‘Like a big high school reunion’: Patrick Brammall and Harriet Dyer on the AACTA Awards

Colin From Accounts stars Patrick Brammall and Harriet Dyer on what it’s really like to walk the AACTAs red carpet – and how they feel about being nominated.

While hard-earned trophies take pride of place in many homes, Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall treat their burgeoning collection as a first line of defence.

The creators of Binge series Colin From Accounts display their 2024 Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) award – along with his and hers 2023 Silver Logies – in their office kitchen, “up a bit awkwardly high though, so they are gathering dust,” Dyer admits to The Binge Guide.

“We don’t really showcase them – they’re our secret weapons.” Nodding in fierce agreement, Brammall adds, “Actually, an AACTA would make an extremely good weapon.”

Patrick Brammall, Harriet Dyer and Colin the dog from the AACTA-nominated series, Colin From Accounts. Picture: Getty Images

Picture: Getty Images

Ahead of this week’s AACTA ceremony the couple prefer to slay audiences with humour, and their unique blend of on- and off-screen chemistry.

The husband-and-wife team – who write, produce and star in Colin From Accounts, which films in Australia but has become an international hit – are both nominated for the gender-neutral Best Acting in a Comedy award.

Far from seeing it as a source of friction or even friendly rivalry, the pair say they would revel in either coming out on top.

“Each of our performances doesn’t work without the [other] one,” Brammall explains of working alongside Dyer. “So if one of us wins, it’s a win for both of us.”

With co-star Genevieve Hegney also in the same race, Dyer adds, “A win for Colin is a win for Colin. But I think there are so many funny performers in Australia that it’s time for two categories.”

Although neither won the Best Acting in a Comedy AACTA last year (pipped at the post by Kate Box for Deadloch), Colin From Accounts was crowned Best Narrative Comedy.

The show is up for the same gong this year, against Austin, Bump, Fisk, Strife and The Office.

‘Like a big high school reunion!’ Harriet Dyer of Colin From Accounts (right) on the AACTA Awards. Picture: Justin Lloyd

On the odds of securing a back-to-back victory, Brammall says, “One dares to hope we could. There’s also some dear friends associated with those other shows, so we are in good company.”

Should they be lucky enough to add to their arsenal, the LA-based couple will have to accept their honours remotely, as their schedules won’t allow them to make the trip home this time around.

“We loved it last year,” Dyer recalls of being on the Gold Coast for the 2024 ceremony.

“It’s like a big high school reunion, or something that you actually want to go to.”

Multi-award-winning director and AACTA patron George Miller – nominated this year for his film Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga – agrees it’s an event nobody wants to miss.

“Australian casts and crews are among the most talented and hardworking on the planet,” he tells The Binge Guide.

Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall are on the cover of this Sunday’s The Binge Guide.

“These awards provide the only occasion when everyone, whatever their skill sets, can gather at one big Aussie bash to cheer and salute that excellence.”

Author Trent Dalton will be front and centre at the AACTAs to support Boy Swallows Universe, the Netflix adaptation of his 2019 bestseller.

The series has a record 22 nominations, including four cast members contesting the same prize in a field of just six.

“It’s the single sweetest champagne problem to carry into these awards,” Dalton tells The Binge Guide with a laugh.

“If one of those BSU boys gets up in the Best Supporting Actor category, then I hope they do some kind of seasonal summer-autumn-winter-spring shared custodial arrangement.”

According to Dalton, the series’ veteran supporting actors – Bryan Brown, Simon Baker and Travis Fimmel – want to see their young co-star, newcomer Lee Tiger Halley, win the award.

As he explains, “That’s just one of a hundred examples of the care and fraternity and support that exists between the cast and crew members who made that miracle of a show happen.”

The 2025 AACTA Awards airs at 7.30pm on Friday on Network 10. An extended version streams from 7.30pm Saturday on Binge and Foxtel On Demand. Also available on Hubbl.

Read more about the AACTAs in The Binge Guide, out today via The Sunday Telegraph (NSW), Sunday Herald Sun (VIC), The Sunday Mail (QLD) and Sunday Mail (SA).

Originally published as ‘Like a big high school reunion’: Patrick Brammall and Harriet Dyer on the AACTA Awards