House Husbands is an Australian television comedy drama. The show debuted on the Nine Network on 2 September 2012.[1] Set in Melbourne, House Husbands stars Firass Dirani, Gyton Grantley, Rhys Muldoon and Gary Sweet as four fathers who stay at home to raise their children. The program also focuses on their interconnected families and friends. In 2013, House Husbands won Most Popular Drama Series at the 2013 Logie Awards. In February 2018, Nine confirmed the series would not be returning for a sixth season and was officially cancelled.
| House Husbands | |
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 House Husbands title card | |
| Genre | Comedy-Drama |
| Created by |
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| Directed by |
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| Starring | |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 58 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Production location | Melbourne |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production company | Playmaker Media |
| Original release | |
| Network | Nine Network |
| Release | 2 September 2012 – 17 April 2017 |
Production
editConception
editOn 6 May 2012, the Nine Network announced it had commissioned House Husbands, a ten-part comedy-drama about the issues of changing gender roles.[2] The series focuses on four modern families where the men are in charge of raising the children.[2] Nine's director of television, Michael Healy, stated "House Husbands is a fresh and dynamic look at Australian family life, with a very modern twist. Audiences will fall in love with our characters as they deal with the challenges of raising families in today's hectic world."[2] House Husbands was conceived by Ellie Beaumont and Drew Proffitt.[3] It was directed by Geoff Bennett and Shirley Barrett with Jo Rooney, Andy Ryan and Playmaker Media's David Maher and David Taylor serving as executive producers.[2] House Husbands received funding from Screen Australia and filming on the series commenced at the end of May.[2][4]
On 23 September 2012, Michael Idato from The Sydney Morning Herald reported Nine had renewed House Husbands for a second series.[5] The network's director of television, Michael Healy, stated "I couldn't be happier that Australian audiences have taken House Husbands to their hearts and made it the number one drama in the country. I am thrilled to confirm a second series of House Husbands will go into production with the same acclaimed cast and crew."[5] Filming for the second series took place from 4 February to 6 June 2013.[6] Series two began airing from 8 April 2013.[7]
In June 2013, House Husbands was picked up for a third season, which began airing in 2014.[8] The Nine Network and Playmaker Media confirmed that all of the cast members would return.[8] In July 2014, the Nine Network renewed House Husbands for a fourth season to air in 2015.[9] The four male leads, as well as Morris and Saleeba, returned.[10]
On 23 May 2016, TV Tonight reported that filming would begin in the last days of May, with all the main cast returning except for Gyton Grantley.[11] On 28 October 2015, the Nine Network announced via Facebook that House Husbands had been renewed for a fifth season. The fifth season was set to air in 2016 but that August, Nine delayed the season to air on 6 February 2017.[12][13]
On 4 February 2018, it was confirmed that Nine had officially cancelled the show after five seasons.[14] The network also decided not to go ahead with a potential spin-off centred around Lewis Crabb (Sweet).[14]
Casting
editCasting of the series was announced on 18 May 2012 with Gary Sweet, Rhys Muldoon, Gyton Grantley and Firass Dirani cast as the house husbands.[4] Sweet stars as Lewis, a successful builder who has become a stay-at-home dad to Matilda, while his partner, Gemma, is a senior nurse at the local hospital.[15] Sweet commented "When I first got the House Husbands scripts I just felt like this was something that had legs."[15] Julia Morris and Anna McGahan were cast as Lewis's partner Gemma and daughter Lucy.[4][16] Muldoon plays Mark and Natalie Saleeba plays his wife Abi.[4][17] Grantley plays Abi's brother Kane, who is in a relationship with Tom (Tim Campbell) and helping to raise his niece, Stella (Edwina Royce).[18][19] Kane and Tom mark the first time that an Australian drama has featured a gay couple raising a child.[18] Proffitt commented that Grantley was cast because of his comic timing and Campbell was cast because of his chemistry with the actor.[18] Dirani plays Justin a disgraced former footballer who has broken up with the mother of his three children, Nicola (Leah de Niese).[18] Nicholas Coghlan was cast as Rodney, Nicola's new partner.[19]
