Fisk (TV series)


Fisk is an Australian television comedy series on ABC Television, which first aired on 17 March 2021. The second season aired in 2022, and the third premiered in 2024. It is also broadcast on Netflix and by other outlets around the world. The series was co-created by comedian Kitty Flanagan and Vincent Sheehan, and co-written by Flanagan with her sister Penny Flanagan. It takes its name from its central character Helen Tudor-Fisk, who joins a small legal firm after returning to her hometown, Melbourne. It stars Flanagan as Fisk, alongside Marty Sheargold, Julia Zemiro, Aaron Chen, Glenn Butcher, and John Gaden.

Premise

The series revolves around the life of lawyer Helen Tudor-Fisk, who leaves Sydney for Melbourne after her career and marriage fall apart. She then finds work at a small solicitor firm that specialises in probate law and wills. The firm, Gruber & Gruber, is run by siblings Ray and Roz, assisted by probate clerk/"webmaster" George.
In the third season, Tudor-Fisk is a partner in the rebranded Gruber & Fisk, while Roz is continuing with her career in mediation. Ray has a new romantic interest, Melissa, a fashion psychologist, while George is engaging in "side hustles" with his grandmother.

Cast

Main

Guests

Production

Producer Vincent Sheehan came up with the idea for setting a drama in a wills and probate office, and approached Kitty Flanagan, whom he had known for many years, to write the series. The series was co-written by Kitty Flanagan and her sister Penny Flanagan, and Kitty became the lead actor in the series. After having literary success with her 2019 book 488 Rules for Life: The Thankless Art of Being Correct, Kitty Flanagan realised that it was a rule book for her character, and may have been one of the reasons that ABC Television commissioned the series. The book was based on a skit Flanagan performed on The Weekly with Charlie Pickering, in which she satirised psychologist Jordan Peterson's self-help book 12 Rules for Life, saying that 12 rules were not enough - she had 488, and referred to a book she had written, which did not actually exist. After a publisher phoned her saying that bookshops were fielding multiple enquiries about the book, she wrote it.
There were questions about whether her character may be too unlikeable, but Flanagan cited her pedantry as one trait that made her relatable, and she worked on making her a rounded character over the six episodes of the first series.
The first series of Fisk was originally announced in late 2020 as Entitled. Filming took place in North Melbourne and other locations during the COVID-19 pandemic, with strict protocols on room density and proximity. Large groupings had to be avoided. In November 2021, it was announced that a second series had been commissioned by ABC. In November 2023, it was announced that a third series had been commissioned by ABC.
All three series are co-created by Flanagan and Vincent Sheehan, co-written by Flanagan and her sister Penny Flanagan, and co-directed by Flanagan and Tom Peterson. Flanagan had worked with Peterson before, preparing five-minute segments for each episode The Weekly.
Sheehan did not return to write Season 3; however he co-produced it, along with Nicole Minchin.

Broadcast

The first series went to air on ABC TV from 17 March 2021. It also aired on the ABC streaming platform, iview.
The second series aired in 2022, and the third from 20 October 2024.
The first series has been streaming on Netflix since August 2023, the second series since December 2023 and third season in August 2025.
Since August 2025, all three series can also be streamed on ITVX in the United Kingdom.

Reception

Critical reception

Kylie Northover of The Sydney Morning Herald gave the series debut 3.5 out of 5 stars. Luke Buckmaster in The Guardian gave the show 3 out of 5 stars, writing that the first episode was funnier than the rest.

Awards and nominations

In September 2021 Fisk won the Best Series Award in the comedies competition at Europe's largest TV festival, Series Mania, in Lille, France. It beat six other series chosen for the event, including the multi-Emmy-nominated series Hacks, from HBO.

Viewership

The first episode of Fisk became highest-rated episode of any program excluding children's programs on ABC iView, and as of October 2021 the first series remained still the highest-rated non-children's program across the ABC network.
On Netflix, Fisk was in the top 10 most-viewed series in 10 countries, including South Africa, the UK, and the US.
;Series 1
;Series 2
;Series 3

Home media

The first series of Fisk was released in Australia on DVD on 30 June 2021 from Roadshow Entertainment.