Offspring (TV series)

Offspring is an Australian television comedy-drama program which premiered on Network Ten on 15 August 2010. Offspring is centred on 30-something obstetrician Nina Proudman and her family and friends, as they navigate the chaos of modern life. It is filmed in Melbourne's inner north.[1] The show mixes conventional narrative drama and comedy with flashbacks, graphic animation and fantasy sequences.

Offspring
Offspring title card
GenreComedy-drama
Created byDebra Oswald
John Edwards
Imogen Banks
StarringAsher Keddie
Kat Stewart
Don Hany
Deborah Mailman
Eddie Perfect
Linda Cropper
Richard Davies
Matthew Le Nevez
Lachy Hulme
John Waters
Jane Harber
Ido Drent
Ben Barrington
Patrick Brammall
Alexander England
Alicia Gardiner
TJ Power
Narrated byAsher Keddie
Theme music composerThao with the Get Down Stay Down
Opening theme"When We Swam"
Ending theme"When We Swam" (instrumental)
ComposerJohn Lee
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of series7
No. of episodes85 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersRick Maier
Rory Callaghan
ProducersJohn Edwards
Imogen Banks
Production locationsMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Camera setupNicholas Owens
Running time45 minutes
Production companyEndemol Australia (Then branded as Southern Star Entertainment)
Release
Original networkNetwork Ten
Picture format576i (SDTV)
1080i (HDTV) (2016-2017)
Audio formatStereo
Original release15 August 2010 (2010-08-15) 
30 August 2017 (2017-08-30)
External links
Website

Debra Oswald wrote the series with John Edwards and Imogen Banks producing with Southern Star Entertainment.[2][3] Offspring was originally conceived as a two-hour telemovie for Ten, but was spun off into a 13 episodes series after television executives were impressed by the quality of the telemovie. The second season began on 16 May 2011, with a double episode premiere.

Offspring was renewed for its fourth and fifth series on 12 July 2012.[4]

On 3 October 2014, John Edwards confirmed that Offspring would not return for a sixth series in 2015, due to Ten's cost-cutting measures in its production division.[5] On 30 August 2015, the Herald Sun reported that a sixth season of Offspring would be made - returning after a two-year hiatus.

Production for the sixth series began on 25 April 2016 and filmed through to June 2016.[6] Series 6 premiered at 8.30 PM on 29 June 2016.[7]

Most of the cast returned, although John Waters, who plays Darcy Proudman, is one exception. Two new cast members, Underbelly: Razor's cast-member T.J. Power as lawyer Will Bowen and Love My Way star Dan Wyllie as Dr Angus Freeman.[8]

On 4 November 2016, the series was renewed for a seventh series set to air in 2017.[9] Production for the series began in March 2017 in Melbourne.[10] Series 7 premiered on 28 June 2017.[11]

In November 2017, Offspring was snubbed from Network Ten's announced 2018 upfronts with no word on whether the show has been cancelled or put on hiatus.[12]

Series overview

SeriesEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
Pilot15 August 2010 (2010-08-15)
11322 August 2010 (2010-08-22)21 November 2010 (2010-11-21)
21316 May 2011 (2011-05-16)20 July 2011 (2011-07-20)
31318 April 2012 (2012-04-18)11 July 2012 (2012-07-11)
41322 May 2013 (2013-05-22)14 August 2013 (2013-08-14)
51314 May 2014 (2014-05-14)6 August 2014 (2014-08-06)
61029 June 2016 (2016-06-29)14 September 2016 (2016-09-14)
71028 June 2017 (2017-06-28)30 August 2017 (2017-08-30)

Cast

Main

Actor Character Season
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Asher Keddie Dr Nina Proudman Main
Kat Stewart Billie Proudman Main
Deborah Mailman Cherie Butterfield Main
Richard Davies Jimmy Proudman Main
Linda Cropper Geraldine Proudman Main
Eddie Perfect Mick Holland Main Recurring
John Waters Darcy Proudman Main Recurring
Don Hany Dr Chris Havel Main Guest
Alicia Gardiner Kim Akerholt Recurring Main
Lachy Hulme Dr Martin Clegg Recurring Main Recurring
Jane Harber Zara Perkich-Proudman Recurring Main
Matthew Le Nevez Dr Patrick Reid Main Guest
Ido Drent Dr. Lawrence Pethbridge Recurring Main Guest
Ben Barrington Thomas Buchdahl Main
Patrick Brammall Leo Taylor Main Recurring
Alexander England Harry Crewe Recurring Main
TJ Power Will Bowen Recurring Main

