Water Rats (TV series) explained

Water Rats is an Australian TV police procedural broadcast on the Nine Network from 1996 to 2001. The series was based on the work of Sydney Water Police who fight crime around Sydney Harbour and surrounding locales. The show was set on and around Goat Island in Sydney Harbour.

Water Rats premiered on 12 February 1996, and ran for six seasons and 177 episodes. Colin Friels and Catherine McClements were the original stars of the series and were instrumental in the show's early success. They both departed the show in 1999. In later seasons, Steve Bisley, Aaron Pedersen and Dee Smart became the show's main stars.

For the sixth and final season in 2001, the show concentrated more on the cops' personal lives rather than just focusing on the crimes committed. The Nine Network cancelled the show after six seasons. Executive Producer Kris Noble blamed escalating costs for the cancellation. However, the series had been suffering a ratings decline following the departure of Friels and McClements in 1999.

The final episode was broadcast in Australia on 7 August 2001.

Cast

Main

• Colin Friels as Det Snr Constable Frank Holloway (1996–1999)
• Catherine McClements as Det Snr Constable Rachel Goldstein (1996–1999)
• Steve Bisley as Det Sergeant Jack Christey (1998–2001)
• Jay Laga'aia as Snr Const Tommy Tavita (1996–2000)
• Aaron Pedersen as Det Constable Michael Reilly (1999–2001)
• Dee Smart as Det Snr Constable Alex St. Clare (2000–2001)

Supporting

• Peter Bensley as Snr Sgt/Chief Insp Jeff Hawker (1996–2001)
• Bill Young as Chief Insp Clarke Webb (1996 only)
• Brett Partridge as Snr Constable Gavin Sykes (1996–2001)
• Toni Scanlan as Snr Sgt Helen Blakemore (1996–2001)
• Scott Burgess as Snr Sgt Dave McCall (1996–1999)
• Aaron Jeffery as Constable Terry Watson (1996–1998)
• Sophie Heathcote as Constable Fiona Cassidy (1996–1997)
• Raelee Hill as Constable Tayler Johnson (1997–1999)
• Allison Cratchley as Constable Emma Woods (1998–2001)
• Diarmid Heidenreich as Constable Matthew Quinn (2000–2001)
• Rebecca Smart as Constable Donna Janevski (2000–2001)

Recurring

• Peter Mochrie as Detective Snr Sergeant John 'Knocker' Harrison (22 episodes, 1996)
• Jeremy Callaghan as Detective Snr Constable Kevin Holloway (10 episodes, 1996)
• Richard Healy as Insp Tony Brady (14 episodes, 1996–1997)
• Treffyn Koreshoff as David Goldstein (17 episodes, 1996–1999)
• John Walton as John Walton (26 episodes, 1997–1999)
• Anthony Martin as Colin "Chopper" Lewis (44 episodes, 1997–2001)
• Mouche Phillips as Eva Minton (8 episodes, 2000–2001)
• Brooke Satchwell as Sophie Ferguson (20 episodes, 2000–2001)
• Joss McWilliam as Sgt Lance Rorke (29 episodes, 2000–2001)
• Kelly Dale as Senior Constable Sam Bailey (season 2, 1997)
• John Adam as Michael Jefferies (season 2, 1997)
• Anne Tenney as Gail Hawker (season 2, 5 episodes, 1997)
• Betty Lucas as Sybil Graham (1, 2006)
• Rebecca Hobbs as Liz Robinson (season 3, 1998)
• Robert Mammone as Detective Agi Fatseas (5 episodes, 2001)
• Sonia Todd as Detective Sergeant Louise Bradshaw (season 3, 13 episodes, 1998)
• Ritchie Singer as Terry Madigan (season 3, 1998)
• Roxane Wilson as Suzi Abromavich (season 3-4, 1998-99)
• Liz Burch as Gillian Swain (season 4, 5 episodes, 1999)
• Josephine Byrnes as Acting Inspector Julia Goodwin (season 6, 3 episodes, 2001)
• Bill Hunter as Tom Christey (season 6, 2001)
• Ingrid Ruz as Sergeant Vanessa Simmons (season 6, 2001)
• Rodger Corser as Detective George Newhouse (season 6, 4 episodes, 2001)
• Rohan Nichol as Shane Green (season 5, episode 2: "Reunion", 2000)
• Kelly Dingwall as Sam Bailey (9 episodes)
• Marshall Napier as Joe De Silva (5 episodes)

