person or book cover
Script cover page (Crawford Collection at the AFI Research Collection)
form y separately published work icon The Gypsies single work   film/TV   crime  
Issue Details: First known date: 1971... 1971 The Gypsies
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Frank Scott reports to the police that he has been robbed and bashed by a group of gypsies during a journey home from Melbourne to Matlock.

'The gypsies' story however differs in some details. They agree that they stopped Scott's car on the road, but they deny the robbery and claim that one of the men of the tribe (Alexis) assaulted the Australian only when Scott tried to molest one of the gypsy girls.

'Alexis is arrested for the assault, and has to spend the night in jail. This is a source of distress to him, as his wife is about to give birth to her first baby and gypsy lore demands that he should be there. When the gypsies help Alexis escape during the night, Sergeant Maddern follows them to their camp, only to find the wife in obstetric difficulties, a problem solved by Jeannie MacIntyre, Maddern's nursing sister friend from Melbourne.

'The police also prove that Frank Scott's money was not his own, and was not stolen by the gypsies - it was the proceeds of a number of supermarket robberies, and Scott had spent it during a weekend in Melbourne. Scott and his partner in the robberies are apprehended.'

Source: Synopsis held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection (RMIT).


The script held in the Crawford Collection in the AFI Research Collection includes the following character notes:

'ALEXIS KATSAVAKIS Late 20's. Good looking young gypsy. Likeable personality, emotional - under great stress when separated from his pregnant wife. Drives a car, fights with Maddern. Large part.

'FRANK SCOTT Mid 30's. A plausible slob. Rough voice and manner. Treats his wife like dirt and is responsible for Alexis being wrongfully jailed. Drives a car. Large part.

'RENA KATSAVAKIS Early 20's. Alexis's sister. Attractive high spirited. The rebel member of the gypsy family. Fiercely loyal and protective but basically very likeable. Medium large part.

'PATERA KATSAVAKIS 50-60. The father of the tribe. An impressive man of high principles. Very much the Patriarch. Medium part.

'JEANNIE MCINTYRE As established.

'MARICA Early 20's. Alexis's wife. Pregnant throughout. Only a few lines but a key figure - must convey the pain and anguish of a labour full of problems. Medium part.

'HELENE Early 20's. Alexis's sister. Bright, likeable but a much less positive personality, than her sister Rena. Medium part.

'MITERA KATSAVAKIS 50-60. The mother of the gypsy tribe. Proud of her ability as a mid-wife and will not hear any criticism. Medium.part. [sic]

'NICK KATSAVAKIS Early 20's. Alexis's younger brother. Rather intense. Co-operates with Rena in a plan to "spring" Alexis from the Matlock cell. Drives a car. Medium small part.

'GYPSY CHILD Boy aged 9. 2 lines.

'GYPSY CHILD Girl aged 7 or 8. 2 lines.

'OWEN TAYLOR: 40ish. Rather objectioable [sic] small time crim. Fairly uncouth. 3 scenes.

'MANAGER OF SUPERMART 50ish. No lines, one scene.

'EDGAR 50ish. A town drunk. Will be amusing if played straight. A likeable character well known and happily tolerated by the Matlock Police.

'MISS FALCONER As established. 2 scenes.

'NANCY SCOTT. Late 20's Alikeable appealing long suffering wife [sic] who hopes she's pregnant, but gets no support from her husband.. [sic] Medium part.

'DAVID WALKER J.P. 40-50 An un-imaginative no-nonsense professional man, who has no sense of humour. Rather patronising to the gypsies. One important scene.

'JUDY BROWN. Early 20's. A prostitute, attractive in a cheap and nasty way. 2 scenes.

'DET. PETER STEVENS. 30 ish. A rather stolid man. doggedly doing his duty. [sic] Has a long rather formal speech. One scene.'

