Storylines of Neighbours

Since it started in 1985, there have been many storylines shown during the Australian soap opera Neighbours.

1985–89

In the beginning, the show mainly focused on two families, the Robinsons and the Ramsays, neighbours in Ramsay Street. The loud and fiery Max Ramsay (Francis Bell), after whose grandfather the street is named, ruled his household with an iron fist, and had a turbulent relationship with wife Maria (Dasha Blahova) while clashing with his sensitive son Danny Ramsay (David Clencie). Max had more time for his athletic oldest child Shane Ramsay (Peter O'Brien), involved in competitive diving. Max acted as though he owned the entire street and sustained a feud and rivalry with his more thoughtful, business-owner neighbour Jim Robinson (Alan Dale). Jim's wife had died in 1975, after which mother-in-law Helen Daniels (Anne Haddy) moved in to help raise Jim's four children. These were Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis), studying engineering at university, bank teller Julie Robinson (Vikki Blanche), high school student Scott Robinson (then played by Darius Perkins, later recast with Jason Donovan), primary school student Lucy Robinson (Kylie Flinker).

Another resident of Ramsay Street was bank manager Des Clarke (Paul Keane). The engaged Des was jilted in the earliest episodes of the show. When he took in a lodger the applicant was Daphne Lawrence (Elaine Smith), the stripper from his stag party. She moved in and began a romance with neighbour Shane Ramsay. Disapproving of much of this was Jim's daughter, the moralistic Julie Robinson - who was Des's neighbour, former girlfriend, and employee.

Max Ramsay's wife Maria left him and moved to Hong Kong during 1985. Puritanical Julie apparently relaxed her strict morals by taking up with her new boss, the married Philip Martin (Christopher Milne). Julie and Philip moved away in late 1985. Max's sister Madge Mitchell (Anne Charleston) moved into the Ramsay home in early 1986 and quickly became a key character in storylines. Madge's daughter Charlene Mitchell (Kylie Minogue), an energetic tomboy, soon moved in, while Max moved away to Queensland. Max's son Danny settled into his new job of bank teller and moved away soon after, and Madge's son Henry Mitchell (Craig McLachlan) moved in to the house after his release from prison. Charlene began a romance with neighbour Scott Robinson and their Romeo and Juliet-style romance storyline was one of the show's most popular.

Scott and Charlene's close friends were Des's latest lodger Mike Young (Guy Pearce), and the plain and studious Jane Harris (Annie Jones). Jane and her grandmother, the meddling Nell Mangel (Vivean Gray), had moved in to Ramsay Street in mid-1986. Mike and Jane later started a romance. Scott and Charlene's wedding was a key event in the series. Scott's older brother Paul,became a ruthess businessman, and had a difficult time with women. His first marriage to plumber Terri Inglis ended when she shot him while trying to flee the police. His second to business partner Gail Lewis was a marriage of convenience.

Meanwhile Madge took up with Harold Bishop (Ian Smith) and they later married. Platonic housemates Des and Daphne eventually fell in love, and later married. After leaving to care for her sick father, Daphne was badly injured in a car accident. She very briefly returned for her death scene in hospital where her final words were the whispered 'I love you, Clarkey'. It was the first death of a main character.

With Shane Ramsay's departure in 1987, all of the original Ramsay family members had left. Henry and Charlene also departed in the late 1980s, while Madge remained. She endured the disappearance of Harold, but was reunited with high-school sweetheart Lou Carpenter (Tom Oliver). Jim Robinson remarried in 1988 to Doctor Beverley Marshall (Lisa Armytage), later Shaunna O'Grady) and her nephew and niece Todd and Katie Landers joined her on the day of the wedding and moved in with them. They were later joined by street kid, Nick Page, creating a new family unit for Jim after his children had left home.

1990–99

Alan Dale playing former long standing patriarch Jim Robinson during the episode his character died (1993)

The Robinson family was in turmoil when Lucy Robinson (Melissa Bell) started a sexual flirtation with her half brother Glen (Richard Huggett) - whom her dad had fathered during the Vietnam War - despite both knowing that they were related. Julie Robinson (now played by Julie Mullins) and Phillip Martin (now played by Ian Rawlings), and their children, returned in 1992. The various Robinson family members were gradually written out through the 1990s. Scott was last seen in 1989 after moving to Queensland, scheming businessman Paul Robinson fled to South America to escape legal problems in 1993, Jim died of a heart attack in 1993, Julie died in an accidental fall in 1994.

