Dead Gorgeous

Last updated

Dead Gorgeous
MainCastDeadGorgeous.jpg
Main Cast
GenreFantasy
Comedy
Adventure
Created byBarbara Slade
Directed by Stephen Maxwell Johnson (9 eps); Wayne Blair (4 eps)
Starring Melissa Howard
Poppy Lee Friar
Alexandra Coppinger
Opening theme"Life and Death" by Annabelle Priftis
Country of originAustralia
United Kingdom
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13
Production
Running time25–30 minutes
Original release
Network BBC Two
CBBC
Release15 March (2010-03-15) 
31 March 2010 (2010-03-31)
Network ABC1
ABC3
Release5 April (2010-04-05) 
21 April 2010 (2010-04-21)

Dead Gorgeous is a 2010 children's supernatural fantasy television show which premiered on 15 March 2010 in Britain and 5 April 2010 in Australia. It was produced by Burberry Productions and Coolabi Productions with funding from Screen Australia, and directed by Stephen Maxwell Johnson and Wayne Blair. The programme was last re-aired on CBBC on July 10, 2013, at 12:55am [1]

Contents

Plot

Dead Gorgeous follows the adventures of three sisters, Rebecca, Sophie and Hazel Ainsworth who died in a terrible carriage crash along with their beloved nanny, during the Victorian era. Feeling they did not get the chance to experience life properly, Rebecca applies to the ghost council for another chance of life. Their wish is granted but they return 150 years after their death to find their home has been turned into a private boarding school. They are "Living Ghosts" who appear to be normal people but have ghostly abilities such as walking through walls. Unable to reveal their secret the sisters are forced to fit into the 21st century as students in the school that used to be their home. As three refined, old-fashioned young ladies, they are baffled by modern life but with the help of their ghost-guardian Agatha, and a motley selection of ghosts they manage to survive the challenges modern culture brings. They struggle during their attempt to adjust to modern life but do get helped by these people.

Cast

Production

The show is Produced by Burberry Productions and Coolabi Productions in association with the ABC and the BBC, as well as Screen Australia and Film Victoria. It was filmed on location at Ripponlea and at La Bassa (a mansion in Melbourne) and Ruyton Girls' School.[ citation needed ]

Stephen Maxwell Johnson directed nine episodes, while Wayne Blair directed the other four. [2]

Pilot

In 2003, Nickelodeon UK ordered a pilot to the show which was shot entirely in Britain. Nickelodeon did not pick the series up and it was pitched to the BBC, who came on board. Subsequently, the ABC and Nickelodeon Germany became involved and the series was filmed in Australia with a different cast. The show also had a slightly different setup and a slight difference in character personalities. [3] Footage from the pilot is available on YouTube. [4]

Episodes

The thirteen episodes are as follows: [5]

