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EPISODE 566

Broadcast on Carlton/LWT Monday 6th October 1998 23:40; Meridian Monday 08 February 1999 23:40; Channel 5 Saturday 27 November 1999 04:10. Ann reveals that Willie's second bout of amnesia is put on. Terri announces her departure from the prison. Lexie runs a story about Joan and Terri. Ben is offered a bribe to drop Daphne's case.

Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
Ann ~ Gerda Nicolson
Joyce ~ Joy Westmore
Nora ~ Sonja Tallis
May ~ Billie Hammerberg
Willie ~ Kirsty Child
Daphne ~ Debra Lawrance
Lexie ~ Pepe Trevor
Lou ~ Louise Siversen
Julie ~ Jackie Woodburne
Pippa ~ Christine Harris
Terri ~ Margot Knight
Ben Fulbright ~ Kevin Summers
Pat Slattery ~ Dorothy Cutts
Det Insp Grace ~ Terry Gill
Howard Simmons ~ Reg Evans
Adrian Bullock ~ Bill Rowe
Barbara ~ Rosie Tonkin
Alan Tyler ~ Victor Kaye
Reporter ~ Terry Brittingham

  • Written by Kit Oldfield
  • Directed by Tony Osicka
  • Willie overdoes it a little by pretending she thinks she's "died and gone to heaven". Nora tells the women to go along with Willie's trick as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. Inspector Grace doesn't believe that Howie's beating up is connected to him investigating Jenny's case. Ann returns from the Deaprtment with a slightly different story than that implied by the last episode's cliffhanger: apparently having wrung out a concession that the Department will back Daphne's case if they Ann allows them to get rid of Chaucer in their own time. Willie now pretends she is a princess and Joyce and May are her ladies in waiting . Ann refuses to let Pippa back out of running the art classes. Jenny asks Nora to persuade the women to give Pippa another chance. Ann tricks Willie into revealing the truth by telling her she'll have to serve the remaining 20 years of her sentence and Willie objects that she only has four years left. Willie is given a week's cleaning duties as a punishment for wasting everyone's time. Willie and Nora try to concoct some horoscopes for the paper. Meg shows the women how the printing press works, but the result "looks like Russian" as Julie points out. Howie gets Jenny to agree that he should carry on with her case. Daphne sees Ben about her case: she is hesitant to give him her parents' address. Unfortunately, she seems to be starting to fall in love with him. Ben is introduced to Pippa in reception and they don't exactly see eye to eye: she implies he is ambitious and is only taken Daphne's case for what he can get out of it. Joan refuses to go along with Lou's blackmail and sends her packing. Daphne won't put Lexie's story about Joan and Terri on the front page of the paper. Terri tells Joan she doesn't care about the women knowing of their relationship, but Joan doesn't agree and says she doesn't want anyone to know. Ben brings some flowers to try to make up with Pippa. Julie is surprised by Lexie's apparent jealousy when she spends time with Daphne. Terri suggests she could try to find a job outside the prison service if the situation gets difficult. Ben is harrassed by a reporter at his office, and is given back his flowers, which Pippa has delivered by hand. There are troubles with the food supplies as the contract was cancelled but another supplier wasn't appointed. Terri overhears the women making anti-lesbian comments as soon as she leaves the room. The previous supplier Mr Bullock visits Ann to threaten her over his loss of business, but she refuses to be intimidated. Ben goes golfing with Alan Tyler from the Attorney General's Office and is offered a Supreme Court post if he will drop Daphne's case. Joan finds out from Pat Slattery that Terri has left work after receiving a phone call. Lexue deliberately gets the other women to leave her alone in the printshop. Terri is distraught because her mother is in hospital after a suicide attempt. Ann finds her car windscreen smashed . Lexie prints her own front page announcing Joan and Terri's "marriage".

    COMMENTS

    Star sign corner: Daphne is a Virgo and Willie is a Cancer ("the old crab").

    It is just about possible to make out the text of Lexie's article on the front page of the "Wentworth Free Press" (see below). The advice column by "Wilhelmina Beecham" includes the sentence "Jennifer get your gun" (?)

    Thanks to Martin for his observation in Digest 1056 that the bunch of flowers Terri brings for Joan is exactly the same as the one Ben gives to Pippa .


    Lexie's article reads as follows:

    THE FREAK ANNOUNCES HER MARRIAGE TO MALONE. by Lexie Patterson. Freak Joan Ferguson has announced her engagement to Miss Terri Malone. It is hoped that the couple will honeymoon in the Bahamas and will drown in the deep blue sea. Miss Malone is a nice lady but the Freak is a bitch. Keep the good work up. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
    The last sentence is repeated over and over to fill up the space: I think someone must have seen "The Shining"...


