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SKYWAYS |
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- 1979-1981 - 188 x 60 minute episodes - Produced by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network - |
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Contents |
Crawford
Productions had successfully melded police procedural drama with domestic
soap opera with Cop Shop. As that
series sustained top ratings for the Seven Network, a second, similar series was
created by Crawfords for Seven. The new series, Skyways, was set
in an airport. Crawford Productions had previously looked to the sprawling,
multi character Arthur Hailey tome Hotel to create a weekly series / soap opera
hybrid titled Hotel Story which was ambitious in scope albeit
mostly confined to studio sets and shot on videotape. Unfortunately Network
Ten who initially commissioned the series pulled out of the deal after only
seven episodes had been shot, and before any had gone to air. In any event the
same route was followed for the premise of this series whose stories and
characters seemed closely affiliated with those of Arthur Hailey’s Airport, a
bestselling novel that gives its overall premise in the title. Like the
novel, Skyways presented a regular
staple of airport and airline personnel with personal, professional and
family problems, and some examination of the activities of passing travellers. Stories focusing
on the passengers moving through the airport would feature defecting
athletes, customs cheats, drug smugglers, pimps and prostitutes, and escaping
fugitives. Their activities would be examined in stories
basically self contained to a single episode or the two episodes screened
over one week, and were enacted by weekly series guest stars. These events
would involve and be dealt with by the show’s cast of regular characters -
the airport management and administration personnel and the various pilots
and flight attendants. Story events ostensibly concerning the weekly guest
characters would frequently affect, comment on, or present a counter point to
the program’s ongoing storylines of the regular characters. Skyways was created by
Crawford Productions’ senior writer Terry Stapleton, and executive producer
Jock Blair, previously producer and storyliner of The Box and one of the initial creative
forces behind The Sullivans. The
producer of the new series was former Cop Shop
producer Graham Moore. Interiors were videotaped in the Cambridge Studios in Skyways
Takes Off
The opening storyline focuses on the passing over
of Paul McFarlane (Tony Bonner) in the appointment of new head of the Paul’s first order of business was to make a
final decision on the appointment of his assistant manager, a role that had
been promised to ruthless and ambitious Louise Carter (Tina Bursill). Paul personally delivered his evaluation of her
character, telling Louise she was “ruthless and a manipulator and you’re not
going to be happy until you run this place.” Luckily for Louise, this was
just the person he wanted, and she was appointed to the role. This was also
fortunate for the success of the series, as Louise was the show’s standout
character, and her portrayer Tina Bursill emerged
as perhaps the show’s most charismatic figure. Paul was divorced but lived with his adult
children. They were troubled and irresponsible Alan (Andrew McKaige) and
bubbly business college student Mandy (Gaynor Martin). Alan was in the shadow
of his disciplined and professional father, and felt hopelessly inferior and
unable to live up to his exacting standards. Poor Alan struggled with the
constant clashes that he judged as “bad news”, “a real downer”, and, “a heavy
scene”. Mandy ran the household and was referred to by Paul as his “chief
advisor”. Also introduced was the hopefully amusing
mismatch romance between air traffic controller Simon Young (Ken James) and
bright and attractive Kelly Morgan (Joanne Samuel), who seemed to manage the
information desk for the entire airport single handed. Simon was presented as
calm and controlled in the control tower when directing air traffic or
talking down stricken planes. At other times he was a nervous and jumpy
