Susie's Not Remote
Newcastle Herald
Wednesday December 14, 2005
SUSIE Porter's proficiency with a needle as a rural nurse in her latest TV escapade is in the blood.
The Newcastle-bred actress is soon to star in RAN: Remote Area Nurse, an SBS production shot entirely on the Torres Strait Island of Masig. Porter plays Helen, the only medico on the remote island, who battles with politics and her surrounds, both beautiful and primitive."I did plenty of research before the role, about diseases in the area and that sort of thing," she told The Word yesterday. "When the props guy gave me a needle I had no problem knowing what to do with it. It's the psychological aspects of that sort of character that it's harder to get a grasp of."It is little wonder Porter has no problems with needles or sharing the experience of a puss-seeping tropical ulcer that has left a small hole in her calf muscle. Her Newcastle-based parents, Bill and Jenny, are a handy doctor-nurse paring. Her younger sister Louise is a nurse and her older sister Cathy is a doctor."The medical background is something I didn't need to think about so much because of my family, but the questions about why someone would go to such an area fascinated me," she said.In the show, Porter's character would ask the opposite question as she is so attached to the island. The character is based on Robyn White, who as the show's medical consultant worked closely with Porter while preparing for filming. White had worked as a remote area nurse with producer Penny Chapman's sister Peta. "The thing that comes out most is her sense of humour, she's such an amazing woman," Porter said. "When I talked about the ulcer, she said so calmly, if it doesn't heal you can put a bracelet or something through it. That's the sort of person she is. It's beautiful."RAN goes to air January 5.
© 2005 Newcastle Herald