Nothing Trivial
Encyclopedia
Nothing Trivial is a New Zealand comedy-drama television series, produced by South Pacific Pictures
South Pacific Pictures
South Pacific Pictures is a television production company based in New Zealand. The company produces drama series, mini-series, telemovies and feature films for the domestic market and international market....

. The series is created by the duo of Gavin Strawhan and the co creator of Outrageous Fortune
Outrageous Fortune (TV series)
Outrageous Fortune was a New Zealand comedy/drama television series, which was created by James Griffin and Rachel Lang and was produced by South Pacific Pictures...

, Rachel Lang. The pair, who also created the shows Go Girls
Go Girls
Go Girls is a New Zealand comedy/drama television series centering around four adult friends, Amy, Britta, Cody and Kevin, who live on the North Shore, Auckland...

and This Is Not My Life
This Is Not My Life
This Is Not My Life is a 2010 New Zealand television mystery thriller which originally aired on Television New Zealand's TV ONE channel on Thursday nights....

, both write and executive produce the show.

The series is set around five characters who meet at a pub quiz
Pub quiz
A pub quiz is a quiz held in a public house. These events are also called Quiz Nights or Trivia Nights and may be held in other settings. Pub quizzes are still extremely popular and may attract people to a pub who are not found there on other days. The pub quiz is a modern example of a pub game...

. All share the characteristic of being unlucky in love.

The series began airing on TV One in July 2011 and the first episode had the highest number of viewers of any locally-made drama debut since 2000.

Primary

  • Shane Cortese
    Shane Cortese
    Shane Cortese is a New Zealand actor and singer, known for his role as the evil Dominic Thompson on New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street and Hayden Peters on hit show Outrageous Fortune. He was also a runner-up on Season 1 of NZ Dancing With The Stars in 2005.-Career:Cortese trained at...

     plays Mac Delany; an advertising guy with a heart of gold who specializes in general knowledge.
  • Tandi Wright
    Tandi Wright
    Tandi Wright is a South Africa-born, New Zealand-raised television and film actress. From 1996-1999 she appeared as Nurse Caroline Buxton in Shortland Street...

     plays Catherine Duvall; an attractive, intelligent and acerbic doctor who specializes in medicine, science, anything about France.
  • Blair Strang
    Blair Strang
    Blair Strang is a New Zealand actor. He is most noted for playing ambulance driver Rangi Heremaia on New Zealand's longest-running soap opera, Shortland Street, between 1995 and 2001.-Early life:...

     plays Brian King; a plumber and serial womanizer who specializes in sports, eighties music and geography.
  • Nicole Whippy
    Nicole Whippy
    Nicole Whippy is a New Zealand actress who has been in a number of television series over the years in New Zealand. She appeared in Jackson's Wharf, The Strip, Being Eve, Mercy Peak, Orange Roughies, but is best known for her role as Kasey Mason in the hit comedy-drama Outrageous Fortune...

     plays Michelle Hardcastle; a franchise owner and vengeful recently divorced wife who specializes in celebrity gossip.
  • Debbie Newby-Ward plays Emma Wedgewood; a teacher and eternal optimist who does good sympathy and specializes in food and animals.

Secondary

  • Will Hall plays Cory; The antagonistic leader of the opposition pub team
  • Katherine Kennard plays Jo Delany; Mac's vindictive ex-wife and mother of his children
  • Barnie Duncan
    Barnie Duncan
    Barnie Duncan is a television actor from New Zealand, best known for his roles as Piggy in Power Rangers: S.P.D. and Toby in Power Rangers: Mystic Force...

     plays Scotty; Michelle's philandering ex-husband
  • Aaron Ward as the Quiz Master; The man who runs the quiz
  • Manon Blackman plays Celeste Duvall; Catherine's teenage daughter
  • Elizabeth Hawthorne
    Elizabeth Hawthorne
    Elizabeth Hawthorne, ONZM, is a New Zealand-born actress who is best known for her role as Mrs. Macready in the 2005 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and the Peter Jackson supernatural comedy The Frighteners. She played Judge Harriet Caldwell in the 2004 TV...

     plays Anne; Catherine's mother
  • Tim Balme
    Tim Balme
    Timothy Guy Balme is an actor and screenwriter from New Zealand. He's most famous for his roles on the long-running soap opera Shortland Street and Mercy Peak, as well as lead roles in the cult favorites Braindead and Jack Brown Genius...