Guests

Actor	Role	Episodes
	Marie Marchand	1 episode
	Amy Collins	1 episode
	Jim Flemming / Tom McKelvey	3 episodes
	Samantha	1 episode
	Carly Middleton	1 episode
	Megan	1 episode
	Jarred	1 episode
	Dave Fremont	1 episode
	Terry Spiro	1 episode
	Joanne Calvert	2 episodes
	Geena Sadler	2 episodes
	Finn	1 episode
	Geraldine St Clare	1 episode
	Heather Pinchon	1 episode
	Marie James	1 episode
	Sarah Fleetwood	2 episodes
	Sylvia Rapsardi	1 episode
Christopher Barry	Prison Warden	1 episode
	Beth Williams	1 episode
	Constance 'Fish' Wilson	1 episode
	Rhys 'Kegs' Jeegan	1 episode
	Fred Pearson	1 episode
	Warren / Doug	4 episodes
	Cynthia Rody	1 episode
	Elizabeth Cartland / Trish	2 episodes
	Brendan Hogan	2 episodes
	Sally	1 episode
	John Lynch	1 episode
	Peggy Newland	1 episode
	Joy Godfrey	1 episode
	Breda / Anne Harvey	2 episodes
	Max Bullen	2 episodes
	Colin Fleetwood / Max Prescott	4 episodes
	Jennifer Campbell	2 episode
	Neil Wilson	3 episodes
	Vanessa	1 episode
	Eric Bourke	2 episodes
	Joe Slaven	1 episode
	Ronald Barnsley	1 episode
	Sven Larsen	2 episodes
	Colin McGuire	1 episode
	Dr Harry	1 episode
	Owen	1 episode
	Kingsley / Wayne	2 episodes
	Coroner	1 episode
	First Probationer	1 episode
	Susan Webb	1 episode
	Mrs Gleeson	1 episode
	Courier	1 episode
	Harley Strachan	1 episode
	Joseph Lipinski	3 episodes
	Gretchen Hart	1 episode
	Jimmy Reid	1 episode
	Josh Rogers	1 episode
	Lisa Hubbard	1 episode
	Cheryl Voss	1 episode
	Roger Mulray	1 episode
	Chicka Canter / Terry Brown	2 episodes
	Robert Haig	1 episode
	Shelley Andrews	1 episode
	Uncredited	1 episode
	Shane Bookman	1 episode
	Ronny Jefferson	1 episode
	Miranda Lathem	1 episode
	Les Johnson	1 episode
	Warwick Richard	1 episode
	Matthew Grierson	1 episode
	Jimmy Formica	1 episode
	Carly Bridges	1 episode
	Rebecca Solomon	1 episode
	Christina Mangano	1 episode
Richard Healy	Inspector Tony Brady	1 episode
	David ‘Kiwi Dave’ Crowe / Barry Elliot	3 episodes
	Detective Agi Fatseas	5 episodes
	Shane Green	1 episode
	Stan	1 episode
	Jens	1 episode
	Lewis West	2 episodes
	Blaire Wenzel	1 episode
	Phillip Champion	1 episode
	Yvonne Carlisle	1 episode
	Victoria St Clair	1 episode
	Rob Jennings	2 episodes
	Bianca Matthias	1 episode
	Det. Sgt. 'Mac' Phillips	2 episodes
	Tim	1 episode
Steven Gravies	Jonathon Goldstein	1 episode
	Rosie Callahan	2 episodes
	Julie Drummond	1 episode
	Anne Milner	1 episode
	Belinda Harvey	1 episode
	Peter Kostos	1 episode
	Dan Manning
	Warren / Doug	4 episodes
	Supt. Franklin	1 episode
	Margaret Hobbs	1 episode
	Tracy Bennett	1 episode
Blake Power	Jewish school child
Tom McCrickard	Stringy Oscar

Season summaries

Pilot

The pilot of Water Rats screened in Australia at 8.30 pm on Monday, 12 February 1996. It was entitled "Dead in the Water" and was a two-part episode, concernimg a divorced man, deranged over the death of his daughter, who captures a Sydney Harbour ferry and holds the city to ransom.^[1] "Dead in the Water" introduced viewers to Detective Senior Constables Frank Holloway (Colin Friels) and Rachel Goldstein (Catherine McClements).

