As with many continuing series, there are ups and downs and different phases a series passes through during its run. Particularly such a long running series as Prisoner. Here is a brief run down of the different phases of Prisoner:
Prisoner was originally devised as a 16 X 1 hour episode series. The initial emphasis according to publicity at the time was realism, although naturally they had to make it entertaining as well. The original cast basically represented each character 'type' that may well be found in any women's prison - ignoring the fact that in reality the vast majority of women prisoners are serving time for drug charges.
The original prisoners and their crimes:
· Bea Smith (murder - was released March 1979 having served 10 years)
· Franky Doyle (armed robbery and murder - life sentence)
· Karen Travers (murder - life sentence)
· Lyn Warner (kidnapping - 10 years)
· Doreen Anderson (forgery, theft)
· Lizzie Birdsworth (murder - had served around 20 years in 1979)
· Jeanette 'Mum' Brooks (murder - had served 20 years in 1979)
· Marilyn Mason (prostitution - sentence was about three months)
The original staff comprised:
· Erica Davidson (Governor)
· Vera Bennett (Deputy Governor)
· Meg Jackson (Officer)
· Dr Greg Miller (Doctor)
The other original regular was electrician, Eddie Cook.
Ordinary and 'nice' school teacher Karen Travers murders her sadistic husband and due to her strict catholic beliefs becomes a martyr. She refuses to defend herself believing she should be punished for her crimes and therefore is sentenced to life in prison. She is sent to Wentworth and arrives the same time as Lyn Warner. Karen's introduction to the prison is also the viewers introduction to the series. She is initially shocked and terrified by the prison and its inhabitants but soon toughens up in order to cope.
Lyn Warner is the other newcomer. Like Karen she is not a career criminal like many of the others. She is also shocked and terrified entering Wentworth and her experiences introduce the viewers to all of the prison's goings-on.
Naturally Karen and Lyn each have their individual problems in settling in. Karen's main problems are with tough Lesbian Franky Doyle who is besotted with her. Lyn, having been charged with kidnapping a child, is very unpopular with most of the prisoners, particularly the tough top-dog, Bea Smith.
Other prisoners have brief bits during these early episodes as well: Mum Brooks is not a career criminal either. She offers support and advice to newcomer Lyn Brooks (and hence plot exposition for the viewers). She is just about to complete a 20-year sentence for the euthanasia death of her husband. She is released and we see the difficulties facing a long-term prisoner being released into a hostile world.
Doreen Anderson is a simple young career criminal with a low self-esteem. Basically she is padding and comic relief in the early episodes.
Lizzie Birdsworth is an elderly long-term inmate who was initially used as padding.
Marilyn Mason was a sexy blonde Bridget Bardot-type who is serving a brief sentence for prostitution. She also provides the obligatory romantic storyline with her rocky relationship with electrician Eddie Cook.
Of the staff - each 'type' is economically presented:
· Erica Davidson is the sometimes strict, sometimes progressive, prison Governor.
· Meg Jackson is the 'nice' officer.
· Vera Bennett is the 'nasty' (but relatively harmless) officer.
· Dr Greg Miller the 'nice' prison doctor, also providing additional romantic interest with Karen Travers, as well as general prison theology.
The initial storylines were mostly quite good. Due to the envisioned short run of the series the storylines move along very quickly. These early scenes have a sort of theatrical, stilted feel which actually works very well considering the prison setting.
Originally the end of the series was to coincide with the death of Franky Doyle.
After the first 10 episodes the popularity of the series prompted the decision to extend it from 16 to 20 episodes. Then it became an indefinitely running serial. Many of the original characters simply had not been written to last this long, and many of the actresses involved did not want to commit to this sort of workload. The initial storylines also were not written for this long-term run and therefore an eerie 'limbo' effect was felt for awhile.
Actresses Mary Ward (who played Mum) and Carol Burns (Franky) left the series as they did not want to be part of a long-running serial. This was a good decision as their characters had really reached their conclusion anyway.
