Top Ten: Great Fires

There were many fires in Prisoner, ranging from the huge forest blazes towards the end of the series, to the smaller cell fires earlier on. Here are ten of the most memorable burning moments.

1. The Great Fire of Wentworth (327)
The most infamous and dramatic fire. A distraction was required and Chrissie Latham set light to a pile of books in the library. But Margo Gaffney took things further by throwing a molotov cocktail into a store room. Unfortunately a delivery of turpentine had been stored there. The fire quickly took hold, causing the security gates to malfunction and slam shut, and the prison building was seriously damaged. Dramatically, two inmates were killed in the blaze.

2. Rita burns down Blackmoor (667)
During a riot at Blackmoor, Rita had instructed the inmates to build bonfires ready. But when her brother was shot before her eyes, she poured spirit on the fire and set light to it, burning the prison to the ground.

3. Joan’s Kitchen up in smoke (553)
At a time when Lionel Fellowes was trying to dispose of Joan, she awoke one night to find her house filled with smoke. She was eventually found unconscious in her hallway, and the fire, which started in the kitchen, destroyed her house.

4. Sid Humphrey’s house (239)
After Sid’s death, Lizzie was living in his house when Sid’s creepy son, Gordon, tried to scare her into leaving. In a poignant moment, she poured kerosene over the furniture and set light to the house, to ensure Gordon could never get his hands on it.

5. Hunger strike protest (197)
The women held a hunger strike, in an attempt to have Erica Davidson reinstated as governor, and Bea Smith returned from Barnhurst. The protest went on to include several fires in cells, and Erica was indeed reinstated. But although Bea left Barnhurst, her journey did not make it to Wentworth.

6. Grog-filled extinguisher (284)
Doreen set her bed alight, to provide a distraction so that Bea could recover a hidden letter. Unfortunately the fire extinguisher Steve Fawkner chose to deal with the fire, had been used to hold Lizzie’s illicit grog, and it eventually exploded, injuring him.

7. Drugged tea-urn riot (466)
Joan Ferguson ordered Marie to start a riot, in an attempt to get rid of Ann Reynolds. Reb’s part in this was to start a fire in one of the cells, but when she realised Marie’s intention was to kill Myra, she was less keen to be involved.

8. Bike shed blaze (596)
After being attacked in her home by Rita’s biker friends, Joan followed them to their hideout and got revenge by setting fire to the shed holding their precious Harley Davidsons.

9. Herbalist horror (179)
When the women realised they had been poisoned by Evelyn Randall so that she could demonstrate the healing powers of herbal medicine, they set a booby trap in her cell. This resulted in a flash fire, burning her face, and she was last heard of being rushed to hospital.

10. Spider and the Shop (661)
Knowing the prison shop could seriously damage her business, Spider Simpson tried to burn it down by starting a fire beneath it. It was spotted and extinguished by Merle Jones, but the events led to Spider getting a very scary night-time visitor in her cell.