Sea Patrol!

Channel 9: The Hammersley patrols Australia's tropical waters, from the idyllic coral atolls of the Great Barrier Reef to massive oil rigs on the North West Shelf. Amid the action and excitement of their patrols the crew of the Hammersley finds time for rest, romance and relaxation, often in exotic foreign ports. But their camaraderie, loyalty and integrity will be tested.

Michele: I haven't yet seen the show but for the past 8 weeks Mission Beach has been abuzz with Sea Patrol activity. Every spring (Sept-Oct) the cast and crew of Sea Patrol come to Mission Beach to film the TV show. They lease out local shops for sets but the main set of this show is the Hammersley, the navy ship that the crew serve aboard.

Every year, the Royal Australian Navy leases out one of its most advanced ships for 8 weeks to be used for... you guessed it! As a set for a TV drama series. Isn't that an awesome business model for the military! Can't you just see all the military divisions switching to revenue generating systems involving the entertainment industry. It is brilliant!

It has also been fun having a navel ship off our beach for the past two months.

"Hey, look over there a sea turtle!"
"Where?"
"Just to the left of the Armidale class patrol boat, near where the water changes hue."

The kids of the cast and crew of Sea Patrol have been attending Mission Beach State School for the past two months and Robin and Will have enjoyed not being the newest kids in their classes. However, the crew finished up filming last week so the new kids have left, the equipment is packed up and the ship is gone.

What will happen to Mission Beach now that the RAN patrol boat is gone? Who will protect us from boats of immigrants from Dunk Island? Stay tuned for the next installment of ... Cassowary Tales!