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Australian Playhouse

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Australian Playhouse

Australian Playhouse was an Australian anthology TV series featuring the work of Australian writers.

It ran for two series consisting of 40 episodes. Among the featured productions were works by Pat Flower who was the main writer having written 10 episodes, other writers included Tony Morphett, John Warwick, Barbara Vernon, Richard Lane, James Davern and David Sale

In August 1965 Talbot Duckmanton of the ABC announced that the ABC would increase its production of local drama, including a show called Australian Playhouse. This would not necessary consist of Australian plays and be "of an experimental nature".

The series was the idea of producer David Goddard, father of actress Liza. Goddard worked on the show for nine months before it aired. He says he knew of a TV station which claimed it was going to so a TV series and asked for scripts, then claimed the scripts were not of standard; Goddard says the station never put on staff, and actually had no intention of making the show. "It was making a political gesture by saying it was trying to do something. It is absolutely scandalous that this sort of thing should have been going on here. And this is where the idea has been built up that there are no writers in Australia. As we shall prove, this is absolute rubbish."

Goddard said "There's a wealth of untouched and untapped gold in the Australian short story writer. The Australian is gifted with the ability to tell a story."

He said the show "will all be written by Australians and produced in Australia. And because they are written by Australians and aimed at television audiences primarily in Australia, they will reflect, comment on, or observe in a fictional way life in this country, as those writers see fit, know it, or have experienced it. In a word, it will be Australian drama."

In January 1966 Goddard announced that the ABC would make 39 episodes of 30 minutes each called Australian Playhouse. They would do 14 weeks "in all moods", then 12 "equally Australian dramas on a central theme", then 13 more. This would be in addition to the ABC's monthly dramas, and a comedy series. (The comedy series would be Nice and Jucy and Marcellus Jones.

Series one ran from April 1966 to early November 1966.

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