Before the final episode of rival drama Neighbours, Home and Away sent an emotional greeting to the cast and crew. One final episode of the adored Australian soap opera will air at 9 p.m. on Friday, July 29 on Channel 5 and My5.
Channel 5 said that it would remove the popular teatime drama from its summer schedule in order to devote more resources to original UK productions. After the production company Fremantle Media failed to secure a new home for the show, Neighbours was eventually removed from television screens.
Neighbours has pulled out all the stops for the final episode after airing approximately 9,000 episodes over the course of the last 37 years, with Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan, and Margot Robbie all returning to Ramsay Street to honour the event. The actors who originally portrayed Scott Robinson, Donna Freedman, and Charlene have all acknowledged that the soap helped to jumpstart their on-screen careers.
The popular soap opera was also honoured by Home and Away. One day before the final episode, the show’s official account said on Twitter: “Hats off to Ramsay Street’s incredible cast and crew for a fantastic 37 years. An legendary episode of @neighbours will always be remembered in Australian television history. Massive gratitude and admiration from everyone in the Bay for you all who are #celebratingneighbors.”
Tweeting “Big love to Summer Bay [love heart emoji],” neighbours responded.
When Neighbours was cancelled, a Channel 5 representative stated: “Neighbours will not continue to air on Channel 5 through this summer. We would like to congratulate the cast, Fremantle, and the entire production crew for their excellent work on this landmark series, which has been a much-loved component of our schedule for more than ten years.
“Of course, we’d also like to thank the viewers for their enduring support of Neighbours. Although we are aware that this choice will cause disappointment, our present priority is to increase our investment in original UK drama, which is very popular with our audience.
Neighbours, the longest-running drama in Australia, debuted in 1985, as fans of the long-running soap opera may recall. The drama was initially broadcast on BBC One until 2008, at which point it moved to Channel 5.
