Stingers
Season 8 Cast - Jacinta Stapleton, Peter Phelps, Daniel Frederiksen, Gary Sweet & Kate Kendall .
Genre	Drama/Crime
Created by	Guy Wilding Mikael Borglund Michael Messenger Tony Morphett
Starring	Peter Phelps Anita Hegh Joe Petruzzi Kate Kendall Roxane Wilson Ian Stenlake Jessica Napier Jacinta Stapleton Gary Sweet Daniel Fredriksen
Country of origin	Australia
No. of episodes	192
Production
Running time	approx 0:44 (plus commercials)
Broadcast
Original channel	Nine Network
Original run	September 29, 1998 – December 14, 2004
External links
IMDb profile

Stingers (1998 - 2004) was an Australian TV police drama series. It is also aired in 65 countries, including Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France, Iran, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and the UK. Image File history File linksMetadata StingersCast-Season8. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... Tony Morphett (born: 10 March 1938 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia) created many Australian television series, including: Sky Trackers, Blue Heelers, Stingers, Water Rats, Above the Law and Sea Patrol. ... Peter Phelps (born September 20, 1960 in Sydney) is an Australian actor. ... Anita Hegh (born May 11, 1972) is an Australian actor. ... Kate Kendall Kate Kendall is one of Australias well known actress. Kate would be best known for her role in the long running Nine Network Australian Drama Stingers. ... Ian Stenlake is an Australian actor. ... Jessica Napier (born April 4, 1979) is an New Zealand actress. ... Jacinta Stapleton (born June 6, 1979 in Malvern, Victoria) is an Australian actress. ... Sweet playing in movie Alexandras Project Gary Sweet (born May 22, 1957 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian film and television actor. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... The Nine Network, or Channel Nine, is an Australian television network, available in major markets across Australia. ... is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 348th day of the year (349th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... See TV (disambiguation) for other uses and Television (band) for the rock band European networks National In much of Europe television broadcasting has historically been state dominated, rather than commercially organised, although commercial stations have grown in number recently. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... Television series redirects here. ... This article describes a type of political entity. ...

The show received average ratings during its debut season, but after some major changes, including intensive character development, the series turned out to be a success during the following year. Australian television ratings are collected by three main organisations: OzTAM for metropolitan areas Regional TAM for regional areas seviced by 3 commercial networks Nielsen Media Research Australia for regional areas serviced by 2 commercial networks Ratings are collected over 40 weeks of the year, with a 2 week break over...

Inspired by true events, Stingers chronicled the cases of a deep undercover unit of the Australian police. The series also followed their personal lives, which sometimes became intertwined with their jobs.

The original cast members include Peter Phelps, Joe Petruzzi, Kate Kendall, Ian Stenlake, Anita Hegh, and Jessica Napier. All except Kendall and Phelps left the show to pursue new challenges. Peter Phelps (born September 20, 1960 in Sydney) is an Australian actor. ... Kate Kendall Kate Kendall is one of Australias well known actress. Kate would be best known for her role in the long running Nine Network Australian Drama Stingers. ... Ian Stenlake is an Australian actor. ... Anita Hegh (born May 11, 1972) is an Australian actor. ... Jessica Napier (born April 4, 1979) is an New Zealand actress. ...

Stingers ran for eight seasons on the Nine Network before it was cancelled in late 2004 due to declining ratings and the late timeslot Channel Nine gave the programme. The Nine Network, or Channel Nine, is an Australian television network, available in major markets across Australia. ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ...

Cast

• Senior Constable Peter Church - Peter Phelps
• Senior Detective Angie Piper - Kate Kendall
• Det-Sen Sgt. Bernie Rocca - Joe Petruzzi (1998-1999)
• Constable Oscar Stone - Ian Stenlake (1998-2002)
• Det-Sen Sgt. (originally Det-Sgt.) Ellen 'Mac' Mackenzie - Anita Hegh (1998-2002)
• Constable Kaye Kelso - Jessica Napier (Episodes 1-5)
• Constable Daniella Mayo - Roxane Wilson (2000-2002)
• Constable Christina Dichiera - Jacinta Stapleton (2002-2004)
• Detective Inspector Luke Harris - Gary Sweet (2002-2004)
• Senior Detective Leo Flynn - Daniel Fredriksen (2003-2004)

Peter Phelps (born September 20, 1960 in Sydney) is an Australian actor. ... Kate Kendall Kate Kendall is one of Australias well known actress. Kate would be best known for her role in the long running Nine Network Australian Drama Stingers. ... Ian Stenlake is an Australian actor. ... Anita Hegh (born May 11, 1972) is an Australian actor. ... Jessica Napier (born April 4, 1979) is an New Zealand actress. ... Jacinta Stapleton (born June 6, 1979 in Malvern, Victoria) is an Australian actress. ... Sweet playing in movie Alexandras Project Gary Sweet (born May 22, 1957 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian film and television actor. ...

