Max Ramsay
Max Ramsay | |
---|---|
Neighbours character | |
Jill Ramsay | |
Adoptive sons | Danny Ramsay |
Grandsons | Harry Ramsay |
Granddaughters | Kate Ramsay Sophie Ramsay |
Grandfathers | Jack Ramsay |
Nieces | Charlene Robinson |
Max Ramsay is a fictional character in the Australian television soap opera Neighbours, played by Francis Bell. Reg Watson created Max as one of the serial's twelve original characters. New Zealand actor Bell had wanted to appear in a major role in a long-running series for a while when he was cast as the head of the Ramsay family. He liked the serial's focus on ordinary people, and the comedy and drama of everyday life. Bell made his debut as Max in the show's first episode, which was broadcast on 18 March 1985. Max is portrayed as a rough, domineering, hard-headed man who makes sure his feelings are known. He has good intentions but is unsure of himself beneath his tough façade. Max is proud Ramsay Street was named after his grandfather, whose traditions he strives to uphold. Max is a self-employed plumber; Bell said he had wanted to play a working-class Australian because he came from a similar background.
Family life is central to Max's storylines. Writers Neil Wallis and Dave Hogan stated Max was "almost the father figure of Neighbours in the early days". Max lives with his wife
Bell left Neighbours in March 1986, after he and the production company could not agree about a new contract. A back injury and difficulty getting into character also influenced Bell's decision to leave the show. He found the role was no longer a pleasurable experience but later stated he had no regrets about appearing in Neighbours. His sudden departure meant Max did not receive a farewell episode. Max's final appearance is in the episode broadcast on 2 May 1986, after which he reunites with Maria off-screen. Max's brother
Creation and casting
Max Ramsay is one of the twelve original characters conceived by Reg Watson, the creator and then-executive producer of Neighbours.[1] Casting director Jan Russ was tasked with casting the twelve characters; most of the cast were chosen for their comedic skills.[2] New Zealand actor Francis Bell was cast as Max, the head of the Ramsay family.[1] Bell had wanted to act in a major role in a long-running series but had previously rejected them.[3] Once all of the roles were cast, the actors were given "a thumbnail sketch of their characters" and met to discuss how they would play their parts.[4] Bell told Tim Cribb of The Sydney Morning Herald; "One of the nice things about Neighbours is that it is about ordinary folk and the comedy/drama of everyday life without the melodrama. The range between the comedy and drama is enormous."[1] The cast recorded five half-hour episodes per week; according to Bell, the younger cast members "seem to flag faster"; he also said he thought the more-experienced actors were better at conserving their energy.[4] Bell made his debut as Max in the show's pilot episode, which was first broadcast on 18 March 1985.[1]
Development
Characterisation
Max was introduced as the head of the Ramsay family, who writer Josephine Monroe dubbed "the royal family of Neighbours".[5] He is extremely proud that Ramsay Street was named after his grandfather and takes personal pride in "his" street and its residents.[3] The Radio Times's Eithne Power noted Max is "determined" to uphold his grandfather's old traditions so Max is "practically apoplectic" when stripper Daphne Lawrence (Elaine Smith) moves to the street.[6] Up the street, Max's neighbour Jim Robinson (Alan Dale) offers "a bit of sanity" in comparison.[6] Neil Wallis and Dave Hogan of The Neighbours Factfile said Max was "almost the father figure of Neighbours in the early days".[7] They described him as "essentially a nice guy, but he can be domineering at times and seems hard-headed and unmoving".[7]
Neighbours: Behind the Scenes author James Oram also said Max likes to dominate situations, and is the type of man who will show his approval to those who agree with him and thinks those who resist are stupid.[3] According to Oram, if Max is accused of doing something wrong or thoughtless, he always defends and justifies his actions.[3] He called Max "a man with basically good intentions in life".[3] Laura Denby of the Radio Times said Max is "a loudmouthed, uncouth man who always made his feelings known".[8] Behind the character's "rough, tough façade, he is not sure of himself",[3] and he tries to keep his insecurities hidden.[9]
Max is a self-employed plumber.[9] Monroe branded him "a real larrakin" and said those who employed him could often find Max enjoying a beer break.[10] Bell told Thomas Myler of the Evening Herald he had wanted to play a working-class Australian because he came from a working-class family, and he based Max on two uncles, who were a panel beater and a butcher.[11] In Oram's 1988 book, Bell said Max was also based on a man who helped raise him in New Zealand. Oram stated; "Max is based on a man whom I loved, but who gave me a very hard time. Playing Max is going back to my roots in a way. I was brought up in a working-class extended family and it was only through scholarships and a lot of hard work that I broke the cycle."[3] Some British television critics said Max would not be able to afford the "comfortable" lifestyle Ramsay Street provided but at the time, plumbers in Australia earned as much as doctors and lawyers.[3]
