Behind the Legend

Behind the Legend is 1972 anthology series based on the lives of various Australians hosted by Manning Clark.

It was originally called The History Makers.

Cast

 * Manning Clark (host)

Season One

 * Kate Fitzpatrick as Nellie Melba
 * Tim Eliott as Henry Lawson
 * Kevin J. Wilson as Les Darcy
 * Neil Fitzpatrick as Charles Ulm
 * Mark Kelly as Douglas Mawson
 * Ben Gabriel as John Monash
 * Keith Lee as Charles O'Connor
 * Anne Haddy as Caroline Chisholm
 * Reg Evans as John Shaw Neilson at 40
 * as JF Archibald
 * John Frawley as Thomas Blamey
 * Anna Volska as Helena Rubinstein
 * Penne Hackforth-Jones as Helena Rubinstein
 * Bud Tingwell as Arthur Phillip

Season Two

 * John Ewart as Francis Greenway
 * Elizabeth Alexander as Elizabeth Kenny
 * Graeme Blundell as Ray Parer
 * Brian James as Governor William Bligh
 * Alister Smart as Frank Gardiner
 * Gordon Chater as Sir Thomas Mitchell
 * Joseph Furst as Ferdinand von Mueller
 * Tony Allyn as Robert O'Hara Burke
 * Ken Fraser as Charles Fitzroy
 * Lola Brooks as Mary Reibey
 * Nigel Lovell aa John Flynn

Season Three

 * Robin Ramsay as Marcus Clarke
 * Paul Bertram as Percy Grainger
 * Terry Bader as Sidney Kidman
 * Joe James as Walter Burley Griffin
 * Barry Lovett as George Coppin / Dobie
 * Jack Charles as Eddie Gilbert
 * Frank Lloyd as Eddie Gilbert
 * Liz Chance as Henry Handel Richardson (Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson)
 * John Gaden as S. T. Gill
 * Paul Mason as Matthew Flinders
 * Lisa Peers as Annette Kellerman
 * Mark Lee as Maurice Kellerman
 * Wyn Roberts as Christopher Brennan
 * Melissa Jaffer
 * John Hargreaves as Tom Roberts
 * Natalie Bate as Ann Rumsby
 * Reg Evans as C. J. Dennis
 * Wendy Hughes

Other

 * Aileen Britton as Lady Mitchell
 * Andrew McFarlane
 * Anna Hruby as Younger sister
 * Anne-Louise Lambert
 * Barbara Frawley
 * Cornelia Frances
 * Dennis Grosvenor as Kevin Todd
 * Don Crosby
 * Drew Forsythe as Ted Baxter
 * Jack Thompson as Charles Kingsford-Smith
 * James Condon as Wentworth
 * John Orcsik
 * Judi Farr as Harriet
 * Judy McBurney as Waitress
 * Liz Burch as Mary
 * Lynette Curran as Belle
 * Margo Lee as Miss Brennan
 * Max Phipps
 * Nick Tate as Captain Sanderson
 * Pamela Stephenson as Fanny Cathcart
 * Peter Gwynne
 * Ralph Cotterill as Hal Gye
 * Richard Meikle
 * Robyn Nevin
 * Tony Barry
 * Wendy Hughes

Season One
(Dates are Sydney air dates)
 * 1) Nellie Melba (18 Sept 1972) - by James Workman
 * 2) Henry Lawson (25 Sept 1972) - by Cliff Green
 * 3) Les Darcy (2 Oct 1972)
 * 4) Charles Ulm (9 Oct 1972) - by James Workman
 * 5) Douglas Mawson (16 Oct 1972) - by Thomas Kenealley, directed by John Croystn
 * 6) John Monash (23 October 1972) - by Tony Morphett
 * 7) Charles O'Connor (30 Oct 1972) - by James Workman, directed by Frank Arnold
 * 8) Caroline Chisolm (6 Nov 1972) - by John Pooley, directed by Frank Arnold
 * 9) John Shaw Neilson (13 Nov 1972) - by Margaret Kelly
 * 10) JF Archibald (20 Nov 1972)
 * 11) Thomas Blamey (27 Nov 1972) - by Lance Peters, directed by Frank Arnold
 * 12) Helena Rubenstein (4 Dec 1972) by Cole Thompson, directed by Alan Burke
 * 13) Arthur Phillip (11 Dec 1972) (final)

Season Two
(Dates are Sydney air dates)
 * 1) Francis Greenaway (5 March 1974)
 * 2) Elizabeth Kenny (12 March 1974)
 * 3) Ray Parer (19 March 1974) - by Laurence Johns and James Workman, directed by Rob Stewart
 * 4) William Bligh (26 March 1974) - by Thomas Keneally
 * 5) Frank Gardiner (2 April 1974)
 * 6) Sir Thomas Mitchell (9 April 1974)
 * 7) JF Archibald (16 April 1974) - by Brian Wright, directed by Bill Munro (possibly repeat previous year)
 * 8) Ferdinand von Mueller (23 April 1974)
 * 9) Eddie Gilbert (30 April 1974) - by Philip Grenville Mann. ** (was scheduled but postponed)
 * 10) Robert O'Hara Burke (7 May 1974)
 * 11) Charles Fitzroy (14 May 1974) - by Mary Wright
 * 12) Mary Reibey (21 May 1974) - by Barbara Vernon, directed by Bruce Best. GS Lola Brooks.
 * 13) John Flynn (28 May 1974)
 * 14) Percy Grainger (4 June 1974) (final) ** (was scheduled but postponed)

Season Three
(Dates are Melbourne air dates_
 * 1) Marcus Clarke (7 January 1975 - Melbourne) - by Kerry Wanka directed by John Croyston
 * 2) Percy Grainger (14 Jan 1975) - by Cole Thompson, directed by Alan Burke. NB was to have shown previous year but withdrawn for Nixon's resignation
 * 3) Sidney Kidman (21 Jan 1975)
 * 4) Walter Burley Griffin (28 Jan 1975)
 * 5) George Coppin (4 Feb 1975) - by Joe James directed by John Croyston
 * 6) Eddie Gilbert (11 Feb 1975) - was to have shown previous year but withdrawn to show a political program
 * 7) Henry Handel Richardson (18 Feb 1975)
 * 8) S.T. Gill (25 February 1975) - by John Croyston, directed by Alan Burke
 * 9) Matthew Flinders (4 March 1975)
 * 10) Annette Kellerman (11 March 1975) by Cole Thompson, directed by Bruce Best
 * 11) Christopher Brennan (18 March 1975)
 * 12) Tom Roberts (20 March 1975) - written by Joe James directed by John Matthews
 * 13) Ann Rumsby (27 March 1975)
 * 14) C.J. Dennis (8 Apr 1975) - written by Alan Burke, directed by Julian Pringle (final)