virgin, under the thumb of his manipulative, overbearing and disapproving
English mother Mrs Young (Irene Inescourt),
a widow. Mrs Young stifled
Simon with her constant coddling while disapproving of any potential romance
with an Australian girl. Simon lived at home, sleeping in his single bed in a
room decorated with aviation posters. His lonely mother strictly monitored
his movements and liked nothing better to sit with Simon watching BBC plays
on television, while disapproving of Australians, who she considered
ill-bred. Dependable Ken James had seemed adept at
smoothing over bumpy story lurches and enlivening slow spots in his previous
long running serial role in The Box. There
he seemed skilled at maintaining his largely comical portrayal of egoistical
yet insecure TV star Tony Wild despite the apparently conflicting elements of
the character. Unfortunately in Skyways he
seemed unable to nail his new character down. At times James seemed to be
playing a caricature of a meek and downtrodden English boy with a clipped and
precise accent, yet in his appearance he looked much too old to pull this
portrayal off. James also seemed unable to sustain Simon’s
accent. In several scenes it wavers in and out as the dialogue progresses. In
the control tower scenes where Simon was an accomplished professional his
“English” accent seemed to desert him entirely. Then in the nervous
interludes where Simon tries to woo a bemused Kelly, James seems to be doing
an impersonation of the popular Arnold Feather character from Number 96 where Simon suddenly develops a
heretofore absent verbose and punctilious vocabulary. While Through the run of the series actor Peter Byrne
had an ongoing supporting role as another air traffic controller, Jerry
Anderson. With Simon the lead character, Jerry’s sole function in the series
was to act as someone for Simon to converse with in the control tower, and to
occasionally take some of the air traffic control dialogue. As if downtrodden mother’s boy Simon and his
manipulative mother didn’t provide enough irritating fussiness, Skyways also presented efficient but officious
administrator George Tippett (Brian James). Pompous
and self-important, George was always complaining, and was fond of making
“nice of everybody to let me know” type sarcastic jibes when he was apprised
of a change in the schedule or given a new problem to deal with. More interesting were those portraying the
dashing pilots and the attractive and compliant female flight attendants.
Bruce Barry relied on his natural screen presence and charisma as apparently womanising married pilot
Doug Stewart who romanced attractive attendant Jacki
Soong (Deborah Coulls). Doug charmed Jacki into accompanying him on a layover (in both senses
of the word) in In a surprise revelation Doug proved to be
troubled and restless when attempting to make love with Jacki.
Soon it seemed apparent that his “worrying problem” mentioned in the
program’s initial publicity was impotence. He secretly checked out of the
suite, leaving the hotel porter to relay the message to the surprised Jacki that he has changed hotels and will see her on the
flight back to Meanwhile the handsome and polished Federal
Airways first officer Nick Granger (Bartholomew John) is chosen as poster boy
for a big new airline promotion. Disapproving George insists it is false
advertising given that Granger has never landed an actual passenger jet for
real and has only been chosen for the advertisements due to his handsome
visage. Nick is flying back in from Despite having never actually landed a passenger
jet before, nervous Nick, with the help of Simon Young in the tower, manages
the feat with aplomb. And just in time for the media launch of the airline
promotion which would be presumably assisted by this actual heroic act.
(Simon had eased Nick’s nerves by telling him to imagine that the plane load
of passengers he is carrying are not there -
something that the episode’s audience could easily do as well, since we never
get to see any of them.) In ensuing episodes Robyn was revealed to be a
lesbian who spurned Nick’s overtures and instead pursued her heterosexual
flat-mate Jacki Soong, who rejected her advances.