Notes

  • This entry has been compiled from archival research in the Crawford Collection (AFI Research Collection), undertaken by Dr Catriona Mills under the auspices of the 2012 AFI Research Collection (AFIRC) Research Fellowship: see The Writer in Australian Television History.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

      1971 .
      person or book cover
      Script cover page (Crawford Collection at the AFI Research Collection)
      Extent: 76p.
      (Manuscript) assertion
      Note/s:
      • Two copies of the script are held in this file, both copied on pink paper and both labelled 'Episode 3A' on the cover page.
      • One copy of the script has a notation in the top right-hand corner of the cover page indicating that it is designated for 'File'. It shows no other signs of annotation.
      • The other copy of the script has a notation in the top right-hand corner of the cover page indicating that it is designated for Henry Crawford. This copy of the script is annotated: underlining in lead pencil (see, for example, page 55) appears fairly regularly through the script, under both dialogue and stage directions. There is no sign of any other annotations.
      • Both scripts have a list of crew credits on the final page:
        Written by Terry Stapleton.
        Edited by Graham Foreman.
        Typed by Jenny Barty, Shirley Ballard, Phyllis Bayne, Denise Morgan, Brenda Eterovic, Elizabeth Cotterill, Christine Paterson, Nola Stone, Sandie Siebel.
        Checked by Geoffrey Koker, Phylis Bayne, Denise Morgan, Brenda Eterovic, Elizabeth Cotterill, Christine Paterson, Nola Stone, Sandie Siebel.
        Duplicated by Dennis Ingham.
        There is a section below these for 'Producer's Remarks', but it has been left blank.
      • The file also contains ancillary materials to which access is restricted, including forms relating to the production of the episode and casting call sheets.

      Holdings

      Held at: AFI Research Collection
      Local Id: SC MAT : 21
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Crawford Productions ; Network Ten , 1971 .
      Extent: 45.45 (as at 23.4.71, according to the cover page)p.
      Series: form y separately published work icon Matlock Police Terry Stapleton , Ian Jones , Everett de Roche , Ian Jones , Terry Stapleton , Keith Hetherington , Patrick Edgeworth , Tom Hegarty , Douglas Tainsh , Graeme Koetsveld , Peter A. Kinloch , Sonia Borg , Don Battye , Robert Caswell , George T. Miller , Gwenda Marsh , Cliff Green , Vince Moran , Luis Bayonas , David William Boutland , Phil Freedman , Keith Thompson , Denise Morgan , C.F. Barnes , Robert Bruce , Alan Cram , Vern Perry , Martin Robbins , John Dingwall , George Mallaby , Jim Stapleton , Simon Wincer , Melbourne Australia : Crawford Productions Network Ten , 1971-1976 Z1638563 1971 series - publisher film/TV detective crime

      The Matlock Police series (originally simply titled Matlock) was commissioned from Crawford Productions by ATV-0, in response to the popularity of rival-network police dramas such as Homicide and Division 4. Crawford's was initially reluctant to create another police series, but ATV-0 pressured the company for some time. Eventually, Ian Jones and Terry Stapleton devised the concept of a regional (Victorian) police series to provide viewers with something different. The more relaxed atmosphere of the country-town setting also allowed the writers to delve into the private lives of the main characters, rather than focusing heavily on big-city organised crime. In this respect, the series was situated somewhere between Homicide/Division 4 and Bellbird. The series did, however, cover typical rural policing, including such issues as break and enters, domestic issues, itinerant workers, brawls, petty crime and robberies, road accidents, the occasional homicide, and cattle rustling. On other occasions, the Matlock police also assisted Melbourne police in locating criminals on the run (among other problems). The idea behind the show was to reflect the causes of crime in a small community and show the effects on both the community and the officers themselves.

      The fictional town of Matlock (loosely based on Shepparton in Victoria) is situated inland on the Central Highway, approximately 160 kilometres north of Melbourne. Although the town's population is only seventeen thousand, this increases to around seventy-five thousand when the district is included. The Matlock Police Station is typical of a Victorian country town, with a Uniform Branch and a Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB). The CIB is headed by Detective Sergeant Vic Maddern, who grew up in the Matlock district and is an accomplished bushman. Second in command is Detective Allan Curtis, aged in his mid-twenties. Previously from Melbourne, Curtis has just been sent to his first country posting (against his will) when the series begins. Head of the Uniform Branch is Sergeant Bert Kennedy, an Englishman who migrated to Australia in 1950. A thorough but also easy-going man with a good sense of humour, Kennedy is married to Nell and enjoys the country life in Matlock, so much so that he has knocked back promotion to avoid moving to Melbourne. Several constables are attached to the Uniform Branch, but the most prominent is a motorcycle cop, Constable Gary Hogan, who performs a wide variety of duties. Hogan is about thirty, a friendly, easy-going person who grew up in the country and is always willing to help in whatever work is going.

      Number in series: 21
Last amended 30 May 2013 15:13:45
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