The characters Marilyn and Eddie were quickly written out as they had reached the end of their storyline.
Karen Travers and Lyn Warner, who were not career criminals but were only included to guide the viewers through the introduction to the prison were left with very little to do. Their original storylines were basically re-hashed, with varying results. Lyn was eventually written out after the first 6 months. The writers persevered with Karen. Additional storylines to keep her amused included a brief story where Karen helps a young Greek inmate who cannot speak English, Karen then attends University lectures by day, and is then released and opens a halfway house for women who are just out of prison. Once in the halfway house Karen was mostly seen sitting at the kitchen table with a chequebook and pad of paper in front of her and an anguished look on her face - no doubt trying to come up with additional storylines for herself. She apparently failed and actress Peta Toppano left the series at the end of 1979. Karen's departure also spelt the end for prison Doctor Greg Miller.
These departures had the pleasing effect of bringing the remaining (and more interesting) cast members into more prominent roles, particularly Lizzie and Doreen. The writers tried various stories for these characters, mainly, an extended stint with Doreen and Lizzie being released from Wentworth and living at the halfway house with Karen. This may have been partly to provide dull Karen with additional storylines but it did not work. Fortunately Doreen and Lizzie were soon back in Wentworth with Bea were they were all much more fun.
During 1979 several additional characters were added to fill the gaps. Two that caught on were stern, no-nonsense Deputy Governor Jim Fletcher and rough inmate Noelene Burke. Actress Lesley Baker appeared early on in 1979 as Bea's 'old mate' and previous Wentworth inmate Monica Ferguson. It appeared that she was intended as a permanent character but she ended up only lasting a few months. Another major character to join early on was Pat O'Connell, an ordinary housewife who became friends with Bea Smith. Pat stayed in Wentworth several months.
As had been suggested in the initial publicity for the series, as it progressed through the first year new storylines attempted to trace the crimes that lead to the women's incarceration in Wentworth Detention Centre, and court-room scenes were added to show how prisoners battled the law before their imprisonment. These storylines met with limited success however and the writers soon realised that more fun was to be had with the regular day to day antics of Wentworth's established inhabitants. During 1979 the popular Bea, Lizzie and Doreen gang emerged.
At the end of 1979 the series began to take the form that fans know and love. The following three to four year period was the most popular and best remembered period of the series. Around this time several popular characters first appeared and began their lengthy stints in the series. Most notably Judy Bryant (Betty Bobbit), Margo Gaffney (Jane Clifton), Helen Smart (Caroline Gillmer), and Heather 'Mouse' Trapp (Jentah Sobbot). The end of 1979 also saw the welcome return of Chrissie Latham (Amanda Muggleton).
Unlike some of the storylines that had featured during the first year, most of the action of the next few years concentrated on the internal dramas of Wentworth Detention Centre.
From the beginning of 1980 the following character dynamics emerged and basically continued until mid-to-late 1983 with storylines dominated by the following characters:
On the wrong side of the bars we had Bea, Lizzie and Doreen. Bea was the tough leader, Lizzie the lovable but crotchety old dear, and Doreen the wayward youngster finding support and guidance from the other two. They were the 'good' prisoners and would sometimes play host to guest 'good' prisoners that may spend only a relatively short time in the series. The baddies were usually semi-regulars Margo Gaffney and Chrissie Latham, and while they were not Bea's biggest enemies, they weren't her best friends either. More disliked baddies were Noelene Burke and Marie Winter who had relatively short-lived although well remembered roles.
The Bea, Lizzie and Doreen dynamic was joined in 1980 by newcomer Judy Bryant. Judy provided the much needed blend of sensitivity, toughness and independence to the series: up to then everyone followed what Bea said - or else. Judy was tough enough to stand up to Bea whenever she saw fit and as a result quickly became an integral character in the series. The twist was that Doreen and Lizzie were close friends with both Bea and Judy. Bea and Judy soon made peace and became friends but Judy always stood up for what she believed in - even when it conflicted with Bea, and often when this occurred Bea was surprised to find Lizzie and Doreen siding with Judy.
