A Place to Call Home is an Australian television drama series created by Bevan Lee for the Seven Network. It premiered on 28 April 2013. Set in rural New South Wales in the period following the Second World War, it follows Sarah Adams (Marta Dusseldorp), who has returned to Australia after twenty years abroad to start a new life and ends up clashing with wealthy matriarch Elizabeth Bligh (Noni Hazlehurst). The main cast also consists of Brett Climo (George Bligh), Craig Hall (Dr. Jack Duncan), David Berry (James Bligh), Abby Earl (Anna Poletti), Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood (Olivia Bligh), Aldo Mignone (Gino Poletti), Sara Wiseman (Carolyn Bligh), Jenni Baird as (Regina Bligh) and Frankie J. Holden (Roy Briggs).
It has been described as a "compelling melodrama about love and loss set against the social change of the 1950s".
The sixth and final season will air in August 2018.
Video A Place to Call Home (TV series)
Cast and characters
Main current cast
- Marta Dusseldorp as Sarah Adams, who despite a strictly religious Catholic upbringing, had moved to Paris to be with the man she loved and to adopt his Jewish faith. However, a new life awaits her when she comes to work for the local hospital near the Bligh family, whom she met while serving as a nurse on the ship taking them all back to Australia from Europe. Later, she is astonished to hear a report that her husband is still alive following World War II, and her life again spins into troubled times.
- Noni Hazlehurst as Elizabeth Bligh, the headstrong and stubborn matriarch of the Bligh family. She is at first rude and cruel to Sarah, but she grudgingly mellows over time. Later in the series, she leaves for Sydney to live with her daughter Carolyn, and to become a better person.
- Brett Climo as Elizabeth's son, George Bligh, a good-hearted man who takes Sarah under his protection and gradually falls in love with her. He is Elaine's widower; at the beginning of the series, he appears to be father to James and Anna; eventually it emerges that Anna is actually a secret child of his sister Carolyn and their friend Jack, taken in by George and Elaine to spare Carolyn any scandal. His worst flaw may be his trust in people who seek to take advantage of him.
- Craig Hall as Jack Duncan, the secret past lover of Carolyn, who now faces many challenges in his work as a doctor in a hospital run by the Bligh family. He is a genuine person despite his personal problems and would do anything to help others.
- David Berry as James Bligh (regular: seasons 1-4; recurring: season 5), the only son of George and Elaine, who grows up unaware of his "sister" Anna's true background. He marries Olivia, but is tormented by the realisation that he is gay, and tries to commit suicide. He later feels betrayed when his wife has an affair, but returns to Ash Park to live for his young son.
- Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood as Olivia Bligh, James' wife, a newlywed from England at the start of the series. She develops anger toward James for his indifference to her desperate need for affection, but does try to come to terms with his "condition".
- Abby Earl as Anna Bligh, the secret child of Carolyn and Jack, who was raised believing she was daughter of George and Elaine. Anna marries a local farmer, Gino, after rebelling against the Bligh family. However the marriage faces difficulties when Gino goes into debt, and his attempts to expand the farm fail.
- Frankie J. Holden as Roy Briggs, a kindly old farmer who lives alone at the series start. He is very generous toward Sarah from the time she arrives in town, eventually offering her a refuge in his small home. They develop an easy, informal, mutually-supportive friendship.
- Sara Wiseman as Carolyn Bligh (regular: season 2-present; recurring: season 1). Much like her secret daughter Anna, Carolyn was the rebel child of her generation. For a long time, she gave up on her relationship with the Bligh family, and has had little contact for years. Once her secret is revealed, she is reunited with her long-separated daughter Anna and they develop an even closer relationship than before. Later on Carolyn works for Sir Richard Bennett, encountering new problems.
- Tim Draxl as Doctor Henry Fox (regular: season 3-present), the doctor who helps to save George's life after he is shot. Henry then goes on to befriend James, and they realize their mutual attraction to each other is stronger than mere friendship. Henry falls under the devious control of Regina, when she blackmails him into supplying her with morphine for her addiction.
- Deborah Kennedy as Doris Collins (regular: season 4-present; recurring: seasons 1-3), the most widely-known member of the Inverness village, who seems omnipresent on her bicycle. Although she means well, her gossiping ways can sometimes make her seem rude and intrusive. Sarah dislikes her at first, but as time goes on, finds her helpful as someone who always knows who has done what in the village.
