An Oral History of Round The Twist – Why Australians Remain Crazy For This Memorable TV Series

Photo credit: Buzzfeed Oz

Like its iconic theme song, Round The Twist sticks in the mind long after its time. The Australian children’s television show about three kids living in a lighthouse and experiencing wacky adventures has remained a fan favourite among generations of Australians and firmly cemented itself within Australian pop culture. The series remains a hot topic, almost 30 years on from its 1989 premiere.

Buzzfeed editor Jenna Guillaume, recently tapped into the cast and crew’s fond memories of this program in a series of interviews with actors, costume designers, camera operators, writers, directors and ACTF staff to compile "an oral history of Round The Twist", detailing the story of "how one of the weirdest shows in Australian history became a cultural icon".

In this article, Guillaume details the broad history of the series – which, when put together, almost seems as strange as the program itself. The article gives a comprehensive overview, from the conceptualisation of the opening title sequence, to the reason why the Twist family lived in the famous Split Point Lighthouse.

It details Round The Twist's humble beginnings as it faced an 'indifferent' commercial release, and the initial rejection from overseas distributers, who labelled its content as 'disgusting' and crude.

It recalls the casting process, which highlighted the immense difference in resources from that of large productions in the US. The article also reveals why there are three sets of Petes, Lindas and Bronsons across four series of the show.

The article details Round The Twist's soar to fame as it garnered its steadfast local audience and began to sell abroad. Since its premiere, Round The Twist has now sold to a multitude of countries worldwide.

Through clever writing, Paul Jennings and Esben Storm created a multidimensional and dynamic series that grew alongside its audience into adulthood. In these interviews, however, the story of their creative differences which led to the eight-year hiatus of Round The Twist is revealed. It wasn’t until several years later that the ACTF independently moved to create Round The Twist – Series 3 & 4, to meet immense local and international demand. 

It’s noted that episodes from series 3, such as 'The Whirling Derfish' and 'The Big Burp' were also met with initial disapproval from broadcasters. Yet, these are the episodes that stuck firmly in the audience’s minds as some of the funniest and most memorable parts of the hit series.

Guillaume states that: "Round The Twist endures like few other Australian children’s TV shows". With perpetual demand and increased availability on streaming sites such as Netflix and Stan, three decades on – Australia is still going Round The Twist for this iconic and much-loved series.

You can read Jenna Guillaume’s "When Strange Things Happen – An Oral History of Round The Twist" here.