''Wakefield'' is an eight-part Australian television drama series that premiered on

ABC iview ABC iview is a video on demand and catch-up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Currently iview video content can only be viewed by users in Australia. As of 2016, ABC iview attracts around 50 million plays monthly and a ...

on 2 April 2021 and was shown on ABC TV in weekly episodes from Sunday 18 April. At the 2021 ARIA Music Awards, the music was nominated for Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album.

Synopsis

''Wakefield'' is a psychological mystery revolving around the staff and patients who populate Ward C of a

psychiatric hospital A psychiatric hospital, also known as a mental health hospital, a behavioral health hospital, or an asylum is a specialized medical facility that focuses on the treatment of severe Mental disorder, mental disorders. These institutions cater t ...

in the Blue Mountains of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, centred on

psychiatric nurse Psychiatric nursing or mental health nursing is the appointed position of a nurse that specialises in mental health, and cares for people of all ages experiencing mental illnesses or distress. These include: neurodevelopmental disorders, schizophr ...

Nik.

Cast

* Rudi Dharmalingam as Nikhil "Nik" Katira, a warm empathetic nurse at Wakefield Psychiatric Hospital, son of Indian immigrants Rashaal and Jeshna, and brother of Renuka ** Kershawn Theodore as 12-year-old Nik **Nirish Bhat Surambadka as young Nik * Geraldine Hakewill as Dr. Kareena Wells, the leading doctor of the ward, Nik's former fiancée, and wife of David * Mandy McElhinney as Linda, acting Nursing Unit Manager * Felicity Ward as Collette, a Wakefield nurse, friend of Nik, with a penchant for

new age New Age is a range of Spirituality, spiritual or Religion, religious practices and beliefs that rapidly grew in Western world, Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclecticism, eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise d ...

and self-development techniques * Sam Simmons as Pete Seaman, a Wakefield nurse *

Pacharo Mzembe Pacharo Mzembe is an Australian actor. He has performed on stage, in several television series and in feature films. Early life Mzembe's parents originate from Malawi, but he was born in Zimbabwe. He migrated to Australia at the age of six to ...

as Dr Rohan Achebe, a gaming-addicted doctor at Wakefield * Dan Wyllie as James Matos, a businessman who continues to negotiate a property deal while a patient; husband of Leyla and father of Ted * Shapoor Batliwalla as Rashaal Katira, Nikhil and Renuka's father * Nadie Kammallaweera as Jeshna Katira, Nikhil and Renuka's mother and Rashaal's ex-wife * Monica Kumar as Renuka, Nikhil's soon-to-be-married sister * Harriet Dyer as Genevieve, patient with bipolar disorder, wife of Raff *

Ryan Corr Ryan Corr is an Australian actor. He is known for his roles in the Australian drama series ''Packed to the Rafters'', '' Love Child'' and '' Underbelly'', along with film roles in '' Wolf Creek 2'' (2013), '' The Water Diviner'' (2014), '' Holdi ...

as Raff, Genevieve's husband * Harry Greenwood as Trevor, a patient whose psychosis has been exacerbated by taking crystal meth; singer/songwriter * Bessie Holland as Tessa Knight, a milliner staying at Wakefield for her self-harm, anger issues, and compulsive hoarding; likes puzzles and art *

Kim Gyngell Kim Gyngell, sometimes also credited as Kym Gyngell, is an Australian comedian and film, television and stage actor. Gyngell won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1988 for his role as Ian McKenzie in ''B ...

as Zelco, a professional musician staying at Wakefield * Richie Miller as Omar, a Wakefield patient in a vegetative state, fiancé of Tamara *Henry Nixon as David, Kareena's husband *

Colin Friels Colin Friels (born 25 September 1952) is an Australian actor of theatre, TV, film and presenter. Early life Friels was born in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland.Interview with Colin Friels, ''George Negus Tonight'' (ABC Television), 26 August 200 ...

as Baz Madden, patient, a poet with anger issues * Megan Smart as Ivy, a young mother to her two-month-old daughter Saskia staying at Wakefield due to her post-natal depression * Sid Joshi * Ursula Yovich as Maria, a mediator who negotiates with Petrov, Linda, and Collette to settle damages * Shagun Garg * Guy Simon as Colin/Mr Invisible, a patient who believes himself to be invisible * Miritana Hughes as Seffa, a patient who believes he is a prophet of god * Victoria Haralabidou as Cath, a patient who systematically organises the actions of every patient and employee at Wakefield * Wayne Blair as Vince, a cockroach exterminator * Heather Mitchell as Belle, Tessa's mother * Jonathan Chan as Sun * David Nash as Troy The Security Guard *

Matt Nable Matthew Nable (born 8 March 1972) is an Australian film and television actor, writer, sports commentator and former professional rugby league player. After playing in the Winfield Cup Premiership during the 1990s for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eag ...

as Michael Fitzpatrick, a patient who believes himself to be disappeared Prime Minister

Harold Holt Harold Edward Holt (5 August 190817 December 1967) was an Australian politician and lawyer who served as the 17th prime minister of Australia from 1966 until Disappearance of Harold Holt, his disappearance and presumed death in 1967. He held o ...

* Nicholas Brown as Kiran, husband-to-be of Renuka * Skanda Jammalamadaka as Dilshan, Nikhil and Renuka's baby brother * Caroline Brazier as Leyla Matos, wife of James *

Anthony Brandon Wong Anthony Brandon Wong (born 12 May 1965), often credited simply as Anthony Wong, is an Australian actor, singer-songwriter and acting teacher and coach. His roles include Ghost in ''The Matrix Reloaded'' and ''The Matrix Revolutions''. Career H ...

as James' business partner * Veena Sudarshan as Geetha, Jeshna's friend * Stephen Hunter as Stephan, Linda's date *

Alex Menglet Alex Menglet, born ''Alexei Menglet'' in Moscow, USSR, is an actor who has found success working in Australia. Early life Menglet was born in Moscow, USSR to parents Maya Menglet and Leonid Satanovskiy. He came from a theatrical family. As a ...

as Petrov, a man whose car is deliberately damaged by Linda in a car park * Michael-Anthony Taylor, as the father of Omar

Episodes

Production

The eight-part series was filmed in 2020, at a number of locations in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

; the Blue Mountains; a

(NSW) northern rivers cane farm near Murwillumbah with Mt. Warning as a backdrop; and Southern Highlands of NSW. ''Wakefield'' is created by

Kristen Dunphy Kristen Dunphy is an Australian television screenwriter and producer. She is best known as creator, co-writer and co-executive producer of ''Wakefield'', which screened on ABC TV in 2021. Career Dunphy's career in film and television bega ...

, who is also the showrunner with Sam Meikle. The series is written by Kristen Dunphy, Sam Meikle, Joan Sauers and Cathy Strickland. It is directed by

Jocelyn Moorhouse Jocelyn Denise Moorhouse (born 1960 or 1961) is an Australian screenwriter and film director. She is best known for directing films '' Proof'', '' How to Make an American Quilt'', '' A Thousand Acres'' and '' The Dressmaker''. Moorhouse has al ...

and Kim Mordaunt.

International broadcast

Showtime acquired the U.S. broadcast rights for the series, which premiered on 18 October 2021.

References

External links

*
Wakefield
at ABC IVIEW {{ABC Television programming 2020s Australian drama television series 2021 Australian television series debuts 2021 Australian television series endings Television shows set in New South Wales Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming Australian English-language television shows Television about mental health Television series set in hospitals Works set in psychiatric hospitals