The 1983 ten-hour miniseries of The Thorn Birds was one of the top-rated television events of its year and one of the most popular miniseries yet made, with Richard Chamberlain, who had been popular in his miniseries role of John Blackthorne in the miniseries of James Clavell's Shogun a few years earlier, receiving much publicity for his portrayal of Ralph. Rachel Ward portrayed Meggie, Mare Winningham portrayed her daughter Justine, Philip Anglim played the role of Meggie and Ralph's son Dane, and Ken Howard played Rainer (the young German soldier Ralph meets and who, in a nottoo surprising coincidence, meets and later marries Justine). Other characters, such as Fee, were de-emphasized, and McCullough's vivid settings were not fully utilized. The relatively short role of Mary Carson was built into a panting emotional showcase for veteran star Barbara Stanwyck, who won an Emmy award for her work.

The mini-series spanned...