RFDS true blue to the world of Broken Hill

While the success of any drama is measured in ratings, reviews, international sales and word of mouth, it’s heartening indeed to get the thumbs up from those it dramatises, in the case of a series inspired by real life.

Justine Clarke notes that Seven drama RFDS has won high praise from the Royal Flying Doctor Service and the people of Broken Hill, where the series is shot, for its authenticity.

“It’s great to actually be in a remote area and get feedback from people who live amongst it and how much it resonates for them,” she tells TV Tonight.

Speaking from Broken Hill she explains, “I met a woman on the flight coming in, she’s an educator in Broken Hill and she said, ‘In that episode, that’s exactly what happened to me.’ She was on the Tibooburra road, there was a car accident, there were injuries and a fatality and she was the first on the scene and all she had was her First Aid training.

“They’re the kind of stories that you hear. I know the other cast members have said the same.

“We know that Ian (Meadows), our showrunner and writer, has always drawn as much from real life stories as possible. But when you hear those stories, you realise how closely we’re trying to tell this story. You don’t have to make anything up. That’s the beauty of this show. The stories are so extraordinary.”

Clarke returns to the outback medical procedural along with Stephen Peacocke, Rob Collins, Emma Hamilton, Ash Ricardo, Thomas Weatherall, Rodney Afif, Sofia Nolan. Ash Hodgkinson and Jack Scott.

Season Two begins without Dr. Eliza Harrod (Hamilton) but fans will be pleased to hear she will return.

“In Season Two Eliza’s not there so you’re kind of dropped into the middle of the drama by way of a distinct lack of doctors. Which I think is probably pretty reflective of medical services generally, but particularly medical services in outback and rural Australia. To get a fly in / fly out doctor is easier, but to get any permanent doctors is hard,” Clarke explains.

“We’re dropped into a situation where Wayne (Collins) is now the senior medical officer but he doesn’t have a backup doctor. They’re always getting just fill-ins and so sometimes he’s working more than one shift. So he’s under enormous pressure.

“This season is much more about the frontline aspects”

“There’s a very big accident at the White Cliffs rodeo and that’s how we sort of end up with the procedural part of the show but we’re very much feeling the loss of Eliza.

“I think this season is much more about the frontline aspects of it and perhaps what the ramifications are of that for people who of course want to do the right thing.”

Her own character, base manager Leonie Smith, is now managing two sites and having to travel between both. But Leonie also faces personal challenges.

“Leonie has received some devastating news on the phone while she’s trying to organise a doctor to replace one that hasn’t shown up. In the process, there is some lack of communication and that causes a roll-on effect of all these things that go wrong from there, for other members of the team,” she reveals.

“She’s seeing somebody, which is kind of new territory for Leonie because I think she’s been single for quite a while. She’s seeing a specialist in Dubbo. We don’t ever meet him but we know she’s started this relationship.

“She’s knocked for six in the first episode”

“But she’s knocked for six in the first episode and that causes the beginnings of a chain of events that play out throughout the whole season.”

Also joining the series is Emma Harvie (Colin from Accounts, Frayed) in the role of Chaya, a charismatic mental health nurse.

“We’ve also got a new Director of Photography so it’s got a different feel to it, which is great. It’s given it this sort of immediacy, because we know the characters now we want to get in there close up with them and see what they’re thinking.”

Season two is written by Ian Meadows, with Claire Phillips (Offspring), Magda Wozniak (Bad Behaviour), Kodie Bedford (Mystery Road) and Adrian Russell Wills. Directing are Jeremy Sims (Last Cab To Darwin), Rachel Ward (Rake) and Adrian Russell Wills (The Warriors).

“It’s genuinely trying to reflect what is true of Broken Hill”

Clarke is also effusive about the diversity embedded into the show, which she believes reflects the world of Broken Hill itself.

“It’s not trying to tick diversity boxes, it’s genuinely trying to reflect what is true of Broken Hill. It’s a little snapshot of Australia.

“They have the Broken Heel festival, they have Drag Bingo here once a week, drag performers out here, a Jazz bar opening up -its own got its own culture,” she observes.

“This show is very much about this team of people who are just trying to do the right thing. Trying to take care of themselves and take care of the people around them. Even that’s difficult to do without people having to be sort of morally bankrupt.

“I think there’s so many shows where characters have ambiguous morals or motives. What’s nice is these people treat each other like a family. And that’s true of so many people out here who aren’t from here. So they do end up kind of creating their own family, especially if they get working at the RFDS.”

RFDS returns 9:15pm Tuesday on Seven.