April 2026
Dogs in Space house – any of you who came of age in the 70s/80s like me would know what this is – the movie was a pretty big deal in 1986 ! It was filmed here, 18 Berry Street Richmond, just off Bridge Road. I actually remember seeing the lights and activity there one early evening passing by on the tram, and recognised the spot when I saw the film !
It’s a very photogenic place, being two storeys in a narrow street on a hill and at the end of an even narrower one, but director Richard Lowenstein chose it because he had actually lived there in 1978, and the film was semi-autobiographical. He shared with musician Sam Sejavka, who was in The Ears, and who Michael Hutchence’s character is based on. It’s quite big so I guess lots more lived there too.
I’ve read that they ‘un-renovated’ the house then re-renovated after, not sure what that meant but the house does get trashed in the film. In fact a lot of stuff takes place in the street too – the scene where they take the tv outside to watch Skylab crash…
I’m very surprised to see that the house is on the Heritage Register, in fact added in 1988, in part because of the film ! But also as a pretty rare two storey timber house, built in 1886 by Henry Frenchman, who claimed to have discovered the Bendigo goldfields. Interesting, but looking back I wonder if that’s enough ?
There’s a photo of the house from 1902, I don’t know where it’s from or when it turned up, but presumably after the current verandah cast-iron was added, since it’s different. Don’t know when that was either but after it was listed by HV, since they’ve got a photo of it without (pic 10).
Storey of Melbourne 