The officers side of things generally revolved around prissy Governor Erica Davidson who would shift between being strict and severe or soft and syrupy depending on the script requirements. Erica usually found support in Meg Jackson, with a varying amounts of hostility from Deputy Governor Jim Fletcher and considerable hostility from officious Vera Bennett. Meg and Vera had the odd squabble as well with Jim Fletcher sometimes getting in on the act.
The first major change to this lineup occurred late 1981, episode #224, with the departure of Officer Vera Bennett who had been with the series from episode one. Previously semi-regular Officer Colleen Powell skilfully and seamlessly slipped into the tough screw role. Colleen soon became a nasty, strict and frighteningly ambitious officer. She would have done almost anything to get the coveted job of Deputy Governor, often battling with Meg Jackson. Finally she did get this job and calmed down a bit. Two new, inexperienced Officers, handsome young male Officer Steve Fawkner, and Janet Conway joined Wentworth. Steve lasted several months and his main problem was his bending the rules for the women too often. Janet Conway suffered the usual dramas befalling any new inexperienced officer while also playing romantic interest for Jim Fletcher. Janet's other twist was that she had previously been a prisoner at Wentworth, and had known Bea Smith from those days. With these changes the general format of the series was beginning to shift.
There was always a couple of short-term guest prisoner characters floating around at any time, however it was still always the Bea, Judy, Lizzie, Doreen show. One break from the usual formula came at the end of 1981 around episodes #235 to #274. In very quick succession Doreen and Judy were transferred to Barnhurst, Lizzie was transferred to another block in Wentworth and Bea was sent off to hospital with her kidney ailment. Two strong new prisoner characters Sandy Edwards and Dr Kate Peterson entered Wentworth, and Marie Winter was transferred back in from Barnhurst. This was a welcome change from the usual formula that had dominated for so long. It also allowed background characters such as Phyllis Hunt and Hazel Kent to grab a bigger bit of the pie, usually they didn't get much of a chance. Semi-regular character Margo Gaffney who hadn't been seen for awhile made a brief return appearance as well.
Shortly after her reappearance, Marie started a huge riot at Wentworth. The new Officers Steve Fawkner and Janet Conway were held hostage during this riot. Marie and Sandy both wanted to take over as top-dog. This storyline featured an interesting twist in the dynamics between Sandy, Marie and Kate, with all sorts of scheming, plotting, threats and finally a murder occurring. Judy and Lizzie came back midway through all this but for awhile they took a back seat, script-wise. Finally Bea and then Doreen came back as well, just in time to witness the demise of Kate, Sandy, and Marie (who was shipped back to Barnhurst). In reality of course actresses Val Lehman and Colette Mann (Bea and Doreen) took time off to appear in the film, Kitty and the Bagman. Nonetheless it was a breath of fresh air to see someone else dominating Wentworth for awhile.
The next main character to go was Officer Jim Fletcher. His sudden departure led to Janet Conway's departure soon after. The writers unconvincingly had her go off and marry the prison's newly arrived printing instructor and move to Queensland. The silly thing was that she had just broken up with Jim and then goes off and marries someone else, while the man she marries had initially been interested in Meg Jackson.
Another change shortly afterwards was Judy Bryant's release from prison. She remained in the series however, and was seen running the halfway house for women.
Then in late 1982 - episode #303, Doreen Burns departed the series. The arrival of young prisoner Maxine Daniels served as Doreen's replacement. Maxine continued in the series for about 12 months. Although some major long-term characters had now departed, the producers replaced them quickly with characters who were popular in their own right, so the loss was not too obvious. The tide, however, was beginning to turn.
