Friday on My Mind (miniseries)

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Friday on My Mind
Friday on my mind TV Mini Series Poster.jpg
Genre Drama
Written by Christopher Lee
Screenplay byChristopher Lee
Directed byMatthew Saville
StarringAshley Zukerman
Christian Byers
Will Rush
Arthur McBain
Mackenzie Fearnley
Du Toit Bredenkamp
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes2
Production
CinematographySimon Chapman
Running time180 minutes
Production company Playmaker Media
Original release
Network ABC
Release26 November (2017-11-26) 
3 December 2017 (2017-12-03)

Friday On My Mind is an Australian television drama miniseries, based on the lives of Australian rock band The Easybeats, which first screened on the ABC in November 2017. The series is produced by Playmaker Media and was written by Christopher Lee and directed by Matthew Saville. [1]

Contents

Cast

Release

The mini series was broadcast on ABC1 on 26 November and 3 December 2017 over two nights. Episodes were later available for streaming on the ABC's iView service.

Reception

Friday On My Mind received largely positive reviews from the press. Luke Buckmaster from The Guardian Australia praised it by saying: "Easybeats biopic plays like a concert you don't want to end". [2] The acting in the series was praised, in particular Will Rush and Christian Byers. [3] Although, overall the series was praised, critics did point out that the second episode wasn't as strong as the first. [4] [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Easybeats</span> Australian rock band

The Easybeats were an Australian rock band who formed in Sydney in late 1964. They are best known for their 1966 hit single "Friday on My Mind", which is regarded as the first Australian rock song to achieve international success; Rolling Stone described it as "the first international victory for Oz rock". One of the most popular and successful bands in the country, they were one of the few Australian bands of their time to foreground their original material; their first album Easy (1965) was one of the earliest Australian rock albums featuring all original songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Vanda</span> Australian musician

Johannes Hendrikus Jacob van den Berg, better known as his stage name Harry Vanda, is an Australian musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as lead guitarist of the 1960s Australian rock band the Easybeats who with fellow member George Young formed the 1970s and 1980s songwriting and record production duo Vanda & Young.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dick Diamonde</span> Australian musician

Dingeman Adriaan Henry van der Sluijs, better known by his stage name Dick Diamonde, is an Australian former bass guitarist. He was a founding mainstay member of the Easybeats. Diamonde, with the group, was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Young (rock musician)</span> Australian rock musician (1946–2017)

George Redburn Young was an Australian musician, songwriter and record producer. He was a founding member of the bands The Easybeats and Flash and the Pan, and was one-half of the songwriting and production duo Vanda & Young with his long-time musical collaborator Harry Vanda, with whom he co-wrote the international hits "Friday on My Mind" and "Love Is in the Air", the latter recorded by John Paul Young.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevie Wright</span> Australian singer (1947–2015)

Stephen Carlton Wright was an Australian singer, songwriter, and musician. Called Australia's first international pop star, he is best known for being the lead singer of the Easybeats, who are widely regarded as the greatest Australian pop band of the 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sefton High School</span> School in Australia

Sefton High School is a government-funded co-educational dual modality partially academically selective and comprehensive secondary day school, located in Sefton, a suburb in western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1961, the school caters for approximately 1,100, students from Year 7 to Year 12 and is operated by the New South Wales Department of Education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Friday on My Mind</span> 1966 single by The Easybeats

"Friday on My Mind" is a 1966 song by Australian rock group The Easybeats. Written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda, the track became a worldwide hit, reaching No.16 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1967 in the US, No.1 on the Dutch Top 40 chart, No.1 in Australia and No.6 in the UK, as well as charting in several other countries. In 2001, it was voted "Best Australian Song" of all time by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as determined by a panel of 100 music industry personalities. In 2007, "Friday on My Mind" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry.

"Evie" is a rock song performed by Australian singer and former frontman of the Easybeats, Stevie Wright. It was written by Harry Vanda and George Young and released as a single in 1974. It has been suggested that it is the first 11-minute song to chart at #1 anywhere in the world.