During the early 1990s the storylines were dominated by the various members of the Willis family who took over the house vacated by Des in 1990. They included Doug (Terence Donovan) and Pam (Sue Jones) and their several teenaged children. Doug and Pam moved out in 1994, leaving just their daughter Cody Willis (Peta Brady) living in a different house on Ramsay Street, and the Kennedy family moved in to their former home. The Kennedy family became central to many of the programme's storylines. Madge had moved away in 1992 and the nouveau riche Cheryl Stark (Caroline Gillmer, later played briefly by Colette Mann) and her various family members moved in to the former Ramsay residence. Cheryl enjoyed a long term romantic involvement with Lou Carpenter. In 1994 she gave birth to baby Louise Carpenter (Tessa Taylor, later played by Jiordan Anna Tolli). By 1996 the relationship with Lou had ended; later it was learned that Louise was not fathered by Lou but was the result of an affair. In late 1996 Cheryl died after being hit by a car, after which her various family members moved away, while Louise stayed with Lou.

In late 1996 Harold, who was believed drowned but was actually alive and suffering amnesia, was spotted by Helen when he returned to Erinsborough, having been living in Tasmania. Helen's family initially thought she was losing her mind, but when Lou confirmed it was definitely Harold the two of them contacted Madge. Harold and Madge were reunited and they returned to live in Ramsay Street. In the late 1990s Philip Martin and his children lived with Helen Daniels in the Robinson house. Helen died in 1997. Philip and the children all moved away in 1999, and that year the Scully family moved in to the vacant Robinson house. Toadie Rebecchi (Ryan Moloney) joined the storyline in the mid 1990s and he emerged as a key character in the show's storylines. Through the late 1990s and the 2000s many members of the extended Rebecchi family figured prominently in storylines.

In the late 1990s, Neighbours gained the reputation as being a somewhat conservative soap with topics such as sex generally not being included in the storylines due to its early evening timeslot (Earlier storylines involving controversial topics such as incest and teenage sex were often censored by the BBC in the UK, which may account for the reluctance on the part of producers to depict controversial issues).

2000–05

Madge and Harold lived as a couple until Madge's death in 2001. Stuart Parker (Blair McDonough) was a key character throughout the early 2000s. Max Hoyland (Stephen Lovatt) and his family moved to Ramsay Street in 2002. Harold's son David Bishop (Kevin Harrington) and his family moved to the street in 2003. After more than a ten-year absence Paul Robinson returned as a regular in the final episode of 2004. In 2005 Toadie's aunt Janelle Timmins (Nell Feeney) and her brood of children moved in to Ramsay Street for an extended stay.

Starting 2004 racier elements were included in the storylines. Teenage characters began discussing issues such as sex and contraception in a manner which has not been seen on the show since the mid 1990s. In late 2004, the show depicted a lesbian storyline involving Sky Mangel (Stephanie McIntosh) and Lana Crawford (Bridget Neval). Serena Bishop (Lara Sacher) and Luka Dokich (Keelan O'Hehir), embarked on an intimate relationship, blissfully ignorant of the fact that they were half-siblings - sharing a mother Liljana Bishop (Marcella Russo). Stuart's fiance Sindi Parker (Marisa Warrington) was involved in stripping and prostitution. In 2006 there were strong indications that Katya Kinski (Dichen Lachman) had been involved in the pornography industry and had taken hard drugs. She was also shown stealing cars for shady associates from her past.

In 2004, the breakup of long time married couples Karl (Alan Fletcher and Susan Kennedy Jackie Woodburne) and soon after Joe (Shane Connor) and Lyn Scully (Janet Andrewartha) led to much turmoil. Izzy Hoyland (Natalie Bassingthwaighte) duped Karl into believing that he was the father of her unborn child, continuing the charade long after she tragically miscarried in November 2004. After over a year of manipulation, Izzy's lies came to light in a spectacular fashion, and despite a last ditch attempt by Izzy to gain Karl's sympathy by falsely claiming that she was raped, Karl finally dumped Izzy for good.

Neighbours' 20th anniversary was composed onscreen of two simultaneous storylines, one which was Annalise Hartman (Kimberley Davies) returning to Ramsay Street to film a documentary about the street. The other storyline was about Paul Robinson arranging a joyflight to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Lassiter's, which resulted in the plane being bombed, which turned into one of the most dramatic storylines in the history of Neighbours.