Family
Family is central to the character. As the series begins, Max lives with his wife
In episodes broadcast in April 1985, Maria informs Max Danny is not his biological son. Andrew Mercado of Supper Aussie Soaps said Max had long suspected Danny was not a "real Ramsay".[12] In the family's backstory, Max and Maria had briefly separated and Danny was born ten months later.[9] Monroe noted Max's pride is "fatally wounded" by the revelation,[10] and it leads him to resent Danny even more and Max soon moves out to live in a bedsit. A further blow comes when Shane is injured in a car accident, ending his Olympic hopes.[5] Shortly after, Max's and Maria's marriage end when Max becomes "so totally wrapped" in his plumbing business a "neglected" Maria leaves him and moves to Hong Kong, marking Bláhová's departure from the serial.[7]
Following Maria's departure, producers introduced Max's elder sister
Departure
Bell left Neighbours in March 1986.[16] It was rumoured he had asked the production company Grundy's for more money and they said no; however, Bell and the company could not agree on a new contract. A back injury also influenced Bell's decision to leave the show.[3] He said; "I was considering resigning before my back problems flared up. Negotiations had been under way between my agent and Grundy's for some time and I had decided I didn't want to do the show any more."[3] Bell was also finding difficulty slipping into his character; according to Oram, Bell had to "psych himself up each day".[3] The role was no longer a pleasurable experience for Bell, who said; "I can't just sort of drop into Max. I can do his voice, but to preserve the integrity of the character while churning out two and a half hours of television a week was always hard."[3] Bell had no regrets about appearing in Neighbours and called his time there "a good experience".[3] He added he had learnt what it took to make a soap opera, which was invaluable.[3] In 1989, Bell later commented he did the show "to prove that I could be an Australian".[16]
Bell's sudden departure meant Max did not receive a farewell episode.
Storylines
Max lives on Ramsay Street with his wife Maria, and their sons Shane and Danny. He owns a plumbing business and helps train Shane for the Olympic diving team. Max is outraged when stripper Daphne Lawrence moves in with
Max apologises to Danny for treated him poorly and says he believes in his diving ability but Danny refuses to let Max train him again. Danny and Shane arrange their own training sessions and Danny enters a local competition, which he wins. Max is not pleased and he later tells Maria coaching was his thing and he is no longer needed. Maria tells Max to move on and says they have more time to be a couple. Max supports Danny when he is wrongly accused of robbing
Max fractured his arm in the accident so Shane helps with Max's business but quits when Max interferes too much. Danny returns home and Max assures him he is not the reason for his separation from Maria. Max appears in court for the drink-driving charge; he is banned from driving for six months and fined A$1,000. Needing someone to drive him to his plumbing jobs, Max employs and fires two assistants until Maria helps him find apprentice plumber
Oh the day of Paul's and Terry's wedding, Maria leaves while Max and Danny watch. Max and Shane move back to Ramsay Street, where they and Danny struggle with the housework. Max dates Danny's French teacher
Max convinces his family and friends he is dying, leading Jim to give him an old watch and Madge is persuaded to sign over her half of the house to him.
Reception
In his review of Neighbours' first episodes, Mike Carlton of The Sydney Morning Herald said he had not seen Bell before but found his performance offered "the sort of underplayed subtlety made famous by Tony Packard and the fat bloke in the Beaurepaire tyre commercial".[20] Barbara Hooks of The Age called Max "a blustering plumber".[21] She said the scripts would benefit from some tightening and editing, and using Max as an example, she wrote; "And given the show's youthful audience, it also should be possible to convey the color and flavor of a character as rough as Max's without resorting to the lazy device of ungrammatical speech."[21] The Burton Mail's television critic Mike was a fan of the character, calling him "excellent" and a "Down Under drip with a lovable streak".[22] Hilary Kingsley, writing for the Daily Mirror, dubbed the character "Mad Max Ramsay, the pontificating plumber".[23] In her book Soap Opera, Dorothy Hobson describes Max and his family as "more working class than other characters", and states; "They had working-class jobs but were not represented as cloth cap wearing or dowdy, they were bright and modern and representative of a vibrant and working population".[24]
