Prisoner 

The lives of women behind bars in a female prison.

Stars:

Elspeth Ballantyne, Betty Bobbitt, Sheila Florance

10 wins.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Elspeth Ballantyne	...	Meg Morris / ... 669 episodes, 1979-1986
Betty Bobbitt	...	Judy Bryant 430 episodes, 1980-1985
Sheila Florance	...	Lizzie Birdsworth 405 episodes, 1979-1985
Maggie Kirkpatrick	...	Joan 'The Freak' Ferguson 389 episodes, 1982-1986
Val Lehman	...	Bea Smith 376 episodes, 1979-1983
Patsy King	...	Erica Davidson 354 episodes, 1979-1985
Gerda Nicolson	...	Ann Reynolds / ... 319 episodes, 1981-1986
Colette Mann	...	Doreen Burns / ... 295 episodes, 1979-1985

Storyline

This Australian series has, after 692 episodes, received cult status all over the world. The series takes place in Wentworth, a prison in Australia. Wentworth is a high-security female prison. The women are there for all sorts of crimes. We get to follow how they got there, their life in the prison and what becomes of them afterwards. We also get to follow the staff, their work in the prison and their personal relationships.

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Plot Keywords:

prison | female convict | prison life | prison cell | male female relationship | 

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Taglines:

The cult phenomenon from down under.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Anne Phelan worried over the superficial presentation of violence in the series, and would always reflect this in her performance: if Myra Desmond was physically fought she would continue 'injured' acting in following episodes whether referenced in the scripts or not.

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Goofs

Throughout the series, the walls and gates wobble when there is alot of movement.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Franky Doyle: She bumped into me.

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Alternate Versions

In the version shown by Channel 5 in the UK, episode 601, there was a cut of around 20 seconds when Wendy is threatening the women. She says, "Same goes for the rest of you scabs. Lou wasn't too rapt when she heard you broke the strike so I hear [from here onward, it was cut] (to Nancy) Oh what are you looking so scared about? You're name on the list is it? Eh? I wouldn't bet my boots on big chief Moron doing anything to help yous lot. He's too full of himself to worry about you lot. You should have known what side your bread was buttered on girls! Oh don't tell me [this is where the cut ended] Bird Brain's got something to say!"

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Connections

Featured in A Tribute to Neighbours: Celebrating 1000 Episodes (1989)

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Soundtracks

On the Inside
(Prisoner theme)
Composed by Allan Caswell
Conducted by William Motzing
Performed by Lynne Hamilton

User Reviews

Better Than "Oz"

This is certainly the best prison show ever, and probably the best soap opera/melodrama ever, too. It's humor and lack of pretension make it 100 times better than "Oz" will ever be. Of course, setting it in a women's prison gave the creators a lot more freedom in dealing with characters. We have fewer preconceptions so they couldn't rely on stereotypes like they do on "Oz". It would be neat, in a way, if they could have Vera (aka Vinegar Tits) guest star as a guard on Oz. She'd straighten that place up in short order! Somebody please bring this back to American TV!!

Details

Official Sites:

Official fan site

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 August 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Prisoner

Filming Locations:

Willsmere, Kew, Victoria, Australia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Grundy Television Productions, Network Ten, The Grundy Organization

Technical Specs

Runtime:

50 min (692 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1