Other characters

• Chief Inspector Clarke Webb (played by Bill Young)
• Senior Sergeant Jeff Hawker (played by Peter Bensley)
• Sergeant Helen Blakemore (played by Toni Scanlan)
• Senior Sergeant Dave McCall (played by Scott Burgess)
• Senior Constable Gavin Sykes (played by Brett Partridge)
• Senior Constable Tommy Tavita (played by Jay Laga'aia)
• Senior Constable Fiona Cassidy (played by Sophie Heathcote)
• Senior Constable Terry Watson (played by Aaron Jeffery)
• Detective Senior Sergeant John "Knocker" Harrison (played by Peter Mochrie)
• Detective Senior Constable Kevin Holloway (played by Jeremy Callaghan)
• David Goldstein (played by Treffyn Koreshoff)
• Jonathon Goldstein (played by Steven Grivies)
• Inspector Tony Brady (played by Richard Healy)
• Prison Warden (played by Christopher Barry)

Season one

Season one ran for 26 episodes.

Major storylines included

• Jonathon Goldstein (Steven Grivies) trying to deny Rachel (Catherine McClements) access to their young son, David (Treffyn Koreshoff).
• Frank's (Colin Friels)' relationship with crime scene officer, Caroline Cox.
• Helen's (Toni Scanlan)'s sexuality comes out in the open, particularly to Rachel (McClements), who seemed to be the only character who did not know Helen was gay.
• The death and subsequent investigation of Frank's brother, Kevin (Jeremy Callaghan).
• Rachel's (McClements)' relationship with Knocker (Peter Mochrie), which turned out to be a deadly one.
• Clarke's (Bill Young's) affair and his subsequent resignation.
• Frank (Friels) being investigated by Internal Affairs on two occasions.

Season two

The second season of Water Rats ran, again, for 26 episodes and began airing on Monday, 10 February 1997. Season two also took the detectives to Melbourne, a change from Sydney Harbour. It also introduced a new character, Constable Tayler Johnson (Raelee Hill), as well as a few minor ones.

New characters

• Colin "Chopper" Lewis (played by Anthony Martin)
• Senior Constable Sam Bailey (played by Kelly Dale)
• Michael Jefferies (played by John Adam)
• Gail Hawker (played by Anne Tenney)

Major storylines included

• Rachel's (McClements') relationship with the well-off Michael Jefferies (John Adam).
• Jeff (Peter Bensley) becomes Chief Inspector.
• Frank (Friels) once again, is investigated by I.A, but this time for a much more serious offence, murder.
• Tayler (Raelee Hill), is Helen's niece.
• Terry (Aaron Jeffery) is stabbed and decides to leave the Water Police.
• Dave (Scott Burgess) is speared by spear gun and cannot continue diving.
• Jeff (Peter Bensley) and his wife separate.

Season three

Season three ran for 31 episodes and premiered on Monday, 9 February 1998. A couple of episodes into the season, it was moved to Tuesday nights. Steve Bisley is also added to the opening credits for a number of episodes near the end of the season.

New characters included

• Constable Emma Woods (played by Allison Cratchley)
• Liz Robinson (played by Rebecca Hobbs)
• Detective Senior Constable Jack Christey (played by Steve Bisley)
• Detective Sergeant Louise Bradshaw (played by Sonia Todd)
• Terry Madigan (played by Ritchie Singer)

Major storylines included

• Frank (Friels) getting back together (for a while) with his ex-wife Liz (Rebecca Hobbs).
• Rachel (Catherine McClements) and tough-talking detective Jack Christey (Steve Bisley) have a one-night stand.
• Tayler (Raelee Hill) is shot.
• Rachel (McClements) works with Tommy (Jay Laga'aia) on a number of occasions, while Frank is away.
• Frank's (Friels') relationship with undercover cop Louise (Sonia Todd) ends when she is shot dead.
• Helen (Toni Scanlan) is promoted to Senior Sergeant.

