Finished My Brilliant Career? Five Australian TV Shows and Films To Watch Next

Once you’ve binge-watched the six-part miniseries, you might find yourself pining for something similar. The original 1979 film (with the late, great Sam Neill playing the dashing Harry Beecham) would be an ideal follow-up. Then we recommend turning your attention to these beloved Aussie productions.

Please Like Me

Relationships can be hard to navigate when your sights are set beyond the ordinary, as they are for Sybylla. For the at-times bewildered protagonist of Please Like Me, played by writer-director Josh Thomas, things are no different. When 20-year-old Josh’s girlfriend breaks up with him – and tells him he’s gay – it kicks off a multi-season tale about the baffling, entertaining and at times heart-wrenching work of being a young person trying to figure themselves out amid the competing demands of love, friendship and a chaotic family life. Available on ABC iview.

Paperback Hero

Sybylla’s writerly ambitions face plenty of obstacles due to the societal expectations placed on women in rural Australia at the turn of the century. The characters of 1999 film Paperback Hero are also burdened by gender norms, but here the roles are flipped – Hugh Jackman plays truck driver Jack Willis, who publishes under the penname Ruby Vale (the name of an old friend, a crop-dusting pilot played by Claudia Karvan) to hide his secret career as a bestselling romance novelist. Cue shenanigans as Jack convinces the real Ruby Vale to pretend to have written the book, and the pair embark on a road trip to Sydney for promotional purposes. Available on SBS On Demand.

The Sapphires

Sybylla’s determination is one of her best qualities, and the titular music group at the heart of 2012 Cannes crowd-pleaser The Sapphires echoes that trait in spades. Supported by an enthusiastic but somewhat irreverent talent scout (Chris O’Dowd), four Yorta Yorta women – played by Deborah Mailman, Jessica Mauboy, Shari Sebbens and Miranda Tapsell – come together to perform for the troops in Vietnam in 1968. Adapted from a Helpmann Award-winning play by Tony Briggs, inspired by his mother’s 1960s girl group, the film netted several wins at the AACTA Awards – including a Best Supporting Actress for Mauboy. Rent on Prime Video.

Picnic at Hanging Rock

While this one is an eerie mystery, in sharp contrast to Miles Franklin’s swaggering semiautobiographical tale, Peter Weir’s Picnic at Hanging Rock is perhaps Australia’s most iconic book-to-film adaptation. Based on the novel by Joan Lindsay about a trio of schoolgirls (and, later, their teacher) who mysteriously vanish at a Valentine’s Day picnic, the 1975 film is shot in a haunting, painterly style by cinematographer Russell Boyd on location at Victoria’s Hanging Rock. The visuals, coupled with the unsettling folkloric tale, make for a film that’s hard to stop thinking about. Available on HBO Max.

The Newsreader

If you’re after another bingeable series with My Brilliant Career star Philippa Northeast (Sybylla), look no further than The Newsreader. The series focuses on the ins and outs of the TV news world in the 1980s – with plenty of drama and romance in the air. Northeast joins the cast for seasons two and three as Kay, who brings a great sense of style – and plenty of family drama – to the screen. Available on ABC iview.