This miniseries is based on true events that occurred in the history of Australia back in 1854; Gold was discovered in the town of Ballarat and had brought thousands of people from all around the world to seek their fortune. Some like Peter Lalor had come to escape the tyranny from their own country. What was at stake for the diggers were the mining licenses enforced by the gold commission under government orders; this lead to an outbreak in which the diggers united under the flag of the southern cross and spoke their oath to fight for their rights and liberty.
I love a lot about Australian History and really think the Eureka Rebellion is the birthplace of the Australian spirit. Like a lot of historical events its controversial about what happened and why. But none the less, this is a very defining and abridged account of these events and who was involved.
I have to say all these characters are well casted; its also one of the best earlier roles Bryan Brown was in as Peter Lalor (the digger who become their leader). The late Bill Hunter stared as Lalor's master or close friend Timothy Hayes(he was real). At times its very charming getting to know these characters speeds up with some involving and somewhat compelling politics. There are a few flaws though; not many characters have enough development earlier in the narrative and would have played a bigger role later on, but they're still clearly defined as significant figures you may track down if you followed history well. The Production design is good; it has some great sets and location settings. The direction is not too clumsy but above average, I also really liked the scripting I heard its based on a novel published just before its airing, and the opening theme is very classic.
Its a shame this didn't get enough attention, its a very rare and underrated miniseries, especially about Australian colonial history in the 19th century. very impressive!
