Presented with humour and verve, Australian Encounters celebrates ten historic encounters, each between a renowned Australian and an international mover and shaker.
Social & External
Himself - Narrator
Explore the chilling mystery of 67 murdered and missing young women between Newcastle and Byron Bay that have remained unsolved for decades, with not a single arrest made
Australia: The Story of Us is an extraordinary journey through the people, places and events that have shaped Australia, from the first footprints on our continent to the present day. Astounding visual sequences, amazing CGI and dramatic re-enactments bring these stories to life and show how we came to be the country we are today.
Armed with his 1913 Bradshaw’s Handbook to the Chief Cities of the World, Michael embarks on six new railway journeys across spectacular Australia.
First Australians is an Australian historical documentary series produced by Blackfella Films over the course of six years, and first aired in October 2008. The documentary is part of a greater project that further consists of a hard-cover book, a community outreach program and a substantial website featuring over 200 mini-documentaries. The series chronicles the history of contemporary Australia, from the perspective of its first people, or Aborigines. The series is essentially a synthesis of well documented historical information. It relies heavily on archival documents and interpretations from historians and members of both the Indigenous and European community and leaders. The story begins in 1788 in Sydney, with the arrival of the First Fleet and ends in 1993 with Koiki Mabo's legal challenge to the foundation of Australia. The series comprises seven episodes in which it explores what unfolded when the oldest living culture in the world was confronted by the British Empire. It explores the lives of particular individuals and uses their stories as a vehicle to explain the larger situations of the time. It explains violent aspects of European settlement of Australia, such as killings, battles, wars, as well as acts of friendship and decency between the early European settlers and Indigenous Australians. Indigenous Australian history has until recently been clouded by the "great Australian silence" where ignorance of the real history of Australia can be seen as a way for non-Indigenous to hide shame for their own history. In this respect it has been controversial in that many of these stories have not been portrayed on Australian television before and the Indigenous Australian perspective of European settlement is confrontational for many.
The true story of the brutal World War II military campaign fought between Australia and Japan in the green hell of the mountains of Papua New Guinea. Told from both the Japanese and Australian perspectives the documentary also explores the impact of the decisions of high command on the soldiers at the front line.
The murder of Stephanie Scott in 2015 shocked Australia: the local schoolteacher and young bride-to-be was brutally slaughtered at her workplace.
Bill Peach explains the stories of the great 18th and 19th century explorers of Australia, complete with full-cast re-enactments.
In 1806, William Thornhill is sentenced to New South Wales for life where he is drawn into a terrifying conflict that will leave a bloody and indelible stain.
Bastard Boys is an Australian television miniseries broadcast on the ABC in 2007. It tells the story of the 1998 Australian waterfront dispute. The script, published by Currency Press, won the 2007 Queensland Premier's Literary Award for Best Television Script.
An Australian educational comedy television series based on the American series (and earlier web series) of the same name. In each episode, an inebriated celebrity struggles to recount a historical event, while actors reconstruct and enact the narrator's anecdotes while lip syncing the dialogue.
The True Believers is a 1988 Australian mini series which looks at the history of the Australian Labor Party from the end of World War Two up to the Australian Labor Party split of 1955. It was co-written by Bob Ellis who focused on three characters "Chifley, the unlettered man of great dignity; Menzies, who used to stand for something but eventually stood only for Menzies; and Evatt, the grand idealist... It's almost like Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1. It's a chunk of national history during Australia's great era of change after the war."
Most Haunted is a British paranormal mystery documentary reality television series. The series was first shown on 25 May, 2002 and ended on 21 July, 2010. Led by Yvette Fielding, the programme investigated purported paranormal activity in many locations in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and other countries. It was produced by Antix Productions and broadcast on the satellite and cable channels Living TV, Livingit, and Channel One. In the United States it was broadcast on the Travel Channel. It is now on Pluto TV with new episodes.
Despite the history of their warring past, the four planets of Ice, Rock, Fire, and Bone must set aside their differences and feuds to work together and form an alliance: their only hope of defeating a common enemy. The powerful Beast Planet, whose only purpose is the total destruction and annihilation of other worlds, has now entered their universe from the darkest reaches of space.
Megas XLR is a series about an overweight couch potato named Coop who stumbles across a giant robot in a junkyard. He soon discovers that the robot was sent from the future when a woman named Kiva returns to the past to claim what is rightfully hers, though Coop made so many modification to the machine so he's the only one who can fully operate it. Things also heat up when Coop learns that an alien race called the Glorft are also after his MEGAS robot, so he teams up with Kiva and his best friend Jamie to fight them off, though mostly so he can keep his new toy.
Eco-villains beware: Captain Planet is here to save the day! With the guidance of Gaia, five Planeteers - representing Earth, Fire, Water, Wind and Heart - come together to defend our planet from environmental destruction. With their powers combined, the team becomes the solution to pollution!
