Documentary
An extraordinary story of the hard-fought rise and dramatic fall of a visionary Australian Prime Minister during one of the country's most turbulent eras.
An extraordinary story of the hard-fought rise and dramatic fall of a visionary Australian Prime Minister during one of the country's most turbulent eras. Heroic to some, flawed to others, his changes still echo today.
Once elected PM, Gough Whitlam implemented sweeping changes at breakneck speed. He pressed on with major health and education reforms even after a faltering world economy hit home. Then the scandals erupted.
Cast
The Howard Years was a documentary series about the prime ministership of John Howard produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It was divided into four one-hour episodes - one episode for each term Howard served as Prime Minister of Australia - and originally broadcast on ABC1 from 17 November to 8 December 2008.
A comprehensive cast of the main players provides an enthralling account of one of the most turbulent periods of Australian political history. For the first time, Kevin Rudd gives his full account of the period and relives in vivid detail the events of losing the Prime Ministership. Julia Gillard is forthright with her recollections and analysis and doesn't spare her colleagues.
Told through a unique collection of iconic archival footage brought to life in stunning colour for the very first time, Australia in Colour tells the story of how Australia came to be what it is today. Narrated by Hugo Weaving, the series is a reflection on our nation’s character, its attitudes, its politics and its struggle to value its Indigenous and multicultural past. Australia in Colour gives us a chance to look at Australia’s history from a fresh perspective. This four-part series curates classic historical footage, as well as home movies and never-before-seen archival material to chart how Australia has developed as a nation. From the oldest surviving footage captured in Australia – in 1896 in Sydney’s Prince Alfred Park – to the beginning of colour television in the mid-1970s, each sequence has been lovingly restored and colourised with historical accuracy. The effect is remarkable, bringing to light history that is both shared and deeply personal.
Pierre Elliott Trudeau was one of the most striking, well-spoken and controversial leaders in Canadian history. He brought with him an almost rock-star aura of popularity to office in the 1960s, marking what was known as "Trudeaumania" in Canada during one of the country's most exciting and important times. Yet Trudeau's eccentricities were regularly mistaken for arrogance and he was often considered a traitor, particularly by those who wanted to see Quebec separated from the rest of Canada. With the province rocked by terrorist bombings and the nation disturbed by civil unrest, Trudeau was determined to "put the country in its place." Through hours of archival footage and interviews with Trudeau himself, Memoirs details the story of a man who used intelligence and charisma to bring together a country that was very nearly torn apart.
Princess Georgiana is the black sheep of a fictional British Royal Family. A PR disaster, she's spent her spoilt, party-girl life plastered over the tabloids. On the back of her latest scandal her mother, the Queen, makes the unprecedented move of abdicating her Australian throne in favour of her daughter. It is hoped that giving her some real responsibility will finally be the making of her – and if it isn't, at least shipping her off keeps her 10,000 miles away from London.
As our third longest serving Prime Minister, Andrew Dugdale mattered. He dined with presidents and kings, hosted world summits and changed the lives of millions of his fellow Australians. But now he's retired; a not-so-elder statesman with time on his hands to ponder the question - was it all worth it? Not that he's asking of course. No, his inquisitive and over enthusiastic ghostwriter Ellen has an unhelpfully insatiable appetite for the truth.
