Behind the scenes of the Offspring finale

Should we or shouldn' we? ... Nina's pregnancy was much-debated.

Natalie Hambly, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports

The show's creator Deborah Oswald and producer Imogen Banks share their behind-the-scenes tidbits on the Offspring finale.

Maybe baby: Fans were driven crazy by the is-she-or-isn't-she storyline and no doubt were convinced they were being manipulated by the evil writers. Not so! Apparently they were as conflicted as the rest of us. Oswald and Banks say they really struggled over whether Nina should or shouldn't be pregnant; it was much debated with a lot of to-ing and fro-ing. The pair also noted they were nervous about how the show's fans would take the news, confessing to monitoring online feedback "with bated breath".

You might think making such big character decisions would be one of the joys of writing television but the two said that in reality it's quite scary "but we felt that we owed it to the character to progress her and to make sure she doesn't get stuck in the same mode."

That singing scene: Apparently one of the few requests the writers and producers have received from Kat Stewart, who plays Billie Proudman, was to never make her sing on the show. Oswald and Banks say she took the news like a trooper -"she has the ability to receive bad news better than any actor we've come across" - and that she didn't need any direction in the scene "she just went for it". She certainly did!

The fancy dress outfits: The actors had definite ideas about what characters they wanted to dress up as, especially Eddie Perfect (Mick) who had his heart set on being a penguin. "It was nice to have an image of them all that reflects each of their own characters," says Oswald.

Lachy Hulme (who plays Dr Martin Clegg) was obsessed with his bunny ears, she adds, and keen viewers would have noticed that Martin's floppy bunny ears stood up straight once he got the good news from Cherie.

Blood on the shower floor: It was potentially a risque scene for conservative Australian viewers but Oswald and Banks say they didn't hear a peep about it from the network's management. Kudos to them.

Cliffhanger, and lack thereof: The finale neatly wrapped up the storylines, which is great for fans, but it does leave niggling doubt of the show's return. Oswald and Banks say that actually it is more that they don't really think in terms of cliffhangers, they love them for episodes but not for finales. And thank heavens for that!

Last but not least, the ending: Patrick and Nina finally confess their ongoing love for each other but fans will note that it was only after the possible pregnancy was resolved (well, so they thought anyway) that the two came together. Oswald and Banks say it was very important to them that Nina and Patrick declare their love for each other when they think Nina's not pregnant.

As for the rom-com style resolution where Nina and Patrick have a very public reunion, the inspiration partly came for the need to differentiate it from the season two finale and also because it fit with the pair's communication troubles.

"With an audience [Nina and Patrick] had to make more of an effort to communicate," says Oswald.

"And Nina's family is key to who she really is," adds Banks.

Now that it's over and the fans are happy what we really want to know is what's ahead for series four. Oswald and Banks are keeping mum for the moment (so to speak) but viewers can rest assured that the show is definitely returning to our screens next year. Ten has just announced it has signed up Offspring for not one, but two more seasons. Shooting on series four begins this December.