Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    Banner
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
      • Playlists
    • Television
      • Shows by Decade
        • 1950s Television
        • 1960s Television
        • 1970s Television
        • 1980s Television
        • 1990s Television
      • Shows by Genre
        • Comedy
        • Drama
        • Kids TV
        • Variety
        • News & Sport
        • Advertisements
      • Shows by Country
        • UK TV
        • USA TV
        • Australia & NZ TV
        • Canada TV
        • Europe TV
        • Japan TV
      • Shows A to K
        • Shows A
        • Shows B
        • Shows C
        • Shows D
        • Shows E
        • Shows F
        • Shows G
        • Shows H
        • Shows I
        • Shows J
        • Shows K
      • Shows L to Z
        • Shows L
        • Shows M
        • Shows N
        • Shows O
        • Shows P
        • Shows Q
        • Shows R
        • Shows S
        • Shows T
        • Shows U
        • Shows V
        • Shows W
        • Shows X
        • Shows Y
        • Shows Z
      • Shows 0 to 9
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • 1950s Music
        • 1960s Music
        • 1970s Music
        • 1980s Music
        • 1990s Music
      • Music A to K
        • Music A
        • Music B
        • Music C
        • Music D
        • Music E
        • Music F
        • Music G
        • Music H
        • Music I
        • Music J
        • Music K
      • Music L to Z
        • Music L
        • Music M
        • Music N
        • Music O
        • Music P
        • Music Q
        • Music R
        • Music S
        • Music T
        • Music U
        • Music V
        • Music W
        • Music X
        • Music Y
        • Music Z
      • Music 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • 1950s Movies
          • Movies 1950
          • Movies 1951
          • Movies 1952
          • Movies 1953
          • Movies 1954
          • Movies 1955
          • Movies 1956
          • Movies 1957
          • Movies 1958
          • Movies 1959
        • 1960s Movies
          • Movies 1960
          • Movies 1961
          • Movies 1962
          • Movies 1963
          • Movies 1964
          • Movies 1965
          • Movies 1966
          • Movies 1967
          • Movies 1968
          • Movies 1969
        • 1970s Movies
          • Movies 1970
          • Movies 1971
          • Movies 1972
          • Movies 1973
          • Movies 1974
          • Movies 1975
          • Movies 1976
          • Movies 1977
          • Movies 1978
          • Movies 1979
        • 1980s Movies
          • Movies 1980
          • Movies 1981
          • Movies 1982
          • Movies 1983
          • Movies 1984
          • Movies 1985
          • Movies 1986
          • Movies 1987
          • Movies 1988
          • Movies 1989
        • 1990s Movies
          • Movies 1990
          • Movies 1991
          • Movies 1992
          • Movies 1993
          • Movies 1994
          • Movies 1995
          • Movies 1996
          • Movies 1997
          • Movies 1998
          • Movies 1999
      • Movies A to K
        • Movies A
        • Movies B
        • Movies C
        • Movies D
        • Movies E
        • Movies F
        • Movies G
        • Movies H
        • Movies I
        • Movies J
        • Movies K
      • Movies L to Z
        • Movies L
        • Movies M
        • Movies N
        • Movies O
        • Movies P
        • Movies Q
        • Movies R
        • Movies S
        • Movies T
        • Movies U
        • Movies V
        • Movies W
        • Movies X
        • Movies Y
        • Movies Z
      • Movies 0 to 9
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Radio
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Television»Shows by Decade»1970s Television
    1970s Television 1980s Television Drama Shows S 3 Mins Read

    Sullivans, The

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    1 9 7 6 – 1 9 8 3 (Australia)
    30 minute episodes

    This World War II drama series, set in Melbourne, had warmth and charm, and Aussies loved the trials and triumphs of the Sullivan Family.

    The Sullivans takes up its storyline on the eve of the Second World War and its six years on air roughly coincided with the duration of the war. The action was set on two fronts and this in part, helped to disguise the soap opera nature of the serial.

    The war front followed family friend Norm Baker, son Tom Sullivan and various other soldiers through various scenes of action, physical suffering, moral dilemmas and so on.

    The home front in Australia saw Dave and Grace Sullivan with their younger children struggling to keep the cycle of family and neighbourhood life in place.

    Helping to populate their community was voluptuous Maggie in the pub, the humble German family running the local shop, and the busybody neighbour, Mrs Jessop.

    Although there were also some young characters in the show, most notably youngest daughter Kitty Sullivan, it was definitely skewed towards older viewers even though it screened in the evening soon after the main news bulletin. Eldest son John, missing in action, was eventually found safe and sound in London, but Uncle Harry’s love, Rose, drowned in the Yarra River.

    The adored star of the show was Lorraine Bayly (Grace). As the quiet, highly principled Catholic mother, supportive of her husband, she radiated warmth and stability.

    Lorraine Bayly decided to leave and shortly would be given her own series, Carson’s Law.

    The viewing audience became so attached to strong, proud matriarch Grace, that her on-screen death at the hands of a V-bomb in London was something the programme never recovered from and this, as well as the fictional end of the war, led to the show’s demise.

