Theo is forced to confront his father again next week on Home and Away in the UK, as Dimitri returns to Summer Bay after 17 years…
Following his admission to John Palmer (Shane Withington) that he had been a victim of his father Dimitri’s (Salvatore Coco) abuse throughout his teen years, Theo Poulos (Matt Evans) has been on pins and needles in recent weeks.
Theo made an urgent phone call to his mother Cassandra after discovering that documents pertaining to his community service had been mailed to his home address back in the city. Cassandra reassured Theo that she had hidden the letter out of Dimitri’s reach, much to his relief.
After overhearing the chat, John became concerned and asked Theo what he was afraid of, and the truth finally came out.
Dimitri had always been an authoritarian parent, but when Theo began to speak up after turning 14, Dimitri escalated the situation by physically abusing him.
Theo vowed John to secrecy because he didn’t want his aunt Leah (Ada Nicodemou) to learn the awful truth about her older brother, but Leah and Justin (James Stewart) had been seeking to establish bridges between Theo and Dimitri in recent weeks.
Justin was unable to persuade Theo to contact his father, and Theo was alarmed when he learned that Leah had visited his parents while returning from Cyprus.
Theo was happy to find that Dimitri had washed his hands of him, as he was afraid of what he might have told Leah. Leah was perplexed by Theo’s attitude and revealed that she was ashamed of her brother for abandoning his own son.
When Dimitri shows up in Summer Bay unexpectedly this week, Theo’s relief is short-lived.
Leah sees the lack of notice as a good thing because Dimitri clearly wants to make amends with his kid. Dimitri is eager to see Theo right away when he comes, and he doesn’t want Leah to tell him… He prefers that it be a surprise.
When Leah and Justin bring Dimitri to the garage, it’s a complete surprise for Theo.
Dimitri says that he’d like some alone time with Theo in front of the others, so the two return to the house, where Dimitri’s attitude abruptly shifts.
Dimitri sends Theo back to the city, stating that Cassandra has abandoned him. As Justin and Leah arrive, Theo is overjoyed that his mother has finally stood up to Dimitri, and the two are in the middle of a heated argument.
As Dimitri tells Justin and Leah that Theo has no respect for family, and that this has only gotten worse since he moved in with them, Theo rushes off. He then accuses Leah of inciting Cassandra and Theo to turn against him!
Cassandra reveals that her leaving Dimitri had nothing to do with Leah intervening over the phone, but only Theo knows the real reason.
Meanwhile, Justin’s alarm bells start to sound as he listens to Dimitri’s thoughts on the need to be tough on Theo…
Leah and Justin agree that something more is going on, and they need to figure out what it is…
Dimitri Poulos, who is he?
Dimitri is Leah’s older brother, as well as Alex (Danny Raco) and Chris (Alex Blias), and initially came on the show in 2003 to celebrate Alex’s 21st birthday.
Dimitri’s disputes with Alex during the celebrations contributed to their father Theo’s (Silvio Ofria) heart attack, as he is the most hot-headed of the siblings and a stickler for the Poulos family customs.
After the two reconciled their issues, Dimitri came to see Leah and VJ off at the airport as they flew to the United States for VJ’s hearing operation. Dimitri’s most recent appearance was during Leah’s wedding to Dan Baker in 2005. (Tim Campbell)
After Salvatore Coco was observed filming in Palm Beach, we first reported about Dimitri’s comeback in November.
Salvatore hailed his time on the show in an Instagram response to the news.
“I can guarantee you that when Dimitri returns to the bay, the bay will have no idea what hit them,” he remarked. “As an actor, the material I was given was very rewarding; I had so much to work with, and @thisismattevans was fantastic to work with.”