A big change to the popular formula began with the addition, in May 1982, episode #287, of formidable Officer Joan Ferguson. This heralded major changes to the series that would gradually occur over the following 18 months. Superficially this character appeared to be taking over the Vera Bennett nasty officer role, but the character of Ferguson was actually something completely different. In terms of her impact on the series itself, the difference was that suddenly Prisoner became The Joan Ferguson Show. Unlike Vera and most of the other characters, Joan Ferguson suddenly developed a following of non-Prisoner viewers. Anyone who knew anything about television would instantly equate Prisoner with the horrible Joan Ferguson. It was a bit like JR in Dallas or Alexis in Dynasty, which were both airing at that time: you did not need to watch these series to know who those characters were. Not even the great Bea Smith ever achieved quite this sort of fame. The hated Joan Ferguson was soon nicknamed 'The Freak'. Coming when she did, just after the gradual departure of the core cast members had begun, Ferguson soon found herself becoming the lead character in the scripts as well as the publicity. As each major star left the show, Ferguson got that little bit more important, picking up the slack left by the missing character. During Joan Ferguson's first 18 months in the series the following major long term characters left the series (in this order): Officer Steve Fawkner, Doreen, Mouse, Margo, Chrissie, Erica, Bea and then Lizzie. By the beginning of 1984 with most of the favourites gone, it was only natural for the writers to turn to Joan Ferguson for strength.
With the arrival of Joan Ferguson, Officer Colleen Powell softened a bit and became more likable.
Around seven months after Joan Ferguson's arrival was the big Wentworth fire of November 1982. It was in the fall-out of the fire that most of the characters departed. From episode one of 1983 we also saw a subtle change in that the camera work became more freer and a bit more 'arty'. After the fire, many the prison interiors had also been rebuilt giving the series a whole new look. A new nasty prisoner, Nola McKenzie, joined the series just as the exodus began and she seemed likely to become part of the new guard. This was not to be however and Nola made her exit after only six months. It must be said that many fans at the time were surprised at Nola's sudden departure considering the way she had been written up in the scripts. It really seemed she was being groomed to fill the gap when Bea Smith's imminent departure occurred. After Nola's demise, Phyllis Hunt emerged as the leading prison tough.
Around this time as well the regular cast became slightly larger than normal and three or four different storylines would sometimes run concurrently.
In the midst of Joan Ferguson's rise to power, the new Governor, Ann Reynolds, joined in early 1982. She proved a stabilising and popular character and stayed until the end of the series in December 1986. Joan Ferguson, of course, had wanted this job herself.
Script wise, Joan Ferguson's increasing importance signalled another major change. While before there was always the tough top-dog and the nasty officer and the officious Governor, they all battled each other for power but no one ever actually gained complete and utter control of the prison. Ferguson, however, came pretty close to this several times and Bea Smith and the subsequent top-dog's never seemed to be quite as powerful as Bea had been in her peak.
Sadly, in September 1983 - episode #400, much loved character Bea Smith finally departed the series. Simply, this was a great loss to the series that literally took years to heal. Many fans agree that the series was never the same after Bea's departure. The end of a truly great character.
Another great loss, almost as devastating, was the loss of the other favourite, Lizzie, which came a couple of months later in episode #418. Over the years other characters had come and gone but viewers could always rely on the Bea and Lizzie team. Sadly this era was now over.
After Bea's departure in a new group of prisoners gradually rose the ranks from guest-support characters to become the leading characters of the series. Lovable inmates such as Pixie Mason, Cass Parker, Minnie Donovan, Bobbie Mitchell emerged from guest star status to form the core cast of prisoners. To lead them, Judy Bryant was brought back to Wentworth. Shortly after the loss of Lizzie in the first episode of 1984 they were joined by Myra Desmond, who took over as top dog. They were then aided by the guest appearances of Erica Davidson, Helen Smart, Doreen Burns, Marie Winter and Margo Gaffney to liven things up a bit during the first six months of 1984 (although this also marked the final appearance of all those characters). Newcomers Sonya Stevens, Reb Kean and long-time semi-regular Phyllis Hunt became the new prison villains.