Soon afterwards Robyn was stabbed to death in the shower in an episode
cliffhanger. The killer was ultimately revealed to be the crazed Fiona (Dina
Mann), a murderously jealous admirer of Nick Granger. To cope with all this crime was airport security
officer Peter Fanelli (Bill Stalker), a tough
former policeman with a short fuse and tendency for violence. Just like Cop Shop’s JJ he was basically above board but sometimes bent the
rules. And like JJ he had a live-in lady friend of
dubious background: Fanelli was shacked-up with
Faye Peterson (Kris McQuade), a former prostitute
and heroin addict he had rescued from the gutter during his time as a police
detective. Now she is trying to improve herself by reading Dickens. Fanelli admits he has never head of the author, and
disparages himself as just a “dumb Dago.” Early episodes examined their tensions around
Faye’s shady past and the possible implications it could have on his career,
and the potential for blackmail. Though a source of tension for Fanelli, and for Faye who knew she was at least the
source of airport gossip and cocktail party whispers, Paul seemed accepting
of the situation. Series
Format
The format of Skyways was
that each episode would focus on the particular drama of a guest character,
and would also examine the way this affected and advanced the ongoing
narratives of the regular characters. The guest character story would reach
its conclusion towards the end of the episode. A new thread with a new
character would be introduced at the episode’s close which clearly presented
the new problem, and that incident formed the episode’s cliffhanger. The next
episode would then explore this newly introduced problem. For instance when an episode closed with a newly
introduced man shooting himself in the airport car park, the following
episode examined his background and the reasons for the deed. Paul haplessly
had to witness the wealthy parents of the suicide victim confront the truth
that the father’s controlling and inflexible attitude, and fervent
disapproval of what they judge to be the son’s rather ill advised personal
association, led to feelings of rejection and inferiority and ultimately the
suicide. While the embarrassed, euphemistic manner in
which the bereaved parents refer to the son’s ill-advised relationship
suggests he might be gay, the script ultimately confirms that he was actually
at the airport to fly out to visit a “girl”. Nevertheless, for a minute, the
implication of a homosexual liaison had been planted - just as Alan’s behaviour and 1960s hippie
slang might well be trying to hint at a drug habit, something that is also
subsequently explicitly disavowed in dialogue after the seed was sown. In any event following the series of heated
clashes over the perceived irresponsibility of his son Alan which just leave
the lad feeling inferior, the suicide incident prompts Paul to make amends
with the boy. Later, two episode guest stories, following the format of Cop Shop, became common. These two part stories
would be sandwiched between episodes with a self-contained guest story. Overall the series worked well for viewers happy
to accept an all-new guest cast and a new self-contained storyline inserted
into the drama each week. The program’s airport setting, which included an
adjacent hotel, allowed a wide range of possibilities in the guest
storylines. Given that their mere presence in the airport locale with some
interaction with the regular characters was the only proviso for the inclusion
of a guest character, a wide range of stories, from serious to comic, could
occur. Unlike a crime drama series where basically any guest story would
involve some sort of crime, all sorts of drama could readily be depicted by Skyways. Probably the strongest element of Skyways was its well-drawn and charismatic batch of
regular characters. The beautiful, intelligent and accomplished Louise,
working to make it in a male-dominated arena, and the somewhat inscrutable, but
temperamental and troubled security man Fanelli
were the main standouts. Airport
shoots and chroma key
Skyways attempted to be
expansive in scope with its airport setting and the confluence of
international travellers,
occasional aircraft crises and troubled landings, and the international
stopovers of the in-flight staff. Unfortunately, with the program’s budget
and output of two episodes each week, this was difficult to execute
effectively. Low budget high-output programs such as these, for practical and
financial reasons, are only feasible when shot on videotape with the talky
interior sequences shot in the studio. The result was that the long stretches
of the drama that occurs indoors looked bland.
The program’s rather meagre,
cramped and very beige office sets certainly didn’t help matters. To open out the action, colour
separation overlay, or Chroma key, video effects
were utilised
extensively. That way the windows outside the airport manager’s office could
show taxiing planes while the control tower scenes would indeed show the
vista of runways and takeoffs. The external shots had been recorded months
before and were matted into the studio footage using video effects. Unfortunately these effects when used in drama
productions attempting to visually create a real space look extremely
unconvincing with the often different visual quality of the two pieces of
footage and the hazy lines that separate the joined images - something
