratings

The first episode of Sea Patrol was the second-highest rating series premiere, surpassing the debut of McLeod's Daughters

McLeod'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...

at 1.89 million, but not the debut of Always Greener

Always Greener

Always Greener was an Australian television drama/comedy series that aired on the Seven Network which followed the fortunes of two families, one from the city and the other from the country, when they decide to switch homes and start a new direction in life for themselves...

at 2.06 million, both of which have were cancelled by their respective networks.

Episode number Production number	Title	Sydney Sydney Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...	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...	Brisbane Brisbane Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...	Adelaide Adelaide Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...	Perth Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....	TOTAL	WEEKLY RANK	NIGHTLY RANK
01 1-01	Welcome Aboard	575,000	611,000	345,000	231,000	219,000	1,980,000	1	1
02 1-02	What Lies Beneath	482,000	492,000	311,000	194,000	183,000	1,662,000	7	1
03 1-03	Ghost of Things Past	604,000	498,000	302,000	191,000	204,000	1,799,000	3	1
04 1-04	Irukandji	438,000	503,000	290,000	197,000	188,000	1,617,000	7	1
05 1-05	Under the Radar	480,000	512,000	258,000	177,000	173,000	1,601,000	7	1
06 1-06	Precious Cargo	464,000	471,000	281,000	189,000	176,000	1,581,000	7	1
07 1-07	Rescue Me	448,000	517,000	268,000	184,000	169,000	1,586,000	7	1
08 1-08	Through the Storm	452,000	407,000	273,000	183,000	150,000	1,466,000	10	1
09 1-09	Under the Hammer	422,000	404,000	235,000	144,000	133,000	1,337,000	18	2
10 1-10	Damage Control	369,000	447,000	237,000	144,000	143,000	1,341,000	18	3
11 1-11	Chinese Whispers	341,000	414,000	244,000	138,000	129,000	1,265,000	27	4
12 1-12	Deep Water	324,000	399,000	224,000	114,000	111,000	1,172,000	N/A	N/A
13 1-13	Cometh the Hour	374,000	399,000	211,000	114,000	111,000	1,209,000	N/A	N/A

Awards

Sea Patrol was nominated for three awards at the 2008 Logie Awards

Logie Awards of 2008

The 50th Annual TV Week Logie Awards were presented on Sunday 4 May 2008 at the Crown Entertainment Complex in Melbourne, and televised on the Nine Network....

. The nominees included Lisa McCune, who was nominated for Most Popular Actress and the Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television. David Lyons was nominated for Most Popular New Male Talent.

Episodes

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! style="background-color: #1E90FF; color:#ffffff;"| Series
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! style="background-color: #1E90FF; color:#ffffff;"| Season
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! style="background-color: #1E90FF; color:#ffffff;"| Title
! style="background-color: #1E90FF; color:#ffffff;"| Directed by
! style="background-color: #1E90FF; color:#ffffff;"| Written by
! style="background-color: #1E90FF; color:#ffffff;"| Original air date
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DVD release

Sea Patrol - The Complete First 13 Episodes
Set Details	Special Features
13 Episodes (563 minutes) 4-disc set 16:9 Aspect Ratio Subtitles: English & English for the hearing impaired English audio (Dolby Digital Dolby Digital Dolby Digital is the name for audio compression technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories. It was originally called Dolby Stereo Digital until 1994. Except for Dolby TrueHD, the audio compression is lossy. The first use of Dolby Digital was to provide digital sound in cinemas from 35mm film prints...  5.1 Surround EX) Distributed by Roadshow Entertainment RoadShow RoadShow , formerly known as "資訊娛樂共同睇" [paraphrased as Integrated View of Information and Entertainment]) is the first "Multi-Media On Board" service on transit vehicles in the world. It was launched by Kowloon Motor Bus Company on 26 November 2000...	Slipcase packaging
Release Dates
17 October 2007

See also

• List of Sea Patrol episodes