''The D-Generation'' was a popular and influential Australian TV

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches" or, "skits", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. While the form developed and became popular in ...

show produced and broadcast by

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

for two series between 1986 and 1987. A further four specials were broadcast on the

Seven Network Seven Network (stylised 7Network, and commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is an Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, ...

between 1988 and 1989. The show would also serve as a stepping stone for many early incarnations of iconic characters, including Lynne Postlethwaite, Gina Hard-Faced B***h, Eileen Maverick and Kelvin Cunnington.

Synopsis

The series was produced and directed by

Kris Noble Kris Noble (born 12 October 1952) is an Australian retired television executive, best known for his extensive work in the Australian television industry and for his work on American co-productions ''Moby Dick'' and '' Farscape''. At the 50th P ...

and was created and written by a group of

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state of Victoria. Its ...

students who had gained local notoriety for their stage work:

Rob Sitch Robert Ian Sitch (born 17 March 1962) is an Australian filmmaker, actor and comedian. He directed and co-wrote the comedy films '' The Castle'' (1997) and ''The Dish'' (2000); the former of which is often considered one of the greatest Australia ...

Santo Cilauro Santo Luigi Cilauro (born 25 November 1961) is an Australian comedian, television and feature film producer, screenwriter, actor, author and cameraman who is also a co-founder of ''The D-Generation''. Known as the weatherman in ''Frontline (Au ...

Marg Downey Marg Downey (born 5 May 1961) is an Australian comedian and actress, best known for her roles in '' The D Generation'', '' Fast Forward'' and '' Full Frontal'' Early life and education Downey grew up in a middle-class Catholic family in the Me ...

Michael Veitch Michael Veitch (born 29 November 1962 in Melbourne) is an Australian author, actor and broadcaster, best known for his roles on the sketch comedy television shows '' The D-Generation'', '' Fast Forward'' and '' Full Frontal'', as well as for hi ...

Magda Szubanski Magdalene Mary Therese Szubanski ( ; born 12 April 1961) is an Australian comedy actress, author, singer and LGBT rights advocate. She performed in '' Fast Forward'', '' Kath & Kim'' as Sharon Strzelecki and in the films '' Babe'' (1995) and ...

, John Harrison, and

Tom Gleisner Thomas Edmund Gleisner (born 24 October 1962) is an Australian comedian and producer. Gleisner co-founded production company Working Dog Productions and currently hosts Network 10's ''Have You Been Paying Attention?''. Early life and educati ...

. Also part of the original team was

Nicholas Bufalo Nicholas Bufalo (born 1961 or 1962) is an Australian actor and director, perhaps best known for his role as Dr. Ben Green in ''A Country Practice'' and for directing a number of episodes for the soap opera ''Neighbours''. He starred in the short ...

, who appeared in the unscreened one-hour ''D-Generation'' pilot (1985), before accepting a long-running role on TV soap ''

A Country Practice ''A Country Practice'' is an Australian television soap opera/serial which was broadcast on the Seven Network from 18 November 1981 until 22 November 1993, and subsequently on Network Ten from 13 April 1994 to 5 November 1994. Altogether, 14 ...

''. Several of Bufalo's sketches from the pilot (including the famous '' Thunderbirds'' parody) were incorporated into series one, and Bufalo himself returned for the specials. Actress/comedian

Jane Turner Jane Turner (born 1 December 1960) is an Australian actress, comedian and Logie Award-winning comedy series creator and screenwriter. She is widely known for her role as Kath in the TV sitcom ''Kath and Kim''. Career Jane Turner, although ...

and New Zealander Tony Martin joined from series two, and Melbourne Uni Revue stars

Mick Molloy Michael Molloy (born 11 July 1966) is an Australian comedian, writer, producer, actor and television and radio presenter who has been active in radio, television, stand-up and film. He currently hosts '' The Front Bar'' on the Seven Network. ...

and Jason Stephens were added for the specials. *

(1985, 1988–89) * John Harrison (1985–89) *

(1985–89) *

(1985–93) *

(1985–93) * Sue Yardley (1987–88) *

(1987–89) * Tony Martin (1987–93) * Jane Kennedy (1988–93) * Jason Stephens (1988–93) *

(1988–93) *

Judith Lucy Judith Mary Lucy (born 25 March 1968) is an Australian comedian and actress, known primarily for her stand-up comedy. Lucy joined the team of the ABC's ''The Weekly with Charlie Pickering'' in 2019. Early life Lucy's adoptive parents emigrate ...

