Wildside

1997 - 1999

Episode 1

23rd November 1997

Episode 1

A ram-raid on a clothes store by a group of homeless teenagers results in a high-speed police chase. Two officers end up dead but the teenagers escape. When two of them seek help for their injuries at the crisis centre, the police from the station next door come knocking, clashing with Maxine as she tries to protect her young clients' interests.

Episode 2

23rd November 1997

Episode 2

With the aid of Maxine, Bill McCoy continues to search for his missing son, only to find a second mutilated body. Bill shows a video Joe gave him to Maxine, Gerry and Vince. With a stroke of luck in the search for his son, Gerry is able to identify the girl with Nick in the tape as "Candy."

Episode 3

24th November 1997

Episode 3

Bill tracks Candy to a strip bar where she works as an exotic dancer. From here Bill's search will take on a new light. After endless searching, Bill McCoy finds what appears to be his lost son in a train station. However, the boy gets away from Bill and he is belted by two mysterious thugs who were following him.

Episode 4

24th November 1997

Episode 4

Bill McCoy tries to help Joe turn his life around but his sudden disappearance pushes Bill to locate the man responsible for the young boys' murders before he claims another victim. However, the closer Bill comes to the truth behind a paedophile ring, the less Reilly becomes interested in helping his investigations. Bill finally confronts the man he suspects of murdering his son.

Episode 5

4th February 1998

Episode 5

While Bill wrestles with his doubts over Reilly who has been accused of corruption, Maxine deals with Ralph, an elderly man with Alzheimer's who shows up at the crisis centre not being able to recall where he lives. Gerry's personal and professional lives cross paths when she becomes involved with a homeless youth.

Episode 6

11th February 1998

Episode 6

Maxine searches for Debbie, a prostitute working Canterbury Road. She's HIV positive and is possibly passing the infection on. Meanwhile, Bill faces his first day back on the police force after four years and has to deal with hostility from some of the other cops who know his background.

Episode 7

18th February 1998

Episode 7

While partnered with Kim Devlin, Bill investigates the gang rape of a prostitute and discovers that one of the culprits may be the son of an MP who has been trying to rid the district of sex workers. While continuing to struggle with problems in her own marriage, Maxine tries to deal with a suicidal stand-up comedian distraught over the lose of his children following his divorce.

Episode 8

25th February 1998

Episode 8

When a single mother is brutally killed outside her home, McCoy has 48 hours to find her killer before having to turn the case over to Homicide. The woman's teenage son, a suspect in McCoy's murder investigation, is determined to obtain custody of his ten-year-old sister. Meanwhile, Maxine and her husband finally split up, but it is not just her husband Maxine must face losing.

Episode 9

Episode 9

With his father after him to find a more lucrative job, Vince takes on the case of an illegal Iraqi refugee caught up in Bill's investigation of a stolen car racket. Vince fights a dodgy immigration lawyer while keeping his client clear of charges in connection to Bill's investigation. After walking out on Maxine, Rob returns in search of a reconciliation. A young mechanic makes a play for Maxine.

Episode 10

11th March 1998

Episode 10

Detectives McCoy and Devlin investigate the shooting of a robbery suspect by a young and inexperienced security guard. Maxine takes on the delicate case of an alleged sexual abuse in a family she knows personally. With no evidence other than repressed memories to support the claims against the father, Maxine has doubts about the validity of the accusations. Vince becomes involved in his father's business dealings and uncovers a secret that leads to blackmail. Kim is the subject of repeated advances of a co-worker.

Episode 11

18th March 1998

Episode 11

Maxine is called out to a Rave party to attend the drug overdose of a teenage school girl. Despite Maxine's efforts, she is unable to save the girl, and has to break the news to the girl's family. While Bill and Kim investigate the rival gangs believed to be the source of the drugs, Maxine involves herself in the lives of the girl's father and sister.

Episode 12

18th March 1998

Episode 12

When a bikie gang war erupts in massacre, Bill McCoy is under pressure to make arrests and lay charges. On arrival at the scene it is discovered that one of the victims is Dean Tapley. Despite McCoy's best efforts, he struggles to lay charges against any of the principle suspects. Meanwhile, Kim feels betrayed at being shut out of the investigation as she finds herself the subject of an Internal Affairs investigation and a recovering Maxine questions her future as she relives the horror of the crisis centre shooting. At the end of the day, one will have resigned from her job.

Episode 13

25th March 1998

Episode 13

Maxine, recovering from her gunshot wound, is full with the love of life. She feels invincible, having escaped death, and is in the mood to take risks. So daring she manages to deliver a baby, later finding herself in the middle of a violent dispute between the young mother's boyfriend and father. With the assistance of a young detective from gaming, Bill investigates the murder of a prominent asian gang member following a night in a backroom casino in Chinatown.

