TV WEEK
8th February 1997
… but Water Rats might not feature the romance viewers were expecting.
WATER RATS fans may be hoping for a romance between Rachel “Goldie” Goldstein and Frank Holloway now that the evil John “Knocker” Harrison is out of the way. But this roll on the beach isn’t likely to spark the fires of passion.
Frank (Colin Friels) tackles Goldie (Catherine McClements) to the ground in the season return of Water Rats when she freezes during a tense stand-off with a gun-toting criminal.
It is only Frank’s quick thinking that saves gun-shy Goldie, who is still emotionally shattered after shooting Knocker (Peter Mochrie), her former fiancé and crooked cop, in last season’s finale.
“She’s desperate to get back to work,” Catherine says of her character’s unstable state and premature return to the force.
“She’s very afraid that she’ll fall apart and that her whole life will come to bits if she doesn’t get back on the horse again.
“She’s sort of convinced herself and the police psychiatrist — and is trying to convince everyone else — that she’s okay.
“But she is really at a dangerous point.”
While it may not be the beginning of romance for Goldie and Frank, it’s not completely ruled out in upcoming episodes.
“If you work with someone for a long time, like Frank and Goldie, the relationship is complex and ever changing,” Catherine says.
“When you go through such a huge thing, your emotions become very warm and vulnerable to the other person who has gone through it with you.
“I think that happens with these characters. Depending on what the storyline is, they get very close or they fight.”
Like all good television police partnerships, its unlikely any hint of romance will come to fruition — but, the chemistry remains.
“It (the sexual tension) comes and it goes,” Catherine says. “They journey through it together.”
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