Prisoner (TV series)
| Prisoner | |
|---|---|
| Also known as |
|
| Genre | Soap opera serial Crime drama |
| Created by | Reg Watson |
| Written by | Ian Smith, Anne Lucas, Coral Drouyn |
| Directed by |
|
| Starring | (see List of Prisoner cast members) |
| Theme music composer | Allan Caswell Conductor – William Motzing |
| Ending theme | "On the Inside" (written by Allan Caswell, conducted by William Motzing performed by Lynne Hamilton) |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 8 |
| No. of episodes | 692 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Ian Bradley (from season 2) |
| Producers | Ian Bradley (season 1), Ian Smith |
| Production locations | Melbourne, Victoria |
| Camera setup | Video |
| Running time | 41–53 minutes |
| Production company | Reg Grundy Organisation |
| Original release | |
| Network | Network Ten |
| Release | 27 February 1979 – 11 December 1986 |
| Related | |
| Willow B: Women in Prison Wentworth | |
Prisoner (known in the UK and the US as Prisoner: Cell Block H and in Canada as Caged Women) is an Australian television soap opera, which was broadcast on Network Ten (formerly the 0-10 Network) from February 27 (Melbourne) and February 26 (Sydney) 1979 to December 1986 (Melbourne), running eight series and 692 episodes.
Prisoner was the first Australian series to feature a primarily female-dominated cast and carried the slogan "If you think prison is hell for a man, imagine what it would be like for a woman!"
The series, produced by the Grundy Organisation, was conceived by Reg Watson and filmed at the then-Network Ten Melbourne Studios at Nunawading and on location.
The series garnered an international cult following, and it was one of Australia's most successful media exports, exported to 80 countries, performing particularly well in the United States and Canada (billed as Prisoner: Cell Block H and Caged Women, respectively). It also built a large audience in the United Kingdom and other European countries, especially Sweden.
Sammy Davis Jr. was a major fan and visited the set, and wanted to appear in a role, but had other engagements at the time.
The cult status of the series has seen many adaptations, including the modern 21st-century re-imaging series Wentworth on Foxtel.