Episode 14

Episode 14

When a high-profile activist doctor is murdered in his home, Bill is not surprised when Virginia assigns him the investigation. However he is surprised when she tells him to take Charlie Coustas with him as he had been led to believe that Charlie was a temporary attachment and isn't pleased at the growing sense of permanence. Investigating the murder brings Bill back into contact with his estranged sister, Kate, who he has not spoken to for five years. Meanwhile, Maxine asks for Charlie's help with a 10-year-old client facing charges in connection with her latest crimes, a situation to which she is entirely indifferent.

Episode 15

Episode 15

Bill and Charlie become involved in the investigation of a petrol station robbery where one of the victims turns out to be the son of a man Bill put away years before. The family believe their father is innocent and that Bill set him up to go to prison seven years ago and accuse Bill of now setting the son up too. Gerry and Vince come to the son's defence and Bill is forced to question the circumstances of the father's arrest, realising his partner at the time was crooked and he is responsible for putting away an innocent man.

Episode 16

15th April 1998

Episode 16

Bill and Charlie pick up a young heroin addicted prostitute, Laurel Williams, at a Kings Cross porn shop owned by Half [ep 6 previously], Laurel's pimp. Laurel is an intelligent girl with a feisty exterior, but she is much more vulnerable than she likes to admit. Brought in to represent Laurel on drug and theft charges, Vince tries to convince her to turn her life around but must question himself if his interest is purely professional. An official complaint is made against Maxine accusing her of misdiagnosing a young girl in her care. Convinced there is more to the case, Maxine calls to question the behaviour of the girl's mother.

Episode 17

22nd April 1998

Episode 17

Bill and Charlie investigate the horrific murder of a taxi driver. Maxine discovers the involvement in the murder of three street kids, Greg, Mitch and Mandy while overhearing their conversation at the Crisis Centre. She makes the decision to call Bill about the three suspects against Vince's advice to give them the chance to come forward of their own accord.

Episode 18

29th April 1998

Episode 18

Bill and Charlie are called to the train station where they find seventeen-year-old Luke, naked and bound to a train carriage. Luke claims it was a buck's night prank, but Charlie is sure there's more to it and makes it his personal mission to bring those responsible to justice — regardless of the cost to his career or personal life. A new officer's first days on the job may be her last.

Episode 19

Episode 19

Maxine has taken her sister, Nina, under her wing to help sort out her domestic crisis, and Bill and Charlie wrestle with racial violence on a housing estate.

Episode 20

Episode 20

Maxine is convinced that her sister was murdered by her husband but Bill and Charlie play it by the evidence. Bill reluctantly agrees to wire Maxine up, to get the confession they need.

Episode 21

Episode 21

McCoy's plans to nail a Vietnamese drug importer are complicated when a crusading Chinese mayor is gunned down.

Episode 22

Episode 22

McCoy plays a waiting game using 80 million dollars worth of heroin as bait for "Mr. Big" while also continuing to look into the murders of Mayor Henry Li and Tran, a kid caught up in the gangster world of Asian drug importations. Meanwhile, Vince and Gerry's relationship takes off as Gerry fights through memories of her past as a sex worker triggered by a friend, Dee, who can't escape her own tainted past on the streets.

Episode 23

Episode 23

Bill and Deakin are searching for three escaped female prisoners, one of whom, Debbie, is a past client of the Centre. Debbie seeks Gerry's help to get money for a car and treatment for her sick daughter who has been neglected by the foster mother. Gerry's relationship with Vince is shadowed by Vince's fear that Gerry will get herself into deep trouble helping Debbie. Despite their differences, they still work for the same team and their feelings for each other cannot help but grow.

Episode 24

Episode 24

Bill investigates a threat made against Carol Wilson, a State MP who has outrageous views on Aboriginals. He must offer her protection in the midst of an election rally in which she is participating. Vince disappoints his father Leo when he reveals he is interested in Gerry.

Episode 25

Episode 25

Four Tongans are shot dead in the 180 Club which is a known Islander hangout. McCoy and Deakin investigate the crime scene where they run into Charlie Coustas, who's working on attachment to a task force called Operation Spindrift who are tracking a gun-importation racket.

Episode 26

Episode 26

In a story about need to belong, Joe, Bill's son, is out on the edge and alone — an addict, and Bill knows that the only person who can save him is his dad. That means getting Tony Pelucci to turn his back on the only culture and support system where he belongs, his criminal mates network. Bill and Charlie investigate two colleagues when an accusation of rape is lodged against two police officers while Maxine helps Joe go through withdrawal.

Episode 27

Episode 27

Charlie finds himself faced with a conflict of interest when a childhood friend is charged with aggravated assault. Peter Simms, ex-con and junkie, violently bashes Sam Farmer, who runs a small security firm. Peter is a client of the Crisis Centre, which has committed itself to his rehabilitation. When Peter is arrested, the Police and the Centre are at odds over what would be a just outcome. What was the real motive for the assault?

