All Saints (season 12)
The twelfth and final season of the long-running Australian medical drama All Saints: Medical Response Unit began airing on 3 February 2009 with the final episode airing 27 October 2009. The season concluded after 37 episodes.
| All Saints | |
|---|---|
| Season 12 | |
 2009 Season DVD | |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| No. of episodes | 37 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Seven Network |
| Original release | 3 February – 27 October 2009 |
| Season chronology | |
Plot
In its 12th and final year, the newly formed Medical Response Unit (MRU) takes centre stage treating patients at the site of accidents and then bringing them to the Emergency Department for continued medical care. The MRU, led by Mike Vlasek, is on the front line of a vast range of medical disasters, including an explosion at a winery and a devastating bus crash. The year starts with the ED team dealing with the shocking aftermath of the news of Erica's death. Bart and Amy continue to be at logger-heads until Bart's wise counsel to a troubled patient results in them starting a secret love affair. Steve joins the MRU and is confronted with demons from his past. Gabrielle must deal with her father's heart attack and new paramedic Jo learns whether she has Huntington's disease. Frank continues to fiercely protect his team, and starts the new intern program. The series ends with the ED and MRU teams sharing an emotional farewell dinner in honour of long time All Saints nurse, Von Ryan.
Cast
Main
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Recurring
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Guest
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Revamp
In 2009, another attempt to stem the softening ratings and add a bit of excitement to the series, Seven Network executives decided to rejuvenate again, introducing a medical response unit to deal with tricky rescues which involved a helicopter going to remote locations to rescue patients who needed assistance. They would then bring those patients back to the ED and the staff there would assist in their treatment. Along with the addition of the new "department" the show was also renamed to All Saints: Medical Response Unit, the introduction of Mirrah Foulkes and the new MRU proved to lift the ratings substantially, but then levelled out at where they were prior to the revamp.[1]
Cancellation
In June 2009, after months of rumours that the cancellation of All Saints was imminent, a spokeswoman from the Seven Network informed The Daily Telegraph that the episode order had been trimmed. Season twelve of All Saints would screen 24 episodes instead of the usual 40 episodes and that production would cease in August instead of November.[2]
In July 2009, exactly one month later after the first announcement, Tim Worner, Seven's Director of Programming at the time announced that All Saints had been cancelled. He told Michael Idato of the Sydney Morning Herald, "All Saints is a show which Seven and viewers have loved. However, an audience shift and increased production costs are behind this tough decision." He also informed Idato that the episode order trim had been reverted and the season would complete a 37 episode order, finishing on episode 493. It was reported after the announcement that since the introduction of the MRU in 2009 it inflated the cost of each episode to $500,000. Many people still argue as to why the MRU was introduced in the first place or should have been removed instead of axing the show if the network was wanting to cut costs.[3]
In the Feb/Mar 2010 GQ magazine in 2010, Tim Worner said his one regret was "Axing All Saints. But it was the right call at the time and we have two new drama projects in development."
