The Home Song Stories

1822. Macquarie Harbour, a remote prison camp guarded by miles of impenetrable wilderness, was feared by convicts banished there as a fate worse than death. It is 1964. Tom's mother, Rose Hong (Joan Chen), a beautiful and glamorous Shanghai nightclub singer, meets Bill (Steven Vidler), an Australian sailor, and migrates to Victoria with her two children, Tom (Joel Lok) and May (Irene Chen). However, their marriage is short-lived and Rose and her children move to Sydney, where she spends the next seven years working in Chinese restaurants.In 1971, Rose, May and Tom return to the outer suburbs of Melbourne to live with Bill. Rose and Bill are attempting to reconcile. Much to her chagrin, Rose learns that Bill's mother Norma (Kerry Walker) also lives in Bill's house. When Bill is called away by the Navy, a battle ensues between the two women for control of the house, a battle which Norma eventually wins, kicking Rose and her children out.