Season four

The fourth series began on Tuesday, 16 February 1999 and ran for 32 episodes. It was a series of change for Water Rats, which included both Colin Friels' and Catherine McClements' departures within 18 episodes of each other.

New characters included

• Detective Senior Constable Michael Reilly (Aaron Pedersen)
• Gillian Swain (played by Liz Burch)
• Suzi Abromavich (played by Roxane Wilson, who also appeared in one episode in series three)
• Detective Senior Constable Alex St Clare (played by Dee Smart)

Major storylines included

• Helen's (Toni Scanlan's) relationship with lawyer Gillian Swain (Liz Burch).
• Michael Reilly (Aaron Pedersen), from VIP security, becomes the third detective.
• Frank (Colin Friels) leaves the Water Police, sailing to Venezuela.
• Jack (Steve Bisley) replaces Frank (Friels) and his relationship with Rachel (McClements) gets off to a rocky start.
• Jack (Bisley) is promoted to Detective Sergeant.
• David is kidnapped.
• Rachel (McClements) and Jack (Bisley) start their relationship again.
• Rachel (McClements) is stabbed, and dies in Jack's (Bisley's) arms.
• Jeff (Peter Bensley) and his wife get a divorce.
• Tayler (Raelee Hill) leaves the Water Police, joining Pol-Air.
• Alex St Clare (Dee Smart) replaces Rachel (McClements).

Season five

The fifth season began airing on Tuesday, 22 February 2000, and ran for 36 episodes, the longest out of the six seasons of the show. Ratings began to fall slightly, as a result of McClements' departure the previous year. A number of regular characters also left, including Jay Laga'aia and Scott Burgess, whose character was not seen at all in series five, and his whereabouts was finally mentioned in series six.

New characters included

• Senior Constable Matthew Quinn (played Diarmid Heidenreich)
• Constable Donna Janevski (played by Rebecca Smart)
• Sergeant Lance Rorke (played by Joss McWilliam)
• Sophie Ferguson (played by Brooke Satchwell)
• Eva Minton (played by Mouche Phillips)

Major storylines included

• Tommy (Jay Laga'aia) leaves the Water Police and goes on long-service leave.
• Jack (Bisley) finds out he has an 18-year-old daughter named Sophie (Brooke Satchwell).
• Mick asks Alex (Dee Smart) out on a date.
• Gavin (Brett Partridge) meets Eva (Mouche Phillips).
• Jack (Bisley) remembers Rachel (McClements) on the one-year anniversary of her death.

Season six

The sixth and final season of Water Rats began airing on Tuesday, 6 February 2001 and ran for 26 episodes. Sometime early in the season, the timeslot was changed from 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm. The Nine Network decided to cancel the show, due to escalating costs and declining ratings, and two main stars, Steve Bisley and Dee Smart had decided to leave the show.

Notable new characters included

• Acting Inspector Julia Goodwin (played by Josephine Byrnes)
• Tom Christey (played by Bill Hunter)
• Sergeant Vanessa Simmons (played by Ingrid Ruz)
• Detective George Newhouse (played by Rodger Corser)

Major storylines included

• Jack (Bisley) has a short relationship with Julia Goodwin (Josephine Byrnes).
• Lance (Joss McWilliam) dies in a freak accident.
• Sophie (Brooke Satchwell) begins her Police training.
• The Water Police learn that Snr. Sgt. Dave McCall (Scott Burgess) has died.
• Gavin (Brett Partridge) and Eva (Mouche Phillips) get married, and at the end of the series, have a baby.
• Jack is shot in the very last episode, and though not known, probably dies, as Bisley was leaving the show if it did continue for another season.

Episodes

See main article: List of Water Rats episodes.