The main cast members from season one all returned for the second series.[20] Jo Rooney and Andy Ryan, the heads of drama at the Nine Network commented "We are thrilled to have House Husbands returning for a second season. With such a strong cast and some great names joining the series, we're excited to be providing more fantastic local drama for our viewers."[20] Series two saw Geraldine Turner and Madeleine West join the cast as Wendy Horne and Dimity respectively.[20] Craig McLachlan began appearing as Damo from episode three.[20] Rick Donald stars as new school teacher, Mr. Tuck, while Kane and Tom welcomed a foster child called Finn, played by Ben Crundwell, into their family.[21]
On 14 December 2013, it was announced that Campbell's character had been written out of the show and that he would not be returning for the third season.[22] Campbell was surprised and disappointed with the decision, which came at the last minute.[22] He commented "as a fan of the show I'm disappointed that a unique TV family is no more and Tom would leave his partner and children suddenly off screen. Don't blame me, I'm just the actor."[22] A spokeswoman for Nine added that there would be other casting changes ahead of filming for the third season.[22] The following month, it was announced that Lincoln Lewis had joined the cast as a "mysterious character that ignites tension" among the families.[23] Actress Rachel Griffiths also joined the cast as Belle, a character "who brings friction to the series."[24] Darren McMullen was cast "a love interest who ruffles feathers".[25]
On 26 March 2015, it was announced Justine Clarke had joined the cast for the fourth season. She plays Eve, a rival for Kane.[26] Actors Indiana Evans, Akos Armont and Jane Kennedy also join the cast as single mother Tash, the "ambitious" Dr Saxon and Belinda, the Director of Medical Services, respectively.[26] Coghlan (Rodney) and Jane Allsop who previously appeared in the first series returned, alongside Danielle Horvat as Frankie from series three.[26]
Actor Hugh Sheridan and singer Delta Goodrem joined the cast for the fifth season. Sheridan is Nick Gazecki, a new music teacher who makes an enemy of Lewis.[27] While Goodrem plays Izzy Dreyfus, a reading recovery teacher at the Nepean South Primary School.[28] Her character was billed as "both beautiful and slightly tomboyish. She excites and frightens everyone in the House Husbands world."[28] Nancye Hayes and Roy Billing were cast as Mark's parents Liz and Bernie, and Rahart Adams joined as Justin's brother Rafiq.[29]
Cast and characters
editMain
edit- Firass Dirani as Justin Baynie
- Rhys Muldoon as Mark Oliver
- Gary Sweet as Lewis Crabb
- Julia Morris as Gemma Horne Crabb
- Natalie Saleeba as Abigail "Abi" Albert
- Gyton Grantley as Kane Albert
- Jane Allsop as Rachel Hilton (season 1, 4–5)
- Hugh Sheridan as Nick Gazecki (season 5)
- Delta Goodrem as Izzy Dreyfus (season 5)
- Anna McGahan as Lucy Crabb (seasons 1–3)
- Georgia Flood as Phoebe Crabb (seasons 1–3)
- Tim Campbell as Tom Parker (seasons 1–2)
- Leah de Niese as Nicola Panas Baynie (seasons 1–2)
- Lincoln Lewis as Ned (season 3)
- Rachel Griffiths as Belle Crabb (season 3)
- Darren McMullen as Alex Larden (season 3–4)
- Justine Clarke as Eve (season 4)
Supporting
edit- Louise Siversen as Heather Looby
- Lily Jones as Poppy Oliver
- Madison Torres-Davy as Tilda Crabb
- Allegra Volange as Angie Baynie
- Fletcher Grant as Jacob Baynie
- Riley Webb as Zac Baynie
- Danielle Horvat as Frankie (season 3–4)
- Ava and Audrey Bellert as Sophie Oliver (season 3–5)
- Edwina Royce (season 1–3) and Jade Knight (season 4) as Stella Parker
- Nicholas Coghlan as Rodney (season 1, 4)
- Kate Jenkinson as Miss Nadir (season 1)
- Madeleine West as Dimity (season 2)
- Rick Donald as Mr. Harry Tuck (season 2)
- Les Hill as Simon Lawson-West (season 2)
- Terence Donovan as Doug (season 2)
- Ryan Johnson as Will Stevens (season 3)
- Ben Crundwell as Finn (seasons 2–4)
- Ben Schumann as Ryan (seasons 2–3)
- Helen Dallimore as Gaby (season 2-3)
- Craig McLachlan as Damo (season 2–3)
- Geraldine Turner as Wendy Horne (season 2–3)
- Danielle Carter as Dr Dalton (seasons 2–5)
- Denise Scott as Nurse Toni (season 4-5)
Guests
edit- Guy Edmonds as Liam (2 episodes)
- Indiana Evans as Tash (2 episodes)
- Jane Hall as Sarah (1 episode)
- Jane Harber as Georgina Rivers (1 episode)
- Jodie Dry as Allison Paddocks (1 episode)
- Julia Blake as Edith Benson (1 episode)
- Maria Mercedes as Mrs Panas (1 episode)
- Roy Billing as Bernie (1 episode)
- Sam Healy as Peta (1 episode)
- Toby Truslove as Joel (1 episode)
Episodes
editReception
