Throng

Rafters actress leaving show

Packed to the Rafters actress Jessica McNamee has announced her exit from the hit Australian drama series during the third season run across the ditch. McNamee plans to move onto new projects and more diverse roles.

Bilson to return to How I Met Your Mother

Ex-The OC actress Rachel Bilson will return to How I Met Your Mother for the show’s upcoming sixth season. Bilson has previously made a guest appearance in the fifth season of the show.

Rafters actor joins Play School

Packed to the Rafters actor Hugh Sheridan has made his debut on the children’s series Play School in Australia. The actor, who plays Ben on the drama series, will co-host Play School several times a week.

Glee merch on sale soon

The range of Glee products soon to be available to the public prior to the second season will feature the likes of a Wii game entitled Karaoke Revolution Glee, a Glee boom box, board games, greeting cards by Hallmark, apparel, stationery, and “small leather goods”.

8:30pm Wednesday, May 19 on TV One

On tonight's episode of Packed To The Rafters (at 8.30pm on TV ONE) the Rafter family, and Dave (Erik Thomson), prepare to give Ben (Hugh Sheridan) and Melissa (Zoe Ventoura) the engagement party they deserve.

For Hugh Sheridan who plays middle child, Ben Rafter, performing has always come naturally. "As a kid I used to love singing and running around getting dressed up and performing. Then when I was five my older sister Zoe enrolled me in acting school, that's when I decided I wanted to be an actor," he says.

So when Sheridan landed the role, he was thrilled to learn he would be working such talented actors, "when I met Rebecca Gibney and Michael Canton I was in awe. I remember gushing because they were such huge stars - I had to stop myself from asking for their autographs."

8:30pm Wednesday, February 3 on TV One

New Zealand-born Rebecca Gibney and Kiwi actor Erik Thomson are back to head the cast of TV ONE's series Packed To The Rafters (tonight at 8.30pm).

Julie and Dave Rafter still can't get time to themselves. With two of their offspring residing at home, the third next door, and a growing number of spouses inhabiting their surrounds; it would seem their little bungalow has reached its capacity. But the beginning of the second series spells trouble for the Rafters - not only has Julie fallen pregnant with her fourth child, but the new sandwich-lady at Barrett's Electrical, with some sort of psychic ability, makes a series of troubling predictions for the family.

Episode one explores the theme of perception and self-perception - how much power people give to others by allowing what they think of them to influence how they feel about themselves.

8:30pm Tuesday, November 10 on TV One

Tonight on Packed To The Rafters, the moon is nearly full and something strange is in air (at 8.30pm on TV ONE). Ben begs the moon goddess for five minutes with the lost Melissa; Rob wants to make Rachel the mother of his children; and Carbo waits for his ominously silent mother to explode.

Going off in search of Melissa, Ben calls every Bannon in the Perth phone book, and finds her mum, but she knows less about Melissa than Ben. Dave is the only one who helps when he discovers a camera he found is Melissa's. He sets up a meeting, and Ben apologises to Melissa and bares his heart.

• Anyone notice Libby's hair on Shortland Street lately has been to die for?  Amazing!
• Oliver = Joey 2.0 on Shortland Street, but Oliver is nowhere near as good as Joey.  Oliver = medical professional who secretly experiments treatments on patients to aid his research and doesn't mind if they die.  Joey = medical professional who secretly operated on patients to aid his skills and doesn't mind if they die.  Both had dead ex-es. 
  Joey was better because: 1. we got to know (and like) him before realising he was secretly Mr. Evil.  Some of us even felt sorry for him.  2. there was huge mystery and suspense. Read more

8:30pm Tuesday, September 1 on TV One

On Packed To The Rafters tonight (at 8.30pm on TV ONE), Dave Rafter (Erik Thomson) is tormented by the sudden endless replays on the radio of 'Suburban Boy' - the hit song Dave co-wrote many moons ago, but never received credit nor remuneration for.

Reconnecting with his old band mate and surrogate brother Steve Wilson (Craig McLachlan, McLeod's Daughters and Neighbours), Dave agrees to join Steve for the 'Greaties from the Eighties' tour.

But as history repeats itself, Dave is again forced to choose between his family and the band. Nathan needs Dave's help when Nathan's plans to impress a client, with money he doesn't have, fails.