Historical information

This is a set of six photographs of Army Survey Regiment personnel who volunteered as extras in the ANZACS TV Series filmed in 1985. Many of the extras playing the roles of Australian soldiers were serving members of the Army Survey Regiment, Bendigo and the Armoured Regiment, Puckapunyal. This was done to keep costs down so that actors did not have to learn how to act as soldiers or to have to teach them how to use the weapons. Army Svy Regt’s 28 personnel left Bendigo in the early hours of the morning arriving at Phillip Island’s Cowes Motor Inn. Wardrobe staff make-up artists dressed the soldiers from both units in authentic WW1 uniforms in readiness for filming at Woolamai Surf Beach, on the other side of Phillip Island. Filming for the day involved a battle scene simulation of the beach landings at Gallipoli, Turkey. A long day of filming ensued, with 8 arduous re-takes of charges from the beach to the steep cliffs, and the scrubland beyond the cliffs before the producers were satisfied with the footage. The producers provided ample refreshments back at Cowes Motor Inn at the end of the day, before Army Svy Regt’s 28 personnel departed on the 4-hr trip back to Bendigo.

Physical description

This is a set of six photographs of Army Survey Regiment personnel who volunteered as extras in the ANZACS TV Series filmed at Phillip Island, Victoria in 1985. The colour photographs. were printed on photographic paper and are part of the Army Survey Regiment’s Collection. The photographs were scanned at 300 dpi. A newspaper article published by the Bendigo Advertiser on the 29th of October 1985 is stored with the photos.
.1) - Photo, colour, 1985. A hairdresser attends to Garry Hudson’s hair at the Cowes Motor Inn. Glen Weatherall is on far right.
.2) - Photo, colour, 1985. Production staff preparing a scene at the cliff base at Woolamai Surf Beach.
.3) - Photo, colour, 1985. A make-up artist applies simulated wounds to an unidentified soldier.
.4) - Photo, colour, 1985. Production staff preparing a beach landing scene.
.5) - Photo, colour, 1985. Extras from the Army Svy Regt and 1st Armd Regt gather at Woolamai Surf Beach. L to R in foreground: Gary Tremain, Graham Hales, unidentified, Dave Lawler, unidentified.
.6) - Photo, colour, 1985. The 28 extras from the Army Svy Regt at Woolamai Surf Beach. Standing L to R: Terry McIntyre, unidentified, Ian Fitzgerald, unidentified, John Reid, unidentified, Gary Tremain, unidentified (x2), Chad Hardwick, unidentified, Dave Lawler, Barry Hogan, Terry Danger, Peter Imeson, Garry Hudson. Kneeling L to R: unidentified, Peter Ball, Harald Mai, Paul Baker, Alan Staley, Ian McKenzie, Brad Peppler. Sitting: Rod Skidmore.

Inscriptions & markings

‘Filming of “ANZACS” 1985’ annotated on cover sleeve.