These characters were all actually quite good and it is a tribute to all involved that coming so soon after the recent big-star departures that these episodes were so very good and very enjoyable, even though most viewers still missed the presence of Bea and Lizzie. Many of the characters to appear during this period are still well remembered, even today. This was to be shortlived unfortunately, because within the year many of these characters began disappearing too.
June 1984 was a sad day for Prisoner. Over the past few months the guest stars had all made their final appearances, then characters such as Pixie, Cass, Minnie, Sonya and Phyllis departed. This was very sad as most of them had not been in the series for very long at all. Another big blow came the loss of long-time screw Colleen Powell, a great character whose contribution to the series is largely underrated. After the loss of Bea and Lizzie and now all these additional losses it was a bit jarring for Prisoner viewers - the cast had just about been turned around within a 12 month period. This was when tough Lou Kelly and Alice Jenkins first appeared in the series. Obviously the writers began to worry about the high cast turnover: Alice and Lou simply appeared one day having supposedly been in Wentworth for years. They were also joined by Marlene Warren who was an annoyingly daggy new inmate. Sadly, this character was annoying to prisoners and viewers alike. Another new character was elderly Dot Farrow who was just too close to a Lizzie clone for our liking. Dot was another character who had supposedly been in Wentworth for years, but in another block. Things went downhill further with the inclusion of three male Woodridge Prisoners being housed at Wentworth. While not only a ludicrous plot premise in itself the storylines it generated were pretty lame as well - had it been a bit more interesting we would have been happy to suspend our disbelief! For the record the three male prisoners were Frank Burke, Matt Delaney and Geoff McRae.
With all these cast changes there was hardly a familiar face to be found amongst the Wentworth crowd. The ironic thing was that while the action was still set at Wentworth, many of the familiar Wentworth characters had been written out by being sent to Barnhurst! Imagine the fun that must have been going on there!
This brings me to another major change in the series that first occurred around 1982 or so. If you watch the early episodes you will notice that Bea Smith is really quite a nasty character and as a viewer you may not always agree with what she does. Basically she just does whatever she likes. She is not primarily concerned with keeping a respectable slammer or looking after the girls or being fair or enforcing the prison rules - she is concerned with doing these things only when it suits her! She certainly does not follow a strict set of rules. If Bea takes a disliking to someone - then watch out - but if you are her friend you basically have open slather in the place. Over the years this slowly changed (while Bea was still there) and the top-dog character became more an unofficial enforcer of the prisoner's code and someone to look after the other prisoners. Everything she did was 'good' and 'fair' and the 'no-drugs' edict was rigidly enforced. Bea, however, always remained a pretty tough character not reluctant to put up her fists at the slightest provocation. Sadly, when Myra took over as top dog all the anger and volatility of Bea was missing, and basically I think Myra was too serious, too nice and too fair. It is a high security prison after all. I think it would have been more fun had Myra been a bit more relaxed and inconsistent (like real people are), and a bit tougher. The thing is, with the earlier, tougher, Bea you never quite knew which way she would turn or what would happen next. Bea often had often been ruled by her own anger and temperament while Myra always seemed calm and controlled. And even though you liked Bea most of the time, she could be unpredictable and sometimes you just HATED her, and I think this made her a more interesting, and realistic character.
During the 12 months from June 1984 there were a few changes to the basic feel of the series. Sadly the series became rather flat and empty. Pixie Mason made a (very) welcome return around September and did several more months behind bars which certainly helped the situation. Failed character Dot Farrow was retired and replaced by another Lizzie clone, Ettie May Parslow, who was brought in from Barnhurst. Like Lizzie, Ettie realised she had served a twenty year sentence for nothing and like Lizzie she sued the department and won compensation. While the battleaxe characterisation of Ettie seemed at bit 'forced' initially, she did gain a degree of popularity once her exaggerated opening characterisation passed and she softened to become slightly more realistic. Sadly around this time the producers decided to include a few inane guest appearances by people who were at the time were well known 'folk-heros' to Australian viewers but must look mighty odd when viewed in the UK where no one knows who the hell they are. Various other characters did the usual three month stint, including the alcoholic lawyer Janice Grant who helped Ettie with her case. One memorable character from this period was the deceitful young prisoner Angela Adams, who appeared for a three month stint in mid-to-late 1984.