    EPISODE 567

    Broadcast on Carlton/LWT Monday 20th October 1997 23:40; Meridian Monday 15 February 1999 23:40; Channel 5 Sunday 28 November 1999 04:10. Someone tries to run Pippa Reynolds over. Ann announces four new arrivals and is informed that a blockade means that there will be no food delivered to Wentworth.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
    Ann ~ Gerda Nicolson
    Joyce ~ Joy Westmore
    Nora ~ Sonja Tallis
    May ~ Billie Hammerberg
    Willie ~ Kirsty Child
    Daphne ~ Debra Lawrance
    Lexie ~ Pepe Trevor
    Lou ~ Louise Siversen
    Julie ~ Jackie Woodburne
    Jenny ~ Jenny Lovell
    Pippa ~ Christine Harris
    Terri ~ Margot Knight
    Alice ~ Lois Collinder
    Ben ~ Kevin Summers
    Harry Wheeler ~ Buzz Allshorn
    Head Waiter ~ Jack Brown
    Timothy Wimpole ~ David Coombs
    Frank Bolton ~ Terry Emery
    Female Neighbour ~ Peggy Haines
    Truck Driver ~ Ron Bingham
    Taxi Driver ~ Nick Bourne
    UNCREDITED
    Mervin ~ Ernie Bourne

  • Written by Merle Thornton & John Smallbone
  • Directed by Charles (Bud) Tingwell
  • From a comment by Alice, it seems she was originally inside for robbing a service station.

    Ben calls round to see Ann, but Pippa won't let him inside and tells him to wait in the car. Lexie hands out the paper, but when Nora reads them she collects them up again, but not before Meg has read it. Joan phones Terri's father to ask him if it's true that he has forbidden Terri to see her mother: he hangs up on her. Ben tells Ann that he's considering dropping Daphne's case after the Supreme Court offer and asks if he can be allowed to tell Daphne in person. Nora tells Lexie that if anyone gets into trouble over the paper it will be Daphne, not her. Pippa now starts to take Daphne's side as a way of getting back at Ben for his lack of principle. She slaps Ben's face and gets one in return (in the name of "equality"). Meg takes the paper to Joan's house so she can see it before she takes it the Governor. Joyce tells Mervin about a cookery competition she's read about in a magazine and encourages him to enter his "Espagnol Special" Beef Wellington. The improbable prize is $3,000 and ... a microwave? The women at Wentworth have to put up with less adventurous fare as Mervin doesn't have butter, cheese or milk . Joyce reports the supplies shortage to Ann and says that everyone she has phoned wants cash or the guarantee of a long term contract (though this seems an unlikely reaction from anyone who tries to make their living by selling stuff). Ann sees Joan and Terri and tells them she will have to report the incident: Terri tells her she has decided to resign. Daphne denies any knowledge of the front page story and Nora backs her up. Ann gives Nora 24 hours to get the person responsible to own up. Ann tells the staff that Wentworth is to receive four juvenile offenders on a youth rehabilitation scheme: Joan objects to the way staff are being treated and promises to report it to the Union. Terri tells the women she has resigned and Joan follows up by warning the women the gloves are off (..or on?). The Council decide Lexie must own up or lose approval for the numbers racket. Daphne is already blaming herself for Lexie's prank and then has to face the additional blow of Ben telling her he can't represent her. Pippa's art class turns into a paint fight started by Lou, but she covers for the women when Joan walks in by claiming she was demonstrating the "Jackson Pollock" method of design. Ben has been waiting outside the gate for Pippa to come out, but she drives straight past him giving an ironical "Queen Mother" wave. The Council agree to participate in the rehabilitation scheme, but Nora says it has to be put to all the women. Lou tells Lexie she wants to sell more fake tickets in the numbers racket. As revenge for her treatment of him, Ben ruins Pippa's dinner date by walking into the restaurant and pretending to be her husband and getting the waiter to join in by calling her "Mrs Fulbright". Nora wins over Lexie and Lou and other objectors to the rehabilitation scheme. Jenny is told her trial has been set for the following day. Frank Bolton brushes aside Joan's objections and tells her to co-operate with the rehabilitation scheme. Pippa nearly falls victim to a hit-and-run outside Ann's house (or rather, she unconvincingly throws herself backwards onto the grass verge as a car drives past her). The emergency food deliveries are blockaded at the front gate by a van driver's union.