Semi-Regulars and Other Cast

• Senior Detective (demoted from Detective Inspector) Bill Hollister - Nicholas Bell (1999-2001)
• Det-Sen Sgt. Reg 'The Ferret' Masters - Richard Morgan (1999-2004)
• Det-Sen Sgt. Bryan Gray - Jeremy Kewley (2000-2004)
• Criminal Barrister Ingrid Burton - Rebecca Gibney (2002-2003)
• Sophie Novak - Katrina Milosevic (2003-2004)
• Detective Katherine Marks - Gigi Edgley (2004)
• Detective Constable Megan Walsh - Lisa Chappell (2004)

Nicholas Bell is an Australian actor. ... Rebecca Gibney (b. ... Gigi Edgley Gigi Edgley is an Australian actress known mostly for her role as Chiana on the Sci Fi channel original series Farscape. ... Lisa Chappell is a New Zealand born actress, notable for her role in the Australian drama series McLeods Daughters. ...

Deceased cast members

Richard Morgan, who played Det-Sen Sgt. Reg Masters from 1999 until 2004, died of motor neurone disease on 23 December 2006. Morgan also appeared on The Sullivans, A Country Practice, Sons and Daughters^{[disambiguation needed]}, MDA, Blue Heelers and Something in the Air. The motor neurone diseases (MND) are a group of progressive neurological disorders that destroy motor neurones, the cells that control voluntary muscle activity such as speaking, walking, breathing, and swallowing. ... December 23 is the 357th day of the year (358th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays full 2006 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Sullivans was an Australian made drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran from 1976 until 1983. ... A Country Practice was one of the longest-running Australian television drama series. ... Sons and Daughters was an Australian soap opera created by Reg Watson and produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation. ... MDA is an Australian television show which aired on the ABC from 2002 to 2003, and will return in 2005 as three four-hour miniseries. ... Blue Heelers (1994 - 2006) was a long-running Australian police drama series set in a Victoria Police station in the fictional small town of Mt. ... Something in the Air is an Australian television soap opera transmitted by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation between 2000 and 2002. ...

Series History

On Sunday July 16, 2006 at 2pm John Wild (Executive Producer) and Marcia Gardner (Script Producer) sat down with an audience at ACMI in Federation Square in Melbourne to 'explore the narrative arc and character development from the first episodes to the final series'. The event took place in the Screen Pit and was free to the public. Below is an in depth rundown written by Jeremy Kewley for the Stingers Forum: is the 197th day of the year (198th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays full 2006 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... John Robert Francis Wild (born in 1873 in Skelton, Yorkshire to † 19 August 1939 in Johannesburg South Africa), known as Frank Wild, was an explorer on several expeditions to Antarctica including: In 1901 he was a member of Robert Falcon Scott’s crew as a seaman on the ”Discovery”, along... Marcia Gardner is an Australian screenwriter who has worked on such shows as Paradise Beach, Pacific Drive, Medivac, All Saints, Heartbreak High, Stingers (which she script produced) and Blue Heelers. ... Federation Square (or Fed Sq) is a cultural precinct in the city of Melbourne, Australia. ... Melbourne (pronounced ) is the second most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population of approximately 3. ...

Stingers came about in a very fast manner; they had to get the show which was only ‘jotted down on paper’ into a television series in just 11 weeks and in an 8.30pm time slot. It first began airing up towards the end of the year, on Monday nights. It was up against another new show on Channel 7 - Ally McBeal, Stingers bet Ally McBeal regularly for its first 11 weeks before it went on its Christmas ratings break. When both Stingers and Ally McBeal returned after the ratings break Ally McBeal began to win in the ratings, quiet comfortably and Nine began to worry. Ally McBeal is an American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002 and was one of the best-known dramedy television series of the 1990s winning several awards. ... Ally McBeal is an American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002 and was one of the best-known dramedy television series of the 1990s winning several awards. ... Ally McBeal is an American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002 and was one of the best-known dramedy television series of the 1990s winning several awards. ... Ally McBeal is an American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002 and was one of the best-known dramedy television series of the 1990s winning several awards. ...

