Water Rats (TV series)

Last updated

Water Rats
Genre
Created byJohn Hugginson
Tony Morphett
Starring Colin Friels
Catherine McClements
Steve Bisley
Toni Scanlan
Peter Bensley
Aaron Pedersen
Dee Smart
Jay Laga'aia
Theme music composer Les Gock
Song Zu
Country of originAustralia
No. of seasons6
No. of episodes177 (list of episodes)
Production
Producers Hal McElroy
Ted Roberts
Production locations Sydney
The Rocks
Goat Island
Balmain
Running time42-45 minutes
Production companies Southern Star Productions
Nine Films and Television
Original release
Network Nine Network
Release12 February 1996 (1996-02-12) 
7 August 2001 (2001-08-07)

Water Rats is an Australian police procedural crime drama television series created by John Hugginson and Tony Morphett for the Nine Network. The series was based on the work of Sydney Water Police who fight crime around Sydney Harbour and surrounding locales. The show was set on and around Goat Island in Sydney Harbour.

Contents

Water Rats premiered on 12 February 1996, and ran for six seasons and 177 episodes. Colin Friels and Catherine McClements were the original stars of the series and were instrumental in the show's early success. They both departed the show in 1999. In later seasons, Steve Bisley, Aaron Pedersen and Dee Smart became the show's main stars.

For the sixth and final season in 2001, the show concentrated more on the cops' personal lives rather than just focusing on the crimes committed. The Nine Network cancelled the show after six seasons. Executive Producer Kris Noble blamed escalating costs for the cancellation. However, the series had been suffering a ratings decline following the departure of Friels and McClements in 1999.

The final episode was broadcast in Australia on 7 August 2001.

Cast

Main

Supporting

Recurring

Guests

ActorRoleEpisodes
Aaron Blabey Doug Porter / Gary Travis4 episodes
Abbie Cornish Marie Marchand1 episode
Abi Tucker Amy Collins1 episode
Alan David Lee Jim Flemming / Tom McKelvey3 episodes
Alyssa McClelland Samantha1 episode
Amanda Douge Carly Middleton1 episode
Anna Lise Phillips Megan1 episode
Anthony Hayes Jarred1 episode
Arky Michael Dave Fremont1 episode
Brett Climo Terry Spiro1 episode
Bridie Carter Joanne Calvert2 episodes
Brittany Byrnes Geena Sadler2 episodes
Brooke Anderson Finn1 episode
Bryan Marshall Inspector Michael Farrell4 episodes
Carmen Duncan Geraldine St Clare1 episode
Caroline Brazier Heather Pinchon1 episode
Caz Lederman Marie James1 episode
Celia Ireland Sarah Fleetwood2 episodes
Christine Stephen-Daly Sylvia Rapsardi1 episode
Christopher BarryPrison Warden1 episode
Claudia Black Beth Williams1 episode
Damian de Montemas Constance 'Fish' Wilson1 episode
Danny Adcock Rhys 'Kegs' Jeegan1 episode
Danny Roberts Fred Pearson1 episode
David Field Warren / Doug4 episodes
Deni Gordon Cynthia Rody1 episode
Diana McLean Elizabeth Cartland / Trish2 episodes
Ditch Davey Brendan Hogan2 episodes
Felicity Price Sally1 episode
Garry Who John Lynch1 episode
Helen Buday Peggy Newland1 episode
Helen Scott Joy Godfrey1 episode
Helen Thomson Breda / Anne Harvey2 episodes
Hunter Page-Lochard Max Bullen2 episodes
Ian Bliss Colin Fleetwood / Max Prescott4 episodes
Imogen Annesley Jennifer Campbell2 episode
Jason Smith Neil Wilson3 episodes
Jessica Napier Vanessa1 episode
John Batchelor Eric Bourke2 episodes
John Brumpton Joe Slaven1 episode
John Clayton Ronald Barnsley1 episode
John Howard Sven Larsen2 episodes
John Jarratt Colin McGuire1 episode
John Noble Dr Harry1 episode
Josef Ber Owen1 episode
Josh Quong Tart Yo1 episode
Justin Rosniak Kingsley / Wayne2 episodes
Kate Sheil Coroner1 episode
Leon Ford First Probationer1 episode
Liz Burch Susan Webb1 episode
Lorna Lesley Mrs Gleeson1 episode
Luke Carroll Courier1 episode
Luke Ford Harley Strachan1 episode
Manu Bennett Joseph Lipinski3 episodes
Marina Finlay Gretchen Hart1 episode
Mark Owen-Taylor Jimmy Reid1 episode
Matthew Newton Josh Rogers1 episode
Melissa Bell Lisa Hubbard1 episode
Mercia Deane-Johns Cheryl Voss1 episode
Michael Beckley Roger Mulray1 episode
Michael Denkha Chicka Canter / Terry Brown2 episodes
Myles Pollard Robert Haig1 episode
Nadine Garner Shelley Andrews1 episode
Nathaniel Buzolic Uncredited1 episode
Nicholas Bishop Shane Bookman1 episode
Noah Taylor Ronny Jefferson1 episode
Pat Bishop Miranda Lathem1 episode
Paul Mercurio Les Johnson1 episode
Paul Tassone Warwick Richard1 episode
Paula Arundell Michelle1 episode
Peter O'Brien Matthew Grierson1 episode
Peter Phelps Jimmy Formica1 episode
Rachael Blake Carly Bridges1 episode
Rebecca Frith Rebecca Solomon1 episode
Rebekah Elmaloglou Christina Mangano1 episode
Richard HealyInspector Tony Brady1 episode
Rob Carlton David ‘Kiwi Dave’ Crowe / Barry Elliot3 episodes
Robert Mammone Detective Agi Fatseas5 episodes
Rohan Nichol Shane Green1 episode
Roy Billing Stan1 episode
Rupert Reid Jens1 episode
Russell Dykstra Tino2 episodes
Russell Kiefel Lewis West2 episodes
Sam Healy Blaire Wenzel1 episode
Sam Worthington Phillip Champion1 episode
Sarah Chadwick Yvonne Carlisle1 episode
Saskia Burmeister Victoria St Clair1 episode
Scott McGregor Rob Jennings2 episodes
Simmone Jade Mackinnon Bianca Matthias1 episode
Simon Burke Det. Sgt. 'Mac' Phillips2 episodes
Steve Le Marquand Tim1 episode
Steven GraviesJonathon Goldstein1 episode
Susan Prior Rosie Callahan2 episodes
Susie Porter Julie Drummond1 episode
Tara Morice Anne Milner1 episode
Tasma Walton Belinda Harvey1 episode
Tim Campbell Peter Kostos1 episode
Tom Richards Dan Manning
Tony Bonner Warren / Doug4 episodes
Tracy Mann Supt. Franklin1 episode
Vanessa Downing Margaret Hobbs1 episode
Victoria Longley Tracy Bennett1 episode
Blake PowerJewish school child
Tom McCrickardStringy Oscar

