Prisoner Cell Block H - External Studio Footage 2014

[@roofsshower9541]

I was in Melbourne for a few days in 2001 and the backpacker hostel where I stayed at offered tours to see the Neighbours film set. I didn't go as I wasn't very interested in Neighbours. I had no idea that Prisoner, which I have loved since seeing it in on late night TV in the UK in the late 80's/early 90's, was filmed at the same location. If I had known at the time I would definitely have gone on the tour. If they stop using the site for filming in the future I really hope it can be preserved as a heritage site and visitor attraction.

[@tradingpost2472]

Always loved Cell block, last thing I'd watch before going to bed, what a fab time of my life, & what a fab drama I watched!? ✌️❤️ Still do now! lol

[@connor25]

me too, was a great time of the early 90's

[@connor25]

Der Congo Mann yeh then we get older

[@tradingpost2472]

@Der Congo Mann So agree, As for you it's the same for me, but it finished at midnight, how I got into that drama!? Just the right drama for me to sleep on, hit the mark on TV that I loved at that time!

[@frazzleface753]

@Der Congo Mann Same here. I loved the atmosphere of the late night drama on TV. I would be dog tired the next day for school, but I didn't care. Just one episode a week! And my region didn't even finish showing the entire series. We had to wait for Channel 5 for that.

[@georgesullivan4473]

11pm start time right? Lol 😅

[@georgesullivan4473]

I was in Melbourne for a week in 1996 I literally never gave it a second thought of looking at the outside set of prisoner

[@bluejhaygrl]

I love all things Prisoner, id love to do a tour there one day. Thankyou for uploading this.

[@absoluteacw]

Interesting. Thanks for posting.

[@teralmiles]

Fantastic video. Thank you for sharing this with us all. I’d love to go there one day.

[@tonyg6302]

Thank you Teral. It was a trip made as part of the Neighbours tour (the back gardens of Ramsey Street are filmed in the Prisoner grounds). It was a great opportunity and so glad I had the chance to go.

[@philnewton-england7795]

Fab video. Would love to go there one day (as a visitor only)😉🤣 Thanks for sharing👍🏼

[@tonyg6302]

Hi Phil, It was a great experience to visit the old Channel 10 studios in Nunawading. The grounds of the prisoner gardens now house the external sets for Ramsey Street and Neighbours. It was great to be there.

[@philnewton-england7795]

Jeez....that’s crazy. What i’d give to have one of those outside ‘cell windows’. Collectors items just stuck there !!!!

[@gavc6442]

@@philnewton-england7795 I note a row of them are missing, val Lehman recently said on some interview I’d seen that she had been promised one!

[@georgesullivan4473]

Same..it's the former channel 10 studios

[@gavc6442]

Great to see wentworth still there tho looking a bit tatty, such a bit of Aussie tv history, should be taken better care of please?

[@tonyg6302]

Hi Gav. It was a great opportunity to visit the old external set and in the grounds behind the barbeque are now the external sets for Ramsey Street. More attention was being made to keeping those up to date.

[@Mechanicalrob]

Fun fact. There’s an episode of Neighbours which the Prison building is shown behind Lassiters 😂

[@Doctor.Kästien.Louis.Rosenberg]

I’d love a 🧱 from Wentworth Detention Centre 💯❤️🌹🙏🏻👍

[@cutekanjii]

Is this an actual building that was a factory or something then used for the set or was it only built to be used as the set for prisoner? And is that where the inside scenes were filmed or was it only the outside scenes and the inside scenes filmed elsewhere? I always wondered about those little windows that were supposed to be cells I assume but yet the prisoners never had windows in their cells. I always found that a bit odd

[@tonyg6302]

This was originally the studios and outside of channel 10 (network 10) in Australia. The area was the outside of Wentworth Detention Centre and is now used in part for Neighbours and outside filming areas.

[@sambda]

The tall wall was actually the outside wall of the studios. Studio walls don't have any windows, so the "windows" you see were actually just wooden boxes which were bolted to the outside. They had bits of frosted plastic inside which was supposed to be the "glass". Originally, they also had light bulbs inside them which allowed them to be illuminated for night-time scenes, but the bulbs blew one by one and were generally never replaced. The remnants of the power cables which powered them can be seen in the video. Even when the show was being filmed, some of these power cables had blown loose in storms, and can be seen dangling loose in the programme. The real studios also doubled for other bits of the prison: the (early) Wentworth kitchen was the real studio kitchen; the basement (where the still was) was the real boiler room; the stairs frequently seen (e.g where Jock Stewart did his murder) were the real stairs up to the studio galleries; the outer gate (the one with the turnstile) was the real studio gate; the "delivery bay" was the studio's scenery bay etc. etc. The facilities/security/estates manager at the studio was security crazy, so almost all of the fences, gates, floodlights, barbed-wire and so forth were already in situ before the programme began! The bits they added were the inner gate and corresponding wall (these were brick facing panels bolted to metal poles, which you can see) and the similar wall around the TV transmitter aerial (which directors were told to keep out of shot, but didn't always).

[@aileenwagner2576]

@@sambda Thank u for the info!!👍

[@louisecrosbie1673]

It was called Prisoner!

[@tonyg6302]

That's right it was in Australia and known in the UK as Prisoner Cell Block H. Great programme and great to be able to visit the old outside set too.

[@aileenwagner2576]

Over here in the US it was called Prisoner Cell Block H.

[@georgesullivan4473]

It was just called prisoner in New Zealand too

[@terencestanton1870]

what going to happen to it now neighbours has finished although give it a while they will reboot it