Wentworth Magazine Issue 2

THE PRISONER FILES
Fan memories of the month
My favourite villain is a somewhat more difficult
question to answer. For me a villain has to be clever,
terrifying, funny and also somewhat alluring. Nola
McKenzie was the only one who fitted that criteria for
me. Whilst others like Lou Kelly had some hysterical
one-liners, she was somewhat irritating in her earlier
days. Bev Baker was chilling to the core but her
character was short-lived. Marie Winter lacked
cleverness. Nola had all the qualities I would expect
in a villain, and she could rival Bea easily. Whilst Bea
was never afraid to face Nola, it was clear that she
though Nola was a tough adversary. Nola's schemes,
although created to feather her own nest and
enhance her popularity, were perhaps some of the
most enterprising of the series. Her alliance with
Ferguson, fights with Bea, hilarious insults and
terrifying toughness made Nola a fabulous villain!
It is hard to isolate one single storyline as my favourite,
as there were many great ones. For me now, I think it
has to be the tunnel escape and especially the lead up to
it. There was a great sense of co-operation between the
women and it was a rare time where there was little
interference or sabotage from rival prisoners. The
women were united in their revolt against Stuart
Gillespie's strict regimen. The planning, the tension and
the eventual tragedy that ensued was fantastically
entertaining. The Build up spans for about 5 or 6
episodes and there is not a dull moment in any of them. I
challenge anyone to say otherwise on this storyline. I find
it annoying to hear some say that Joan Ferguson made
Prisoner, when great storylines such as this were played
out long before she walks the walls of Wentworth.
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