Episode 28

Episode 28

Virginia becomes involved in helping her lover, Alan Sharkey, when his house is shot at in a driveby. She discovers Sharkey was targeted by a crooked cop, Ron Anders because he knows Anders was involved in taking a quantity of money seized as evidence from a bank robbery bust. Meanwhile, Charlie helps out a client of Maxine's who has stabbed her ex-boyfriend because he molested her daughter.

Episode 29

Episode 29

Charlie's gambling addiction leads him into the clutches of loan sharks and into temptation. Charlie can't lose, he's on a roll. So he borrows ten grand from loan sharks. And loses the lot in one bet. Meanwhile, Maxine is convinced to lie for a pregnant thirteen-year-old Muslim girl, and it looks like it all might work out until her father comes asking for a special bit of evidence.

Episode 30

Episode 30

Bill and Charlie investigate the murder of the publisher of a fashion magazine but Charlie is distracted by an attractive witness.

Episode 31

Episode 31

With Charlie still sin-binned to desk work, Deakin and Bill have teamed up. Bill and Deakin find themselves in the middle of a tow-truck war after attend a stabbing at a road accident. A second incident involving Deakin's widowed sister-in-law Wendy and his nephew ends in a fatality. Charlie is tasked with finding a lost dog and tries to bend the rules to help Simone when she is arrested for marijuana possession at school.

Episode 32

5th August 1998

Episode 32

The evil crime of paedophilia rears its ugly head in a powerful and moving episode of Wildside. Bill and Charlie become involved in searching for a missing hearing impaired child — Nikky Begbie who disappeared while selling charity chocolates in her local inner city area. Bill's first suspect is a convicted paedophile.

Episode 33

12th August 1998

Episode 33

Bill and Charlie are called to a domestic. Bill witnesses a father, Sean O'Connor, hit his son and gets emotionally involved to the point where he has a complaint laid against him for assault. Although he's warned away from the case by Virginia, he feels the two kids in the family should be helped. The mother, Maralyn, is an alcoholic and Bill has little sympathy for her. The situation is out of his hands until it becomes a murder investigation with Sean found dead in the house. Meanwhile, Gerry gives Vince the news that she is pregnant.

Episode 34

19th August 1998

Episode 34

An aborigine is mistaken for a wanted man and shot during a police raid. McCoy is left to pick up the pieces. Vince's experience with Naomi, the victim's wife, allows him to discover his own political consciousness.

Episode 35

26th August 1998

Episode 35

Charlie goes undercover in attempt to crack a drugs and extortion racket operated by a collusion of three people: a Greek Australian property developer — George Kasoulis, ex stand over man and underworld heavy — Terry Young, and federal copper Neville Grey.

Episode 36

2nd September 1998

Episode 36

Charlie finds himself under pressure on three fronts — his promotion, his relationship with Maxine and his deepening involvement with the criminals he is investigating.

Episode 37

9th September 1998

Episode 37

McCoy takes on a new partner as he investigates a series of mutilation murders. Bill is quick to set his sights on a suspect but he is determined to prove the man's girlfriend was involved in the crimes. Acting on her behalf, Vince is able to derail Bill's case against her but he has second thoughts after delving deeper into her past.

Episode 38

16th September 1998

Episode 38

After a murder at a male brothel, a colleague of McCoy's comes under suspicion.

Episode 39

23rd September 1998

Episode 39

McCoy and Charlie pursue an ex-cop they suspect of being a major cocaine importer. While dealing with the news of his ex-wife's death, McCoy is unaware his son has resurfaced at the crisis centre. Jimmy Jago proposes to Gerry.

Episode 40

30th September 1998

Episode 40

Bill is furious with Maxine for not telling him his son is back. Bill meets with Nick and discovers the truth about his reasons for returning. Bill is investigated by Internal Affairs for his suspected involvement in the shooting of Jimmy Jago.

Top Cast

Rachael Blake•Tony Martin•Aaron Pedersen

Wildside is an Australian police procedural television series broadcast on the ABC from 1997 to 1999. The show consisted of a one hour format that followed police interactions in inner Sydney. It starred Rachael Blake, Tony Martin, Richard Carter and Alex Dimitriades. Mary Coustas joined the series in a regular role late in its run, appearing in the last ten episodes. The series was filmed in Sydney. It was characterised by its use of ad lib dialogue and hand held camera work. It won several Logie Awards, including Silver Logies for outstanding work by Rachael Blake and Tony Martin for acting, as well as the Most Outstanding Miniseries Logie in 1998. It was also nominated for several Australian Film Institute Awards. A rerun of the series began in Australia on ABC1 in the early hours of Friday mornings, starting in September 2008.

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Full Cast

Rachael Blake Image

Rachael Blake

Maxine Summers

Tony Martin Image

Tony Martin

Bill McCoy

Aaron Pedersen Image

Aaron Pedersen

Vince Cellini

Alex Dimitriades Image

Alex Dimitriades

Charlie Coustos

Abi Tucker Image

Abi Tucker

Kate Holbeck

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