editOf House Husbands, Graeme Blundell from The Australian wrote "It's a nice premise for a show, a kind of Aussie Modern Family and, while not as stylish, or stylised for that matter -- it's underplayed in a kind of low-key naturalism -- its producers similarly lace the family shenanigans with real emotion to balance the humour. Directed with flair by Geoff Bennett, it's a nicely paced character-based comedy-drama constructed from the comings and goings of, as one of the characters says, a bunch of 'useless parents having a crack'."[30] Blundell went on to say that the show is "far removed from the childish shenanigans" of Two and a Half Men and is not as soapy as Packed to the Rafters, a show that it could replace as "TV's favourite family hour".[30] He added "Sure, there's a blokey edge to House Husbands though, so far at least, it's never lascivious, sexist or plain dumb."[30]
The first episode of House Husbands averaged 1.376 million viewers overnight, which was a ratings record.[31] It also ranked first in the 16-39, 18-49 and 25-54-year-old demographics.[3] Holly Byrnes from the Herald Sun reported that the show became the number one new Australian drama and a popular subject on social networking site Twitter, where it trended in Australia and gained praise from viewers who dubbed it Underbelly: Dads.[31] Siobhan Duck from the Herald Sun stated "Thank goodness for House Husbands. The Melbourne-made drama is one of the better Aussie shows on TV. And certainly the only drama launched in 2012 to resonate with the audience. That's thanks largely to its stellar cast."[32]
Accolades
edit| Year | Award | Category | Recipients and nominees | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Logie Awards | Most Popular Actor | Firass Dirani | Nominated | [33][34][35] |
| Most Popular Actress | Julia Morris | Nominated | |||
| Most Popular Drama Series | House Husbands | Won | |||
| Most Popular New Female Talent | Edwina Royce | Nominated | |||
| 2014 | Logie Awards | Most Popular Actress | Julia Morris | Nominated | [36] |
| Most Popular Drama Series | House Husbands | Nominated | |||
| 2015 | Logie Awards | Most Popular Actress | Julia Morris | Nominated | [37] |
| Most Popular Drama Series | House Husbands | Nominated | |||
| 2016 | Logie Awards | Best Actor | Firass Dirani | Nominated | [38] |
| Best Actress | Julia Morris | Nominated | |||
| Best Drama Program | House Husbands | Nominated |
Series ratings
edit| Season | # of Episodes | Season Premiere |
Season Final |
Peak Audience |
Average Audience |
Drama Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | 2 September 2012 | 4 November 2012 | 1,578,000[39] | 1,284,000[40] | #8 |
| 2 | 13 | 8 April 2013 | 7 July 2013 | 1,337,000[39] | 1,180,000[40] | #11 |
| 3 | 13 | 9 June 2014 | 1 September 2014 | 1,275,000[39] | 1,071,000[40] | #17 |
| 4 | 10 | 10 August 2015 | 12 October 2015 | 972,000[40] | #10 | |
| 5 | 12 | 6 February 2017 | 17 April 2017 | 831,000[40] | #14 |
International remakes
editIn July 2014, it was announced that House Husbands was to be re-made in France and Italy, after ZDF Enterprises, which owns the international rights to the series, negotiated a deal with French and Italian production companies Made In PM and Publispei.[41] On February 17, 2017 premiered on Canale 5 the Italian version of the series under the title "Amore pensaci tu" (Love, you take care of it).[42] The two one-hour episodes were watched by 2.86 million viewers.[43] While the series premiered with good ratings, ratings slowly diminished throughout its run. Due to low ratings the series moved to late night.[44]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Airdate: House Husbands". TV Tonight. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
- ^ a b c d e "Husbands clean up in new shows for Nine and Ten". WAtoday. Fairfax Media. 6 May 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ a b Idato, Michael (3 September 2012). "Has Channel Nine regained its mojo?". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ a b c d "House Husbands' cast and crew announced". Mumbrella. 18 May 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ a b Idato, Michael (23 September 2012). "Nine locks in House Husbands for season two". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
- ^ "In production". Film Victoria. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ^ McManus, Bridget (4 April 2013). "Home is where the husband is". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
- ^ a b Knox, David (10 June 2013). "Renewed: House Husbands". TV Tonight. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
- ^ Knox, David (30 July 2014). "Renewed: House Husbands". TV Tonight. Archived from the original on 30 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
- ^ "Fourth season for House Husbands". If Magazine. 30 July 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
- ^ Knox, David (23 May 2016). "Cameras roll on Season 5 of House Husbands". TV Tonight. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
- ^ "Nine delays House Husbands until 2017". TV Tonight. 21 August 2016. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