The period from June 1984 may have been pretty thin behind bars but proved a bonanza for Joan 'The Freak' Ferguson who more than made up for it with a long series of personal storylines that occurred outside the prison. Credit must also be given to Governor Ann Reynolds who also kept us amused with her extracurricular activities.
On the Officer's side of the gate, 1984 saw two new male Officers join: Officer Rick Manning appeared for around six months in the first part of 1984 followed by Officer Dennis Cruikshank was did three months mid-to-late 1984 followed by another three months in early 1985.
Long-time semi-regular Officer, Joyce Barry gradually made larger and more frequent appearances in the series and by 1985 had become one of the leads.
The first half of 1985 saw the usual array of guest prisoners appear and disappear but they were a relatively dull bunch, such as the quiet University student Samantha Greenway and dignified, fine evading Nun Anita Selby.
As May 1985 approached everyone involved must have had quite enough thank you very much and when contracts were due for renewal, not very many were signed. Relatively long running characters Marlene, Myra, Pixie, Bobbie and truly long running Judy all departed between February and May 1985. This period also saw the departure of the three male prisoners.
A new prisoner character was the temperamental young Lexie Patterson who first appeared in Australia in the opening episode for 1985. Here, Prisoner decided to date itself badly by dressing Lexie in flamboyant and unmistakable Boy George gear. As Prisoner was filmed 6 months in advance of the episodes being screened, this had the unfortunate consequence of the Boy George clothes first appearing on screen long after George's bubble had sadly burst and he had become suddenly passe. This is the ONLY thing ever featured in prisoner that definitely ties it to an actual date and time, and it must look pretty silly in the repeats, too. Luckily, Lexie was very vibrant and a lot of fun and gave the series quite a lift.
A new prison cook, Mervyn Pringle, began appearing and stayed until the end of the series.
In May 1985 the most jarring and unfortunate change occurred. Not only did we lose Judy Bryant, but we learned that Bea Smith had been killed in a big fire at Barnhurst. Then, suddenly, Wentworth was overrun by a group of total strangers who were transferred in from the now destroyed Barnhurst Prison. The newcomers from Barnhurst were Nora Flynn, May Collins, Daphne Graham, Julie Egbert and Willie Beacham. These infidels had the cheek to casually talk about long-ago favourites such as Bea and "Vinegar-Tits" as if they knew who these characters were! (Well, according to the script they knew them from Barnhurst but it all seemed just too artificial) This was obviously a desperate attempt by the producers to hold onto some aspect of earlier (and superior) episodes even though none of the old actresses were willing to return. The writers also had the cheek to ask us to believe that relative newcomers Alice Jenkins and Lou Kelly were actually long-term Wentworth crims who had been there from the series inception! Hearing these two talk about Franky Doyle and Karen Travers was ridiculous, and simply embarrassing! In addition to the Barnhurst girls there was a new officer, Terri Malone, and an independent new prisoner, rich-girl Jenny Hartley.
Apart from those inconsistencies the big mistake that occurred with these new characters was that someone had apparently told them they were portraying a group of nagging old matrons attending a suburban senior citizens afternoon tea - not a group of hardened long-term prisoners in a high security prison! If Myra had begun the fair play top-dog style then new top-dog Nora Flynn perfected it. You have never seen a nicer, more polite bunch of so-called prisoners ever! One of the major catastrophes to afflict this bunch was having to eat their toast without butter (honest!). Prisoner then developed Dynasty type pretensions and added wealthy superbitch Ruth Ballinger to the cast. Ruth wasn't THAT bad and at any other time she probably would have worked very well. Sadly at this weak period of the series her outrageous presence only added to the inanity.