     plays Jules; Celeste's father
  • Ray Woolf plays Micky Delany; Mac's father
  • Simon Mead plays Noah Delany; Mac & Jo's eldest son
  • Dylan Holmes plays Frank Delany; Mac & Jo's youngest son
  • Jason Hoyte
    Jason Hoyte
    -Television Roles:*Young Hercules: Hephaestus*Hercules: The Legendary Journeys: Hephaestus*Xena: Warrior Princess: Hephaestus, Timus*Outrageous Fortune: Franklin "Corky" Corke*Seven Periods with Mr...

     plays Smudge; Mac's business partner, real name Malcolm.
  • Maggie Tarver plays Donna Ashford; Brian's biological mother
  • Nicole Thomson plays Alisha Ashford; Brian's biological half-sister
  • Calvin Tuteao
    Calvin Tuteao
    Calvin Tuteao is a New Zealand actor who has appeared in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Once Were Warriors, Shortland Street and Xena: Warrior Princess....

     plays Matiu Renata; Brian's biological father


Cortese said that the cast were already friends before filming started.

Production

In November 2010 it was confirmed that the creators of Go Girls
Go Girls
Go Girls is a New Zealand comedy/drama television series centering around four adult friends, Amy, Britta, Cody and Kevin, who live on the North Shore, Auckland...

 had created a new show and it may be airing on TV One. In December 2010 funding was approved for the show and NZ on Air representatives were said to be excited. 6.9 million was given to the show for a 13 episode run. In March 2011 it was confirmed the show will air later in the year and was described as; "a light-hearted and comedic drama based around five friends with two things in common: a pub quiz and the fact that each of them is unlucky or unhappy in love." Blair Strang
Blair Strang
Blair Strang is a New Zealand actor. He is most noted for playing ambulance driver Rangi Heremaia on New Zealand's longest-running soap opera, Shortland Street, between 1995 and 2001.-Early life:...

, Shane Cortese
Shane Cortese
Shane Cortese is a New Zealand actor and singer, known for his role as the evil Dominic Thompson on New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street and Hayden Peters on hit show Outrageous Fortune. He was also a runner-up on Season 1 of NZ Dancing With The Stars in 2005.-Career:Cortese trained at...

, Tandi Wright
Tandi Wright
Tandi Wright is a South Africa-born, New Zealand-raised television and film actress. From 1996-1999 she appeared as Nurse Caroline Buxton in Shortland Street...

, Nicole Whippy
Nicole Whippy
Nicole Whippy is a New Zealand actress who has been in a number of television series over the years in New Zealand. She appeared in Jackson's Wharf, The Strip, Being Eve, Mercy Peak, Orange Roughies, but is best known for her role as Kasey Mason in the hit comedy-drama Outrageous Fortune...

 and Debbie Newby-Ward were announced to be in the cast. The show made its debut in July 2011. On 10 October 2011 it was announced that funding had been given for a second season.

Reception

The show was met with commercial and critical acclaim. The show gained the record of the highest number of viewers of any locally-made drama debut since 2000. Deborah Hill Cone from the New Zealand Herald stated; "The writing on Nothing Trivial is good enough to be have been penned by the guru of romantic comedy, Richard Curtis
Richard Curtis
Richard Whalley Anthony Curtis, CBE is a New Zealand-born British screenwriter, music producer, actor and film director, known primarily for romantic comedy films such as Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones's Diary, Notting Hill, Love Actually and The Girl in the Café, as well as the hit...

 (Four Weddings and A Funeral
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Four Weddings and a Funeral is a 1994 British comedy film directed by Mike Newell. It was the first of several films by screenwriter Richard Curtis to feature Hugh Grant...

, Bridget Jones's Diary
Bridget Jones's Diary
Bridget Jones's Diary is a 1996 novel by Helen Fielding. Written in the form of a personal diary, the novel chronicles a year in the life of Bridget Jones, a thirty-something single working woman living in London. She writes about her career, self-image, vices, family, friends, and romantic...

). The characters in Nothing Trivial really come alive from the first episode. They seem like people you could know but, of course, wittier... It is a treat." While Simon Wilson agreed with the well structured writing, saying; "(The writing) is witty, it's sharp, it's very tightly put together. The people are walking clusters of mistakes and they are trying to come to terms with that and deal with that. The series will become a celebration of friendship and where friendships might lead. If you do that well, it makes charming television and they are so far doing it well." Melanie Parkes of Yahoo also stated; ""The humour is uniquely and distinctly Kiwi... You don't have to be interested in competitive quizzing to enjoy Nothing Trivial, although if you're a regular pub quizzer yourself, you'll certainly find something pleasantly familiar about it."

It was reported in August 2011 that pub quiz popularity were receiving a huge surge in popularity due to the success of Nothing Trivial.

Season 1: 2011

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