(1991–93)

Episodes

Series one (1986)

Series two (1987)

Highlights series

Channel 7 specials

Video and DVD releases

Two "best of" videos were released: ''The Best of the Original D-Generation'' was released on ABC-video in 1996 and featured selected highlights from the two ABC series. A second video was released in 1997 called ''Degenocide: The Second Best of the Original D-Generation'' which featured additional material from the ABC series along with highlights from the Channel 7 specials including the highly popular ''

Homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

'' spoofs. The latter video also featured bonus material including footage filmed on

Super 8 Super 8 or Super Eight may refer to: Film * Super 8 film, a motion picture film format released in 1965 * Super 8 film camera, a motion picture camera used to film Super 8mm motion picture format * ''Super 8'' (2011 film), a science-fiction f ...

by the group whilst at University, clips from the Channel-9 pilots, both of the ''Five-in-a-Row'' music videos, home-video footage of their 1991 stage show at Le Joke and clips from when the D-Generation were guest hosts on ''

Countdown A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...

'' and ''

Burke's Backyard ''Burke's Backyard'' was an Australian gardening and lifestyle series presented by horticulturist Don Burke, broadcast on both radio and television. On television, it was a regular weekly series on the Nine Network from 12 September 1987 to 26 ...

''. In 2004, both of the above videos were re-released on a single DVD ''The Best and Second Best of the D-Generation''.

Radio serial

The D Generation breakfast show was a hugely successful radio program which ran for six years (19 May 1986-April 1992) on Melbourne's

Triple M Triple M is an Australian commercial radio network owned and operated by Southern Cross Austereo. The network consists of 45 radio stations with flagship stations broadcasting a mainstream/classic rock music format in Sydney, Melbourne, and B ...

(originally EON FM). Highlights of the show were released on albums.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Awards

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. The D-Generation won one award from two nominations. , - ,

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

, ''The Satanic Sketches'' , rowspan="2", Best Comedy Release , , - ,

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, ''The Breakfast Tapes (1988-90)'' , , -

Breakfast show lineup

*Rob Sitch (19 May 1986 / Jan. 1989-Dec. 1991) *Tom Gleisner (19 May 1986-April 1992) *Santo Cilauro (19 May 1986-April 1992) *Tony Martin (June 1987-December 1991) *Michael Veitch (October 1987-April 1989) *Marg Downey (June 1988–April 1989) *Magda Szubanski (June 1988–April 1989) *Jane Kennedy (June 1988-April 1992) *Mick Molloy (January 1990-April 1992) *Jason Stephens (January 1990-April 1992) *Judith Lucy (April 1991-April 1992) *John Harrison (September–December 1991)

Post D-Generation

Cast members of both the television and radio show (Sitch, Gleisner, Martin, Cilauro, Molloy, Stephens and Jane Kennedy) subsequently moved on to the equally popular ABC TV series ''

The Late Show The Late Show may refer to: Film * ''The Late Show'' (film), a 1977 film * ''Late Show'', a 1999 German film by director Helmut Dietl Music * ''The Late Show'' (Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis album), a 1961 live album by jazz saxophonists Eddie "Loc ...

'' which ran for two years (1992–1993) with stand-up comic

joining the cast for the second series. Four ''D-Generation'' cast members (Veitch, Downey, Szubanski and Turner) went on to a similarly styled and very popular sketch comedy series, ''

Fast Forward To fast-forward is to move forwards through a recording at a speed faster than that at which it would usually be played, for example two times or two point five times. The recordings are usually audio, video or computer data. It is colloquiall ...

'' (1989–1992) on Channel 7. All later made guest appearances on this show's sequel, '' Full Frontal'' (1993–1997), which marked the TV debut of actor and comic

Eric Bana Eric Martin Andrew Banadinović (born 9 August 1968), known professionally as Eric Bana (), is an Australian actor. He began his career in the sketch-comedy series '' Full Frontal'' before gaining notice in the comedy drama '' The Castle'' (199 ...

. ''Fast Forward'' itself led to the Channel 7 comedy shows, ''

Big Girl's Blouse ''Big Girl's Blouse'' was an Australian sketch comedy programme that was broadcast in the mid-1990s on the Seven Network, created by Gina Riley, Jane Turner and Magda Szubanski. Early versions of the trio's '' Kath & Kim'' characters, Kath, ...