Old and New Neighbours celebrate 20 years of Lassiters, and Neighbours

Annalise Hartman returned to Ramsay Street to film a documentary for the BBC, which was to be about the street itself. The documentary, which aired on episode 4773, featured cameos by (in alphabetical order): Amy Greenwood, Angie Rebecchi, Beverly Marshall, Billy Kennedy, Brett Stark, Danni Stark, Danny Ramsay, Darren Stark, Debbie Martin, Felicity Scully, Gaby Willis, Gail Robinson, Hannah Martin, Hilary Robinson, Jane Harris, Libby Kennedy, Luke Handley, Mal Kennedy, Marlene Kratz, Matt Hancock, Melanie Pearson, Nina Tucker, Paul McClain, Ruth Wilkinson, Sam Kratz, and Sarah Beaumont.^[1]

Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) decided to celebrate the re-opening and 20th Anniversary of the Lassiter's Hotel Complex in Erinsborough with a 1940s-style joy flight to Tasmania, followed by a night at another branch of Lassiter's casino and hotel on the island. Several residents were given tickets including; David Bishop, Lijana, Susan Smith, Alex Kinski, Connor O'Neil, Dylan Timmins, Sky Mangel, Izzy Hoyland and Elle Robinson. Unknown to them a bomb had been placed in the undercarriage of the Douglas DC-3 aircraft. The device exploded as the plane was mid-flight over Bass Strait. Though the plane remained relatively intact after the explosion, the aircraft descended into the ocean, sinking not far from the shore of Tasmania. Susan and Izzy surfaced together, unable to see any of the others, though Elle could be heard screaming nearby. Izzy located Elle, but lost track of Susan in the process. Connor and Serena were trapped in the wreckage of the plane, and were forced to remove their life jackets to reach the surface of the water. Both lost consciousness from exhaustion. Connor later found himself washed up on a deserted stretch of coastline, but Serena was nowhere to be seen. Paul, Izzy, Elle, Alex and Sky were found by rescue helicopters in the 24 hours following the crash. Susan remained missing for three days, eventually being found washed up on shore in a dazed, semi-conscious state. David's body was recovered the following Thursday, but Liljana and Serena remain missing, presumed drowned. Connor and Dylan washed up safely on shore, but did not reveal themselves to rescuers, taking the opportunity to be assumed dead and escape arrest. They later returned to Ramsay Street.

2006–10

2006 saw the birth of Steph and Max Hoyland's (Stephen Lovatt) first child, Charlie. Steph was treated for breast cancer soon after giving birth and she later made a full recovery. It was revealed that Paul Robinson's son Robert (Adam Hunter) had planted the bomb on the plane in an attempt to kill his father, his sister Elle (Pippa Black), and Izzy. Max accidentally knocked down and killed Cameron after mistaking him for Robert when he him chasing Katya Kinski. Max was then intentionally driven insane by Elle for revenge and Robert was taken to jail after being caught by the police. Katya's friend, Guy Sykes (Fletcher Humphrys), showed up in Ramsay Street and blackmailed Katya for money. She was forced to steal cars and when she grew tired of it, she lured Guy to the forrest and tried to shoot him. Guy wrestled the gun from her and she was shot. Katya survived and was given a suspended sentence by the police, she left Ramsay Street shortly after. Four new residents moved into Number 30;Frazer Yeats (Ben Lawson), Pepper Steiger (Nicky Whelan), Rosetta Cammeniti (Natalie Saleeba) and Will Griggs (Christian Clark). The 2006 finale featured the wedding of Paul and Lyn Scully, however when Paul realised that he wouldn't be able to not cheat on Lyn, he left her just hours after the ceremony. Lyn then left for her honeymoon with Oscar and subsequently moved to Shelley Bay. Guy Sykes returned and held several of the residents hostage, during an escape Toadie was shot. He survived, but the bullet could not be removed.

In early 2007, Karl and Susan married for a second time in London. A pregnant Izzy, who had left Ramsay Street for London, went into labour at the wedding and Karl delivered the baby, Holly. Susan later overheard Izzy telling her new partner that Holly was Karl's daughter. Susan told Karl the truth back home and he returned to London for several weeks to spend time with his new daughter. Max Hoyland departed the street following the breakdown of his marriage to Steph. Frazer's younger brother, Ringo Brown and Lou's youngest daughter, Lolly arrived in Ramsay Street. Stingray Timmins suddenly died of an aneurysm during a party, leaving his family and friends devastated. The Timmins family departed the Street, leaving Janae Timmins behind, so she could continue her relationship with Ned Parker. Ned discovered he was a father, when his young son, Mickey turned up. A new family, the Parker's arrived with Steve (Steve Bastoni), Miranda (Nikki Coghill), Bridget (Eloise Mignon) and Riley Parker (Sweeney Young). Frazer was temporarily paralyzed after being trampled by a horse, but was able to walk in time for his wedding to Rosetta. On the way back from the wedding, a mini bus containing several residents was hit by a removals van and Ringo ended up in a coma.

