The Hollowmen is an Australian television comedy series set in the offices of the Central Policy Unit, a fictional political advisory unit personally set up by the Prime Minister to help him get re-elected. Their brief is long-term vision; to stop worrying about tomorrow's headlines, and focus on next week's.
The Hollowmen was first broadcast on Wednesday, 9 July 2008, on ABC1. Each series comprises six half-hour episodes.
The comedy-drama satire is produced by Working Dog Productions, which was also responsible for Frontline, The Panel, Thank God You're Here and Utopia. The music used during the opening credits is an edited instrumental excerpt of the 1987 song "North by North" by New Zealand band The Bats. A special one-off presentation of The Hollowmen was created by Working Dog and played at Parliament House in Canberra on 11 March 2009, in support of the ABC's funding bid for 2009–12.
Cast
Main
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Rob Sitch as Tony, the Prime Minister's Principal Private Secretary
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Lachy Hulme as David 'Murph' Murphy, Senior Political Advisor and Director of the Central Policy Unit
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Merrick Watts as Nick, Senior Political Advisor
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Neil Melville as Ian, the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff
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David James as Phillip, Secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
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Stephen Hall as Warren, Departmental Undersecretary
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Jacquie Brennan as Mel, Senior Media Advisor
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Santo Cilauro as Theo Tsolakis, Head of Market Research
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Nicola Parry as Holly, Unit Office Manager
Supporting
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Rob Carlton as Kenny Pratt, advisor to the previous PM
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Graeme Blundell as Geoff, Party Director
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Leonie Hemsworth as Dianne, Prime Minister's Secretary
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Sacha Joseph as Vanmathy, Unit Office
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Ben Chisholm as Josh, Unit Office
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Sarah Arthur Young as Sarah, Unit Office Receptionist
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Phil Pollard as Phil, Prime Minister's Security Guard
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Brett Swain as Talkback Caller
Guests
The Prime Minister is an unseen character.
Episodes
Series overview
Series 1 (2008)
Series 2 (2008)
Episode ratings
The first season premiered at 9:30 pm on Wednesday 9 July 2008. After episode 5, it was removed from schedule due to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The season finale aired at 9:00 pm on Wednesday 27 August.
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| 1.01 | Fat Chance | 9 July 2008 | Wednesday 9:30pm | 1,185,000 | 1st | 13th |
| 1.02 | The Ambassador | 16 July 2008 | 1,040,000 | 2nd | 16th |
| 1.03 | A Time for Talk | 23 July 2008 | 950,000 | 3rd | 18th |
| 1.04 | Rear Vision | 30 July 2008 | 996,000 | 2nd | 16th |
| 1.05 | Military Matters | 6 August 2008 | 816,000 | 3rd | 24th |
| 1.06 | A Housing Crisis | 27 August 2008 | Wednesday 9:00pm | 926,000 | 2nd | 15th |
| 2.01 | Shared Interests | 3 September 2008 | 931,000 | 2nd | 17th |
| 2.02 | Edifice Complex | 10 September 2008 | 1,044,000 | 2nd | 16th |
| 2.03 | Wonder Drug | 17 September 2008 | 941,000 | 3rd | 19th |
| 2.04 | Vulnerable to Attack | 24 September 2008 | 906,000 | 3rd | 15th |
| 2.05 | A Waste of Energy | 1 October 2008 | 877,000 | 3rd | 16th |
| 2.06 | A Quiet January | 8 October 2008 | 931,000 | 3rd | 16th |
Production
It was partially inspired by Cilauro's 1996 documentary
The Campaign about Paul Keating's failed election. They initially wanted to make a series about an independent politician, but decided that such people didn't really hold much power and wanted to explore the idea that politics is run like a corporation.
Reception
Debi Enker from the
Sydney Morning Herald described the first episode of
The Hollowmen as using "low-key style and sandpaper-dry wit" to show the hollowness of the political newscycle.
Opposition leader Tony Abbott used its premiere to criticise the government, claiming that the "Howard government didn't work like that", and that the series would not have made sense under a Liberal government.
It won the 2009 Logie for Most Outstanding Comedy Program.
Accuracy
In 2008 the
Sydney Morning Herald interviewed political advisors about the accuracy of the show. Political advisors noted that the characters were more cynical and amoral than them and their colleagues, and played to people's prejudices, but a few conceded that they knew people like
Rob Sitch's character, Tony. They found that pollsters were portrayed as having too much power in the show, and noted that senior public servants were not as innocent as they were portrayed.
In contrast they found larger themes of media driven policies, "arse-covering" and superficial treatment of complex issues were "remarkably accurate", noting that the Melbourne 2am Lockout laws were a good example.
Home media
Series 1 and 2 of
The Hollowmen is available on DVD as a three disc box set.
See also
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List of Australian television series
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List of programs broadcast by ABC (Australian TV network)
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The Thick of It
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The Hollow Men
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Frontline
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The West Wing
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Yes Minister
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Absolute Power
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K Street
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Utopia
External links