    EPISODE 568

    Broadcast on Carlton/LWT Monday 27th October 1997 23:40; Meridian Monday 22 February 1999 23:40; Channel 5 Saturday 04 December 1999 04:10. Howard is charged with contempt for helping Jennifer's case with his testimony. Nikki tells Nora to kill or be killed.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
    Ann ~ Gerda Nicolson
    Joyce ~ Joy Westmore
    Nora ~ Sonja Tallis
    May ~ Billie Hammerberg
    Willie ~ Kirsty Child
    Daphne ~ Debra Lawrance
    Lexie ~ Pepe Trevor
    Lou ~ Louise Siversen
    Jenny ~ Jenny Lovell
    Pippa ~ Christine Harris
    Terri ~ Margot Knight
    Ben ~ Kevin Summers
    Mervin ~ Ernie Bourne
    Det Insp Grace ~ Terry Gill
    Nikki Lennox ~ Vicki Mathios
    Joanna James ~ Nicole Dixon
    Cindy Moran ~ Robyn Frank
    Lisa Snell ~ Liza Bermingham
    Geoffery Chaucer ~ Roy Baldwin
    Howard Simmons ~ Reg Evans
    Harry Wheeler ~ Buzz Allshorn
    Judge Henley ~ Clive Hearne
    Elliot Gardener ~ Peter Sommerfield
    Crown Prosecutor ~ Victor Kazan
    Harriet Formby ~ Maggie Steven
    Karen Winfield ~ Judith Strafford
    David Russell ~ Robert Lyon

  • Written by Coral Drouyn
  • Directed by Charles (Bud) Tingwell
  • Jenny's trial is the usual cut price affair - the normal PCBH six person jury . Thanks to Martin for correcting my mistaken count of five jurors.

    Lisa refer to "Winleighton" (?) which is by implication the name of a juvenile institution.

    Ann invites the leader of the blockade to her office to discuss the situation, but to no avail. Mervin finds the meat in the cold store has gone off, as the cooling system has broken. Ann is disturbed when Pippa phones her to tell her about the hit and run incident and tells her she has reported it to the police. Chaucer lectures the men outside the prison, but the pickets still refuse to move. Ann suggests that the officers should start to bring in food in their cars. Ann refuses to let Chaucer shift the blame onto her. He is obviously shocked to hear about the attempt on Pippa's life, says he knew nothing about it and agrees to Ann's demand to call Bullock off. Ben calls round to see how Pippa is, and she has to admit she is pleased with the company and agrees to go out for dinner with him. Howie consults with Jenny's solicitor and asks to be put on the stand to introduce evidence against Aunt Harriet, which would not otherwise be allowable. Joan arrives home to find Terry asleep in front of the TV, not having made any attempt to find a job. Joyce has to admit that she sent off Mervin's recipe to the cookery competition. Terri is bored by Joan's shop talk (or possibly the ghastly organ music playing in the background). The juveniles arrive : most of them seem docile enough but one called Nikki is evidently going to be a bit of a problem. Ben tries to get Jennifer's solicitor to take on Daphne's case, but he says only Ben can win it after the work he's out into it. The social workers tell Ann they haven't been able to do anything with Nikki and don't expect her to benefit from the scheme, but the others might get something from it. Nikki starts a fight with Joanna over a jumper. Ann tells the girls what to expect, but has to stop Nikki swiping a glass paper weight from her desk. At Jenny's trial Inpector Grace gives evidence of his reasons for areesting Jenny but has to admit that Jenny may not have protested her innocence at first due to shock. Nikki plays up when sent to work in the laundry: Lexie dumps a load of dirty nappies from maternity on her head. May tries to get through to Nikki by telling her Nora is a murderer: Nora tells Nikki she killed four people. All of Jenny's evidence is dismissed as hearsay. The women mock Joanna when she tells them of her three counts of shoplifting, but are even more amused by Cindy's confession that she broke into a "lolly shop". Nikki manages to apply even Wentworth's hardest cases by admitting her thing is bashing old age pensioners for their pension cheques. Lou puts pressure on Lisa to get her to bring goods in the following day. Nora lets Nikki take over the press when she claims she wants to do her job, but she gets bored straight away. Howie seizes the chance to expose Aunt Harriet during his stint in the witness box. Nikki goes to Nora's cell and demands to know what it felt like to kill people. When Nora tells her she'll have to ask someone else, Nikki pulls a flick knife on her .