Season summaries

Pilot

The pilot of Water Rats screened in Australia at 8.30 pm on Monday, 12 February 1996. It was entitled "Dead in the Water" and was a two-part episode, concernimg a divorced man, deranged over the death of his daughter, who captures a Sydney Harbour ferry and holds the city to ransom. [1] "Dead in the Water" introduced viewers to Detective Senior Constables Frank Holloway (Colin Friels) and Rachel Goldstein (Catherine McClements).

Other characters

  • Chief Inspector Clarke Webb (played by Bill Young)
  • Senior Sergeant Jeff Hawker (played by Peter Bensley)
  • Sergeant Helen Blakemore (played by Toni Scanlan)
  • Senior Sergeant Dave McCall (played by Scott Burgess)
  • Senior Constable Gavin Sykes (played by Brett Partridge)
  • Senior Constable Tommy Tavita (played by Jay Laga'aia)
  • Senior Constable Fiona Cassidy (played by Sophie Heathcote)
  • Senior Constable Terry Watson (played by Aaron Jeffery)
  • Detective Senior Sergeant John "Knocker" Harrison (played by Peter Mochrie)
  • Detective Senior Constable Kevin Holloway (played by Jeremy Callaghan)
  • David Goldstein (played by Treffyn Koreshoff)
  • Jonathon Goldstein (played by Steven Grivies)
  • Inspector Tony Brady (played by Richard Healy)
  • Prison Warden (played by Christopher Barry)

Season one

Season one ran for 26 episodes.

Major storylines included

  • Jonathon Goldstein (Steven Grivies) trying to deny Rachel (Catherine McClements) access to their young son, David (Treffyn Koreshoff).
  • Frank's (Colin Friels)' relationship with crime scene officer, Caroline Cox.
  • Helen's (Toni Scanlan)'s sexuality comes out in the open, particularly to Rachel (McClements), who seemed to be the only character who did not know Helen was gay.
  • The death and subsequent investigation of Frank's brother, Kevin (Jeremy Callaghan).
  • Rachel's (McClements)' relationship with Knocker (Peter Mochrie), which turned out to be a deadly one.
  • Clarke's (Bill Young's) affair and his subsequent resignation.
  • Frank (Friels) being investigated by Internal Affairs on two occasions.

Season two

The second season of Water Rats ran, again, for 26 episodes and began airing on Monday, 10 February 1997. Season two also took the detectives to Melbourne, a change from Sydney Harbour. It also introduced a new character, Constable Tayler Johnson (Raelee Hill), as well as a few minor ones.

