Three Australian Family Dramas to Help Us Through Hard Times
These long-running shows draw viewers in and create a welcome alternate reality.
A beloved Australian drama, McLeod’s Daughters, helped me get through some seriously hard times, which included broken bones, a broken marriage, and the questionable decision to start over in a place where I knew no one. Running nine seasons, this romantic drama with an ensemble cast focuses on the lives and loves of Claire and Tess McLeod. These spirited sisters, who are unexpectedly reunited after the death of their father, embark on a mission to save Drover’s Run — an expansive and breathtakingly beautiful sheep and cattle station.
After watching every episode of the long-running series at least three times, I can say that the first two seasons are the best. In addition to plots involving the McLeod sisters ultimately falling in love with two brothers from the neighboring property, Nick and Alex Ryan, the series showcases a wicked, albeit Australian sense of humor.
When a visitor is asked when she suddenly turned to vegetarianism, she replies, “Since Claire told me all the things they do to lamb’s bottoms.”
And when Claire and Alex concoct a made-up story that he’s the father of her baby, she looks him in the eye and asks him, “Do…
