Scott and Charlene's wedding in Neighbours; the catfights in Prisoner; Graham Kennedy's antics on In Melbourne Tonight - such moments in television history are imprinted in the memories of many Australians.
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How great a role television plays in shaping our memories - and even the Australian identity - will be the focus of a one-day symposium at the University of Wollongong today.
UOW Professor Sue Turnbull will be joined by the nation's leading television researchers including professors John Hartley, from Curtin University, and Alan McKee, of Queensland University of Technology
Prof Turnbull said that for so many people, television had been a way to experience what it was to be Australian.
"Whether it's been a soap opera like Number 96 that shocked people with its depiction of a very urban, hip, sexily progressive society; or popular dating game shows or variety shows like In Melbourne Tonight - many people have very intimate memories of television," she said.
"It's been part of their lives and, for those, especially in rural or regional Australia, it has shaped the way they view what it is to be Australian."
Our memories of momentous events in history like Cyclone Tracy in Darwin in 1974; the Melbourne or Sydney Olympics and the apology to the Stolen Generation in 2008, have also been shaped by what we've seen on the box.
"Television has been both a companion and witness to the history of a nation in the making," she said. "So it's tied up with ideas of national identity."
Prof Turnbull said researchers would talk about their research at the symposium, as well as the progress of a current research project which was inviting people living in southern NSW to share their memories of television and its place in their lives.
"Television continues to shape people's views of the nation - and the world," she said.
"Once it was a little box in the corner of the room; today people can watch TV on their mobile phone, on their computer and other devices, at a time that suits them.
"It's no longer bound by time and space."
However, when it came to breaking news or sporting events like the Melbourne Cup, television still had the ability to stop the nation.
"There are time-bound events when news is unfolding, or major sporting events, when you will still find Australians glued to the screen," she said.
A new book, Remembering Television, edited by Prof Turnbull and Kate Darian-Smith, will be launched today.
Anyone interested in being part of the study can contact Prof Turnbull at her email address: sturnbul@uow.edu.au