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Richmond Hill (TV series)

From Alfawiki
Richmond Hill
Company typeTelevision series
IndustryTelevision production
Founded1988; 38 years ago (1988)
FounderReg Watson
DefunctJune 22, 1988 (1988-06-22)
Headquarters
Sydney
,
Australia
ProductsTelevision soap opera
ParentReg Grundy Organisation

Richmond Hill is an Australian prime-time television soap opera that was produced in 1988 by the Reg Grundy Organisation for Network Ten. Created by Reg Watson, who is also recognized for Neighbours, the series debuted on 27 January 1988 with a special two-hour episode airing at 7:30 pm. Although it launched with considerable attention, the show achieved only moderate success and was discontinued on 22 June 1988 after completing 92 episodes. As of March 2021, there has been no DVD release.

Synopsis

The narrative is set in a fictional rural town near Sydney, contrasting with Neighbours, which takes place in suburban Melbourne. The storyline centers around the local police station, a real estate office, and a pub. It drew parallels with popular soaps from the Seven Network such as A Country Practice and Cop Shop. Production occurred primarily in Sydney, with some scenes shot on location in Mona Vale, NSW; notably, Connie Ryan’s residence was filmed in North Ryde.

To attract viewers immediately, the cast included well-known soap actors like Maggie Kirkpatrick, Amanda Muggleton, Paula Duncan, and Tim Elston, all previously seen in Prisoner. Veteran actress Gwen Plumb, famous for her role in The Young Doctors, portrayed Mum Foote. Additionally, several performers from Sons and Daughters—including Tom Richards, Rona Coleman, Angela Kennedy, and Michael Long—were part of the ensemble. Newcomers such as Ashley Paske, Emily Symons (prior to her role in Home and Away), Marc Gray, and Melissa Tkautz made their television debuts. Former comedy actor Ross Higgins played Dan Costello, the town’s police officer and family man.

Production

In August 1987, David Brown of TV Week announced that the Grundy Organisation was developing the prime-time drama series Richmond Hill for Network Ten. Scheduled to air twice weekly at 7:30 pm beginning early 1988, Network Ten described the show as focusing on residents of an outer suburban area and their local police station without being a traditional police drama. The plotlines featured a variety of characters including schoolteachers, market gardeners, and a police sergeant addressing community challenges. Phil East, previously involved with Neighbours, served as producer. Filming commenced in October at Network Ten's Studio B located in Sydney.

Broadcast

Richmond Hill was broadcast on Network Ten every Wednesday and Thursday from 7:30 to 8:30 pm as two one-hour episodes each week. Despite achieving moderate ratings, the series was canceled after six months in June 1988, concluding unexpectedly after episode 92. This cancellation took producers by surprise since several principal cast members had recently renewed their contracts, resulting in ongoing payments even after production ceased. The show ended without a conclusive finale due to expectations of continuation. Interestingly, ITV in the United Kingdom acquired the series during the same week it was canceled but proceeded to air all episodes.

In early 1989, Network Ten reran 35 episodes during weekday afternoons at 3:00 pm before replacing the slot with American talk shows such as The Phil Donahue Show and The Oprah Winfrey Show. The remaining episodes have not been rebroadcast since then. Between 1996 and 1997, Foxtel’s UKTV Gold channel aired the entire series during weekday mornings. The program has not been shown on Australian television for over two decades and remains unreleased on DVD or streaming services.

International

In June 1988, the UK's ITV acquired the rights to Richmond Hill, investing £600,000, motivated by the popularity of its related soap Neighbours. The series was overseen by Thames Television for ITV and premiered on 5 October 1988 with hour-long episodes broadcast on Wednesdays and Thursdays, directly competing with Neighbours. ITV aimed to implement simultaneous broadcasts across the country—an unprecedented move for an Australian soap on ITV—although this objective was only partially fulfilled. Certain regions replaced other Australian programs such as A Country Practice to make room for it. However, after Network Ten discontinued the show, ITV's enthusiasm waned, resulting in Richmond Hill being shifted to mid-afternoon time slots and garnering lower viewership than BBC One's airing of Neighbours.

Granada Television postponed its debut by two weeks, opting to air episodes weekly starting 20 October 1988, while choosing to schedule A Country Practice on Thursdays instead. By 1990, the show was moved to Sunday broadcasts and concluded in the spring of 1991. Similarly, Central Television deviated from the network's timetable in 1989 by cutting back to one episode per week before eventually replacing it with programs like Quincy. Most ITV regions reinstated A Country Practice, causing UK audiences to lose connection with ongoing Australian storylines.

The final UK broadcast of the series occurred on the cable channel Wire TV during the mid-1990s, where it was paired with the American soap The Bold and the Beautiful until Wire TV ceased operations in 1994.

In New Zealand, TVNZ acquired Richmond Hill and launched it on Network Two at 8:20 pm on Sunday, 19 February 1989, following its cancellation in Australia. Initially shown once weekly with fluctuating time slots throughout 1989 and into late 1990, all episodes were eventually aired.

Grundy also licensed the series to Germany’s Pro 7, where it was dubbed into German and broadcast twice weekly between 1991 and 1992.

Major cast


External links

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