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee(s)	Result
1997	Logie Award	Most Outstanding Actor	Colin Friels
		Most Outstanding Achievement in a Drama Production	Water Rats
1998	Logie Award	Most Outstanding Actor	Colin Friels
		Most Popular Actor	Colin Friels
		Most Popular Actress	Catherine McClements
		Most Outstanding Actress	Catherine McClements
		Most Popular Program	Water Rats
		Most Outstanding Drama Series	Water Rats
	AFI Awards	Young Actor's Award	Paul Pantano (for episode Romeo is Bleeding)
1999	Logie Awards	Most Popular Actor	Colin Friels
		Most Outstanding Actor	Colin Friels
	People's Choice Award	Favourite Actor in a Drama or Serial	Colin Friels
		Favourite Actress in a Drama or Serial	Catherine McClements
		Favourite TV Star	Colin Friels
		Favourite Drama or Serial	Water Rats
	AFI Award	Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama	Catherine McClements (for episode I'm Home)
	Awgie Award	Television - Series	Peter Gawler (for episode Six Hundred Clear a Week)
2000	Logie Award	Most Outstanding Actor in a Series	Colin Friels
		Most Outstanding Actor in a Series	Steve Bisley
		Most Outstanding Actress in a Series	Catherine McClements
		Most Popular Actor	Colin Friels
		Most Outstanding Drama Series	Water Rats
2001	Awgie Award	Television - Series	John Banas (for episode Domino)
		Television - Series	Peter Gawler (for episode Hungry Bear Blues)
	Logie Awards	Most Outstanding Drama Series	Water Rats
		Most Outstanding Actor in a Series	Steve Bisley

Filming locations

Water Rats was filmed on and around Goat Island in Sydney Harbour. Other locations used throughout the series were:

• Shark Island
• Sydney Harbour Bridge − In the season three episode Epiphany, Matt Barnes took Rachel Goldstein and climbed the famous bridge for a negotiators exercise.
• The Gap − A main storyline of season 1 was the murder of Frank's brother Kevin, who was thrown off The Gap.
• White Bay Power Station − Used a number of times, most notably, Catherine McClements' last episode A Day at the Office.
• Fort Denison
• The Rocks − Mainly used for external shots of Frank's house.
• Middle Harbour
• Long Bay Correctional Centre
• Australian Army Artillery Museum − During the season two final, Rachel and Frank search for killer Brian Atkins in the tunnels of the museum.
• North Head
• Middle Head Fortifications
• Melbourne − In season two, Rachel and Frank travelled to Melbourne to investigate a murder.

Fictional locations

The real Sydney Water Police headquarters was located at Pyrmont. The TV version of the Sydney Water Police headquarters was located on Goat Island, though the fictional address was 48/50 Harbour Drive, Sydney 2000. Other fictional locations throughout the series included:

• Frank's House − The exterior was shot in The Rocks, but the interior was a set on Goat Island.
• The Cutter Bar − A fictional pub, where the members of the Water Police liked to relax after a hard day at work (introduced in season two).
• The Sydney Police Centre − Unlike some other police stations, the Water Police did not have their own holding cells, so offenders were taken to the SPC to be charged.
• The Hospital
• The Morgue − Early in the series, real morgues were used to film in. Eventually a set was built on Goat Island.
• Rachel's house − A number of different exterior locations were used for Rachel's house, including Balmain, Birchgrove and Glebe.

Home media

Water Rats was first released on DVD in 2004 through Shock Entertainment. It was released as two parts called Series 1 and Series 2, though it was actually only season 1 in two parts. Warner Vision Australia then released the rest of the show, where DVDs labelled series 3 were actually season 2 and so on. It was announced on 7 August 2017 that Via Vision Entertainment would re-release all six seasons on DVD on 22 November 2017. Several episodes are out of broadcast order in the Via Vision collection and on Amazon Prime.

