Melbourne on the small screen

The city and its plentiful (sub) burbs are used as the backdrop for a plethora of films and tv shows. Neighbours (obviously!), the most celebrated Aussie soap since the likes of Young Doctors or going back even further, the TV show that used to emit a hearty lunchtime glow from the telly The Sullivan’s.

Neighbours uses a quiet cul-de-sac Pin Oak Court in the Vermont South area of the city as the backdrop for the infamous Ramsay Street, which is based in the fictitious town of Erinsborough. The show has been on our screens since 1985, five nights a week which equates to well over 7,000 episodes and more than 32 seasons. That would be some serious binge-watching if you were to try and catch up from the start, (our rough calculations show it would be 210,000 hours to catch up ... square eye city!) The interior scenes are filmed at the Global Television studios in Forest Hill. Want to see for yourself, you can take a tour with https://www.neighbourstour.com - it’s $95 for an adult and $85 for children.

If you fancy finding out what life is like at a Melbourne primary school then why not head to Netflix and take a look at the very clever and comedic series Little Lunch. Filmed in a traditional red brick school in the seaside town of St Kilda, it’s about 6 friends as they learn to cope with life in the 15-minutes that’s known to them as little lunch.

The show is created by Gristmill a genius husband and wife combo, who we also have to thank for award-winning adult shows including Upper Middle Bogan, Librarians and Very Small Business (frustratingly not currently available in the UK). Thankfully, Little Lunch is available and there are 26 delicious episodes 15 minutes in length and two, 30-minute specials to sink your teeth into.

The characters in Little Lunch are funny, believable and easy to identify with. From super sporty and competitive Tamara, creative and slightly off the wall Battie, studious friends Debra-Jo and Melanie, smartypants, big brain Atticus to the loveable but rather scatty and mischievous Rory who has his very own ‘Rory Spot’ in the headteacher’s office. Mrs Gonsha is everything you could ever want in a teacher, funny, friendly and just a little bit drippy.

The mockumentary series shows what life is like in different schools. The uniform is different, the playground, even the fact that lunch is eaten at their desk and not in a hall or canteen is an eye opener.

The show is totally inoffensive, making it perfect fodder for watching while you’re doing your research and planning for a trip to Oz. Little Lunch was originally based on books by the same name written by Danny Katz and illustrated by Mitch Vane (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Slide-Little-Lunch-Danny-Katz)