    EPISODE 569

    Broadcast on Carlton/LWT Monday 3rd November 1997 23:40; Meridian Monday 01 March 1999 23:40; Channel 5 Sunday 05 December 1999 04:10. Ann promises to try and get supplies in and is pleased to get some evidence incriminating Bullock. Meanwhile, Nikki makes a stand against Joan.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
    Ann ~ Gerda Nicolson
    Joyce ~ Joy Westmore
    Nora ~ Sonja Tallis
    May ~ Billie Hammerberg
    Willie ~ Kirsty Child
    Daphne ~ Debra Lawrance
    Lexie ~ Pepe Trevor
    Lou ~ Louise Siversen
    Julie ~ Jackie Woodburne
    Jenny ~ Jenny Lovell
    Ben ~ Kevin Summers
    Pippa ~ Christine Harris
    Mervin ~ Ernie Bourne
    Nikki ~ Vicki Mathios
    Cindy ~ Robyn Frank
    Lisa ~ Liza Bermingham
    Joanna ~ Nicole Dixon
    Harry Wheeler ~ Buzz Allshorn
    Frank Bolton ~ Terry Emery
    Pat Slattery ~ Dorothy Cutts
    Officer Ward ~ Jacqui Jackson
    Mrs Lennox ~ Berrie Cameron-Allen
    Policeman ~ Tony Cornwell
    Policewoman ~ Lana Williams
    Waitress ~ Suzanne Brenchley

  • Written by Ian Smith
  • Directed by Kendal Flanagan
  • The number of women has now gone down to 47, according to Ann's count of the number to be fed, but goes back up to 50 later in the episode with three (unseen) new arrivals.

    Under Pippa's influence, Ann has gone a little Japanese .

    Classy invite from the print shop : note the scare quotes round "all welcome", impying that maybe they aren't.

    Nora talks her way out of the situation, by telling Nikki to play "Growing Up" with someone else, then simply walking away from her. Lisa gets heavied by Lou again who threatens to print the front page on her face, but she gets no support from Joanna. The women find Lisa in tears in a corridor and she asks Meg to take her to the Goverment to get permission to leave the programme. Ann agrees to let her leave and says she will intervene on her behalf so she doesn't have to go to a juvenile institution. Joanna offers to bring goods in for Lou instead of Lisa, but demands payment from Lou. Lexie distributes the latest version of the "Free Press" and reads Willie's reply to a prolem from "Rita" who is worried her husband is cheating on her while she's inside. Jenny returns to Wentworth: a retrial has been ordered after the jury failed to reach a verdict. Joanna shows Nikki the money she's got from Lou, but has to hand it over when Nikki sticks the knife under her nose. Joyce is given the responsibility of distributing the supplies of vitamin supplements to the women: one tablet each at breakfast... May and Nora hint to Cindy about Joan's black gloves and Willie adds an anecdote about a girl (completely made up) called "Bubbles" who was driven mad by it and poured acid over her own face. Despite the story's lack of plausibility, Cindy runs out of the dining room. Meg organises staff to bring food in: Officer ("Wendy") Ward declines to bring potatoes in her car boot as her husband left fishing bait in it and it still stinks. As they are collected by police car to go home, Nikki tells Joanna she has to meet her on the outside later that night. Nora insists that they must try to get the knife away from Nikki, even though she suspects Nikki is not as tough as she pretends. Pippa goes out for a meal with Ben and she tries to persuade him to take up Daphne's case again. Nikki and Joanne rob a chemist's shop. Joanna trips and twists her ankle, and Nikki leaves her behind to be caught by the police. Lou lies to Lexie and says he hasn't been able to get the girls to get stuff in for her. Nikki puts on a tearful act to manipulate her mother into giving her an alibi. Daphne worries that she is suffering from malnutrition. Cindy and Nikki are the only ones to turn up for the second day of the rehabilitation programme. After a discussion with the picketers, Frank Bolton makes the officers stop bringing food into the prison. Lou tries to get money from Lexie so she can buy the pills from Nikki. Meg and Ann are the only ones not bound by the Union's decision, so they have to bring the food in. Lexie bashes Cindy when she catches her in her cell helping herself to some of Willie's biscuits. Lou tries to get the pills from Nikki without paying for them, but gets her hand slashed . Nora leads a protest in the dining room against the poor standard of the food. Bolton uses the blockade to put pressure on the Department to agree to a pay rise for the officers. Ann is delighted when Julie tells her she has found some more duplicate invoices. Joan tries to discipline Nikki when she finds her alone in the rec room, but Nikki reveals that she knows all about Joan and Terri.

