The Oz break is normally about six weeks (but this varies year to year and show to show). It'll be at least four years before the UK episodes of Home and Away are anywhere near on a par with Oz again.
As for what the Oz networks plug the gap with, I think the general consensus down under is TRASH!
Aussie Networks have a 44 week rating period which usually starts at the begining of February and runs till the end of November. Then over December and January, all the Aussie shows (except for News and Current Affairs) stop production, and the commercial nets plug the gaps in their schedules with repeats of their shows, repeats of the good rating US shows like CSI, Without a Trace etc. and the last couple of years they've started to roadtest new series in the hope that they'll become hits, and they'll have something that rates well for when ratings start again.
Good Summer schedules that attract a lot of viewers also give the networks an opportunity to plug their schedules for the next ratings year, so this year all the 'Coming in 2005' promos will trickle out after xmas and then flood out on January 1.
Because of daylight savings in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania, it doesn't get dark down there till nearly 8pm, plus with Queensland and the Northern Territory being further north, it's not getting dark here till 7pm, so everyone stays outdoors a lot longer, and because of people taking time off work and going away, the ratings are a lot lower so it's not worth the Networks spending money to keep their shows like H&A and Neighbours going, when a lot of the audience evaporates for the 2month xmas/new year period.
What do the Aussie networks show then for the next couple of months instead of Neighbours and Home and Away?
I could understand moving out of the schedules over the Christmas/New Year fortnight (as they should do in Britain!),
Noooooooooooooo! Home & Away all year lets us catch up with Australia.
I don't think I made myself clear - I mean the UK soaps should take a break over Christmas, not that Five should stop screening H&A.
In fact, I think over the Christmas period when the 5.30pm News bulletin isn't really required and Neighbours is off air that Five should screen double episodes to catch up quicker.
Well they could actually dump Family Affairs whilst at it and give us 90 minute Home & Aways for a week between Xmas and New Year... providing they organised it so we didn't get out of sync with the days (Five currently show an Aussie Friday ep on a Friday here for example - so the weekend cliffhangers are still in the right places!) it'd be great as we could really do with catching up what we lost during the channel-change.
We did break over Christmas towards the end of the ITV era as ITV were literally only FOUR DAYS behind Australia at the end of their run.
Next Week - Shelley and Duncan return and it's the moment we've all been dreading...
TWIN SWAP!
MONDAY
A kiss threatens to tear apart the lives of four friends. Will Sally walk out on Flynn? Leah and Flynn can't deny their feelings for each other.
TUESDAY> TWIN SWAP!
Is Sally leaving Summer Bay forever? Catastrophic news for Jade and Kirsty. What's Noah's huge surprise? Alf has a great idea for a mega-party!
WEDNESDAY > Return of Shelley!
Jade and Kirsty's lives are changed forever. Who is the stranger causing so much hurt in Summer Bay? Will Jade leave Summer Bay? Hayley's uni plans are in ruins.
THURSDAY > Return of Duncan!
Tragedy strikes Flynn and Sally! Has Leah gone too far in her love for Flynn? Jade has a shocking plan for Seb! Jade and Duncan get high on bulbs too according to the Five site. Cool!
FRIDAY
Leah drops a love bombshell on Flynn! Noah plans a shock for Hayley. What has Duncan done to Jade? Summer Bay gets ready to party!
Have Home and Away done the twin thing before back in the good old days when Pippa and Tom ruled the roost.
I think it was Carly had the twin im i right ?
Have Home and Away done the twin thing before back in the good old days when Pippa and Tom ruled the roost.
I think it was Carly had the twin im i right ?
Yeah, Carly's twin sister Samantha appeared back in the first season, both parts were played by Sharyn Hodgson. I can't remember much of the storyline though.
Well, at least one cut was made by Five to Thursday's episode of Home and Away , ie. the final scene where Jade and Duncan are doing 'bulbs' (inhaling gas) at the Diner. Is this a first for Five? - I'm not aware of any previous censorship on H&A.
Am I totally sad for admitting that I checked Wednesday's credits to see that, yes, Christie Hayes did get an additional credit for playing Laura de Groot?
Bet she didn't get paid twice for that though.
I do love the way that H&A can chug along with fairly standard soap opera stories for some time and then veer off into some extreme and/or surreal diversion (this mixed at birth thing being the latest, although the Ailsa hallucinations were the best).