The Group (TV series)
Encyclopedia
The Group was a popular Australia
n situation comedy
series produced by Cash Harmon Television
for ATN7 in 1971.
The situation involved five young flatmates - three men and two women - living together for financial and pragmatic reasons and regularly attempting to outwit their landlord who was convinced there were saucy goings-on in the flat.
The regular characters were named on screen with a freeze frame as they made their entrance at the start of each episode. Each credit also featured a brief description of the character, such as MARK the medical student, JENNIFER the student, BOB the accountant, JEREMY he's something in television, TINTO the landlord.
The final character was Laura, the dumb brunette, a model unaware of her physical attractiveness. Laura was the key character around which most of the show's situations revolved. Her caption would change every episode and formed the title of the episode, such as "and LAURA this week she's on a diet", "This Week She Wants to Be a Singer", "This Week She Travels", etc.
The regular cast included Ken James
as Mark, Gregory Ross as Bob, Gregory de Polnay
as Jeremy, Jenee Welsh as Jennifer and Terry O'Neill as Tinto. The role of Laura Bent was played by Roslyn Wilson, a newcomer with no acting experience. She was cast at the last minute when the original actor, Wendy Hughes
who played Laura in the televised pilot episode, was released to take a role in a stage play.
The series was produced by Don Cash
and Bill Harmon, devised by Anne Hall and written by David Sale
, who the following year collaborated on the phenomenally successful soap opera
Number 96
. Despite its popularity The Group was not renewed beyond its original series of 13 half-hour episodes .
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
series produced by Cash Harmon Television
Cash Harmon Television
Cash Harmon Television was a television production company based in Australia, operating in the 1970s. Their most famous product was top-rated evening soap opera Number 96....
for ATN7 in 1971.
The situation involved five young flatmates - three men and two women - living together for financial and pragmatic reasons and regularly attempting to outwit their landlord who was convinced there were saucy goings-on in the flat.
The regular characters were named on screen with a freeze frame as they made their entrance at the start of each episode. Each credit also featured a brief description of the character, such as MARK the medical student, JENNIFER the student, BOB the accountant, JEREMY he's something in television, TINTO the landlord.
The final character was Laura, the dumb brunette, a model unaware of her physical attractiveness. Laura was the key character around which most of the show's situations revolved. Her caption would change every episode and formed the title of the episode, such as "and LAURA this week she's on a diet", "This Week She Wants to Be a Singer", "This Week She Travels", etc.
The regular cast included Ken James
Ken James (Australian actor)
Ken James, born 16 November 1948 in Sydney, Australia is an actor known for regular roles in several popular television series. He was probably best known to Australian audiences as Sonny's older brother Mark in the 1960s children's TV show, Skippy.He later played television actor Tony Wild in The...
as Mark, Gregory Ross as Bob, Gregory de Polnay
Gregory de Polnay
Gregory de Polnay is a London-born actor who is noted for his work on British television.Probably best remembered for his role as Det. Sgt...
as Jeremy, Jenee Welsh as Jennifer and Terry O'Neill as Tinto. The role of Laura Bent was played by Roslyn Wilson, a newcomer with no acting experience. She was cast at the last minute when the original actor, Wendy Hughes
Wendy Hughes
-Career:Hughes began her career on television in the early 1970s with appearances in Homicide, Number 96, Matlock Police and in 1976, ABC Mini-Series, Power Without Glory...
who played Laura in the televised pilot episode, was released to take a role in a stage play.
The series was produced by Don Cash
Don Cash
Rap artist/record producer Don Cash was born April 6, 1978, in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, a suburb northwest of Toronto.In 2001, after several years working as a teenage pop journalist in Toronto, Cash decided to focus on writing and producing songs at home on his computer, releasing at least ten...
and Bill Harmon, devised by Anne Hall and written by David Sale
David Sale
David Sale is an Australian-based author and television screenwriter. He has contributed to many TV drama series, provided special material for Australia's leading entertainers, and has worked as producer, director, actor and journalist....
, who the following year collaborated on the phenomenally successful soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Number 96
Number 96 (TV series)
Number 96 was a popular Australian soap opera set in a Sydney apartment block. Don Cash and Bill Harmon produced the series for Network Ten, which requested a Coronation Street-type serial, and specifically one that explored adult subjects...
. Despite its popularity The Group was not renewed beyond its original series of 13 half-hour episodes .