'' (1994), starring Magda Szubanski, Jane Turner and

Gina Riley Gina Riley (born 6 May 1961) is a retired Australian actress, writer, singer and comedian, known for portraying Kim Craig in the television series '' Kath & Kim'', and for her work in musical theatre. Career Television and film Riley became a ...

, and ''Something Stupid'' (1998), with the same trio plus Marg Downey. Both series featured the parodic Aussie suburban characters who were later the 'stars' of the hit series ''

Kath & Kim ''Kath & Kim'' (also written as ''Kath and Kim'') is an Australian sitcom originally airing in the prime-time slot on ABC Television from 2002 to 2005 and subsequently on the Seven Network in 2007 and 2022. The show was produced by Riley and T ...

'' (2002-2007). Szubanski, Riley, Turner, Downey and Veitch would reunite once more as part of the cast of sketch comedy series ''

Open Slather ''Open Slather'' is an Australian sketch comedy television series which first aired on The Comedy Channel on Foxtel on 24 May 2015. The 20 episode series is executively produced by Laura Waters and Rick McKenna. After the first ten episodes air ...

'' (2015) on

Foxtel NXE Australia Pty Ltd, trading as the Foxtel Group, is an Australian pay television company that operates cable television, direct-broadcast satellite, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April ...

The Comedy Channel The Comedy Channel (promoted on air as comedy) was an Australian subscription television channel available on Foxtel, and Optus Television. The channel ceased broadcasting on 1 September 2020. History A joint venture between Artist Services ( ...

Rob, Santo and Tom

Three of the original ''D-Generation'' cast – Rob Sitch, Santo Cilauro and Tom Gleisner, along with Jane Kennedy and long time D-Gen producer Michael Hirsh are the principals of the successful Australian production company

Working Dog Productions Working Dog Productions (originally Frontline Television Productions Pty. Ltd.) is a film and television production company based in Melbourne, Australia. It was formed in 1993 by actors Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch, Jane Kennedy, Tom Gleisner, a ...

. TV: *'' Frontline'' (1994–1997) *''

Funky Squad ''Funky Squad'' was a short-lived 1995 Australian comedy television series which satirised 1970s-era U.S. police television dramas, such as ''The Mod Squad''. Only seven half-hour episodes were produced, which were broadcast on the ABC. Real te ...

'' (1995) *''The Campaign'' (1996) (Documentary) *''

A River Somewhere ''A River Somewhere'' is an Australian Documentary film, documentary television series originally broadcast by ABC Television (Australian TV network), ABC TV in 1997 and 1998. It was produced by Working Dog Productions, and was hosted by Tom Gle ...

'' (1997–1998) *'' The Panel'' (1998–2004) *''

All Aussie Adventures ''All Aussie Adventures'', also known as ''Russell Coight's All Aussie Adventures'', is an Australian mockumentary television series that parodies the travel-adventure genre. Comedian Glenn Robbins plays Russell Coight, a survival and wildlife ...

'' (2001–2004) *''

Thank God You're Here ''Thank God You're Here'' is an Australian television improvised comedy program created by Working Dog Productions, which premiered on 5 April 2006 on Network 10, where it aired for the first three and from the fifth season onwards; the fourt ...

'' (2006–2009) *''

The Hollowmen ''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; ...

'' (2008) *''

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...

'' (2014-) Radio serials: *''

'' (1994) *''Medico Point'' (1995) *''Implausible Rescue'' (1996) *''

Johnny Swank ''Johnny Swank'' was the name of a radio comedy serial produced by Working Dog Productions in 1996 for Australia's Austereo radio network. The show was created by members of The D-Generation. The serial was about a secret agent named Johnny Swank ...

'' (1996) Film: *'' The Castle'' (1997) *''

The Dish ''The Dish'' is a 2000 Australian historical drama, historical comedy-drama film that tells the story of the Parkes Observatory's role in relaying live television of humanity's first steps on the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission in 1969. It wa ...

'' (2000) *'' Any Questions for Ben?'' (2012) Books: *''

Molvanîa ''Molvanîa'' (subtitled ''A Land Untouched by Modern Dentistry'') is a book parodying tourism, travel guidebooks. The guide describes the fictional country Molvanîa, a post-Soviet state, a nation described as "the birthplace of the whooping ...

: A Land Untouched by Modern Dentistry'' (2003) *''

Phaic Tăn ''Phaic Tăn'' (subtitled ''Sunstroke on a Shoestring'') is a 2004 parody travel guidebook examining fictional country, imaginary country Phaic Tăn. The book was written by Australians Tom Gleisner, Santo Cilauro, and Rob Sitch. Along with the ...