NumberTitleOriginal Airdate
1"150 Years Later"15 March 2010 (2010-03-15)
The Girls arrive as living ghosts. Because they lived in the Victorian times, they are not used to the 21st century and talk and act in an old-fashioned way. They meet their guardian, Agatha, and her group, Buddy, Grendell and Sophus. They are dead ghosts and they guide the sisters with their problems. The sisters soon become friends with Jonathan and meet David, who Rebecca has a crush on and the spoilt Christine and her friends.
2"Dying to Belong"16 March 2010 (2010-03-16)
Still attempting to settle into life as "living ghosts" the sisters begin to discover the modern advantages to their new environment. Desperate to fit in, Rebecca identifies Christine and her friends as the route to popularity.
3"Sisters in Mind"17 March 2010 (2010-03-17)
Rebecca wants to become a player for the girls' basketball team, though does not know how to play and goes to ask Hazel for help, however she is busy with her science project which concerns frogs. When they arrive in the court, Sophie turns out to be brilliant at it despite never playing it before. Meanwhile, Hazel has started hearing people's thoughts, causing her to release the frogs for the science project.
4"Gold"18 March 2010 (2010-03-18)
Hazel learns that her old friend and sheep herder from her old life was jailed for thieving gold, she summons up him to try to discover the truth to win her legal case in an English class and help her friend pass on to the after-death.
5"Law of the Jungle"19 March 2010 (2010-03-19)
Sophie finds out that her best friend Charlie and some other people too are being bullied into doing someone's homework and when Sophie finds out who that is, she is shocked and she and her sisters and Jonathon try to put it right.
6"The Baharee"20 March 2010 (2010-03-20)
It is Culture week. Rebecca chooses to do drama, Sophie chooses art and Hazel and Jonathan choose dance. Everyone is enjoying themselves until a box is opened containing a pipe or a horn. When Christine blows on it she unleashes a spirit called the Baharee which forces people to do things they wouldn't normally do.
7"Hazel's Tree"23 March 2010 (2010-03-23)
Hazel is distraught to learn that a peppercorn tree that she planted with her mother as a young girl is to be torn down to make way for a new hydraulic water pump. Posing as an unwashed, energy saving environmentalist, Hazel starts a campaign intent on educating the school on all things "green". Meanwhile, Sophie has a struggle on her hands to convert her peers into literary lovers. In the end, she starts her own book club with Buddy, Sophus and Grendell.
8"Reliving History"24 March 2010 (2010-03-24)
It is a day at Ainsbury High that acts out life 150 years ago. This pleases the girls. It is also Sophie's Birthday. Christine and her gang are put as being Rebecca's servants, which pleases her, and Jonathan and David are put as Rebecca's suitors, which pleases Jonathan, even though Rebecca only has eyes for David. Therefore, Jonathan is the only suitor to give Rebecca a suitable visiting card. But Rebecca ends up hurting Jonathan's feelings, but all is resolved at the end. Also, Agatha goes searching for the perfect present for Sophie, which is her horse, Splendour, whom Sophie gets to ride at the end of the episode. Hazel becomes a convict instead of a sister, the part which Christine gets in the end, and therefore Hazel does things which she normally never does.
9"A Friend Indeed"25 March 2010 (2010-03-25)
Jonathan learns that he is to miss out on a trip to Beijing that he wanted to go for thanks to someone with money. Sophie finds she is good at running which makes her popular and breaking the school record. Rebecca doesn't believe that Sophie is more popular than her. Sophie tries to help Jonathan by winning some money in a race for him but she loses the race (decreasing the amount of friends she gained) because she told Agatha (who was running with her) that she was using her powers to make her run fast.
10"Grendel's Cold"26 March 2010 (2010-03-26)
With nowhere to go for mid-year vacation, the Ainsworths are forced to spend the break in school. Agatha's also away, and Sophus, Grendel and Buddy choose to keep them company...and run amok in school grounds. And Grendel reveals that she actually died en route to battle after coming down with a cold...that has come back to haunt her every year since. Even worse, the school bus breaks down, forcing the other students back to the school...which means that Grendel's cold gets out of hand when Rebecca rubs it in Christine's face.
11"Smoke and Mirrors"27 March 2010 (2010-03-27)
Rebecca is failing every subject causing the ghost council to get angry. She finds she is almost disappearing. Everyone is working on their science projects in this episode, including magic, a fashion show and a sleeping bag/shoulder bag.
12"Love First Kiss"30 March 2010 (2010-03-30)
A painting of one of Rebecca's suitors is brought to Ainsbury High making Heathcliffe the suitor jump out of the portrait putting Jonathan in there instead and going in pursuit of Rebecca. Heathcliffe has some unfinished business said Agatha but was it unfinished business or was it just the touch of Rebecca's touch that made him come alive and out of the painting?
13"Old Ghosts"31 March 2010 (2010-03-31)
Sophie is upset to hear that the old stables are to be knocked down. An old ghost is unleashed who proceeds to possess her. But Sophie discovers what is most important not the leaf she carved but the only family she has alive and with her.

Release

The show first aired in Australia on ABC1 on 5 April 2010. [6]

DVD releases

The ABC released a DVD of Dead Gorgeous featuring the first 7 episodes, with a second DVD later released with the remaining episodes.

Title Region 4
release date
Episodes
Dead Gorgeous – Volume 1 [7] 25 June 2010
  • "150 Years Later"
  • "Dying to Belong"
  • "Sisters in the Mind"
  • "Gold"
  • "Law of the Jungle"
  • "Baharee"
  • "Hazel's Tree"
Dead Gorgeous – Volume 2 [8] 28 September 2010
  • "Reliving History"
  • "A Friend Indeed"
  • "Grendel's Cold"
  • "Smoke and Mirrors"
  • "Love First Kiss"
  • "Old Ghosts"

International broadcasts

CountryChannelSeries Premiere
Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia ABC1 / ABC3 5 April 2010
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium Ketnet 15 December 2010
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Nickelodeon 30 April 2010
Flag of Israel.svg  Israel Arutz HaYeladim 25 November 2010
Flag of Italy.svg  Italy Disney Channel / Rai Gulp 2 January 2011
Flag of Norway.svg  Norway NRK Super / NRK 3 16 March 2011
Flag of Russia.svg  Russia Kultura 19 December 2011
Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden SVTB 27 March 2011
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom BBC2 / CBBC 15 March 2010
Latin America HBO Family / Yups Channel / Once TV México 4 March 2013

See also

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References

  1. "CBBC - Dead Gorgeous, Old Ghosts". BBC. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  2. "Dead Gorgeous (TV Series 2010– ): Full cast and credits". IMDb. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  3. "Dead Gorgeous Pilot". TV Tonight. 3 May 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  4. "Dead Gorgeous Pilot Snip". YouTube . 3 May 2010. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
  5. "Dead Gorgeous Episodes". Australian Television.net. 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  6. "Airdate Dead Gorgeous". TV Tonight. 17 March 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  7. "Dead Gorgeous – Volume 1 – DVD – ABC Shop". Australian Broadcasting Company. Archived from the original on 5 April 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
  8. "Dead Gorgeous: Vol 2 – DVD – ABC Shop". Australian Broadcasting Company. Archived from the original on 5 April 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2011.