New characters

  • Colin "Chopper" Lewis (played by Anthony Martin)
  • Senior Constable Sam Bailey (played by Kelly Dale)
  • Michael Jefferies (played by John Adam)
  • Gail Hawker (played by Anne Tenney)

Major storylines included

  • Rachel's (McClements') relationship with the well-off Michael Jefferies (John Adam).
  • Jeff (Peter Bensley) becomes Chief Inspector.
  • Frank (Friels) once again, is investigated by I.A, but this time for a much more serious offence, murder.
  • Tayler (Raelee Hill), is Helen's niece.
  • Terry (Aaron Jeffery) is stabbed and decides to leave the Water Police.
  • Dave (Scott Burgess) is speared by spear gun and cannot continue diving.
  • Jeff (Peter Bensley) and his wife separate.

Season three

Season three ran for 31 episodes and premiered on Monday, 9 February 1998. A couple of episodes into the season, it was moved to Tuesday nights. Steve Bisley is also added to the opening credits for a number of episodes near the end of the season.

New characters included

Major storylines included

Season four

The fourth series began on Tuesday, 16 February 1999 and ran for 32 episodes. It was a series of change for Water Rats, which included both Colin Friels' and Catherine McClements' departures within 18 episodes of each other.

New characters included

  • Detective Senior Constable Michael Reilly (Aaron Pedersen)
  • Gillian Swain (played by Liz Burch)
  • Suzi Abromavich (played by Roxane Wilson, who also appeared in one episode in series three)
  • Detective Senior Constable Alex St Clare (played by Dee Smart)

Major storylines included

Season five

The fifth season began airing on Tuesday, 22 February 2000, and ran for 36 episodes, the longest out of the six seasons of the show. Ratings began to fall slightly, as a result of McClements' departure the previous year. A number of regular characters also left, including Jay Laga'aia and Scott Burgess, whose character was not seen at all in series five, and his whereabouts was finally mentioned in series six.

New characters included

Major storylines included

Season six

The sixth and final season of Water Rats began airing on Tuesday, 6 February 2001 and ran for 26 episodes. Sometime early in the season, the timeslot was changed from 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm. The Nine Network decided to cancel the show, due to escalating costs and declining ratings, and two main stars, Steve Bisley and Dee Smart had decided to leave the show.

Notable new characters included

Major storylines included

  • Jack (Bisley) has a short relationship with Julia Goodwin (Josephine Byrnes).
  • Lance (Joss McWilliam) dies in a freak accident.
  • Sophie (Brooke Satchwell) begins her Police training.
  • The Water Police learn that Snr. Sgt. Dave McCall (Scott Burgess) has died.
  • Gavin (Brett Partridge) and Eva (Mouche Phillips) get married, and at the end of the series, have a baby.
  • Jack is shot in the very last episode, and though not known, probably dies, as Bisley was leaving the show if it did continue for another season.

Episodes

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)Result
1997 Logie Award Most Outstanding ActorColin FrielsWon
Most Outstanding Achievement in a Drama ProductionWater RatsWon
1998 Logie Award Most Outstanding ActorColin FrielsNominated
Most Popular ActorColin FrielsNominated
Most Popular ActressCatherine McClementsNominated
Most Outstanding ActressCatherine McClementsWon
Most Popular ProgramWater RatsNominated
Most Outstanding Drama SeriesWater RatsNominated
AFI Awards Young Actor's AwardPaul Pantano (for episode Romeo is Bleeding)Won
1999 Logie Awards Most Popular ActorColin FrielsNominated
Most Outstanding ActorColin FrielsNominated
People's Choice Award Favourite Actor in a Drama or SerialColin FrielsWon
Favourite Actress in a Drama or SerialCatherine McClementsNominated
Favourite TV StarColin FrielsNominated
Favourite Drama or SerialWater RatsNominated
AFI Award Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television DramaCatherine McClements (for episode I'm Home)Nominated
Awgie Award Television - SeriesPeter Gawler (for episode Six Hundred Clear a Week)Won
2000 Logie Award Most Outstanding Actor in a SeriesColin FrielsNominated
Most Outstanding Actor in a SeriesSteve BisleyNominated
Most Outstanding Actress in a SeriesCatherine McClementsNominated
Most Popular ActorColin FrielsNominated
Most Outstanding Drama SeriesWater RatsNominated
2001 Awgie Award Television - SeriesJohn Banas (for episode Domino)Won
Television - SeriesPeter Gawler (for episode Hungry Bear Blues)Won
Logie Awards Most Outstanding Drama SeriesWater RatsNominated
Most Outstanding Actor in a SeriesSteve BisleyNominated