<i>Easy</i> (Easybeats album) 1965 studio album by The Easybeats

Easy is the debut studio album by the Australian rock band the Easybeats, released on 23 September 1965.

<i>Volume 3</i> (Easybeats album) 1966 studio album by The Easybeats

Volume 3 is a studio album by the Australian rock band The Easybeats, released on 3 November 1966. It was the third and final album from the group recorded in Australia before relocating to England.

<i>The Best of The Easybeats + Pretty Girl</i> 1967 greatest hits album by The Easybeats

The Best of The Easybeats + Pretty Girl is the first compilation album by The Easybeats featuring a selection of songs recorded by the group between 1965 and 1966. The album was originally released in Australia and New Zealand under the Parlophone label under the then current licensing arrangement by the band's production company Albert Productions.

<i>Friends</i> (Easybeats album) 1970 studio album by The Easybeats

Friends is the sixth and final studio album by Australian rock band the Easybeats. It was released in early 1970 as part of the group's new recording contract with Polydor Records. It would be the only album Polydor released of the band as they broke up before its release.

<i>The Definitive Series</i> 1992 compilation album by The Easybeats

The Definitive Series is a compilation album by The Easybeats. The album was released on September 18, 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vanda & Young</span> Australian songwriting/producing duo

Vanda & Young were an Australian songwriting and producing duo composed of Harry Vanda and George Young. They performed as members of 1960s Australian rock group the Easybeats where Vanda was their lead guitarist and backing singer and Young was their rhythm guitarist and backing singer. Vanda & Young co-wrote most of the Easybeats' later hits including their international hit "Friday on My Mind" and they were the record producers for the group from 1967. Young was the older brother of Malcolm and Angus Young of the hard rock band AC/DC and also the record producer behind several of the band's biggest albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sorry (Easybeats song)</span> 1966 single by The Easybeats

"Sorry" is a 1966 song and single by Australian rock group The Easybeats, which was written by band members George Young and Stevie Wright. It peaked at #1 on the Australian Go-Set's National Top 40 in mid November 1966. It remained at #1 on the Australian Charts for 2 weeks in November 1966.

<i>Good Friday</i> (album) 1967 studio album by The Easybeats

Good Friday is the fourth studio album by The Easybeats, released in May 1967. It was the first album released after the band signed an international recording deal with United Artists Records. The original UK album was released in May 1967. Although "Friday on My Mind" was a big single in the UK, the album failed to make the top 40.

<i>Friday on My Mind</i> (album) 1967 studio album by The Easybeats

Friday On My Mind is the first North American album from The Easybeats. The album was released as Good Friday in Europe, in the same month. This version omitted "Hound Dog" and replaced it with "Women" from the Australian It's 2 Easy album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Who'll Be the One</span> 1967 single by The Easybeats

"Who'll Be the One" is a song written by Harry Vanda and George Young. It was originally recorded by the Australian rock group the Easybeats in 1967. The song was a follow-up to their successful single "Friday On My Mind". The single was a flop in the U.K., but it reached #12 on the Go-Set charts in Australia

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur McBain</span>

Arthur McBain is a British screen actor and children's author. He played Alex Myer in ITV's The Trouble with Maggie Cole and Snowy Fleet, in the ABC television series Friday On My Mind. His debut children's book In The Dead Of The Night was published by Little Hare books in 2019.

Gordon Fleet, known professionally as Snowy Fleet, is an English-born Australian drummer.

References

  1. Adams, Cameron (2 May 2017). "ABC announce their next TV miniseries is a groundbreaking Australian music band". Daily Telegraph. Sydney. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  2. Buckmaster, Luke (26 November 2017). "Easybeats biopic plays like a concert you don't want to end". The Guardian Australia.
  3. Wigney, James (21 November 2017). "Easybeats drama Friday On My Mind is a tribute to the late, great George Young and Stevie Wright". news.com.au.
  4. Knox, David (22 November 2017). "Friday On My Mind". TV Tonight.
  5. Wigney, James (21 November 2017). "Easybeats drama Friday On My Mind is a tribute to the late, great George Young and Stevie Wright". news.com.au.