- ^ "Returning: House Husbands 2017". TV Tonight. 19 January 2017. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ a b Knox, David (4 February 2018). "Axed: House Husbands". TV Tonight. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
- ^ a b Davis, Guy (30 August 2012). "Gary Sweet Takes On Alpha Male Role". Yahoo!7 TV. Yahoo!7. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
- ^ Nauman, Zoe (2 September 2012). "Curvy actress Anna McGahan's bare secret". The Daily Telegraph. News Limited. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
- ^ Nauman, Zoe (21 October 2012). "Nine's House Husbands Rhys Muldoon draws on his cheating past". The Daily Telegraph. News Limited. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
- ^ a b c d Duck, Siobhan (6 August 2012). "Grantley brings down house in new role". The Daily Telegraph. News Limited. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ a b Cuthbertson, Ian (3 September 2012). "Man about the house". The Australian. News Limited. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
- ^ a b c d "House Husbands is now in Production". ninemsn. Archived from the original on 23 July 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ^ Knox, David (23 April 2013). "Boys to men". TV Tonight. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ^ a b c d Moran, Jonathon (14 December 2013). "Tim Campbell has vented on social media after Nine dumped his gay character Tom from House Husbands". The Daily Telegraph. News Limited. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
- ^ Vought, Yasmin (29 January 2014). "Lincoln Lewis joins House Husbands for season three!". TVFix. Archived from the original on 4 March 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
- ^ "Rachel Griffiths to join the cast of Channel Nine's House Husbands". news.com.au. 4 February 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
- ^ "Host of Nine's The Voice to join House Husbands". Mumbrella. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
- ^ a b c Knox, David (26 March 2015). "Justine Clarke joins House Husbands". TV Tonight. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
- ^ Skelly, Katie (23 May 2016). "First look! Hugh Sheridan on season five of House Husbands". Woman's Day. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
- ^ a b "Delta Goodrem joins the cast of House Husbands". TV Week. 29 July 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
- ^ "House Husbands returns". TV Week. 18 January 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
- ^ a b c Blundell, Graeme (1 September 2012). "Leave it to Cleaver". The Australian. News Limited. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ a b Byrnes, Holly (3 September 2012). "Channel 9 drama House Husbands debuts as most watched TV show in Australia". Herald Sun. The Herald and Weekly Times. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
- ^ Duck, Siobhan (1 October 2012). "What happened on TV last night?". Herald Sun. The Herald and Weekly Times. Retrieved 1 October 2012.
- ^ "Nominees revealed for the 2013 TV Week Logie Awards!". TV Week. ninemsn. 11 March 2013. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
- ^ Byrnes, Holly (11 March 2013). "Comic duo Hamish Blake and Andy Lee to battle each other for Gold Logie". The Daily Telegraph. News Limited. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
- ^ Bodey, Michael (8 April 2013). "Third time lucky for Asher Keddie busts Nine's Logie run". The Australian. News Limited. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
- ^ "2014 Logie Awards: full list of nominees". The Sydney Morning Herald. 31 March 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
- ^ Willis, Charlotte (22 March 2015). "Here's the full List of 2015 Logies nominations". news.com.au. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
- ^ Knox, David (8 May 2016). "2016 Logie Awards: Winners". TV Tonight. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
- ^ a b c "Top-rating episodes - Top drama titles - Australian content - Television - Fact Finders".
- ^ a b c d e "By playback viewing - Top drama titles - Australian content - Television - Fact Finders".
- ^ Idato, Michael (17 July 2014). "House Husbands will be re-made in France and Italy". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
- ^ Idato, Roberto (15 February 2017). "House Husbands will be re-made in France and Italy". UrbanPost. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
- ^ Idato, Roberto (18 February 2017). "House Husbands will be re-made in France and Italy". Sorrisi.com. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
- ^ "Amore pensaci tu spostato in seconda serata". Superguidatv.it. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.