    EPISODE 570

    Broadcast on Carlton/LWT Monday 10th November 1997 23:40; Meridian Monday 08 March 1999 23:30; Channel 5 Saturday 11 December 1999 04:10. Ben informs Ann that he plans to marry Pippa. Nikki finds out about the escape plan.

    Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne
    Joan ~ Maggie Kirkpatrick
    Ann ~ Gerda Nicolson
    Joyce ~ Joy Westmore
    Nora ~ Sonja Tallis
    May ~ Billie Hammerberg
    Willie ~ Kirsty Child
    Daphne ~ Debra Lawrance
    Lexie ~ Pepe Trevor
    Lou ~ Louise Siversen
    Julie ~ Jackie Woodburne
    Jenny ~ Jenny Lovell
    Pippa ~ Christine Harris
    Terri ~ Margot Knight
    Ben ~ Kevin Summers
    Mervin ~ Ernie Bourne
    Queenie ~ Marilyn Rodgers
    Barry Lockwood ~ Bruce Kilpatrick
    Nikki ~ Vicki Mathios
    Cindy ~ Robyn Frank
    Adrian Bullock ~ Bill Rowe

  • Written by Alister Webb & James Simmonds
  • Directed by Kendal Flanagan
  • May requests "a nice cup of Milo" which is presumably something like Ovaltine?

    The officer in duty in reception is uncredited despite responding to Ann's "Good morning, Margaret" when she arrives at work.

    Meg tries to calm an agitated Jenny by pointing out that since there was a hung jury, some of them must have thought she was not guilty, but Jenny says she can't face a retrial. May clouts Nikki after she flicks some fag ash on a pile of sheets that have just been washed, and for the first time Nikki seems outfaced and runs out of the laundry. She bumps into Julie who notices she is crying. Joan refuses to open a security gate to let her through and walks away smirking. Ann calls Adrian Bullock to her office to confront him with the invoices and tell him to call off the heavy tactics: he repeats his threat against Pippa but she says she will mail the invoices back to Chaucer. Cindy and Nikki are forced to sit down in the rec room and listen to such terrible threats as that they will never get a man if they have a criminal record. Joyce is relieved to hear from Ann that the blockade is over, as it means she and Mervin can talk to each other again, but Mervin isn't so sure. Nikki offers to sell Lexie cigarettes and pills. Lou trips Nikki up in the dinner queue but Nikki is wise enough not to lag on her. Jenny wrecks the piano in a fit of pique (apparently with her bare hands) and is forbidden by Ann to play it for four weeks. Terri sails into the house and (ignoring Joan's complaints about the state it was left in) tells Joan she has found a job with a security firm. Joyce and Mervin try to make it up, but end up squabbling. Julie notices Lexie is a bit jumpy and works out she's been taking something. May proposes contacting Queenie Marshall to frighten Nikki on the outside as well. Ann tells Pippa that Ben has decided not to drop Daphne's case after all. Nora notices Lexie acting strangely (acting drunk, in fact). Julie tells Nora that it's Nikki who is dealing drugs. Ann gets a bunch of flowers as a thank you from the leader of the blockade for the settlement they have been offered by Adrian Bullock. Willie pretends to be interested in buying a Valium and when Nikki gets it out from her pocket, the other women jump her, collect her pills and put them in the washer. Nicki shows them her knife and warns them all not to try to take it off her. Lou proofreads an advert typeset by Lexie and says it has to be done again because "Wiener" is spelt with a V. Queenie visits May and hears the proposal to fix Nikki on the outside. Pippa invites Ben for lunch at Ann's house - a Japanese meal to the accompaniment of koto music on the stereo. Lexie and Nikki fight when Lexie catches Nikki cheating at cards. Terri brings her boss home while Joan is out and glosses over the true nature of their relationship, describing her as her landlady. The fight in the rec room has to be suspended when Joan passes by on a routine patrol. Nora hands Nikki's knife over to Ann, and persuades her not to hold an immediate cell search. Willie, May and Nora pretend that Nikki has passed some "test" and she is the perfect one to help with an escape. Ben tells Ann that he intends to get Pippa to agree to marry him.

    Story Editor: Coral Drouyn
    Script Editor: Ian Smith (566); Alister Webb (567); Kit Oldfield (568)-(570)
    Storyliners: Coral Drouyn, Tony McDonald, John Coulter, Kelly Bermingham


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    Updated ~ 26 October 2008