Taurus Rising

Taurus Rising

Company type	Television series
Industry	Television production
Founded	1982
Founder	Reg Grundy Organisation
Headquarters	Australia
Products	Soap opera
Parent	Reg Grundy Organisation

Taurus Rising is an Australian soap opera developed by the Reg Grundy Organisation for the Nine Network in 1982. Designed as a successor to The Sullivans, the series sought to compete with American prime-time soaps such as Dallas and Dynasty, revolving around the affluent Sydney-based Brent and Drysdale families. Representing a new production approach for Grundy, it was filmed entirely on celluloid rather than videotape. The show premiered with a two-hour pilot broadcast at 8:30 pm and initially aired on Tuesday evenings before declining viewership prompted a move to Fridays at 10 pm. Since its original run, it has not been re-aired on the Nine Network.

Although the production budget reached $2 million, Taurus Rising struggled to secure a significant audience and was cancelled after only 21 episodes. Nevertheless, it achieved some success internationally, later being distributed in the United States as a 21-part miniseries on cable television.

Production

Development began in 1979 at Channel Nine through collaboration between Michael Pate and Tony Morphett, who originally conceived it as a brief, high-end drama about competing family business empires. Morphett drafted early scripts, and after approximately eighteen months of refinement, the project was handed over to Grundy Productions. Grundy created a pilot episode that Channel Nine reviewed in January 1982.

Cast

The narrative of Taurus Rising focuses on the rivalry between the Brent and Drysdale families.

The Brents

• Annette Andre portrays Jennifer Brent: Harry’s estranged daughter and mother to Mike.
• Andrew Clarke plays Mike Brent: Son of Jennifer and Ben.
• Gordon Glenwright appears as Harry Brent: The family patriarch.

The Drysdales

• Georgie Sterling as Isabella Drysdale: Family matriarch, formerly engaged to Harry Brent.
• Alan Cassell takes on Ben Drysdale: Leader of Drysdale construction, husband to Faith.
• Betty Lucas plays Faith Drysdale: Ben’s wife.
• Andrew Sharp as Keith Drysdale
• Damon Herriman portrays Phil Drysdale: Offspring of Ben and Faith.
• Marina Finlay as Elizabeth Drysdale

Additional Characters

• Linda Newton plays Alice Blake: Educator and Phil’s nanny.
• Maurie Fields appears as Bert: Foreman at Drysdale construction and Alice’s father.
• Michael Long as Sam Farrer: Employee under Ben.
• Diane Craig acts as Libby Hilton: Journalist for the Sydney Observer involved romantically with Ben.
• Vic Hawkins as Malcolm Adams
• Jessica Noad portrays Marie: The Drysdales’ housekeeper and Sam’s mother.

Reception

Richard Coleman from The Sydney Morning Herald ranked Taurus Rising among the poorest television productions of 1982, alongside ABC’s Winner Take All. He remarked that its swift cancellation was lamented "only by a few accountants in Willoughby," attributing its low ratings to its somber mood and repetitive plot elements.

In 2002, Robert Fidgeon of the Herald Sun included it in his list of "Australia's All-time Top 50 TV Turkeys," describing it as an extravagant Dallas-style drama centered on competing building industry families. While commending performances by Diane Craig and Alan Cassell, he criticized its resemblance to Dynasty, noting an overemphasis on luxury vehicles and corporate jets.

Fiona Byrne revisited Taurus Rising in 2020 during a retrospective on "long-forgotten Australian TV dramas that caused audiences to tune out." She characterized it as an ambitious yet unsuccessful Channel 9 effort to produce a local super soap inspired by American counterparts. Byrne also pointed out confusion surrounding the series’ title and highlighted its poor initial ratings following its July 1982 debut, factors contributing to its reputation as a commercial failure.