Current supporting cast

  • David Roberts as Phil D'Arabont (Series 2, 4–7)
  • Lawrence Leung as Elvis Kwan (Series 4–7)
  • Cate Wolfe as Jess (Series 5–7)
  • Isabella Monaghan as Zoe Proudman-Reid (Series 5–7)
  • Sarah Peirse as Marjorie Van Dyke (Series 6–7)
  • Shannon Berry as Brody Jordan (Series 6–7)
  • Ash Ricardo as Kerry Green (Series 6–7)
  • Adrienne Pickering as Kirsty Crewe (Series 7)
  • Neil Melville as Drew Crewe (Series 7)

Past supporting cast

Production

The series is filmed in Melbourne's inner-north around the suburb of Fitzroy and is produced by John Edwards and Imogen Banks who also co-produce Tangle. John Edwards was responsible for such successes as Police Rescue, The Secret Life of Us, Love My Way, and Dangerous - also produced with Imogen Banks, and has more recently been producing Rush for Seriously Ten.

Offspring: The Nurses

A web series titled Offspring: The Nurses began in 2010 on the official Offspring website.[13] It follows nurses Kim (Alicia Gardiner) and Zara (Jane Harber) from the original series and also stars Benedict Hardie, Julia Grace, Laura Gilham, Carl Nilsson Polias, Jodie Sheehy and Matthew Heyward as fellow staff members of the hospital. Some cast members from the original series have also starred as well.

A second web series follows Zara (Jane Harber) and this time Justina Noble as Nurse Tyra. Series 2 also starred Benedict Hardie, Harry Milas, Josh Price, Natalie Kaplan, Sonja Kowanjko and Kate Hopkins. While Richard Davies and Lachy Hulme also made guest appearances.

Awards and nominations

Australian Film Institute Awards

Year Nominee Award Result
2010 Deborah Mailman Best Guest or Supporting Actress in a Television Drama Won
John Waters Best Guest or Supporting Actor in a Television Drama Nominated

TV Week Logie Awards

Year Nominee Award Result
2011 Asher Keddie Most Popular Actress Won
Offspring Most Popular Drama Series Nominated
Don Hany Most Popular Actor Nominated
Eddie Perfect Most Popular New Male Talent Nominated
Richard Davies Most Outstanding New Talent Nominated
Asher Keddie Most Outstanding Actress Nominated
Kat Stewart Most Outstanding Actress Nominated
2012 Asher Keddie Most Popular Actress Won
Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian TV Nominated
Eddie Perfect Most Popular Actor Nominated
Offspring Most Popular Drama Series Nominated
Kat Stewart Most Outstanding Actress Nominated
Offspring Most Outstanding Drama Series, Miniseries or Telemovie Nominated
2013 Asher Keddie Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian TV Won
Most Popular Actress Won
Matthew Le Nevez Most Popular Actor Nominated
Clare Bowditch Most Popular New Female Talent Nominated
Offspring Most Popular Australian Drama Nominated
Most Outstanding Drama Series Nominated
2014 Asher Keddie Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian TV Nominated
Most Popular Actress Won
Matthew Le Nevez Most Popular Actor Nominated
Asher Keddie Most Outstanding Actress Won
Kat Stewart Nominated
Offspring Most Popular Drama Program Nominated
2015[14] Asher Keddie Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian TV Nominated
Most Popular Actress Won
Offspring Most Popular Drama Program Nominated

Equity Ensemble Awards

Year Category Recipients and nominees Result
2013 Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Series 1 cast Nominated
2012 Series 2 cast Nominated
2013[15] Series 3 cast Nominated
2014[16] Series 4 cast Nominated

Series viewership

Season # of Episodes Season
Premiere
Season
Final
Average
Audience

(millions)
Drama Rank
1 14 15 August 2010 21 November 2010 1.071[17] #4[17]
2 13 16 May 2011 20 July 2011 1.072[17] #6[17]
3 13 18 April 2012 11 July 2012 1.014[17] #8[17]
4 13 22 May 2013 14 August 2013 0.954[17] #9[17]
5 13 14 May 2014 6 August 2014 1.027[17] #9[17]
6 10 29 June 2016 14 September 2016 0.921[18] #10

Episodes

DVD releases

The entire series of Offspring has been released on Region 4 DVD via Madman Entertainment. The first and second seasons were released in 2010 and 2011 respectively in box set packaging. In 2012, both sets received a re-release in standard-case packaging, which became the norm for each subsequent season set. Multiple season sets have additionally been made available from Madman Entertainment.