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 457 | 1 | "Out of the Ashes" | Ian Gilmour | Louise Crane-Bowes | 3 February 2009 |
| 458 | 2 | "Dreams and Nightmares" | Jet Wilkinson | Sean Nash | 10 February 2009 |
| 459 | 3 | "Day One" | Samantha Lang | Trent Atkinson | 17 February 2009 |
| 460 | 4 | "Sins of the Past" | Marcus Cole | Jenny and Lesley Lewis | 24 February 2009 |
| 461 | 5 | "Evil Is As Evil Does" | Jean-Pierre Mignon | Denise Morgan | 3 March 2009 |
| 462 | 6 | "Facing the Music" | Nicholas Buffalo | Michael Miller | 10 March 2009 |
| 463 | 7 | "Awake in Fright" | Daniel Nettheim | Lily Taylor | 17 March 2009 |
| 464 | 8 | "Behind Closed Doors" | Jet Wilkinson | Sally Webb | 24 March 2009 |
| 465 | 9 | "Danger Zone" | Ian Gilmourn | Fiona Kelly | 31 March 2009 |
| 466 | 10 | "Pushed Too Far" | Marcus Cole | Chris McCourt & Linda Stainton | 21 April 2009 |
| 467 | 11 | "Handle With Care" | Jean-Pierre Mignon | Andrew Kelly | 28 April 2009 |
| 468 | 12 | "The Devil Within" | Cherie Nowlan | Sean Nash | 5 May 2009 |
| 469 | 13 | "Give & Take" | Ian Watson | Trent Atkinson | 12 May 2009 |
| 470 | 14 | "When the Bough Breaks" | Lynn-Maree Danzey | Jeff Truman | 19 May 2009 |
| 471 | 15 | "Seeing The Light" | Ian Gilmourn | Alexa Wyatt | 26 May 2009 |
| 472 | 16 | "We All Fall Down" | Geoff Bennett | Clare Atkinson | 2 June 2009 |
| 473 | 17 | "Bodies In Motion" | Jet Wilkinson | Lily Taylor | 9 June 2009 |
| 474 | 18 | "On Second Thoughts..." | Ian Watson | Sally Webb | 16 June 2009 |
| 475 | 19 | "Starting Over" | Marcus Cole | Fiona Kelly | 23 June 2009 |
| 476 | 20 | "Curve Balls" | Lynn-Maree Danzey | Chris McCourt | 30 June 2009 |
| 477 | 21 | "Test of Faith" | Ian Gilmourn | Blake Ayshford | 7 July 2009 |
| 478 | 22 | "Blood is Thicker" | Jean-Pierre Mignon | Martin McKenna | 14 July 2009 |
| 479 | 23 | "Out Of Control" | Jet Wilkinson | Lesley and Jenny Lewis | 21 July 2009 |
| 480 | 24 | "In Trust" | Di Drew | Trent Atkinson | 28 July 2009 |
| 481 | 25 | "In Duty Bound" | Marcus Cole | Denise Morgan | 4 August 2009 |
| 482 | 26 | "The Waiting Game" | Lynn-Maree Danzey | Lily Taylor | 11 August 2009 |
| 483 | 27 | "A Precious Waste" | Ian Gilmourn | Clare Atkinson | 18 August 2009 |
| 484 | 28 | "Tell-Tale Hearts" | Jean-Pierre Mignon | Trent Atkinson | 25 August 2009 |
| 485 | 29 | "Moving On" | Jet Wilkinson | Fiona and Andrew Kelly | 1 September 2009 |
| 486 | 30 | "Safe Haven" | Scott Hartford Davis | Chris McCourt | 8 September 2009 |
| 487 | 31 | "Win Some, Lose Some" | Marcus Cole | Andrew Kelly | 15 September 2009 |
| 488 | 32 | "What it Takes" | Lynn-Maree Danzey | Trent Atkinson | 22 September 2009 |
| 489 | 33 | "Too Close For Comfort" | Jean-Pierre Mignon | Jenny Lewis & Hamish Cameron | 29 September 2009 |
| 490 | 34 | "Damned If You Do" | Pino Amenta | Martin McKenna | 6 October 2009 |
| 491 | 35 | "The Two of Us" | Jet Wilkinson | Kim Wilson & Luke Devenish | 13 October 2009 |
| 492 | 36 | "Reality Check" | Di Drew | Blake Ayshford | 20 October 2009 |
| 493 | 37 | "Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" | Marcus Cole | Louise Crane-Bowes | 27 October 2009 |
References
- McWhirter, Erin (20 January 2009). "MRU trio add energy injection to All Saints". The Courier Mail. Australian Television Information Archive. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
- "All Saints alive, with a bit of surgery". The Daily Telegraph. Australian Television Information Archive. 10 June 2009. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
- Idato, Michael (9 July 2009). "TV casualty: All Saints axed after 11 years". Sydney Morning Herald. Australian Television Information Archive. Retrieved 21 March 2014.