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8 / 10

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Overview

Magazine features writer Birdie Bell meets successful grazier Joe Burt on a dating app and believes she's found her perfect match, but as the relationship intensifies she begins to feel her boyfriend isn't all he has led her to believe.

Media

Fake | Official Trailer | Premieres 4 July | Paramount+ Australian Original

Cast

Heather Mitchell

Creator:

Anya Beyersdorf

Fist Air Date:

2024-07-04

Episode Runtime:

45m

Production Companies:

Kindling Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Screen Australia, VicScreen

Genres:

Keywords:

catfishing dating app liar writer

More Show Details

Vote Average: 6.4/10

Vote Count: 10 Votes

Show Popularity: 2.0893

Show Status: Ended

Show Type: Scripted

Spoken Languages: English

Review

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Insomniacs Reviews
- 04 May 2026 at 2:14 pm

8 Based on 1 Votes
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⭐ Insomniacs Rating: 8/10 THE SUMMARY Birdie Bell is a smart, successful magazine writer who thinks she’s finally cracked the code to modern dating when she matches with Joe, a wealthy and charismatic grazier. He’s everything she’s been looking for—kind, attentive, and seemingly perfect. But as their romance intensifies, the cracks begin to show. Based on the true story by Stephanie Wood, Fake is a chilling exploration of a "love scam," where a web of increasingly bizarre lies and gaslighting turns a dream relationship into a psychological prison. THE PROS This is an 8/10 because Asher Keddie delivers a powerhouse performance as Birdie. She captures the slow unraveling of a person’s sanity with devastating accuracy, making you feel every bit of her confusion and desperation. David Wenham is equally brilliant as Joe; he doesn’t play him as a cartoon villain, but as a "textbook" manipulator who is disturbingly calm and careless. The show avoids cheap thrills, focusing instead on the insidious way trust is eroded over time. It’s a uncomfortable, visceral watch that perfectly illustrates how even the most intelligent people can be blinded by a master of deception. THE CONS It misses a higher score because the narration can occasionally feel a bit heavy and "literary," pulling you out of the moment with lines that don't always sound like natural speech. The pacing is a deliberate slow burn, which works for the story but might test your patience during the middle episodes where the cycle of lies and forgiveness starts to feel repetitive. It settles at an 8 because, while it’s a gripping cautionary tale, the sheer frustration of watching Birdie ignore the red flags can make it a genuinely difficult experience for some viewers. THE VERDICT An 8/10. A sharp, nuanced thriller that exposes the rot behind a "perfect" romance. It isn't a 9 because of some clunky dialogue choices, but for the acting alone, it’s a total winner. If you’ve ever questioned your gut feeling in a relationship, this series will hit you like a tonne of bricks. It’s a landmark Australian drama that finally gives a voice to the psychology of being gaslit. INSOMNIAC TRIVIA • Real World Origins: The series is a faithful adaptation of Stephanie Wood’s 2019 memoir. Wood was a high-profile journalist for *The Age* and *The Sydney Morning Herald* when she was targeted by the real-life "Joe," making the show's focus on her investigative skills very authentic.• Award Season Sweep: At the 2024 AACTA Awards, the show was a major contender, picking up nominations for Best Drama Series and Best Lead Actress. It later won the 2025 AWGIE Award for Television Limited Series, cementing its status as one of the best-written shows of the year.• Meta Casting: Asher Keddie didn't just lead the cast; she was also a producer on the series. She was so moved by Wood's original story that she fought for years to get the adaptation off the ground, ensuring the tone stayed grounded and avoided "Hollywood" melodrama. THE VIBE Like a beautiful dream that slowly turns into a cold sweat. It smells like sea salt and expensive wine, but with a metallic tang of fear. It’s tense, isolating, and deeply unsettling. It makes you want to check every fact, trust nobody, and realize that some people are only as real as the lies they tell you.

TV Show Poster

Season 1

8 Episodes

Air Date: 2024-07-04

Videos

Fake | Official Trailer | Premieres 4 July | Paramount+ Australian Original

Cast

Heather Mitchell

Spencer McLaren

Anne Charleston

Janet Andrewartha

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Comment (1)

Insomniacs Reviews
- 4 May 2026 at 3:14 PM

⭐ Insomniacs Rating: 8/10
THE SUMMARY
Birdie Bell is a smart, successful magazine writer who thinks she’s finally cracked the code to modern dating when she matches with Joe, a wealthy and charismatic grazier. He’s everything she’s been looking for—kind, attentive, and seemingly perfect. But as their romance intensifies, the cracks begin to show. Based on the true story by Stephanie Wood, Fake is a chilling exploration of a “love scam,” where a web of increasingly bizarre lies and gaslighting turns a dream relationship into a psychological prison.
THE PROS
This is an 8/10 because Asher Keddie delivers a powerhouse performance as Birdie. She captures the slow unraveling of a person’s sanity with devastating accuracy, making you feel every bit of her confusion and desperation. David Wenham is equally brilliant as Joe; he doesn’t play him as a cartoon villain, but as a “textbook” manipulator who is disturbingly calm and careless. The show avoids cheap thrills, focusing instead on the insidious way trust is eroded over time. It’s a uncomfortable, visceral watch that perfectly illustrates how even the most intelligent people can be blinded by a master of deception.
THE CONS
It misses a higher score because the narration can occasionally feel a bit heavy and “literary,” pulling you out of the moment with lines that don’t always sound like natural speech. The pacing is a deliberate slow burn, which works for the story but might test your patience during the middle episodes where the cycle of lies and forgiveness starts to feel repetitive. It settles at an 8 because, while it’s a gripping cautionary tale, the sheer frustration of watching Birdie ignore the red flags can make it a genuinely difficult experience for some viewers.
THE VERDICT
An 8/10. A sharp, nuanced thriller that exposes the rot behind a “perfect” romance. It isn’t a 9 because of some clunky dialogue choices, but for the acting alone, it’s a total winner. If you’ve ever questioned your gut feeling in a relationship, this series will hit you like a tonne of bricks. It’s a landmark Australian drama that finally gives a voice to the psychology of being gaslit.
INSOMNIAC TRIVIA
• Real World Origins: The series is a faithful adaptation of Stephanie Wood’s 2019 memoir. Wood was a high-profile journalist for *The Age* and *The Sydney Morning Herald* when she was targeted by the real-life “Joe,” making the show’s focus on her investigative skills very authentic.
• Award Season Sweep: At the 2024 AACTA Awards, the show was a major contender, picking up nominations for Best Drama Series and Best Lead Actress. It later won the 2025 AWGIE Award for Television Limited Series, cementing its status as one of the best-written shows of the year.
• Meta Casting: Asher Keddie didn’t just lead the cast; she was also a producer on the series. She was so moved by Wood’s original story that she fought for years to get the adaptation off the ground, ensuring the tone stayed grounded and avoided “Hollywood” melodrama.
THE VIBE
Like a beautiful dream that slowly turns into a cold sweat. It smells like sea salt and expensive wine, but with a metallic tang of fear. It’s tense, isolating, and deeply unsettling. It makes you want to check every fact, trust nobody, and realize that some people are only as real as the lies they tell you.

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