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Road to Avonlea
Road to Avonlea.JPG
Created by Kevin Sullivan
Based on The Story Girl
The Golden Road
Chronicles of Avonlea
Further Chronicles of Avonlea by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Starring Sarah Polley
Jackie Burroughs
Lally Cadeau
Cedric Smith
Gema Zamprogna
Zachary Bennett
Michael Mahonen
Mag Ruffman
Composer(s) John Welsman,
Hagood Hardy
Country of origin Canada
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 7
No. of episodes 91 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time 45 minutes
Production company(s) Sullivan Films
Release
Original network CBC
Original release January 7, 1990 (1990-01-07) – March 31, 1996 (1996-03-31)
Chronology
Preceded by Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel (1987)
Followed by An Avonlea Christmas (1998)

Road to Avonlea is a popular Canadian TV show. It first aired in Canada on January 7, 1990. The show ran until March 31, 1996. In the United States, it started on March 5, 1990.

Kevin Sullivan created the series. Sullivan Films (now Sullivan Entertainment) produced it. They worked with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and the Disney Channel. Telefilm Canada also helped with funding.

The Disney Channel showed the series in the United States. They aired it until January 1997. The show is based on books by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Many characters and stories come from her novels. These include The Story Girl and The Golden Road.

Some episodes of the TV show were later made into separate books. About 30 book titles were released. In the United States, the show was sometimes called Avonlea. Also, some episodes had different names or were shown in a different order. When the series came out on VHS and DVD in the U.S., its title changed to Tales from Avonlea.

Meet the Characters of Avonlea

Road to Avonlea Characters
Major characters in the series (from left to right): Hetty King, Jasper Dale, Olivia King- Dale, Sara Stanley, Alec King, Felix King, Janet King, Cecily King, Eliza Ward and Felicity King

This show features many interesting people. They live in the small town of Avonlea. Here are some of the main characters you'll meet.

Main Characters in the Story

  • Sara Stanley (Sarah Polley): Sara is a 10-year-old girl. She is used to a fancy life in Montreal. She has to learn to live a simpler life in Avonlea. Her mother, Ruth King, passed away when Sara was very young. When her father, Blair Stanley, gets into legal trouble, he sends Sara to Avonlea for her safety. Sara lives with her aunts, Hetty and Olivia, at Rose Cottage. Later, Sara often tries to help people find love in Avonlea. Sarah Polley left the show after season five. She came back for two guest appearances.
  • Henrietta "Hetty" King (Jackie Burroughs): Hetty is the oldest King sibling. She is the head of the King family. She lives at Rose Cottage with her sister, Olivia. Hetty is a strict teacher at the Avonlea school. She even stopped teaching for a while to write books. Later, she takes in Rachel Lynde and two twins, Davy and Dora Keith. In a special Christmas movie, Hetty plans a concert. She gets hurt and needs an operation.
  • Olivia King (Mag Ruffman): Olivia is the youngest King sibling. She is kind, sensitive, and loves to socialize. Many of her adventures involve meeting people in Avonlea. She works as a newspaper reporter. Later, she marries Jasper Dale and moves out of Rose Cottage. They have a son named Montgomery. They also adopt a baby girl named Alicia.
  • Alec King (Cedric Smith): Alec is Sara's uncle. He is the first son of the King family. He is a farmer and lives with his family at King Farm. This farm is right next to Rose Cottage. Alec is usually calm and sensible. He often helps when Hetty is being stubborn.
  • Janet King (Lally Cadeau): Janet is Alec's loving wife. She is also very independent. She is the mother of Felicity, Felix, Cecily, and Daniel King. She has a sister named Abigail McEwen.
  • Felicity King (Gema Zamprogna): Felicity is Alec and Janet's oldest child. She often wants to take on grown-up tasks. She thinks she is better than her younger siblings and cousin Sara. During the show, she wants to be a wife, a teacher, and a doctor. Eventually, she manages the Avonlea Foundling Home. She becomes close with Gus Pike. She accepts his marriage proposal. Then she hears he was lost at sea. Later, he is found alive but cannot see. Felicity brings him back to Avonlea. They get married in the last episode.
  • Felix King (Zachary Bennett): Felix is Alec and Janet's mischievous son. He often gets into trouble. He becomes friends with Izzy, the daughter of the new schoolteacher, Mr. Pettibone. Later, Felix and Izzy's friendship turns into a romance.
  • Cecily King (Harmony Cramp season 1–5, Molly Atkinson seasons 6-7): Cecily is Alec and Janet's quiet younger daughter. The actress changed when Cecily became very ill. She had to go away for special care in the United States. She is more interested in farm work than her brother Felix. Alec even thinks about leaving the farm to her.
  • Daniel King (played by Alex and Ryan Floyd): Daniel is Alec and Janet's youngest son. He is born at the end of the second season.