: Sunstroke on a Shoestring'' (2004) *''

San Sombrèro ''San Sombrèro'' (subtitled ''A Land of Carnivals, Cocktails and Coups'') is a parody travel guide book examining the eponymous fictional country,Betsy ReeThe idiot's guide to San Sombrèro ''The Guardian'', 20 Oct 2006 described as the birthpl ...

: A Land of Carnivals, Cocktails and Coups'' (2006)

Tony and Mick

Tony Martin and Mick Molloy have remained an on-again/off-again team producing many film, radio and television features. Their most well known project 'Martin/Molloy', had a run of four years and released three

ARIA Award The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austra ...

-winning compilation albums – '' The Brown Album'' (1995), '' Poop Chute'' (1996) and '' Eat Your Peas'' (1998). In mid-2007, the duo had a highly publicised falling out following a dispute over the production of the DVD for the film ''

Boytown ''BoyTown'' is a 2006 Australian comedy film, directed by Kevin Carlin and starring an ensemble cast of prominent Australian comedians, including Glenn Robbins, Mick Molloy, Bob Franklin, Wayne Hope and Gary Eck. It was filmed in Melbourne, Vi ...

'' and have not worked together since. TV: *'' The Mick Molloy Show'' (1999) *''

Any Given Sunday ''Any Given Sunday'' is a 1999 American sports drama film directed by Oliver Stone and produced by Clayton Townsend, Dan Halsted, and Lauren Shuler Donner from a screenplay by Stone and John Logan based on a story written by Logan and Da ...

'' (2006) (Molloy) *''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...

'' (2007) (Molloy) *''

Before the Game ''Before the Game'' was an Australian rules football comedy panel television show which aired on Network Ten on 1 March 2003 until 27 September 2013. The show was hosted by Andrew Maher with regular panelists Mick Molloy, Dave Hughes, Antho ...

'' (2007-2013) (Molloy) *''

The Jesters The Jesters were a doo-wop group based in New York City who achieved success in the late 1950s. They were students at Cooper Junior High School in Harlem, who graduated from singing under an elevated train station near 120th Street to the amateur ...

'' (2009, 2011) (Molloy) *'' A Quiet Word With...''. (2010-2011) (Martin) *''

The Joy of Sets ''The Joy of Sets'' is an Australian comedy television series looking at the elements used to construct television shows. The show was originally broadcast weekly by the Nine Network, premiering on 20 September 2011. The show was written and ho ...

'' (2011) (Martin) Radio: *''Bulltwang'' (Sept.-Dec. 1991) *''

Martin/Molloy ''Martin/Molloy'' was an Australian radio program starring Tony Martin and Mick Molloy, both formerly of ''The D-Generation'' and ''The Late Show''. It was broadcast nationwide on 54 radio stations for two hours on weekday evenings between 1995 an ...

'' (1995–1998) *''

Tough Love Tough love is the act of treating a person sternly or harshly with the intent to help them in the long run. People exhibit and act upon tough love when attempting to address someone else's undesirable behaviour. Tough love can be used in many sce ...

(with Mick Molloy)'' (2004–2006) *''

Get This ''Get This'' was an Australian radio comedy show which aired on Triple M and was hosted by Tony Martin and Ed Kavalee, with contributions from panel operator, Richard Marsland. A different guest co-host was featured nearly every day on the ...

(with Tony Martin)'' (2006–2007) *''The Lonely Hearts Club (with Tony Martin)'' (Feb-April 2011) *'' The Hot Breakfast (with Mick Molloy)'' (2011-2017) Film: *'' Tackle Happy'' (2000) *'' Crackerjack'' (2002) *''

Bad Eggs ''Bad Eggs'' is a 2003 Australian comedy movie, written and directed by Tony Martin. It stars Mick Molloy, Bob Franklin and Judith Lucy, with Alan Brough, Bill Hunter, Marshall Napier, Nicholas Bell, Steven Vidler, Shaun Micallef, Roby ...

'' (2003) *''

BoyTown ''BoyTown'' is a 2006 Australian comedy film, directed by Kevin Carlin and starring an ensemble cast of prominent Australian comedians, including Glenn Robbins, Mick Molloy, Bob Franklin, Wayne Hope and Gary Eck. It was filmed in Melbourne, Vi ...