accentuated whenever anyone steps in front of the inserted video. Overall the
artificial look of the many shots including these effects is very distracting
and certainly detracts from the drama. The program also featured a significant amount of
footage shot on location at While Cop Shop too
was contained mostly in videotaped interiors shot on sets, when the action of
that series went outside the footage was frequently videotaped in down-market
Melbourne streets, so the mundane look of the footage was appropriate, and
did not seem incongruous with the show’s studio scenes. In any event, they
were not trying to look luxurious or majestic. The attempts by Skyways to include spectacular airport footage never
really came off. New
Arrivals
By September 1979 actor Kerry Armstrong, released
early from the Network Ten serial Prisoner,
entered Skyways in the recurring
role of country girl Angela Murray. In the story Angela arrives in the city
seeking adventure, but finds that her free spirit and good looks are a recipe for trouble in the big smoke. Kerry Armstrong
compared the new character to her Prisoner role,
telling TV Week that: “Unlike
Lyn, who was unsure of herself and naïve, Angela is a very cluey lady. It gives me a chance to use a different voice
too. Lyn Warner had a high-pitched country wail. Angela will be more
sophisticated.” [1] Of the proximity with her Prisoner appearance producer Graham Moore assured TV Week that there would be no problems with the two
characters appearing on air simultaneously. “We think she’s a very talented
young actress and we wanted Kerry for this role because she was the right
person for it,” he said. Of the recurring nature of the part and how
frequently she would appear By the end of 1979, highly popular former Crawfords star Gerard Kennedy had begun making
appearances in the recurring role of Gary Doolan,
manager of Trans Asia Airways. A few months after his first appearances went
to air Kennedy was signed to the series on a more permanent basis when series
lead Tony Bonner announced his intention to quit his role. [3] Bonner had also left his key role in Cop Shop at an early stage of the series, and as he
explained to TV Week this was for
strategic career reasons: “As an actor I can’t see the
benefit of playing the same character for 10 months each year unless the
character is a highly individual one where the writers are specifically
writing to explore different avenues or levels of that person’s life.
Unfortunately, writers are unable to do that with Skyways because it is a two-hour format. I think a year is
enough. It doesn’t allow the character to become boring. I think it is
unethical for an actor to put his hand out at the end of each week when he’s
not putting thought into the development of his character. The joy of doing a
long-running character is the opportunity it gives you to explore different
levels. My goal is to extend myself and to find characters that I have to
research and then can put their hat on to capture, or recreate, some aspect
of that person. Whatever my peers say about me, personally or professionally,
I doubt they’d ever say I was lazy or uncreative.” [4] On leaving Skyways Bonner
went into a role in feature film The Man from In some ways mirroring Bonner’s viewpoint, in March 1980 The Age newspaper critic Brian Courtis offered an extended evaluation of the current batch Australian television drama series. In his In View column, Courtis opined that the “soapy” style of many dramas produced an “enervating effect on our writers and actors.” Courtis observed that plots “are basic, clichéd, and over-segmented and, because of this, dialogue is simplistic and unimaginative.” [5] Skyways, he felt, “contains a group of excellent actors forced into predicably banal situations.” Courtis felt that while Tony Bonner has proved himself a fine actor on many Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) shows: “he has never looked more wooden than he has as the airport manager at Pacific International. And it’s the script that makes him so. Bill Stalker, Tina Bursill and Joanne Samuel have also never been allowed to deliver the performances promised in early episodes and, as the series rolls on, have been forced into producing caricatures.” [6] The
Series Continues
When Bonner’s character departed, in the story
Gary Doolan was appointed to his position as head
of By the time of episode number 100, broadcast in
Melbourne and Sydney on 4 August 1980, Louise learns she was partly appointed
for window dressing: there can be strategic and marketing benefits in having
a female company boss. (And her stylish beauty won’t hurt at press
conferences and corporate meetings.) Louise discovers that her supposed
assistant Geoff Goodwin (Jeff Kevin) actually earns more than she does, has
greater authority, and that airline owner Sir Joseph Miles (Michael Duffield)
actually turns to Goodwin for the crucial executive tasks. When Louise objects to Goodwin’s and Sir Joseph’s
handling of a scheduling clash by rerouting a KLM jet, she cunningly schemes
with Doolan to deal with the stacked-up planes in a
way that will prove subtly embarrassing for the airline. Expecting an unfavourable reaction to her scheme Louise executes it as a
sort of coup de grâce prior
to her planned resignation. She is surprised when Miles is impressed with her
skills, offers her a pay rise, and organises a