Filming locations

Water Rats was filmed on and around Goat Island in Sydney Harbour. Other locations used throughout the series were:

Fictional locations

The real Sydney Water Police headquarters was located at Pyrmont. The TV version of the Sydney Water Police headquarters was located on Goat Island, though the fictional address was 48/50 Harbour Drive, Sydney 2000. Other fictional locations throughout the series included:

Home media

Water Rats was first released on DVD in 2004 through Shock Entertainment. It was released as two parts called Series 1 and Series 2, though it was actually only season 1 in two parts. Warner Vision Australia then released the rest of the show, where DVDs labelled series 3 were actually season 2 and so on. It was announced on 7 August 2017 that Via Vision Entertainment would re-release all six seasons on DVD on 22 November 2017. Several episodes are out of broadcast order in the Via Vision collection and on Amazon Prime.

DVDs

TitleFormatNo. of
episodes
DiscsRegion 4 (Australia)DVD special featuresDVD distributors
Season OneDVDSeries 1, Episodes 1-1338 March 2004Selected Episodes CommentariesShock Entertainment
Season TwoDVDSeries 1, Episodes 14-26321 February 2005Photo GalleryShock Entertainment
Season Three Part 1DVDSeries 2, Episodes 1-144Photo galleryWarner Vision Australia
Season Three Part 2DVDSeries 2, Episodes 15-263NoneWarner Vision Australia
Season Four Part 1DVDSeries 3, Episodes 1-174NoneWarner Vision Australia
Season Four Part 2DVDSeries 3, Episode 18-314Photo galleryWarner Vision Australia
Season Five Part 1DVDSeries 4, Episodes 1-1649 September 2006NoneWarner Vision Australia
Season Five Part 2DVDSeries 4, Episodes 17-3249 September 2006Photo GalleryWarner Vision Australia
Season Six Part 1DVDSeries 5, Episodes 1-21528 October 2006NoneWarner Vision Australia
Season Six Part 2DVDSeries 5, Episodes 22-36428 October 2006Photo GalleryWarner Vision Australia
Season Seven Part 1DVDSeries 6, Episodes 1-12328 October 2006Photo GalleryWarner Vision Australia
Season Seven Part 2DVDSeries 6, Episodes 13-26428 October 2006NoneWarner Vision Australia
The Complete Series 1-6DVDAll 177 Episodes4522 November 2017Commentaries On Selected Episodes.

Photo Galleries

Via Vision Entertainment
Water Rats: Collection OneDVDSeason 01, Episodes 1-26

Season 02, Episodes 01-26

Season 03, Episodes 01-31

Season 04, Episodes 01-32

2411 April 2018Commentaries On Selected Episodes.

Photo Galleries

Via Vision Entertainment
Water Rats: Collection TwoDVDSeason 05, Episodes 01-36

Season 06, Episodes 01-26

215 December 2018Photo GalleriesVia Vision Entertainment
Water Rats: The Complete CollectionDVDAll 177 Episodes4513 September 2023Audio commentaries on selected episodes

Photo Galleries

Via Vision Entertainment

Online streaming availability

TitleFormatEpisodes #Year of AiringStreaming StatusDistributors
Water Rats Season OneStreamingEpisodes 01-262019

2020

No longer Available

Currently Streaming

9Now

7plus

Water Rats Season TwoStreamingEpisodes 01-262019

2020

No longer Available

Currently Streaming

9Now

7plus

Water Rats Season ThreeStreamingEpisodes 01-312019

2020

No longer Available

Currently Streaming

9Now

7plus

Water Rats Season FourStreamingEpisodes 01-322019

2020

No longer Available

Currently Streaming

9Now

7plus

Water Rats Season FiveStreamingEpisodes 01-362019

2020

No longer Available

Currently Streaming

9Now

7plus

Water Rats Season SixStreamingEpisodes 01-262019

2020

No longer Available

Currently Streaming

9Now

7plus

All episodes are available on Amazon Prime in Australia.

Soundtrack

A Water Rats soundtrack was produced by Les Gock in 1999. It contained songs featured on the series, such as "Goldie's Theme" by Cathi Ogden (heard in many episodes, most notably episode 109) and "I'll Dream of You" by Hugh Wilson (heard in Frank's final episode). It also features a couple of songs sung by cast members: "Breathe" with Raelee Hill and "Let's Party" with Jay Laga'aia. The song "Breathe" was written by James Freud, who also sang in the chorus. The company Song Zu seems to want to have no affiliation with the soundtrack music and does not recognise nor acknowledge it on its current website. Secondhand copies of it can occasionally be found on auction sites and in secondhand music stores.

International broadcasting

The series is currently[ when? ] being re-run in:

Notes

See also

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References

  1. Ed. Scott Murray, Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995, Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p161