In 1973 I was fortunate enough to be cast in the role as Pip in the ABC's television production of Ethel Turner's 'Seven Little Australians'.

The series was filmed from January 2 to sometime in May '73 when I was 14 years old. Early exterior filming of the Woolcott house was done in Moss Vale. The majority of exterior filming was done around various parts of Sydney, although later we filmed down in Lanyon (near Canberra) for the Yarrahappini sequences. Interiors were done in a section of Channel Seven hired out by the ABC because it could accommodate a double story set, and also at the ABC studios in Gore Hill, Sydney.

The children always got on really well. It was a pleasure to be with them for the four months we filmed together. Ron Way is a brilliant director and he made us feel right at home. He thought that the usual three walled sets and the many prying eyes of crew members might intimidate us, so he insisted on a four walled set to give us all a sense of security. He even went as far as to keep a pot of food boiling so that the set smelled like home.The children were supposed to keep up their schoolwork by correspondence but in reality we fell behind because we were in so many scenes and when we weren't acting we had many lines to learn. However, when you consider the experience we all had, I don't think we had any grounds for complaint.

The ABC released the series on a double DVD s in November 2004.

The Seven Little Australians Reunion

In 2004 there was a Seven Little Australians Reunion at Philippa Poole’s house in Wellington NSW.

POOLE, Mrs Adrian (Philippa nee CURLEWIS) (1932-2021) graciously put on the reunion for cast and crew. Most of the pictures below were taken on her property. Philippa is in the last photograph (centre).

She is also pictured with her grandchildren, all dressed in period costumes in picture 9.

Three additional pictures are of: Anna Hruby and I at the end of Seven Little Australians party; Me on the set of the ABC Melbourne production, ‘Where Did all the Magic Go’ in 1974 and the cast and crew, including brilliant director Ron Way, (in the yellow shirt) at The ABC studio in Ultimo.

There is an article about Ethel Turner, the Author of Seven Little Australians, Philippa and her father, Sir Adrian Curlewis here: https://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2010/05/18/2902908.htm

Below is a picture of Ethel Turner (Philippa’s grandmother) who wrote Seven Little Australians in 1894, when she was just 21. Click the link below to watch the ABC Weekend Magazine story of the book and the production. This aired on a Sunday night in September 1973, when Seven Little Australians first aired.