The Henderson Kids
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| The Henderson Kids | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Written by | Galia Hardy, John Reeves |
| Directed by | Paul Moloney |
| Country of origin |  Australia |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 12 |
| Production | |
| Location(s) | Birregurra |
| Running time | 50 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Network Ten |
The Henderson Kids was an Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for Network Ten between 1985 and 1987.
The series centres around a teenage brother and sister, Steve (Paul Smith) and Tamara (Nadine Garner) forced to leave the city and move to the country to live with their uncle Mike (Nicholas Eadie), a police officer in the fictional town of Haven Bay, after their mother Alice (Diane Craig) is suddenly killed in a motoring accident (run over by a cement truck!).
The remainder of the series deals with the Henderson kids making a new life in Haven Bay (Birregurra, Victoria) and making friends with the local gang - Ted Morgan (Ben Mendelsohn), Colin "Cowboy" Clarke (Mark Hennessy), Char Kernow (Kylie Minogue) and Brian "Brains" Buchanan (Bradley Kilpatrick). Finally, they must defend the family land, Hendersons' Point, against the schemes of ruthless businessman Ashley Wheeler (Peter Whitford). Steve falls in love with Wheeler's gorgeous daughter Sylvia (Annie Jones), to compound matters. Other co-stars and bit-part characters were played by up-and-coming Australian actors of the time, including Tottie Goldsmith (later in pop group Chantoozies), as well as Peter O'Brien, Stefan Dennis, and Jane Hall - who all appeared on Neighbours.
A second series followed in 1987, with Steve and Tamara now living in the city again with their father Walter Mullens (Michael Aitkens) and involved with a new gang of friends, including Vinnie Cerantonio (Alex Papps) and brother and sister Carol (Anita Cerdic) and Marty Summers (Nathan Croft).
The Henderson Kids was screened in Gibraltar on GBC TV in the late 80s where it became a huge success in its Sunday 18:30 slot.
Nadine Garner won a TV Week Logie Award in 1985, and a Television Society of Australia Penguin Award (1987) for her portrayal of Tamara ("Tam") Henderson.
Only 24 episodes (each series was 12 episodes) were ever filmed of the two series. In 2007, Madman Entertainment released 2 x 3 DVD sets of the series: The Henderson Kids (Series One) and The Henderson Kids II. The only DVD extras are a 13 minute TV promo for series 1 on the The Henderson Kids (Series One) DVD and a short "goof reel" from Series Two on the The Henderson Kids (Series Two) DVD .