    Some of the most original and affecting stories concerned events after the war, however. Kitty Sullivan, only 13 at the opening, married a photographer and went with him to Hiroshima.

    She was so horrified by the aftermath of the atomic explosion that she killed herself.

    Terry, her freckle-faced brother, could not adjust to peace and turned to petty crime. His young wife Caroline, gainfully employed before the war, struggled to get work on the land but was sacked to make way for a newly returned soldier in keeping with the law of the day.

    More than any other Australian TV show, it was The Sullivans that helped to create the British appetite for Australian soaps.

    Slow and sentimental it was at times, but The Sullivans bravely faced the issues of war while examining the morality of the 1940s. It provided romance, stock surprises, episodes to cry over and characters who viewers cared for deeply.

    The series was cancelled in 1982 to make way for a show about hard-nosed businessmen, Taurus Rising. Young audiences, in particular, had apparently decided that six years of their parents’ war was enough.

    sullivans_annakaufman

    Grace Sullivan 
    Lorraine Bayly
    Dave Sullivan 

    Paul Cronin
    John Sullivan 

    Andrew McFarlane
    Kitty Sullivan 

    Susan Hannaford
    Tom Sullivan 

    Steven Tandy
    Norm Baker 

    Norman Yemm
    Uncle Harry 

    Michael Caton
    Aunt Rose 

    Maggie Dence
    Terry Sullivan 

    Richard Morgan
    Laura Watkins 

    Myra De Groot
    Alice Watkins Sullivan 

    Megan Williams
    Jimmy Sullivan 

    Andy Anderson
    Ida Jessup 

    Vivean Gray
    Maureen Sullivan 

    Fiona Paul
    Marjorie Fulton 

    Jacqui Gordon
    Jack Fletcher 

    Reg Gorman
    Buffy 

    Sigrid Thornton
    Sally 

    Lisa Crittenden
    Ray Kirk 

    Alistair Browning
    Maggie Baker 

    Vicki Hammond
    Geoff Sullivan 

    Jamie Higgins
    Elizabeth Bradley 

    Maggie Millar
    Carla 

    Kylie Minogue
    Leslie ‘Magpie’ Maddern 

    Gary Sweet
    Horace ‘Horrible’ Brown 

    Nick Waters
    Melina
    Chantal Contouri

    Video

    Related Posts

    • Serpico
      Serpico
      1 9 7 6 - 1 9 7 7 (USA) 15 x 60 minute episodes This NBC crime drama series was…
    • Carson's Law
      Carson's Law
      1 9 8 3 - 1 9 8 4 (Australia) 184 x 50 minute episodes A legal historical series produced by…
    • Cedar Tree, The
      Cedar Tree, The
      1 9 7 6 - 1 9 7 8 (UK) 119 x 30 minute episodes This twice-weekly serial from ATV…
    • Beyond Belief
      Beyond Belief
      1 9 7 0 (UK) 15 x 15/20 minute episodes Described as a "religious Laugh-In", this Sunday evening series from Granada…
    • Spoils of War, The
      Spoils of War, The
      1 9 8 0 - 1 9 8 1 (UK) 20 x 60 minute episodes Almost a decade after creating the…
    • War of Darkie Pilbeam, The
      War of Darkie Pilbeam, The
      1 9 6 8 (UK) 3 x 60 minute episodes A trilogy of ITV plays set in the North of England…
    • Sylvania Waters
      Sylvania Waters
      1 9 9 2 (Australia) 12 x 30 minute episodes In the fly-on-the-wall tradition of his earlier programme, The Family, producer…
    • Over There
      Over There
      1 9 7 2 - 1 9 7 3 (Australia) 25 x 60 minute episodes This drama series from the Australian…

    Australia
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleCountry Practice, A
    Next Article Sons and Daughters

    Comments are closed.

    NC Radio Player
    Search the site

    Nostalgia Central has been a labour of love since 1998. The site carries no advertising, and I rely on donations to help with running costs and to keep the site running for your entertainment and education.

    If you find the site informative or enjoyable, please consider a donation – no matter how small. 

    Thank you so much.
    Enjoy your trip in the time machine!

    You may also like

    • Patchwork Hero, The
      Patchwork Hero, The
      1 9 8 1 (Australia) 6 x 30 minute episodes Aussie TV action hero Steve Bisley and young Damon Herriman from…
    • Carson's Law
      Carson's Law
      1 9 8 3 - 1 9 8 4 (Australia) 184 x 50 minute episodes A legal historical series produced by…
    • Spoils of War, The
      Spoils of War, The
      1 9 8 0 - 1 9 8 1 (UK) 20 x 60 minute episodes Almost a decade after creating the…
    • Sylvania Waters
      Sylvania Waters
      1 9 9 2 (Australia) 12 x 30 minute episodes In the fly-on-the-wall tradition of his earlier programme, The Family, producer…


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    Copyright © 1998, 2023 Nostalgia Central. Run by volunteers. Funded by donations.
    • About Nostalgia Central
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.