As the Bell Rings (Australian TV series) facts for kids

As the Bell Rings is a fun, short comedy show from Australia. It was shown on Disney Channel (Australia) from 2007 to 2011. The show features quick, funny scenes with live actors. It's an Australian version of an Italian Disney Channel show called Quelli dell'intervallo. In 2009, As the Bell Rings won an award for being a Most Outstanding Short Form Program at the ASTRA Awards.

Meet the Characters

Main Characters

• Jonesy (played by Jack Pearson): Jonesy often gets into silly situations. He's best friends with Raff and really likes Amber. His younger sister, Annie, sometimes makes fun of him. Jonesy is the tallest character in the cast. He appeared in almost every episode.
• Raff (Deniz Akdeniz): Raff is a sporty kid who also gets into trouble, just like his best friend Jonesy. The actor, Deniz Akdeniz, once said his favorite moment was finishing a special handshake with Jack (Jonesy) for the whole series.
• Amber (Alicia Banit): Amber loves fashion. She often gets annoyed when Jonesy asks her out. Alicia Banit, who plays Amber, thought it was super funny when Jonesy dressed up as a girl in one episode.
• Annie (Tessa Whelan): Annie is Jonesy's younger sister and is often seen as cooler than him. She tries to help Jonesy with Amber, but sometimes her plans backfire and embarrass him. She likes Raff. Annie is the shortest cast member and was not in the second season.
• Parker (Bardiya McKinnon): Parker is a smart, a bit nerdy, student who tries to impress Haley. In one episode, it was hinted that he might be an alien! Bardiya McKinnon enjoyed playing a rockstar in one of his favorite episodes.
• DJ (Sianoa Smit-McPhee): DJ is a very lively and talkative character. She can sometimes talk so much that she drives others a bit crazy! She often mentions her little sister. DJ did not appear in the second season.
• S.A.M. (Aleksa Kurbalija): S.A.M. is the school's "major" (like a prefect) who tells on other kids. Most students don't really like him, and Jonesy and Raff are his biggest rivals.
• Haley (Nicole Gulasekharam): Haley tries to be very kind and friendly to everyone.
• Rusty (Max Pfiefer): Rusty is the school's joker. He doesn't get into as much trouble as Jonesy. He often uses different voices. Max Pfiefer's favorite episode was when Rusty broke a school statue and pretended to be the statue to avoid getting caught.
• Rocky (Rhiannon Fish): Rocky loves sports and is often seen in sports clothes. She can be a bit full of herself and is strong enough to scare some of the boys!
• Vince (Christian Antidormi): Vince is a sporty character who joined the show later, taking Raff's place. The girls initially found him good-looking but later found things to criticize about him.
• Tina (Kiane O'Farrell)
• Zoe (Allegra Fleming)
• Eddie (James Campbell)
• Marcus (Rowan Hills)
• Mia (Tori Bailey): Mia was a new character in the fourth season. She is a loud singer who plays the guitar. Tori Bailey won a special Disney Casting Call Competition in Australia and New Zealand to get this role.

In season 3, five new characters joined the show: Vince, Tina, Zoe, Eddie, and Marcus.

For season 4, Mia was added. Tori Bailey, who played Mia, won a competition to join the cast. A special video showed Tori getting the phone call that she had won!

Cast Members

When Did the Show Air?

The first episode of As the Bell Rings was shown on September 24, 2007. It usually aired on weekdays at 5:25 pm. It was often shown between other popular Disney Channel shows like The Suite Life on Deck or Wizards of Waverly Place and Hannah Montana. You could also catch repeats after movies and other TV series.

• Season 2 aired from January 2, 2009, to September 14, 2009.
• Season 3 finished filming in July 2009 and started airing on October 2, 2009. It ran until April 16, 2010.
• The fourth season began filming in June 2010 and finished in October 2010. It was broadcast from February 11, 2011, to June 17, 2011.

The Australian version of the show is similar to the United Kingdom version. However, in the Australian show, the school is called Paterson High. Also, the characters have different names, and there is no laugh track. A fun fact: at the end of each episode, they showed bloopers (funny mistakes) made by the actors!

Most of the actors were from Melbourne, Australia. But Parker (Bardiya McKinnon) was from Sydney, and DJ (Sianoa Smit-McPhee) was from Adelaide. The show was filmed at Docklands Studios Melbourne.

Episode Guide

How Many Episodes Are There?

Season 1 (2007–08)

Season 2 (2009)

Season 3 (2009–10)

Season 4 (2011)