Let us begin by giving you a brief history of the show. Originally named Prisoner in Australia, non-Aussie viewers got their first glimpse of life inside a prison for women in Australia's ficticious Wentworth Detention Centre during the late 80's.

Retitled Prisoner: Cell Block H for overseas viewing, the series was one of the most watched Australian programmes. However time has since taken it's toll on Wentworth and Prisoner is often laughed up at, due to the quality of set design and acting (which at the time was of a very high standard for a drama series). Incidentally, a large number of the cast were classically trained actors who had many years of theatre experience behind them.

Made by Grundy Television, Prisoner was the first of it's kind and tackled issues long before any other shows dared to - rape, homosexuality, violence and murder to name but a few were all well made storylines during the 8 year run of the series. All in all, 692 episodes were made.

Prisoner in effect broke all of the rules set out by previous Aussie made soaps such as The Young Doctors, The Sullivans and The Restless Years - no pretty young faces, no nice homes and no romance. This seemed to surprise everyone who tuned in during the first airing; perhaps nobody quite knew what to expect about a drama series set inside a prison for women. They were immediately gripped.