swift transfer to Alongside this airport management intrigue the
weekly (two episode) guest story featured Mike Preston as a faded cockney
comic Harry Green. When Harry is held over at the airport en route to his scheduled farewell performance in
New Zealand, he begins to dwell on his situation of not being able to keep
audiences entertained as he once had, leading to a half-hearted suicide bid. Harry’s storyline also involves his beleaguered agent
Brian McKenzie (Jon Sidney), struggling to prop Harry up while his own
marriage to Ilona (Penne Hackforth-Jones)
falls victim to her infatuation with another traveller Sven Sorenson (Serge Lazareff). When Harry is forced to step in to support a traumatised Brian it serves
as the booster needed to restore his confidence. Meanwhile Ilona comes to her senses after Sven is revealed as a
thief and a con artist; their problems patched-up the three make their exits
as their flight leaves for “It’s
one of the best guest roles I’ve ever played. The story of Harry Green is so
true to life. His crisis is a frank reaction of the way many showbiz people
react when they find they can no longer attract audiences.” [7] By this stage regular cast members Bruce Barry
(air captain Doug) and Deborah Coulls (flight
attendant Jacki) had departed. Kelly had married
Simon and she now worked as secretary to the head of the Mandy was now a flight attendant for the
fictional Trans Asia Airways. In the story her first flight as a trainee took
her to “Crawfords want Skyways to be as close to reality as
possible and, for that reason, research trips to Indeed to help keep things accurate Skyways had its own technical advisor, former pilot
Captain Stuart Archbold. Three years after retiring
from flying 747s for Qantas, 60 year old Archbold
became the series’ advisor when it began production. He was previously a fighter
pilot in World War II and had flown with Charles Kingsford Smith in the
Southern Cross. After the war he piloted various commercial jets and had made
two flights in Concorde before his 1977 retirement. Tragically Archbold, who had become a close friend to many of the
regular actors on the show, was killed in a glider crash during a production
break in early 1980. [9] Guest
Stars
As the series continued the range of different
weekly stories with wide variations in style and tone - and enacted by
familiar television performers - helped keep things interesting. In a story that screened December 1980 actor
Lesley Baker, previously the Prisoner thug
Monica Ferguson, played a guest role that followed
her real-life situation of being mother to a disabled son. Baker, who had
left Prisoner to care for her
three year old son who has Psycho-Motor Retardation due to brain damage at
birth, agreed to the role as it was true to the actual problems faced by such
parents. In Skyways Baker
played Gladys Skinner. Gladys is mother to a 25 year old disabled man Danny
(Peter Finlay) who finally reconnects with the man she suspects to be Danny’s
father, Father James O’Neill (Kit Taylor). Baker explained the formation of
her role to TV Week.“I
requested that the script be altered in a couple of places in line with what
I know the problems to be, and the writer and producer agreed.” [10] Then in January 1981 Judy Nunn had a guest
starring role as Bessie Langhurst, an Amelia
Earhart type aviatrix flying an antique World War II Beecraft
Staggerwing bi-plane that mysteriously lands on the
field adjacent to the airport that had been the old landing strip, decades
before. Bessie wears 1940s aviation gear and is the image of a woman flyer who mysteriously vanished on a solo flight in 1944. [11] Former Number 96
regular Bunney Brooke had also had a guest starring
role in Skyways, which had been
taped in June 1980. The actor later described the role, her post Number 96 career, and the break-up of a long term
relationship for TV Week: “I took on
all sorts of little parts because I was frightened of the Flo Patterson
character from Number 96. I had to prove again that I was
an actor, not just a character. The end of that relationship knocked me
rotten, it was very important to me and I had a breakdown. I couldn’t handle
it and I’ve handled a lot in my time. And I was really trying to make a
decision about getting out of the business. I didn’t want to stay in it if I
wasn’t offering anything. Number 96 was a tremendous peak for me and
I began to think maybe I didn’t have it any more,
maybe I didn’t have any more characters left in me. It was a good time to
take stock of myself. Then the episode of Skyways came along and it really was the
first thing I was game to attempt. I was scared doing it and I was nervous
even though I didn’t look it. But I managed to come up with something
entirely new and I realised I hadn’t lost it. That role restored my belief in myself.” [12] New
Regular Characters
After just over a year on air, TV Week had reported that Skyways was rating well in Kerry Armstrong was returned to the series to
reprise her role of Angela Murray on a recurring basis in early 1980. By July
that year she had been signed to the series on a permanent basis that would
see her in the series until June 1981. Armstrong explained to TV Week that “They have decided to expand the
character and give her more depth.” Said series producer Graham Moore
“Kerry’s character is very successful and adds a lot of colour.