Main departed cast
- Aldo Mignone as Gino Poletti (seasons 1-4), the young, handsome Italian farmer who has set Anna's heart on fire. He has a real passion for farming and trying to please everybody, but his ambitious business decisions are not very successful.
- Jenni Baird as Regina Standish (season 1-5), the widowed, formerly wealthy and still money-hungry sister of George's late wife, Elaine. Regina is the opposite of who Elaine had been: cold, bitter, and scheming, she despises Jews and openly displays religious intolerance toward Sarah. Regina has now set her sights on the widower George's inheritance, and would take extreme actions to achieve her goals regardless of anyone she sees as an obstacle. After being committed in an asylum for the murder of Millie Davis and a policeman, Regina was let go in 1958. She returned to the town and helped Sarah and George fight Sir Richard's cruel intentions. She committed suicide at the end of season 5, overdosing on morphine and making her death appear to be homicide.
- Dominic Allburn as Harry Polson (regular: season 1; recurring: season 4), Amy's gay brother. He has a brief romantic involvement with James, but when much of the village learns of Harry's true nature, he leaves Inverness for a new life elsewhere. Later, when he returns after having been severely beaten, Sarah helps him to settle back into a more stable life at Inverness.
- Matt Levett as Andrew Swanson (regular: season 2; recurring: season 1), a somewhat entitled heir apparent who tries to win the hand of Anna Bligh.
- Ben Winspear as Doctor Rene Nordmann (regular: season 3; recurring: season 2), the long-lost first love and husband of Sarah Adams. First seen only in flashback, Rene had been arrested by the Nazi occupiers of Paris, and had disappeared without a trace. Later, when Sarah is amazed to learn that he is still alive, she travels to Paris to rescue him from the deep psychological damage caused by his long ordeal of imprisonment and torture. Rene has great difficulty adjusting to normal life, and still seems to carry his imprisonment within him.
- Brenna Harding as Rose O'Connell (regular: season 4; recurring: season 3)
- Robert Coleby as Douglas Goddard, a retiree who ran a club for Australian war veterans. He married Elizabeth Bligh but died in season 5.
Recurring
- Heather Mitchell as Prudence Swanson, the wealthy friend of Elizabeth. Prudence socializes with Elizabeth whenever she comes to visit Sydney. As a member of Sydney's upper class, she is very aristocratic and looks down her nose at Sarah when she arrives for a garden party.
- Judi Farr as Peg Maloney, the aunt of Sarah Adams, who writes to her frequently from her home in Sydney. She and Sarah have grown very close, and when Sarah later decides to take a difficult action, she asks Peg for help.
- Dina Panozzo as Carla Poletti, the mother of Gino. She is very critical of the relationship with Anna and her son, saying that it will never work because she is not Catholic. But when George accedes, she does so as well.
- Krew Boylan and then Amy Mathews as Amy Polson, the maid of the Bligh household. When Regina suspects that James is gay she manipulates Amy into spying for her, which eventually forces Elizabeth to fire Amy with great sorrow.
- Angelo D'Angelo as Amo Poletti, the father of Gino
- Jacinta Acevski as Alma Grey
- Scott Grimley as Norman Parker (driver)
- Rick Donald as Lloyd Ellis-Parker, a talented portrait artist on temporary assignment, who seems to offer Olivia the romantic affection she desperately craves.
- Michael Sheasby as Bert Ford, a local yobbo who always seems to be looking for a fight. His suspicion of outsiders and religious intolerance make Sarah a natural target, as are the Italian Poletti family. Bert disappears under mysterious circumstances, but his unknown fate continues to haunt his former victims.
- Mark Lee as Sir Richard Bennett, a rich and powerful, but unprincipled owner of a major city newspaper. He is used to taking whatever he wishes to possess, including the people around him.
- Conrad Coleby as Matthew Goddard, Douglas' son who returns to town after his father's death. He starts dating Olivia and later asks her to marry him.
