Pupils at a Sussex school are astonished by the success of their online Aussie-style soap.

Recorded to stave off lunchtime boredom at Tideway Community School, the youngsters' spoof soap Melbourne High is now attracting thousands of viewers over the internet thanks to its outlandish plots, wobbly sets and outrageous cliff-hangers.

Eight Year 10 pupils at the school in Southdown Road, Newhaven, write and record episodes of Melbourne High using their school's digital cameras.

Still images are then uploaded on to the school web site, which is drawing more than 1,900 hits a day.

But unlike their counterparts down under, the pupils take around eight weeks to script, direct and shoot each episode.

Viewers around the world are on a knife-edge following the conclusion of the first episode - when Emily was felled by a mystery attacker clutching a computer mouse.

They are now waiting with bated breath until the next episode to discover whether she is she dead, disfigured or simply trying to bunk off double maths.

Assistant headteacher Jim Fanning said: "Many of the students had been working with the internet in the past and wanted something to occupy their lunchtimes.

"While it is really just for them, they are also picking up a lot of skills in making the storyline work with the images.

"All eight pupils have said how much they've enjoyed making the episodes. The plots are simple but they work well."

Ben Groucutt, 15, said: "It's all a bit of fun. I especially enjoy writing the scripts. Although we have only done one episode so far, we're already working on our second."

James Sandalls, 15, said: "We like to put a bit of comedy into our scripts. When we are all working together, it's a lot of fun."

Log on to the latest soap sensation at www.tidewayschool.org