One lengthy storyline featured during this period was the 'prison committee' where a representative group of prisoners would hold an official 'court-room' where prisoner's grievances could be heard and prisoners breaking the rules would have their charges heard and then be punished! The storyline featured the likes of Nora Flynn, May Collins and Willie Beacham looking down their noses and smugly tut-tutting those naughty little rule breakers! Please, this is supposed to be a high security prison - not a High School Parents Club! Hardly the stuff of a television drama either! We want excitement, not fair play and common sense!
While I may sound quite critical in my description of these characters they actually weren't all that bad. The acting was mostly very good, particularly Debra Lawrance as Daphne Graham. The problem was that they were basically fairly dull and the storylines were sadly lacking. There are always some ordinary characters in Prisoner - and they are a necessity. Some of the big favourites were basically pretty ordinary, like Doreen and Judy, Meg, and Ann Reynolds. The important thing to remember about these characters, however, is that they were featured as part of a varied but balanced ensemble: Bea was tough, Doreen was silly and vague, Lizzie was crotchety and comical, and Judy was sensitive and supportive. With these new characters, however, while there was the Judy's and the Doreen's, there was none of the enjoyable and exciting aspects added by the Bea's and the Lizzie's. What I'm saying is that while meat and potatoes is good, potatoes and potatoes and potatoes is not. 1985 served us only potatoes, mashed, and without butter or salt.
I think basically the producers thought that if they had a group of characters talking about Bea and other long-gone characters that this, in itself, would be enough to keep fans happy. What they didn't realise was that just talking about the old characters only highlighted the fact that they were absent, and also that those earlier episodes were so much better. Also, the writers seemed intent on creating a ready-made, potted history with the new cast. This was sadly unconvincing. The script went on about the fact that Willie and May had shared a cell for years and years and such and such had been notorious in Barnhurst for years. There was LOTS of talk about the past. It seemed the writers wanted to instil a sense of long-term stability to a cast that had been subject to such high turnover. The producers really should have just left the past in the past and instead concentrated on bringing some NEW, ORIGINAL and EXCITING characters into the series.
One bright spot in all this was the appearance of Ann Reynold's spirited daughter Pippa Reynolds who also took art class at Wentworth. Pippa's main energies however were taken with her fussing and nagging her mother a lot and with her own romantic entanglements. Pippa was one of those characters who could always be relied upon, like Lexie, to open her mouth at the wrong time and get herself into all sorts of trouble.
An interesting twist was provided by Officer Terri Malone who resigned from Wentworth and then, for a time, became Joan Ferguson's live-in lover.
Finally in the second half of 1985, Ettie Parslow who had first appeared a year before, made a welcome return to Wentworth.
Interestingly, most of these new 1985 characters suddenly bit the dust exactly seven months after their initial appearance in the series (ie they departed November 1985). If you work it out that indicates that these characters were in filming for the six months before their episodes first appeared on air, they then appeared on air, and then a month after their first public appearance they were all suddenly written out of the series! The only survivor of the lot was Julie Egbert (who was also the dullest of the lot!), who lasted until about June 1986.
Finally November 1985 rolls along. After the loss of Bea the two big character shakeups (in June 1984 and May 1985) the series was but a shadow of its former self. Well now Prisoner fans can breathe a sigh of relief. With the Barnhurst girls finally given some interesting (but also final) storylines there is at last a bit of excitement. We also get a few new characters: the intriguing glamour queen Eve Wilder, hilariously daffy Barbie Cox, the frighteningly spirited bikie Rita Connors, and ordinary working-class housewife Nancy McCormack. Old favourite Reb Kean also makes a shocking return.
New storylines for 1986 involve prison breaks and serial killers, while Wentworth is the scene of yet another riot which leads to one prisoner being lynched!