DVDs

Title	Format	of episodes	Discs	Region 4 (Australia)	DVD special features	DVD distributors
Season One	DVD	Series 1, Episodes 1-13	3	8 March 2004	Selected Episodes Commentaries	Shock Entertainment
Season Two	DVD	Series 1, Episodes 14-26	3	21 February 2005	Photo Gallery	Shock Entertainment
Season Three Part 1	DVD	Series 2, Episodes 1-14	4		Photo gallery	Warner Vision Australia
Season Three Part 2	DVD	Series 2, Episodes 15-26	3		None	Warner Vision Australia
Season Four Part 1	DVD	Series 3, Episodes 1-17	4		None	Warner Vision Australia
Season Four Part 2	DVD	Series 3, Episode 18-31	4		Photo gallery	Warner Vision Australia
Season Five Part 1	DVD	Series 4, Episodes 1-16	4	9 September 2006	None	Warner Vision Australia
Season Five Part 2	DVD	Series 4, Episodes 17-32	4	9 September 2006	Photo Gallery	Warner Vision Australia
Season Six Part 1	DVD	Series 5, Episodes 1-21	5	28 October 2006	None	Warner Vision Australia
Season Six Part 2	DVD	Series 5, Episodes 22-36	4	28 October 2006	Photo Gallery	Warner Vision Australia
Season Seven Part 1	DVD	Series 6, Episodes 1-12	3	28 October 2006	Photo Gallery	Warner Vision Australia
Season Seven Part 2	DVD	Series 6, Episodes 13-26	4	28 October 2006	None	Warner Vision Australia
The Complete Series 1-6	DVD	All 177 Episodes	45	22 November 2017	Commentaries On Selected Episodes. Photo Galleries	Via Vision Entertainment
Water Rats: Collection One	DVD	Season 01, Episodes 1-26 Season 02, Episodes 01-26 Season 03, Episodes 01-31 Season 04, Episodes 01-32	24	11 April 2018	Commentaries On Selected Episodes. Photo Galleries	Via Vision Entertainment
Water Rats: Collection Two	DVD	Season 05, Episodes 01-36 Season 06, Episodes 01-26	21	5 December 2018	Photo Galleries	Via Vision Entertainment
Water Rats: The Complete Collection	DVD	All 177 Episodes	45	13 September 2023	Audio commentaries on selected episodesPhoto Galleries	Via Vision Entertainment

Online streaming availability

Title	Format	Episodes #	Year of Airing	Streaming Status	Distributors
Water Rats Season One	Streaming	Episodes 01-26	20192020	No longer AvailableCurrently Streaming	9Now 7plus
Water Rats Season Two	Streaming	Episodes 01-26	20192020	No longer AvailableCurrently Streaming	9Now7plus
Water Rats Season Three	Streaming	Episodes 01-31	20192020	No longer AvailableCurrently Streaming	9Now7plus
Water Rats Season Four	Streaming	Episodes 01-32	20192020	No longer AvailableCurrently Streaming	9Now7plus
Water Rats Season Five	Streaming	Episodes 01-36	20192020	No longer AvailableCurrently Streaming	9Now7plus
Water Rats Season Six	Streaming	Episodes 01-26	20192020	No longer AvailableCurrently Streaming	9Now7plus

All episodes are available on Amazon Prime in Australia.

Soundtrack

A Water Rats soundtrack was produced by Les Gock in 1999. It contained songs featured on the series, such as "Goldie's Theme" by Cathi Ogden (heard in many episodes, most notably episode 109) and "I'll Dream of You" by Hugh Wilson (heard in Frank's final episode). It also features a couple of songs sung by cast members: "Breathe" with Raelee Hill and "Let's Party" with Jay Laga'aia. The song "Breathe" was written by James Freud, who also sang in the chorus. The company Song Zu seems to want to have no affiliation with the soundtrack music and does not recognise nor acknowledge it on its current website. Secondhand copies of it can occasionally be found on auction sites and in secondhand music stores.

International broadcasting

The series is currently being re-run in:

• on Foxtel's Hallmark Channel
• on RTÉ One, Sunday and Monday mornings
• on Kanal9. From 10.06.2013 on DR1
• on FX
• on City 7
• on ICTV
• on France 2
• on Freevee

Notes

• There was a 2003 National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra exhibition on Australian police dramas (1950–present) that featured some scripts from the show, as well as a plastic corpse used in one episode. See National Archives of Australia for details.
• The exterior for Frank's house was filmed near the Agar Steps in The Rocks, New South Wales; however, the interior was shot on Goat Island.
• Catherine McClements had previously worked with Colin Friels in the movie Weekend with Kate (1990), Scott Burgess in the movie Just Us (1986) and Tony Morphett (the creator of Water Rats) in the telemovie My Brother Tom (1986).
• Season three originally contained 32 episodes; however, because of Colin Friels' illness, only 31 went to air.

See also

• List of Australian television series
• List of Nine Network programs

External links

• • Water Rats
• Water Rats
• Water Rats fan forum
• Water Rats at the National Film and Sound Archive
• Water Rats - "Goes with Territory" at Australian Screen Online

Notes and References

1. Ed. Scott Murray, Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995, Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p161