Thomas Myler of the Evening Herald called Max "a loud-mouthed ranting 'okker' with limited intelligence who communicates in a series of yells, snarls and shouts".[11] Myler said the character showed "flickerings" of sensitivity but it was "a long way from discovering that King Lear is not some kind of light aircraft".[11] Myler also said Max's personality starkly contrasts with Bell's, who was erudite and well-spoken.[11] While reviewing the serial, Nick Smurthwaite of The Stage wondered if Australian fathers could really get away with warning their adult sons from dating "the wrong type" of women.[25] According to Smurthwaite:
Max Ramsay is the cardboard cutout Ozzie clod who warns his son, Shane, against dating Daphne because she works as a stag-night stripper. His main fear seems to be the effect the newly arrived Daphne might have on the price of his property. Small wonder Ramsay's other son, Danny, wakes up in the night sweating and screaming.[25]
According to Radio Times's Eithne Power, Maria cannot do much to restrain her "volatile" husband while his sons appear to be resigned to "the unpredictability of this self-employed, prosperous but insecure plumber".[6] She also said Shane appears to be the apple of Max's eye but Danny is "a blot on the cul-de-sac", and often bears the brunt of Max's temper. Power also wrote; "In the early stages we all wondered why Maria stood for this disgusting favouritism ... when Max unleashed one of his terrible tirades on Danny. From where we were sitting it looked like a case for the NSPCC."[6] The character's profile on the BBC's Neighbours website stated his most notable moment is "Finding out that Danny wasn't really his son".[26]
While pointing out the differences between Jim and Max's performances, Michael Shmith of The Age said Max "possessed the sort of voice at which one should clap on a set of earmuffs, as so men at airports when a jumbo taxis in".[27] He also said when Max yells at Danny, birds would fly from the trees in shock.[27] The Sydney Morning Herald's Robin Oliver praised Bell's performance in the early days of the serial, saying:
there was a strong sense of approval for the leading role, taken by actor Francis Bell, who brought a splendidly manic style of comedy to the role of the nosey-parkering Max Ramsay, brother of Madge, a there-goes-the-neighbourhood-man always ready to have his hackles raised if there was the slightest chance that anything unorthodox might be happening across the street.[28]
According to Oliver, that type of comedy is funny, and he said it was "a pity" Bell left Neighbours because the action seemed stilted and the show "lost much of its fluid drive".[28] Max's popularity with the audience and Bell's sudden departure from Neighbours resulted in the forming of several "Bring Back Max Ramsay" fan clubs.[15]
References
- ^
- ^ Mercado 2004, p. 202.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Oram 1988, pp. 117–118
- ^
- ^ a b c d e f Monroe 1994, pp. 82–84
- ^ a b c d Power, Eithne (14–20 February 1987). "Love these Neighbours!". Radio Times. Vol. 257, no. 3299. p. 23.
- ^ a b c Wallis & Hogan 1989, pp. 63–64
- ^ a b c Denby, Laura (27 July 2022). "Neighbours cast: What happened to the original characters?". Radio Times. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- ^ a b c d Koppe, Margaret (16–22 March 1985). "Getting to know the neighbors". TV Radio Extra. Vol. 5, no. 226. p. 15.
- ^ a b c d Monroe 1996, pp. 27–28
- ^ a b c d Myler, Thomas (28 October 1986). "Now the other side of Max". Evening Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Mercado 2004, pp. 204–205.
- ^ a b c d Fidgeon, Patrice (30 November 1985). "From Black Bess to Mad Madge". TV Week. p. 27.
- ^ a b Oram 1988, pp. 119–120
- ^ a b c "Francis Bell Biography". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- ^
- ^ Kingsley, Hilary (30 November 1987). "Hilary Kingsley's Soap Opera". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 4 March 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ a b Julians, Joe (24 March 2020). "Original Neighbours cast member talks show beginnings as soap turns 35". Radio Times. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Return of the Ramsays". Holy Soap. Archived from the original on 4 October 2010. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
- ^
- ^ Mike (21 April 1987). "Here's Mad Max". Burton Mail. Retrieved 4 March 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Kingsley, Hilary (2 February 1988). "Brief encounter with success...". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 4 March 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Hobson 2003, p. 15.
- ^ a b Smurthwaite, Nick (20 November 1986). "Television reviews – Neighbours". The Stage. Retrieved 28 February 2022 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Character: Max Ramsay". BBC Online. Archived from the original on 3 October 2003. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
- ^
- ^
Sources
- Hobson, Dorothy (2003). Soap Opera. ISBN 978-0-7456-2655-0.
- Mercado, Andrew (2004). Super Aussie Soaps: Behind the Scenes of Australia's Best Loved TV Shows. ISBN 978-1-86403-191-1.
- Monroe, Josephine (1994). The Neighbours Programme Guide. ISBN 978-0-86369-831-6.
- Monroe, Josephine (1996). Neighbours: The First 10 Years. ISBN 978-0-7181-4212-4.
- Oram, James (1988). Neighbours: Behind the Scenes. ISBN 978-0-207-16075-2.
- Wallis, Neil; Hogan, Dave (1989). The Neighbours Factfile. ISBN 978-0-207-16382-1.