From now on, obviously there's lots of fun to be had. Former toughie Lou Kelly is put in her place by the even tougher Rita. Nasty Lou was played a just little TOO well by actress Louise Siversen so it was nice to see her get her comeuppance. Rita, of course, does a Ferguson and steps into a sadly depleted series and revs it up again. Very soon the entire series revolves around Rita Connors and she quickly takes over as top-dog. New characters from the Rita Connors bikie gang are Dan Moulton, Rita's brother Brian 'Bongo' Connors and his girlfriend 'Roach' Waters, old-timer Ida Brown and many others in less prominent roles.
Like Bea Smith, Rita develops an intense hatred of Joan Ferguson, which quickly escalates into an all out war. Here Joan Ferguson returns to the tougher vendetta storylines that had been eschewed in recent years in favour of more sensitive, personal storylines. This Rita Connors/Joan Ferguson vendetta definitely rivals anything that's ever been seen in Prisoner before! A new prison gang develops: Rita and Nancy become a very close and oddly matched team, with Lexie and Julie entering the fold. Rita comically names her gang the Wentworth Warriors while Rita's own nickname is 'Rita the Beater'. The chief baddies are Alice and Lou though Alice soon sees sense and joins Rita's gang. A new little toughie, Janet Williams joins Lou as trouble maker.
In early 1986 Lou Kelly succeeds in ousting Ann Reynolds from her job. Her resignation is not accepted however and she is given a couple of months off work instead. Her temporary replacement is the tough Bob Moran who initially makes several enemies with his unbending ways but soon gains everyone's respect with his strength and commitment to the prisoner's welfare. After Ann's return he stays on as Officer for a couple of months while someone thoughtfully puts everyone out of their misery by finally getting rid of Lou Kelly, much to everyone's relief and eternal gratification.
Ettie May Parslow makes a welcome return appearance in early 1986. She manages to stay away from Wentworth this time and her scenes are with Ann and Bongo and Roach, outside the Prison.
1986 is set when despised child killer (actually euthanasia but try explaining that to a group of simple-minded criminals) Kath Maxwell enters Wentworth. Her crime makes instant enemies of Alice and many others while her cool and tough attitude wins her no friends either and only serves to alienate Rita. Kath is a tough lady and there is trouble in store for everyone! Kath is soon joined by gentle giant Merle Jones who conveniently gets not so gentle when her considerable temper is aroused. The 1986 cast is rounded out by sexy blackmailer Lisa Mullins, daffy mother Lorelei Wilkinson, wise cracking bad girl Vicki McPherson, sneering schemer Rose 'Spider' Simpson and lovable former madam, Jessie Windom.
Mid to late 1986 sees Lexie's and Julie's storylines nicely concluded and the characters are written out of the series.
An exciting cameo was provided by fiery young aboriginal inmate Sarah West (actress Kylie Belling) who appeared for a five week stint.
The Officers basically remain static: comprising Meg Morris who had appeared continually from episode one, long time meanie Joan Ferguson, Governor Ann Reynolds, and long time semi-regular cum lead character Joyce Barry. Late in 1986 this line-up was joined by three new trainee Officers: apprentice meanie Rodney Adams, dark-horse Delia Stout, and Meg's son Marty Jackson.
In direct contrast to the 1985 influx of characters, all the 1986 characters worked out beautifully, bolstered by exceptionally good scripts and interesting storylines. The other important factor was they were all a lot of fun.
After all the years on air and the ups and downs, by 1986 Prisoner had slowly matured in it's scripts. While completely enjoyable, some of the earlier episodes had been a bit 'camp' (no, I'm not knocking that for a second). This final year however is a winner because the dull sobriety of 1985 is replaced by some rivetting characters and scripts while still retaining its credibility. Basically an excellent year and without doubt one of the most enjoyable and highest quality periods of Prisoner.
Prisoner ceased production in September 1986 but fortunately they still had eight weeks to write and film an impressive 'conclusion' storyline to the series. As usual, Prisoner was ahead of the soapy crowd and finished with a bang - not a whimper. After such a great final year I think everyone involved was more than happy with the way things turned out and the closing episodes are some of the most touching ever filmed.