Home and Away, 7pm weekdays, Channel 7
THERE use to be a time when I had a guilty televisual secret – a show I had to come home and watch even though it was never going to win a literary gong or take out the critic’s awards.
It was a bit of fun, visual chewing gum – it was Home and Away.
The moment it came to TV – I was hooked.
Eventually I grew out of it, got a life that involved being busy cooking dinner at that time or maybe it just started lose the “it factor” that attracted me in the first place.
Sure I’ve dipped my toe in from time to time over the years and been pleasantly surprised but the final long stint I had was when Kate Ritchie was being written out.
I kind of wanted to say goodbye to Sally after watching her grow up.
But when my daughter came home from school saying the kids were talking about Home and Away – I thought it was maybe time to revisit the show of my youth.
So I sat there and had an amazing case of deja vu.
There was Marilyn, much more grown up and a bit less ditzy, but still getting the wrong idea and still calling Alf “Mr Stewart”.
The younger kids were still tied up with school events and machinations and the young adults had all the usual love-triangle dramas that I remember from the classic days.
And, of course, Alf was still “flaming” Alf, and Irene was still at the cafe.
It was a nice little trip down memory lane. A nice place to visit but do I want to live there?
Well, probably not – it was fun and I can see why a new generation is getting addicted again but, well, they say you can’t go back and, well, I think they may be right.
But would I be disappointed if my kids wanted to watch it on a regular basis?
No – not at all because, let’s face it, Home and Away at its worse (and I actually was pleasantly surprised at some of the acting) is always going to be better than a reality show at its best.
– Tania Phillips