At this time Channel Nine and the producers had to work out how to win ratings back, they worked out that the reason so many people preferred Ally McBeal over Stingers was because Stingers had a very rough, edgy and realistic feel to it, and it seemed that this did not appeal to women, of all ages, who preferred the lightness of Ally McBeal. So Stingers was moved to Tuesday night. This helped a bit, but not enough. Channel Nine were thinking about canceling the show. But Nine owner Kerry Packer liked the show and suggested that Nine should keep it on the air. Nine did, but moved it an hour later to 9.30pm. At 9.30pm on Tuesdays Stingers started to find it's audience (although this was still not a big audience). It stayed at 9:30 PM on Tuesdays up until the end of 7th season which seemed to be predominately male middle class white collar workers between the ages of 30-55. Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Ally McBeal is an American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002 and was one of the best-known dramedy television series of the 1990s winning several awards. ... Ally McBeal is an American television series which ran on the FOX network from 1997 to 2002 and was one of the best-known dramedy television series of the 1990s winning several awards. ... Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer AC (17 December 1937 – 26 December 2005) was an Australian publishing, media and gaming tycoon. ...

By the middle of the second season ratings were still not spectacular enough and Channel Ninecommissioned research which showed that women were not particularly interested in Stingers. As women make up 50% of the audience the producers were told to make the first major change to Stingers - make it more female friendly. These led to the departure of Joe Petruzzi, making Anita Hegh’s character the boss of the Unit. This also led to another female character being introduced, undercover operative Danni Mayo, portrayed by Roxane Wilson. This led to the show becoming more ‘lighter’ to appeal to the female audiences. Soon after, humour was added to the show, in the form of Jeremy Kewley’s character, Bryan Gray. These changes worked quiet well and Stingers steamed through Seasons 3, 4 and 5, but then Anita Hegh and Ian Stenlake decided to leave the show and this caused for another drastic change in the series. Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Anita Hegh (born May 11, 1972) is an Australian actor. ... Anita Hegh (born May 11, 1972) is an Australian actor. ... Ian Stenlake is an Australian actor. ...

The network was now toying with the idea of dropping the show as they were on a nationwide cost-cutting drive and Stingers (whose budget had crept up from its original $440,000 per episode to around $480,000 an episode) was considered too expensive. They dropped a bombshell on the Producers - shave around $130,000 every week from the budget or the show would have to cease production. That's a huge ask. But everyone at Stingers was keen to keep going as everyone felt there were still life in the show and plenty of stories to tell.

So things closed down for a bit while the accountants came in with their scissors and by the start of the next season the budget was chopped down to $350,000 per episode. Shooting changed from six days per episode to five days. Shooting stock changed from 16mm film to SP Betacam Videotape. The crew became smaller and writers were given less time to write each episode. The Location changed from the "Crimplex" (Warehouse/Studio/Offices by the Yarra River) to the studios of Channel Nine in Richmond. Channel Nine spent money on a big new set (plus a new "hospital ward" set and a new "pub/bar" set) and justified the cost by making sure that most of the action on the show now took place inside the studio on the new sets, with a lot less time spent on locations, with less money spent on car chases, stunts and special effects. The Yarra River is a river in southern Victoria, Australia. ... Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ...

Channel Nine also wanted more "star power" in the show, so Gary Sweet was brought in as Luke Harris (and Roxane Wilson decided to leave), and Rebecca Gibney - who was now out of a job without Halifax FP - was put to work for the first few episodes of the new season. Most of these major changes worked quite well and most viewers at home would not have been too aware of the changes to the visual quality of the show (from film to tape, etc). Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Sweet playing in movie Alexandras Project Gary Sweet (born May 22, 1957 in Melbourne, Australia) is an Australian film and television actor. ... Rebecca Gibney (b. ... Halifax f. ...