She causes a few shocks at Pacific but she is totally lovable. We are glad to
have Kerry back.” [14] Also brightening up the series was attractive
blond model Kylie Foster who joined the series playing naïve country girl
Belinda Phipps who creates a stir by moving in with strait-laced George Tippett. It was Foster’s first ever professional acting
role, and she impressed the producers with her talent to the extent that her
initial three month contract was extended to six months. Said Graham Moore
“Belinda Phipps has a great involvement with George Tippett
which gives us good storylines.” [15] A later addition to the regular cast was popular
comedian and former Bellbird veteran Maurie Fields who came in as the airport’s lazy new
deputy head porter Chas Potter. A comedy character for the series, Chas was
quickly nicknamed The Judge - because he sits on cases for so long - and he usually
just ordered the junior porters around instead of doing any lifting himself. Despite also being somewhat a nosey stirrer and
the shop steward of the porters’ union, Chas was overall a pleasant person.
His portrayer Maurie Fields summed-up the character
for TV Week. “I think
he’s a very real character - I’ve met a lot like him in my life. There’s a
touch of comedy in the role - and I like playing comedy. He’s one of those
real bumblers who would never admit it.” [16] Meanwhile original cast member Joanne Samuel
announced her intention to leave the series in early 1981. “It was
a very difficult decision for me to make. Crawford Productions have been very
good to me and the cast means a lot to me. But I just felt that the character
had gone as far as she could. I was beginning the feel frustrated by the
scope of the character and I felt that as an actress, there are other things
I’d like to try to extend myself.” [17] Ultimately
Crawford Productions convinced Samuel to continue with the series several
weeks beyond the expiration of her original contract to allow her character,
Kelly, to be written out of the storyline in a satisfactory way. Graham Moore
gave a prelude to Kelly’s departure. “Kelly is about to come in for a fairly
stormy period in her life. She will play a vital role in the storylines
before we, unfortunately, have agreed to write her
out.” [18] In the story, Kelly suffered a traumatic miscarriage. This trauma led
to the disintegration of her marriage to Simon. It was then announced that Bartholomew John would
also be leaving. A new regular actor was being sought to play the replacement
for his character of Nick Granger, who would reportedly be nicknamed “Biggles”. [19] Forced
Landing
However any concerns that the departures of Kelly
Young and Nick Granger might affect the popularity of the series soon became
moot. Before they had even made their on-screen exits it was announced that
production on the series would end. News of the program’s cancellation came in February
1981, and it was reported production would cease 17 April. Said cast member
Ken James. “The
cancellation came as no great shock because, during the past 12 months, there
have been reports that Skyways wasn’t rating very well in Andrew McKaige, another
original cast member still in the series, said that “It’s perhaps the best
thing that could have happened in the long run. I’ve been in it for two years
and it’s time for me to move on.” [21]
Meanwhile fellow original cast member, Bill Stalker, presented his own take
on why the series ended. “When I
first looked at the scripts it looked like the adult sex sizzler of the 1980s
but then it became Little House on the Prairie with wings. Suddenly I found
myself comforting kids in wheelchairs. The first fortnight Fanelli lost his ‘bastards’, the next fortnight he lost
his ‘bloodies’ and he had little to say after that.” [22] The
Closing Episodes
A few weeks before the end of the series Peter Fanelli abruptly resigned from the airport, bidding an emotional
farewell to Louise with whom he had developed a romantic connection.