DVD Title # Episodes # Discs Release date ACB rating Notes Ref
Region 4
The Complete First Season 13 (+ Telemovie) 5 1 December 2010 M
Features
  • 725 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
  • Re-released in standard-case packaging (1 August 2012)
  • Special features:
    • Original feature-length telemovie
    • Offspring: The Nurses (Series 1 webisodes)
[19]
The Complete Second Season 13 4 14 September 2011 M
Features
  • 616 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
  • Re-released in standard-case packaging (1 August 2012)
  • Special features:
    • Offspring: The Nurses (Series 2 webisodes)
[20]
The Complete Third Season 13 4 1 August 2012 M
Features
  • 546 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
[21]
The Complete Fourth Season 13 4 4 September 2013 M
Features
  • 570 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
[22]
The Complete Fifth Season 13 4 17 September 2014 M
Features
  • 570 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
[23]
Season Six 10 3 2 November 2016 M
Features
  • 456 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
[24]
Season Seven 10 3 8 November 2017 M
Features
  • 439 minutes
  • 1.78:1 (16:9)
  • Dolby Digital 2.0
[25]

International distribution

Offspring in broadcast in several countries around the world including New Zealand, where it was screened since 2010 on TV One Sundays at 8:30pm.[26] In 2012, it appeared on the GNT network in Brazil and both HOT VOD and HOT3 in Israel, while it was included on Netflix in the United States in 2017.[27]

Many countries in Europe aired the series where in 2011, it was picked up by Sony Entertainment Television in Spain, under the title "Descubriendo a Nina", AXN White in Portugal, as "Descobrindo Nina", and by the TLC network for Norway, Netherlands in July, Russia, screening on Sundays, and Sweden, where it was aired on Thursdays at 9:00pm, while in 2012, it debuted on RTÉ One and is available on in Ireland in a late Sunday night time slot, 2013 on YLE TV2 in Finland Mondays at 10:05pm, and additionally, it appeared in the United Kingdom on Netflix in 2017.[27]

References

  1. "Three way drama tussle?". TV Tonight. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  2. "Offspring springs into series". TV Tonight. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  3. "Credits". Offspring. Network Ten, Film Victoria, Southern Star. 6 July 2010. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  4. "Renewed: Offspring". TV Tonight. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 12 July 2012.
  5. "Offspring cancelled: Asher Keddie has played beloved character for last time". The Guardian. 3 October 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
  6. "Offspring to film from April 25". 15 April 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  7. "Pregnant pause over as Offspring return gets a premiere date". news.co.au. 11 June 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  8. "'Offspring' in production without key star". Australian Associated Press. 30 April 2016. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  9. "2017 Upfronts: TEN highlights". tvtonight.co.au. 4 November 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  10. "Asher Keddie and Kat Stewart are back as filming begins on Offspring season 7". heraldsun.co.au. 23 March 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  11. "Channel 10 announces when season seven of Offspring will start". Herald Sun. 11 June 2017. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
  12. "Offspring, Love Child and House Husbands not returning in 2018". nowtolove.com.au. 10 November 2017. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  13. "Home - Network Ten". Ten.com.au. 5 January 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  14. Willis, Charlotte (22 March 2015). "Here's the full List of 2015 Logies nominations". news.com.au. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  15. "3rd Equity Ensemble Awards - Winners announced!". Equity Foundation (Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance). 3 May 2013. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  16. "Equity Ensemble Awards 2014 - Voting Now Open!". Equity Foundation (Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance). 1 April 2014. Archived from the original on 15 April 2014. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  17. "TV Ratings: Average Audience". screenaustralia.gov.au.
  18. "Seven Wins 2016 Ratings". TV Tonight.
  19. "Offspring - Season 1". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  20. "Offspring - Season 2". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  21. "Offspring - Season 3". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  22. "Offspring - Season 4". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  23. "Offspring - Season 5". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  24. "Offspring - Season 6". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  25. "Offspring - Season 7". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  26. "New season TV: Offspring". The New Zealand Herald. 27 January 2011. Retrieved 1 November 2011.
  27. "Offspring". Netflix. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
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