'' (2006) Books: *'' Lolly Scramble (by Tony Martin)'' (2005) *'' A Nest of Occasionals (by Tony Martin)'' (2009) *''Scarcely Relevant (by Tony Martin)'' (ebook-2012)
Deadly Kerfuffle
''(by Tony Martin)'' (2017)

Other cast members

Michael Veitch and Marg Downey returned to sketch comedy in ''

Let Loose Live ''Let Loose Live'', premiering on Sunday 29 May 2005, was an hour-long Australian live sketch comedy television programme loosely based on ''Saturday Night Live''. At least two-thirds of each episode's content was broadcast live, requiring a larg ...

'' (2005) but the show was axed after only two episodes due to poor ratings. Veitch starred in the short-lived Ch-7 period sitcom '' Bligh'' (1992) and was a cast-regular in the TV-1 comedy series ''

Shock Jock A shock jock is a radio broadcaster or DJ who entertains listeners and attracts attention using humor or melodramatic exaggeration that may offend some portion of the listening audience. The term is used pejoratively to describe provocative or ...

'' (2001-2002) and more recently on the Comedy Channel's ''

'' (2015). He also served as the host of ABC-TV's ''

Sunday Arts Sunday Arts is a weekly program on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in Australia every Sunday. It gives a broad view of the various artists working in Australia today ranging from theatre, music, visual art, film, literature, to ind ...

'', worked as an announcer on ABC radio, has authored six books (four of them on Second World War aviation) and has made successful forays into theatre including starring as

Molly Meldrum Ian Alexander "Molly" Meldrum AM (born 29 January 1943) is an Australian music critic, journalist, record producer and musical entrepreneur. He was the talent coordinator, on-air interviewer, and music news presenter on the former popular musi ...

in the ''

'' tribute musical ''I Can't Believe its not Countdown''. Downey has appeared in a number of film and TV productions, in both comedic and dramatic roles, including the 1994 TV movie ''Economy Class'', the 2000 sitcom '' Sit Down, Shut Up'', a recurring role in ''

'' and appearances in the 2006 US series '' Nightmares & Dreamscapes'' and the 2012 movie ''

Kath & Kimderella ''Kath & Kimderella'' is a 2012 Australian film. It is a spin-off of the television series ''Kath & Kim'', created by Gina Riley and Jane Turner. It was written by and stars Riley, Turner and Magda Szubanski. The film was released theatrically ...

''. Nick Bufalo has gone on to be a successful TV director who has made several videos and specials with Australian children's band

The Wiggles The Wiggles are an Australian children's music group formed in Sydney in 1991. As of 2022, the group members are Anthony Field, Lachlan Gillespie, Simon Pryce, Tsehay Hawkins, Evie Ferris, John Pearce (entertainer), John Pearce, Caterina Mete ...

. Jason Stephens is now the Director of Development for Fremantlemedia Australia, one of Australia's leading independent television production companies. He produced '' The King'', the AFI Award-winning telemovie based on the life of

Graham Kennedy Graham Cyril Kennedy Order of Australia, AO (15 February 1934 – 25 May 2005) was an Australian entertainer, comedian and variety performer, radio and television host as well as a personality and actor of theatre, television and film. He wa ...

, and is the executive producer of ''

Newstopia ''Newstopia'' (stylised as ''NEWStopiä'') is an Australian half-hour satirical comedy programme hosted by Shaun Micallef. The first season premiered at on SBS TV on 10 October 2007 and concluded on . A second season began on 27 February 20 ...

'' (2007–08) with

Shaun Micallef Shaun Patrick Micallef (; born 18 July 1962) is an Australian comedian, actor, writer, television presenter, and formerly a lawyer. He was the host of the satirical news comedy series '' Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' on the ABC. He also hoste ...

. Stephens was also the creator of '' The Choir of Hard Knocks''. John Harrison left the group at the end of 1991 and virtually 'retired' from comedy, embarking on a successful career in the corporate sector. However, he made several guest appearances on ''

'' (1992-1993) and had a brief cameo as a newsreader on Tony Martin's 2003 film ''

''. Judith Lucy has had a successful career in stand-up comedy and has also worked in radio, appeared in the films '' Crackerjack'' and ''

'' and starred in two ABC-TV series '' Judith Lucy's Spiritual Journey'' and '' Judith Lucy is All Woman''.

References

External links

* *
The D-Generation at the National Film and Sound Archive''The D-Generation'' - Episode 1
at

Australian Screen Online The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting, and providing access to a national c ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:D-Generation, The ARIA Award winners 1980s Australian comedy television series Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming 1986 Australian television series debuts 1989 Australian television series endings Australian comedy troupes Australian television sketch shows