Bartholomew John who played pilot Nick Granger had already left the series
and in his place had come Kit Taylor as brusque pilot Tim Barclay who flew
for Trans Asia Airways. Kelly continued in the series almost to the end,
finally bidding Simon farewell in the show’s penultimate episode. Gary Doolan had by now married the elegant Janet Patterson
(Susannah Lobez). Another new recurring character
at the end of the series was Barbie Beach (Penelope Stewart), a shy young
office secretary who worked with George Tippett. The final episode has George in a panic to organise a reception for the arriving Prince and Princess
of Angela, who now works on the airport information
desk, seems put out when she learns Alan might be
leaving to take up a journalism cadetship. However their romance seems to be
back on track when she learns he will be covering the airport beat. Then
there’s more good news when Simon reveals to Mandy the contents of the
package he received from Nick, who is attending a training course in In the end it is left to a triumphant George Tippett to experience a series of flashbacks of some
major events from the series as he stands on the airport’s outdoor viewing
deck. The
Aftermath
The anonymous TV Week
columnist The Watcher bemoaned the
show’s demise. The Watcher praised
Skyways for its high technical standard and its
cast of “top performers” and noted that the series featured some very
important technical innovations. The Watcher
observed that in the Australian television industry it seems that programs
must either “win big, or miss out altogether,” and in the columnist’s opinion
the key reason the series ended was because the network failed “to get its
programming act together.” The Watcher also
pointed-out that in its two-year run, Skyways failed
to win a single award for itself or its crew. The column quoted one unnamed
actor as recently saying “I can’t accept the show was so bad that we didn’t
even rate a mention in any award in that time.” [23] Proposed as a replacement for Skyways was the new police drama series The Squad. Ian Crawford of Crawford Productions said
that “We believe the time is right for an action police show. The Squad will look at police procedure from the
point of view of the detectives and will explore their working relationships
in considerable depth.” [24] A key
element of The Squad was that it was
set, and shot, in One Skyways cast
member who beat the axe was Gaynor Martin. Martin, who played Mandy in the
series, was contracted directly to Crawford Productions. As she explained to TV Week, “When I joined the series two years ago,
I signed a contract with Crawfords, not Skyways, for three years.” Martin admits that when
Hector Crawford announced the program’s demise she had tears in her eyes, “It
came as such a shock and I thought of the friends I’d be losing. It’s the
first time I’ve been involved in something like this.” [25] The day after production on Skyway ended Martin described the final taping sessions
for TV Week. “It was
so sad. It was awful. I hated it. I kept looking around the studio at the
various sets and thinking how much I was going to miss all the friends. The
final scene called for me to be quite emotional - that was easy. But I wasn’t
emotional for reasons involved in the scene. I was emotional because it was
the end of a great two-year run.” [26] In the event Martin was added to the regular cast
of Crawford’s new Network Ten series Holiday Island
as the beautiful but mercenary schemer Kylie. Actor Bill Stalker also survived the demise of Skyways, and he was moved over to Cop Shop to reprise his character Peter Fanelli. In the story, having endured the loss of girlfriend
Faye who was killed in a parachuting accident, Fanelli
left the airport and returned to the police force - making the switch to the Cop Shop series as a new Tina Bursill enjoyed
continued success in a series of high profile roles repeating her Skyways persona of a cool, elegant businesswoman. First
she played a senior, high-powered executive in the Australian Broadcasting
Corporation series Winner Take All in
1982. According to the TV Week gossip
column she even designed her character’s wardrobe for the show. [27] Later,
in the popular soap Prisoner, Bursill was a big success as a businesswoman of a different
variety: the cruel and ruthless brothel owner Sonia Stevens. Skyways also marked the
first screen pairing of Kylie Minogue and Jason
Donovan - later the romantically linked teen stars of Neighbours - who here guest starred as eleven-year-old
squabbling siblings temporarily left stranded at the airport by their pilot
father. Skyways had
spent two years on air and a total of 188 episodes were produced, with the
final episode originally going to air on 27 July 1981 (due to differing
production schedules, Fanelli had already made his
onscreen Cop Shop debut by this
point.) In the late 1980s
Channel Seven repeated Skyways in |
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Originally uploaded May 2000 Updated 28 October 2009 |
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