Other Important Characters

  • Gus Pike (Michael Mahonen): Gus is a young wanderer. He slowly earns the respect of the townspeople. He is a sailor and speaks in a unique way from the Maritimes. He leaves Avonlea to find his mother, who he thought was gone forever. After a big storm, people think he is gone. But Felicity and Hetty find him. He cannot see, and they bring him back to Canada. He has surgery to help him see again. After that, he marries Felicity.
  • Jasper Dale (R.H. Thomson): Jasper is an inventor and photographer. He has a stutter when he speaks. He eventually marries Olivia. They buy a local cannery (a factory that cans food). In the last season, the cannery burns down. They adopt a baby girl and move to Europe.
  • Eliza Ward (Kay Tremblay): Eliza is Janet and Abigail's great-aunt. She often visits King Farm. She is sometimes a bit strange and bossy. Later, she moves in with the Kings. She becomes a permanent part of the King Farm family. Her cleverness and wisdom become very helpful to the King family.
  • Rachel Lynde (Patricia Hamilton): Rachel loves to know everyone's business. She sees herself as the person who makes sure everyone in Avonlea acts properly. Her character first appeared in Anne of Green Gables. At the start of the show, Rachel lives with her best friend, Marilla Cuthbert. After Marilla passes away, Rachel becomes unwell. She moves in with Hetty King. They raise Davy and Dora Keith together.
  • Marilla Cuthbert (Colleen Dewhurst): Marilla is Rachel's best friend. She is more understanding than Rachel. She also appeared in Anne of Green Gables. After raising Anne Shirley, she adopts two orphaned children, Davy and Dora Keith. Rachel was not happy about this at first. After Marilla's sudden passing, Rachel continues to care for Davy and Dora. But after Rachel becomes unwell, Davy, Dora, and Rachel move to Rose Cottage with Hetty and Sara.
  • Davy Keith (Kyle Labine): Davy is Marilla's orphaned relative. He comes to live at Green Gables with his twin sister, Dora. Davy is wild and often gets into trouble. Later, he, Dora, and Rachel move in with Hetty. He and Hetty do not get along well.
  • Dora Keith (Ashley Muscroft, Lindsay Murrell): Dora is Davy's twin sister. She came to Green Gables with Davy after their mother passed away. Dora is sweet and well-behaved.
  • Muriel Stacy (Marilyn Lightstone): Muriel is a schoolteacher. She becomes a superintendent (a supervisor of schools). She is Hetty's rival. The two women are very different. Her character also appeared in Anne of Green Gables. Later, Muriel moves back to Avonlea for good. She takes over the general store. She marries Clive Pettibone.
  • Clive Pettibone (David Fox): Clive is a widower. He has three children: Arthur, Izzy, and Morgan. Clive's family moves to Avonlea. He takes over as teacher at the Avonlea School after Hetty. He used to be an Army colonel. He is very strict. Soon after he arrives, it is revealed that both he and Hetty are successful writers. Later, he becomes a superintendent and marries Muriel Stacy.
  • Isolde "Izzy" Pettibone (Heather Brown): Izzy is Clive's youngest child and only daughter. She is a tomboy. She quickly becomes friends with Felix King. Eventually, they become a couple. As a child, she wanted to be like her father. She hoped to be the first female general in the British army.
  • Morgan Pettibone (played by Mark Bigney, and later by Toby Proctor): Morgan is Clive's middle child. Clive sent Morgan to military school. But Morgan left because he loved art. Arthur helped Morgan follow his dream of becoming an artist. Clive then accepted Morgan's decision to go to art school.
  • Arthur Pettibone (Zachary Ansley): Arthur is Clive's oldest child. He is much older than his siblings. At first, he is angry with his father about his mother's passing. But their relationship gets better after the family moves to Avonlea. For a while, he and Gus both like Felicity. He is an independent thinker. He studied to become an animal doctor.
  • Clara Potts (Maja Ardal): Clara is one of the main people who spread gossip in town. She is often seen with Eulalie Bugle. She likes Felicity. Marilla Cuthbert did not like her.
  • Eulalie Bugle (Barbara Hamilton): Eulalie is another town gossip. She is usually with Clara Potts or Rachel Lynde. She first appears in season three.
  • Andrew King (Joel Blake): Andrew is another King cousin. He is sent to live on King Farm at the same time as Sara. His father, Roger, is the brother of Hetty, Olivia, Alec, and Ruth. Andrew and Sara were born exactly one year apart.
  • Peg Bowen (Susan E. Cox): Peg is a quiet herbalist. People in Avonlea think of her as a kind of witch.
  • Mr. Harrison: Mr. Harrison is the neighbor of Green Gables. He buys it after Marilla passes away. At first, he and Mrs. Lynde do not get along. Later, they become interested in each other.
  • Peter Craig (Miklos Perlus): Peter is a farm helper. He is about Sara's age. He works at King Farm in season one.