Maps A Place to Call Home (TV series)
Production
Development for A Place to Call Home began after Bevan Lee completed his "domestic trilogy" (Always Greener, Packed to the Rafters and Winners & Losers). He took inspiration from film director Douglas Sirk's 1950s films such as Written on the Wind (1956) and All That Heaven Allows (1955). Lee told The Age that he wanted to create a romance-driven melodrama based in the 1950s because people's lives in the present are "relatively bland". He said: "At the end of the day, conflict is drama and we live in relatively conflict-free society. I had to go to a place where there was pain and damage and hurt; after the war there was." The script is co-written by Lee and Trent Atkinson.
Noni Hazlehurst (Elizabeth Bligh) was the first cast member to be announced for A Place to Call Home, on 18 June 2012. Marta Dusseldorp (Sarah Adams), Brett Climo (George Bligh) and Frankie J. Holden (Roy Briggs) were announced a month later, with Dusseldorp leading the overall cast. Newcomers David Berry (James Bligh), Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood (Olivia Bligh), Abby Earl (Anna Bligh) and Aldo Mignone (Gino Poletti), made up the rest of the main cast.
A Place to Call Home is set primarily in both the fictional estate "Ash Park" and the nearby fictional town of "Inverness" in country New South Wales. Inverness was also used as the country setting of Always Greener. Camden and the Southern Highlands in New South Wales serves as the backdrop for Inverness. Ash Park is actually Camelot, a heritage-listed property located at Kirkham, on the outskirts of Camden. Sydney, the capital city of New South Wales, is a third location where major events occur, but most city scenes are filmed indoors, aside from some establishing shots such as historic footage of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Filming for the first season began on 9 July 2012 and concluded on 12 December 2012. Season one was shot on a Sony F65 camera, the first Australian television production to do so.
In June 2013, Erin McWhirter of TV Week announced that A Place to Call Home had been renewed for another season. Abby Earl told McWhirter, "We're locked in pre-production in August and then we start filming in September, so there's plenty of time for me to get back in Anna's shoes." The second season started on 11 May 2014 and concluded on 13 July 2014.
TV Week confirmed that a third season had been commissioned. However, in June 2014, the magazine reported that Channel Seven had declined the option to renew the series, and that the cast and crew had been told that they would not be required for a third season.
On 15 October 2014, it was announced that Foxtel had finalised a deal with Channel Seven that would see a third season written by Bevan Lee, produced by Seven Productions, but aired on Foxtel. On 25 October 2014, The Daily Telegraph announced that A Place to Call Home was renewed for another two seasons and would return in late 2015, airing on Foxtel channel, SoHo. It was also announced that all the original cast and crew members would return.
On 16 August 2015 it was announced via the official Facebook page that season 3 would premiere on 27 September 2015 on SoHo. Season 4 premiered on Foxtel's Showcase channel on 11 September 2016.
Season 5 was announced by Foxtel on 16 November 2016. The timeline of season 5 skips ahead from 1954 to the year 1958. Production of A Place to Call Home resumed in February 2017 with principal photography continuing through July 2017. Season 5 premiered on Foxtel's Showcase Channel in Australia starting on 8 October 2017.
A sixth season was announced by Foxtel on 6 December 2017 to be aired in 2018.
Release
Broadcast
When Seven Network revealed its new television series lineup for 2012, A Place to Call Home was mentioned alongside other titles. Seven Network's Angus Ross said that it would potentially premiere in late 2012, but would not be rushed to air by a certain date unless "casting and other elements" were right. The first season of A Place to Call Home consisted of thirteen episodes. The pilot episode was originally broadcast on 28 April 2013, in the 8:30 pm time slot (previously occupied by Downton Abbey).
International
Shortly after airing in Australia A Place to Call Home started broadcasting on TV One in New Zealand.
Series one and two began airing on BBC2 in the United Kingdom on 17 November 2014, series three on 25 February 2016, and series four on 13 February 2017. The fifth series was promoted to a BBC1 daytime slot, and began airing daily on 13 March 2018.
The first five seasons are available for streaming in the U.S. on Acorn TV. The show is also distributed to television stations by American Public Television.
Home media
Box sets
Notes
Soundtrack
A Place to Call Home -- Music from Seasons 1-5 was released on 20 October 2017
Reception
Awards and nominations
- Australian Cinematographers Society Awards
- Equity Ensemble Awards
- Logie Awards
References
External links
- Official website
- A Place to Call Home on IMDb
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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