In this spin-off of "Space Ghost: Coast to Coast," sidekick Brak goes through a series of bizarre circumstances in his daily suburban life with his alien mom and Cuban dad.
Following her graduation from middle school, Yuzuhara Konomi enters the same high school as Kouno Takaaki, her childhood friend. As the new school year begins, they meet their childhood friend Kousaka Tamaki, as well as many new acquaintances. Unbeknownst to the group, their encounters with each other will soon lead to many memorable adventures.
Galactic hero Bucky O'Hare and his brave crew battle the evil toads bent on conquering the universe. A young boy genius from the human universe joins Bucky's crew.
Nigel Spivey reveals how the images which surround us today come from the ancient world. It's an epic journey spanning five continents and a hundred thousand years of history.
Six young fashion lovers swap shopping for the factories and backstreet workshops of India to learn how the clothes they wear are manufactured.
Various original cartoons by some of today's top animators.
Meet five lively animal friends who love to sing, dance and use their imaginations to embark on outrageous adventures to magical places.
The best in the performing arts from across America and around the world including a diverse programming portfolio of classical music, opera, popular song, musical theater, dance, drama, and performance documentaries.
This inventive animated comedy series, set inside a giant fish tank in Bud's Pet Shop, presents high school life as seen through the eyes of three BFFs (best fish friends), Bea, Milo and Oscar. Together they experience the typical life challenges and triumphs, including friendship, dating and sports, along with more atypical situations such as giant lobster attacks and, with the use of special land suits, school field trips to the hamster cages. The series was created by children's book illustrator Noah Z. Jones and features a notable voice cast. It's produced using an innovative mixture of digital animation and photo collage
This series follows Kiff, an optimistic squirrel whose best intentions often lead to complete chaos, and her best friend Barry, a sweet and mellow bunny. Set in the bustling mountains, where animals and magical creatures live together in harmony, the series features the duo, who take the town by storm with their endless adventures and zest for life.
Tom Goes to the Mayor is an American animated television series created by Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim for Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim. It premiered on November 14, 2004 and ended on September 25, 2006, with a total of thirty episodes.
A series of belly-laugh-funny short segments each starring different characters including the Roman centurion Pompeii Pete, an inept conqueror and the little princess he cannot conquer, the lamest super hero on 4 legs, the world's first inventor, the ultra pesky Freddie the Fly and the wackiest hero in the old West, Tex Avery himself.
Follows the humorous musings of an itinerant humanoid pseudo-shaman and spiritual seeker named Xavier.
Set against the backdrop of a major drug cartel bust, the series follows two low-level cops who have spent far too much time in a car together, two criminals who are largely kept in the dark, two dispatch workers who haven't really clicked and two Mexican tunnelers who are in way too small a space considering they've only just met.
Pat and his black-and-white cat Jess deliver the mail in Greendale.
An aspiring young chef named Chowder has adventures as an apprentice in Mung Daal's catering company. Although he means well, Chowder often finds himself in predicaments due to his perpetual appetite and his nature as a scatterbrain. He is also pestered by Panini, the apprentice of Mung's rival Endive, who wants Chowder to be her boyfriend, which he abhors.
Four friends, Tino, Carver, Lor, and Tish, spend each weekend discovering and creating new levels of fun, while negotiating the obligatory obstacles of adolescence.
Alien supervillain Killface wants to destroy Earth. Billionaire playboy Xander Crews realizes he can make more money if he stops him. Who will win?
British comedian Richard Ayoade (later taken over by Joe Lycett), accompanied by a celebrity guest, takes a ruthlessly efficient approach to travel, covering everything top tourist destinations have to offer in just 48 hours.
Brandy & Mr. Whiskers is an American animated television series about a pampered yet spunky dog and a hyperactive rabbit who get stuck in the Amazon Rainforest together. The show originally aired from August 2004 to August 2006. It was televised in the United States by Disney Channel.
A reinvention of the beloved 90s cartoon, Rugrats follows a group of adventurous babies as they discover the big world around them. Lead by Tommy Pickles, this toddler crew explores the world from their pint-sized and wildly imaginative perspective.
Celebrity archaeologist Rip Digman and his team of experts travel dangerous parts of the world to unearth legendary artifacts and grow their reputations as fearless adventurers.
The adventures of a larger-than-life red dog on Bridwell Island.
Jay Sherman is a TV movie critic who is forced to review the most pathetic films which he always rates as "It stinks." In addition to the film parodies, the show also deals with his personal life: working for a tyrannical media mogul boss, his lovelife and his family.
Infographics and archival footage deliver bite-size history lessons on scientific breakthroughs, social movements and world-changing discoveries.