Special Guest Stars

Many famous actors appeared on the show. Here are some of them:

Episodes Guide

Main article: List of Road to Avonlea episodes

Filming Locations

The Road to Avonlea set was built in Uxbridge, Ontario. This is the town where Lucy Maud Montgomery lived and wrote for ten years. The town of Avonlea was made from existing buildings. The roads were painted red to look like the red soil of Prince Edward Island.

Filming also happened often at Westfield Heritage Centre in Flamborough, Ontario. Pictures and digital effects combined scenes from Prince Edward Island with the Uxbridge location. This made the show look like it was all filmed on the island.

Watching the Show at Home

Sullivan Entertainment released all seven seasons on DVD. This happened in Region 1 between 2005 and 2006. In 2009, they started releasing the series again. These new versions were in widescreen format. By December 2012, all seven seasons and the Christmas special were available in widescreen.

In 2016, Sullivan Entertainment announced a new streaming service. It is called Gazebo TV. This service would include Road to Avonlea and other shows they made. The service started in early 2017.

Show Ratings

The first episode of Road to Avonlea was very popular. It was watched by over 2.5 million viewers.

Awards and Recognitions

During its seven years, Road to Avonlea won many awards. It was also nominated for many more around the world:

  • Emmy Awards: The show received 16 Emmy nominations. It won four Emmy Awards. These included:
    • Outstanding Lead Actor in a Dramatic Series (Christopher Lloyd) in 1992.
    • Outstanding Children's Program in 1993.
    • Outstanding Costume Design for a Series in 1995.
    • Outstanding Guest Actress in a Dramatic Series (Dianne Wiest) in 1997.
  • CableAce Awards: It had 17 CableAce nominations. It won four CableAce Awards for Best Dramatic Series in 1991, 1993, and 1994. It also won for Best Writing in a Dramatic Series.
  • Gemini Awards: The show won 18 Gemini Awards. These included awards for Best Direction, Best Costume Design, and Best Original Score. Actors like Jackie Burroughs, Cedric Smith, and Lally Cadeau also won. Guest stars like Kate Nelligan, Bruce Greenwood, and Frances Bay also received awards.
  • It also won three John Labatt Classic Awards. These were for the Most Popular Program in Canada. The public chose these awards in 1990, 1991, and 1992.

Where Road to Avonlea Aired Around the World

North America

Central America

South America

  •  Argentina: Canal 9 Libertad / Channel 20 / Magazine TV Pay
  •  Paraguay: Canal 13 RPC / Paravisión / Channel 8 of CVC and 31 of TVD
  •  Uruguay: Canal 10 / TCC

Europe

Asia

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