Home and Away: Discussion Thread

[Ben]

Ditto.

First time I think I've stopped watching the show for such a long time. It's been a really bad year, which hasn't been helped by this year-long bloody mystery. I don't want a soap version of L&O, I want kitchen sink drama!

[Sylph]

So, is Bevan coming?

[Ben]

He was supposed to write the 5000th episode, but had to cancel due to other commitments - I.e: Packed to the Rafters. Shame, as he's best damn writer they've ever had (or had in recent years).

[Sylph]

And these people who write now are then ones who he left to write after his last stint?

[Ben]

I'll research that (unless someone beats me to it) and get back to you, as I'm a little confused. See, Cameron Welsh is the EP, yet he's always the one who seems to be responsible for storylines, yet when Bevan left in 2008, I'm sure he said he was handing the reins over to someone called Sarah. Basically, I'm confused as to who does what.

[Sylph]

Confusing, as always. Especially with Australian soaps, where you have a plethora of story producers, story editors, storyliners...

[Ben]

Very. Strangely, I don't find Neighbours as confusing, probably b/c Susan Bower has stated that all final decisions go through her, and I can easily blame her for all the crap that's given the green light.

But with H&A, and especially when Bevan was there, he made all the decisions, even though Cameron Welsh is EP... actually it's SP. What's the difference between a Series/Executive Producer? And it was Bevan who took over from Sarah Walker in 2008, but who took over from him? Faith McKinnon and Phil Lloyd, that's who.

Taken from yesterday's end credits:

Series Producer: Cameron Welsh

Script Producers: Faith McKinnon & James Walker

Executive Producer: John Holmes

Network Executive Producer: Bevan Lee

Script Editor: Stephen Vagg

Associate Story Producer: Sandy Webster

Story Consultant: Sarah Walker & Fiona Bozig

[SnCCorinthos4ever]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/confidential/home-and-away-star-todd-lasance-charged-with-cocaine-posession-at-christmas-bash/story-e6frf96x-1225810384104

Edited December 15, 2009 by SnCCorinthos4ever

[Bright Eyes]

So I just finished watching season one of In Treatment and something that I always wondered while watching was Melissa George's accent. It was quite clear she wasn't American. (She was great on the show, btw.) Anyway, so I went to IMDB and saw she was on Home and Away for a few years as Angel Parrish and judging by her award wins I'm assuming she was pretty damn popular on the show. This all lead me to watch a clip of her husband, Shane's, death on YouTube.

Did anyone here watch the show when she was on? Did you like the character? Was Melissa good there as well?

[SnCCorinthos4ever]

Yes I was a regular viewer back then. And yes I did like Angel, when Shane died I cried my eyes out.

I still watch occasionally.

[Dion]

Shane and Angel were the teen supercouple of the show during the mid 1990s. I guess they were to Home and Away what Greg and Jenny were to All My Children. Angel definitely stood out amongst the teens in an era where the other teens (Sarah, Tug, Damian, Finlay) were quite bland and somewhat boring and the classic teens of the late 80s, early 90s (Bobby, Frank, Steven, Carly, Sophie) had gone. Melissa George and Dieter Brummer carried a significant portion of the show during 1993 and 1996 (particularly during the first half of 1994 when Isla Fisher's Shannon and Tempany Deckert's Selina hadn't been introduced yet and Kate Ritchie's Sally was still too young to have significant storylines of her own).

[Ben]

Shane & Angel were awesome; they were immensely popular, and if they hadn't of brought in Selina/Shannon/Chloe, I think the show would have suffered from their loss. And yes, Melissa was good then, too. What I've never liked, though, is her refusal to talk about the show that launched her career - it's like she's embarrassed by her soap past. On the rare occasions that she will utter a sentence or two, she's very coy, and claims that she can't remember much about her time on H&A. Whatever.

[Sylph]

I hated her... She had a child who was a prodigy in maths, right?

There was that Steven Matheson or what was his name who was the high school maths teacher...

Edited February 3, 2010 by Sylph

[Ben]

I don't remember Dylan being a maths prodigy. In fact, I don't remember him doing all that much. When Angel arrived, she was a street kid, and Dylan wasn't with her. I guess he could've been a maths genius, and I've simply forgotten...

There was a Steven Matheson, but Angel wasn't involved with him. His storylines were mostly with: Selina/Jesse/Travis/Kelly/Marilyn + he was an original character, too.

There was a Simon - an English guy, who fell for Angel. They left together. He was very annoying, for some reason.

[Sylph]

Steven wanted to nurture the kid's talent, but Melissa's character refused.