But, as John Wild humorously pointed out in - "the ratings didn't change one point!" - Channel Nine commissioned more surveys which told them that the show needed to appeal to younger viewers. So two new characters were added - those played by Daniel Frederiksen and Jacinta Stapleton. And John Wild said - "and the ratings still didn't change one point!" - Channel Nine insisted that still more star power was needed to lift the ratings - so Lisa Chappell (Logie winning McLeod's Daughters star) joined the cast. - “and the ratings didn't change one point!" - More star power in guest roles etc ... Bill Hunter, Gigi Edgley, Steve Bisley, Tottie Goldsmith - "and the ratings didn't change one point!" John Robert Francis Wild (born in 1873 in Skelton, Yorkshire to † 19 August 1939 in Johannesburg South Africa), known as Frank Wild, was an explorer on several expeditions to Antarctica including: In 1901 he was a member of Robert Falcon Scott’s crew as a seaman on the ”Discovery”, along... Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Jacinta Stapleton (born June 6, 1979 in Malvern, Victoria) is an Australian actress. ... John Robert Francis Wild (born in 1873 in Skelton, Yorkshire to † 19 August 1939 in Johannesburg South Africa), known as Frank Wild, was an explorer on several expeditions to Antarctica including: In 1901 he was a member of Robert Falcon Scott’s crew as a seaman on the ”Discovery”, along... Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ... Lisa Chappell is a New Zealand born actress, notable for her role in the Australian drama series McLeods Daughters. ... McLeods Daughters is an Australian television drama set in the rural outback. ... Bill Hunter (born February 27, 1940) is one of Australias acting legends, having worked with almost every notable Australian director and actor of the last thirty years - evidence of his genuine popularity amongst the public and acting fraternity alike. ... Gigi Edgley Gigi Edgley is an Australian actress known mostly for her role as Chiana on the Sci Fi channel original series Farscape. ... Steve Bisley (born 1951 at Lake Munmorah, New South Wales, Australia), is a well-known Australian actor, who attended the National Institute of Dramatic Art. ... Tottie Goldsmith (born Caroline Goldsmith on August 27, 1962) is an Australian actress and singer. ...

Then Stingers was "rested" for a couple of weeks and replaced by repeats of CSI, and the repeats of CSI clearly rated better than first-run episodes of Stingers. (Screening a repeat episode of CSI probably costs the network about $25,000 - as opposed to a first-run episode of Stingers at $350,000) CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a popular Alliance Atlantis/CBS police procedural television series, running since October 2000, about a team of forensic scientists. ... CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a popular Alliance Atlantis/CBS police procedural television series, running since October 2000, about a team of forensic scientists. ... CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a popular Alliance Atlantis/CBS police procedural television series, running since October 2000, about a team of forensic scientists. ...

So it became clear what Nine would do. Move Stingers to 10.30pm on a permanent basis and put higher-rating repeats of CSI on at 9.30pm. Channel Nine in Adelaide did not like this move and moved Stingers to 9:30 Monday Nights, this only lasted for 5 weeks before it was moved back to 10:30 on a Tuesday night. This move to a later timeslot caused the Stingers ratings to drop even lower, giving Nine a reason to finally end the show. The Stingers curse seemed to be that it always rated well but it never rated spectacularly. Channel Nine is an Australian television channel broadcast by the Nine Network, available in major markets across Australia. ...

DVD Releases

• Stingers - Series 1 was released on Region 4 DVD on 4 September 2006 This is a six disc set with Episodes 1 - 22
• Stingers - Series 2 was released on Region 4 DVD on 14 March 2007 This is a six disc set with Episodes 23 - 44
• Stingers - Series 3 was released on Region 4 DVD on 4 June 2007 This is a six disc set with Episodes 45 - 66

is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays full 2006 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 73rd day of the year (74th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is now the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is now the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ...

Trivia

• Peter Church's real name is Mike Fischer.
• Oscar Stone's real name is Cameron Pierce. After the character's death, his gravestone was shown to have 'Oscar Stone' engraved on it even though there was no reason not to use his real name. This was presumably a continuity goof.
• Kaye Kelso's real name is Emily Shaw.
• Chris Dichiera's real name is Felicity Matthews, but this was not known to the force, as she had a criminal history under that name.

See also

• List of Australian television series

This is a list of Australian television series and television programs. ...

External links

• STINGERS: Undercover Central
• Stingers at the National Film and Sound Archive