Susan Kinski battling MS (2007)

Susan Kennedy was diagnosed with Multiple sclerosis after displaying unusual symptoms for months. Oliver Barnes's (David Hoflin) long-lost mother and brother, Rebecca (Jane Hall) and Declan Napier (James Sorensen) arrived and later moved in with Paul and Elle. Late 2007 saw the returns of Valda Sheergold (Joan Sydney), Daniel Fitzgerald (Brett Tucker), Libby Kennedy, her son Ben and Darren Stark (Todd MacDonald).

Valda Sheergold, Lou Carpenter and Harold Bishop; the new age comedy trio

When the teenagers attended an illegal dance party held in a warehouse, the roof collapsed, trapping and injuring them. Jessica Wallace (Heidi Walkenburg) died beside Ringo, trapped beneath the wreckage. The roof collapse spawned several storylines, including Ringo dealing with losing his new girlfriend, a class action lawsuit against the Erinsborough Council, Zeke's relationship with his new girlfriend and Jess's best friend Taylah Jordan (Danielle Horvat), and Elle and Riley writing several news stories about the collapse.

Early 2008 saw the departures of Janae Timmins, who left to be with her family and Valda, who left to return to Shelley Bay. Taylah's cousin Ty Harper (Dean Geyer), an aspiring musician and university drop-out, and Daniel's ex-wife Sam (Simone Buchanan) arrived in Ramsay Street. Lyn Scully (Janet Andrewartha) returned and was revealed to be blackmailing Paul Robinson over his affair with Kirsten Gannon. Paul's affair was exposed and his relationship with Rebecca fell apart.

Karl Kennedy, Lyn Scully and Steph Scully; watch on as Rebecca rips into Paul after his affair is exposed

Bridget Parker invited Chris Knight to be her partner at the school formal. Chris later tried to pressure Bridget into sex and she pushed him away and he hit his head. Chris late died and Steve Parker took the blame for his daughter. However, Bridget cleared his name and he was freed from jail. Donna Freedman (Margot Robbie), Callum Jones (Morgan Baker) and Daniel Fitzgerald's brother Lucas (Scott Major) all arrived. A bushfire broke out while some of the residents were celebrating Marco's birthday. Meanwhile in another part of the bush, SES volunteers were also caught up in the fire. Kirsten Gannon was badly injured, she survived but had to go to Perth for treatment and Ned and Mickey left. Marco was also seriously injured in the fire and he died shortly after he and Carmella married in the hospital. Oliver Barnes went to live overseas and was later joined by Carmella and Chloe. It was revealed that Briget Parker had fallen pregnant by her boyfriend, Declan. When Declan discovers that he is to become a father, he flees. He later returned and the couple moved in with each other. Harold Bishop was diagnosed with cancer and almost died of a heart attack.

The teens go on a rafting trip, but following a prank one of the rafts over turns throwing Bridget, Libby and Zeke into the water. 2009 saw a search launched for the missing residents and Bridget and Libby were found, but Zeke remained missing and was later presumed dead. He was eventually found in February, suffering from amnesia and living with a man named Phil Andrews, who had convinced him he was really a boy called Trent. He eventually learnt of the lies Phil had told him and returned to the street. Harold Bishop left the street to travel around Australia with Lou Carpenter. After the departure of Rachel Kinski, Susan and Karl took in a Korean exchange student, Sunny Lee. Ty Harper left soon after to join Rachel in London. Libby Kennedy and Daniel Fitzgerald got married, but Libby collapsed shortly after the ceremony. Libby then revealed that she is pregnant. However, a hemorrhage led to a miscarriage and a hysterectomy, leaving Libby unable to have children. The arrival of a new generation of Ramsays, Kate, Harry and Sophie, meant that there were Ramsays living on Ramsay Street for the first time since Madge Ramsay died. Bridget and Declan got married and Bridget later gave birth to a baby girl, India. Tragedy struck when Bridget died, following a car accident involving the Parkers when they were on their way to visit relatives in Oakey. Declan, her husband was devastated and in his grief he almost let their daughter India leave with the Parkers as he felt he was unable to look after her. Stephanie Scully was blamed for the accident and Declan attacked her car. It was later revealed that Johnno, the man Lucas Fitzgerald had been gambling with, was responsible for tampering with the car.

