TV ACRES: Genies > Bruce and Baz (The Genie From Down Under)

Bruce & Baz - Two Australian genies featured on the fantasy comedy THE GENIE FROM DOWN UNDER/BBC/AUS/1995 & 1998. Bruce is a 5,000 year old genie. He and Baz, his genie-in-training son, live inside an opal pendant now owned by a snobby, spoiled, 13-year-old aristocrat named Penelope Townes who found the dazzling opal in a long-forgotten trunk in Townes Hall, her family's stately but crumbling mansion in Wiltshire, England. When Penelope rubbed the opal out popped two genies who had been waiting 130 years to escape from the wet and gloomy Wiltshire landscape and return to Australia. Determined, to get back down under, despite his attraction to Penelope's mother Lady Diana, Bruce interprets Penelope's wish for wealth and property to his own end and instead transports Penelope and her family to Townes Downs, her family's run-down farmhouse in the middle of the Australian outback. And so begins a hilarious battle of wits and wills between Penelope, the master, and Bruce, the slave.

Adding to Bruce and Penelope's woes are Otto Von Meister and his 15-year-old nephew, Conrad who run "Crocodile Otto's Outback Experience" along with his loyal employee Trish Emu. Conrad claims that their family used to own Penelope's' opal and they have begun a campaign to retrieve the stone. Apparently, his forefather stole the opal from indigenous Australians and then lost it in a card game to Penelope's great, great, grandfather.

Meanwhile, Lady Diana is falling for Bruce, Lord "Bubbles" Uppington-Smythe, still wants to marry Lady Diana and Penelope must work out a way to have the best of both worlds - Diana and Bruce as husband and wife and Bruce as her Genie.

Standing firm behind all of the action is Miss "Mossie" Mossop the Towne's loyal housekeeper.

TRIVIA NOTE: The Genie From Down Under is a 26 part comedy-fantasy series jointly produced by BBC-ABC-Australian Children's TV Foundation. Amanda Midlam authored the tie-in books based on the original series and second season sequel.

I'm the genie, you are the master
That's right, I'm the master, you are my genie
You belong to me, Yes!

I've served a lot of masters throughout history
Now I want to go back home where I can be free
Then you come along with the opal in your hand
Now your every wish is my command
That's right

Genie, Genie from Down Under
Make my wish come true
Dream on
Genie, Genie from Down Under
I wish you'd do what I want you to
Oh, yeah, all right then.
Genie from Down Under

Cast Credits
Alexandra Milman	as	Penelope Townes
Rhys Muldoon	as	Bruce (1996)
Sandy Winton	as	Bruce (1998)
Glenn Meldrum	as	Baz
Anna Galvin	as	Lady Diana Townes
Mark Mitchell	as	Otto von Meister
Fletcher Humphrys	as	Conrad von Meister
Ian McFadyen	as	Lord "Bubbles" Uppington-Smythe, Lady Diana's suitor
Emily Milburn	as	Marcia Huntley (1996)
Jacinta Stapleton	as	Sophie
Kylie Belling	as	Trish Emu (1996)
Bobbi Henry	as	Darlene (1998)
Petra Jared	as	Marcia Huntley (1998)
Monica Maughan	as	Miss Mossop the housekeeper
Bobbi Henry	as	Darlene
Lewis Fiander	as	Inspector Graves
Marie-Louise Walker	as	Miss Chaterly
Nicholas Bell	as	Major Nigel Huntly