form y separately published work icon The Foreigners single work   film/TV   crime  
Issue Details: First known date: 1971... 1971 The Foreigners
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Among the migrants who have come to Australia since the second world war [sic] is a group of Albanian Moslems, whose religions and customs have made their assimilation into the rest of the community difficult.

'This episode deals with a feud between two young Albanians, the Mustapha brothers, and an older man, Abdul Sadik. The police involvement increases as the Albanians grow more violent, and an attempt is made on Sadik's life, apparently by one of the younger men.

'Investigation of the incident proves that it is not the Mustapha brothers who are responsible, but a bigoted Australian who hates foreigners.

'Interwoven with the main plot is the situation of Sadik's wife Naeema. Her arranged marriage to Abdul is a source of unhappiness because he treats her as a possession rather than a human being.

'Sadik realises how much he needs her, but by then it is too late to save the marriage, and she leaves Matlock to start a new life.'


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 (excluding regular characters):

'ABDUL SADIK: Albanian, in his late forties. As a result of hard work he has become a successful market gardener. He is Muslim, firmly believing in the traditions and laws of the past. His family ruled the village he comes from before Albania became a Republic. He is stubborn, proud, harsh in his views. Has neither the desire nor the ability to adjust to his new country.

'Married to a woman who is more independent than the traditional Muslim wife. This causes constant friction, particularly as he knows she is better educated than he and fears that she despises him.

'HAS TO DRIVE CAR AND TRUCK. (Very little truckdriving involved.)

'NAEEMA SADIK: In her thirties, came to Melbourne in her teens and went to an Australian school for three years. The marriage to Sadik had been arranged by her family and she has been unhappy ever since.

'KEITH EVANS: Australian; in his late twenties; a truckdriver. Goodnatured, reasonably intelligent, thoroughly likeable. An inborn sense of chivalry. Strongly attracted to Naeema whom he sees as mysterious, helpless and victimised.

'HAS TO DRIVE TRUCK WELL.

'RON EVANS: Keith's father. In his late fifties; Australian. Runs beef cattle. An aggressive brute - primitive and cunning. Jealous of his son. In spite of his prejudice against foreigners, he is interested in Naeema.

'MRS. EVANS: Keither's mother. Late forties. A simple woman, basically kind. Resigned to her life.

'YOSEF MUSTAPHA: Early twenties; Albanian. Quick tempered, proud, resentful. Hates Sadik who has tried to dominate him and stoops at nothing [sic] to annoy and humiliate the older man.

'OMAR MUSTAPHA: About thirty years old. More sensible and restrained than his younger brother. Feels responsible for what has happened but does not have the strength of character to stop his younger brother Yosef's actions.

'MR. FORD: Middle-aged businessman. Very drunk - is at police station because he cannot find his car. Tries to 'establish a dialogue' with the foreigners. Has a quick change of mood when they don't co-operate.

'MR. JONES: Australian; owns a large Produce Store. Should have a quiet authority and should be tall and well-built. The type who can stop a fight with just a few words.

'DRIVER OF CAR: A middle-aged man who is involved in a car accident.

'MR. ADAMS: Elderly, rather simple person. Lives in Matlock proper and knows everything that's going on.

'WILLIE SCOTT: About 40 years old, a farmhand. Laconic, curious, likeable. Australian accent.

MUST DRIVE TRACTOR.'



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

    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Crawford Productions ; Network Ten , 1971 .
      Extent: 44 min. and 18 secs, according to the scriptp.
      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: 38
      1971 .
      person or book cover
      Script cover page (Crawford Collection at the AFI Research Collection)
      Extent: 85p.
      (Manuscript) assertion
      Note/s:
      • The Crawford Collection holds two copies of the script, both copied on pink paper and labelled 'Episode 3P' on the cover page.
      • Copy 1 has an notation in the top right-hand corner of the cover page indicating that this copy of the script was designated for 'Miss Crawford' (Dorothy Crawford). There are no signs of annotations on this copy of the script.
      • Copy 2 has an notation in the top right-hand corner of the cover page indicating that this copy of the script is designated for Bob Gardiner, who (according to the Crawford Productions tribute website crawfordproductions.tv) was head of the sound department between 1967 and 1981.
      • Copy 2 includes some annotations in black ink, mostly involving circling or underlining sections (see, for example, page 37). In one instance, the annotation is more detailed: on page 54, next to the stage direction, 'SADIK STOOPS, PICKS UP A BUCKET AND POURS THE CONTENTS ONTO THE GROUND', someone has written in the blank space, 'EFFECT OF WATER ON DIRT'. Additional annotations in blue felt pen appear on on page 43, noting a music cue. A brief annotation in lead pencil appears on page 79, around the name of one of the characters in the stage directions.
      • The file also includes the following ancillary material, access to some of which is restricted:
        1. Three pages of script amendments, sent as a memo from Moya Wood to 'All on distribution lists for "Matlock Police" Ep.3P'. This copy of the memo is labelled 'Miss Crawford' in black felt pen in the top-right hand corner of the front page. The amendments include one relatively minor change to staging and two equally minor changes to dialogue, then a one-and-a-half page amendment to page 7 of the script. This amendment itself has been amended in black felt pen (in a different hand to the one that wrote the notation on page 1).
        2. Casting call sheet.
        3. Cast list.

      Holdings

      Held at: AFI Research Collection
      Local Id: SC MAT : 38
Last amended 30 May 2013 15:16:39
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