Mister Brisbane: 'Our' Neighbours
Before Ramsay Street in Melbourne, there was Vale Street in the River City
News that Channel 5 in the UK plans to drop Neighbours — meaning the Aussie soap will get cancelled altogether after nearly 40 years on air (unless another network picks it up) — got me thinking of a time when Brisbane produced its own soap opera.
It came about when Reg Grundy, who had successfully produced the panel shows I’ve Got A Secret and Play Your Hunch out of Brisbane, decided to spread his wings into drama production.
It was a full 10 years before Neighbours that Until Tomorrow hit our screens. And, unlike its predecessor or contemporary Class of ’74, it was specifically designed for daytime viewing.
It was set in fictional Vale Street, with characters ranging from the town gossip to a corner shop owner and a retired judge whose daughter was “in moral danger”, and they made about 180 episodes.
It never really clicked with the audience; failed to win over viewers of the US soap General Hospital (which is still going); was moved to another timeslot; and was cancelled.
Still, it was a showcase for some excellent local talent, including Barry Otto, Hazel Philips, Babette Stephens, Kaye Stevenson, John Nash, Muriel Watson and Ron Cadee.
The show was created by Reg Watson, who went on to helm the likes of The Young Doctors, The Restless Years, Sons and Daughters, Neighbours and Prisoner (which, in its early episodes, starred another great Queenslander, Carol Burns).
Brisbane, meanwhile, found its niche in terms of TV production with children’s television — graduating from local afternoon and Saturday shows to national programs such as Wombat and the recently cancelled Totally Wild.
While film and television production is still a thing in Queensland (especially during the pandemic, when Hollywood filmmakers and interstate reality-TV producers alike moved in), it’s unlikely we’ll see another daytime drama made here.
Or will we?
Would you like to share your memories of local television production? Or maybe pitch an idea for a soapie that could be based in Brisbane?