Cirrus@Austlit

'Slipping down the plughole starts the ride of a lifetime for John Stanley Staines and his sister Mary Jane. They travel a maze of drains all the way to a huge underground world full of fantastic creatures and fabulous places. Even though it lies right beneath us it's a world most people don't know about. It's a world only kids can get into'.

Source: Screen Australia. (Sighted: 26/9/2012)

'The hero of GUMNUTZ is Claude, a neurotic numbat who is forced to save his uncle's juice factory from the clutches of the villainous Hot Shot Charlie, a crafty fox. Claude has help from his feisty friend Peppa, a fellow numbat and through their adventures they learn the importance of friendship, family and responsibility.'

Source: Screen Australia. (Sighted: 12/9/2012)

Animated adaptation of Blinky Bill, an original Australian bush (koala) character conceived by Dorothy Wall. Though often considered the third series of The Adventures of Blinky Bill, this series was televised with the title Blinky Bill's Extraordinary Balloon Adventure.

In this series, Blinky, Nutsy, and Flap travel around the world in a hot-air balloon, returning rescued circus animals to their natural environment and trying to avoid the pursuit of the angry circus owners.

Crimes are being committed within fairy tales. And this means that the fairy tales in our world are losing their happy (or unhappy) endings. Two police officers (no-nonsense Christine Anderson and bumbling Johnny Legend) are sent inside fairy tales to establish the Fairy Tale Police Department and restore the happy endings.

Australian Screen says of Fairy Tale Police Department, 'Despite the title, which suggests a sweet little cartoon, this is a robust and very original series and loads of fun for all ages. Fairytale Police Department is a zany cross between Twisted Tales and the X Files for kids. Female detective Chris Anderson, like X Files cop Dana Scully ..., is strong, capable and ambitious, while her bumbling, vain metrosexual partner Johnny Legend is always getting into in trouble. Other characters are also terrific with strong characterisations and great scripts.'

Source: Australian Screen (http://aso.gov.au/titles/tv/fairytale-police-black/notes/). (Sighted: 12/9/2012)

'Old Tom is based on a series of successful books written by Australian author Leigh Hobbs. Old Tom is a one-eyed, flea-ridden, orange tomcat, who’s good-natured but slothful behaviour is in contrast to the respectable, suburban matron, Angela Throgmorton, who treats Old Tom as if he were her son. They are, in reality, every bit as oddball and eccentric as each other, and together they become involved in a series of comedic adventures and topsy-turvy situations.'

Source: Yoram Gross Film Studios (http://www.yoramgrossfilms.com.au/completed/oldtom.html). (Sighted: 6/6/2014)

One of Australia's highest rating dramas, All Saints is a Logie Award-winning Australian medical drama set in the fictional All Saints Western General Hospital in suburban Sydney. The stories originally focused on the nursing staff of Ward 17 run by Nursing Unit Manager Terri Sullivan. It was sometimes referred to as the 'garbage ward' because it took the overflow of patients.

In 2004 Network Seven producers overhauled the series in an effort to increase the show's gradually dwindling audience. They achieved this by closing down Ward 17 and transferring some of the staff to the Emergency Department managed by Frank Campion. Several other new lead characters were also introduced. The changes also saw the storylines begin to focus more on the lives of the doctors and nurses.

Another significant change to the series came in early 2009 when the producers introduced the Medical Response Unit. Central to this development was the helicopter which took doctors to rescue situations outside the hopsital and which in turn brought patients to the All Saints Emergency Department. The show's name was also changed at this time to All Saints: Medical Response Unit. The increased production costs created by having scenes shot on location played a part, however, in the series being cancelled mid-year. The series ended with the Emergency Department and Medical Response Unit teams having a dinner to farewell the last remaining original character, Von Ryan on her final day at All Saints.

All Saints was popular in many countries including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium and Iran.

Home and Away is a television serial created by Alan Bateman and produced by the Seven Network. The idea for the series came to Bateman (then head of drama at Seven) after he stopped to buy ice-creams in a small country town in southern NSW. While chatting to some locals, he learned that the town was unhappy about plans to build a home for foster kids from the city. At that time, Channel Seven was still smarting from its decision to let Neighbours go to the Ten Network, where it had become hugely popular, and was looking to create another series to rival its success. Bateman saw in the idea that became Home and Away the potential for plenty of storylines and conflict by having streetwise city kids being relocated to a small regional environment,

In the beginning, the series focused on Pippa and Tom Fletcher, who, being unable to have children of their own, decide to become foster parents. When Tom is retrenched from his city job, the couple buy the rundown Summer Bay Caravan Park and move there with their five foster children. Soon after arriving, they also take in troublesome Bobby Simpson.

The series debuted in January 1988 with an hour-long telemovie. Although this rated well, the series itself took some while to develop an audience. Having learned their lesson from the Neighbours debacle, Network Seven gave its new show time, and its ratings gradually increased. As with Neighbours, the Home and Away series and performers became very popular in the United Kingdom.