Libby Kennedy and Dan Fitzgerald decided to turn to surrogacy in order to have a child of their own. Steph initially offered to carry their child, but she was told by Karl that a pregnancy could increase her chances of her breast cancer returning. Susan then decided to offer to carry Libby and Dan's child, which caused controversy among Erinsborough residents after Paul published an article about it in his newspaper. After trouble with the hospital board, who had decided to stop the programme, the family were told they could go ahead with the surrogacy. A few weeks later Susan confirmed that she was pregnant to the delight of Libby and Dan. However, Dan and Susan came in to conflict several times. During a trip away to sort out their problems, Susan fell and miscarried the baby. After Dan realised that Libby blamed him for their baby's death, the couple decided to divorce. Dan and Steph got drunk at Charlie's and later slept together. Dan left the street in December 2009. Steph later realises she is pregnant and enlists Toadie's help in covering up the true paternity of her baby. Steph and Toadie pretend to be a couple and go as far as getting married. Chris Pappas (James Mason), the first on-going openly gay male was introduced and Michael (Sandy Winton) and Natasha Williams (Valentina Novakovic) move into Ramsay Street.

Paul Robinson embezzles money from Lassiters into PirateNet and Diana Marshall (Jane Badler) arrives in Erinsborough to bring Paul down. Paul sleeps with Diana in a bid to get her on his side, but she still plans to expose him. Paul discovers Toadie and Steph's lie after he bugs their phones and threatens to use it against Toadie if he does not help him get rid of Diana. Paul later catches Toadie helping Diana and Paul plays a recording of a phone conversation between Steph and Dan in Charlie's. Libby hears the truth and she tells Steph that they are no longer friends. Steph decides to leave town for a few weeks. Ringo Brown (Sam Clark) marries Donna and during the wedding reception, Paul is pushed off the Lassiter's mezzanine. He is taken to Erinsborough hospital, where he remains in a critical condition. Steph gives birth and gives the baby to Dan, who names his son Adam. Paul wakes up and reveals that he knows who pushed him. His wife, Rebecca, later confesses to Kate Ramsay that she did it. Ringo is knocked down by Steph's motorcycle and he dies. Steph is charged with culpable driving and Dan's ex-wife, Samantha Fitzgerald (Simone Buchanan), returns and reveals she is the prosecutor for Steph's court case. Steph is later sentenced to six years in prison. Lyn struggles to pay for Steph's appeal lawyer and thinks about setting fire to her house, by putting some broken Christmas lights on the tree, to claim the insurance. She changes her mind, but Summer later replaces the lights on the tree before she and Andrew declare their feeling for each other. While Andrew and Summer are in her room, a fire starts. Natasha sees the fire and calls the emergency services before going into the house to find Summer. Michael also goes into the house and Lyn, Karl and Lucas hear an explosion.

2011—

Natasha, Michael, Andrew and Summer are all rescued by the firefighters. Andrew spends time in the hospital after he suffers internal bleeding. He and Summer agree to keep their feelings for each other a secret. Lyn, Summer and Charlie are left without a home and move in with the Williams family. Sonya Mitchell (Eve Morey) tries to keep her younger sister, Jade (Gemma Pranita) from meeting Toadie and Callum. However, she does not succeed and when Jade meets Callum she realises that he is Sonya's son. Rebecca begins an affair with Michael and tries to find a way to leave Paul. Donna leaves for a fashion school in New York. After Natasha finds out that Andrew is cheating on her with Summer, she lies to Andrew that she is pregnant, so he will stay with her. Lucas becomes involved with Garland Cole (Jack Finsterer), an ex-criminal who has him rebirth cars and throw motorcycle races. Detective Mark Brennan (Scott McGregor) goes undercover to break up the illegal street racing ring and later arrests Garland. Zeke leaves for a place at the London School of Economics, while Rebecca, Declan and his daughter flee to Portugal with Carmella and Oliver. Summer exposes Natasha's pregnancy lie and Callum discovers that Sonya is his mother. Mark discovers that there is corruption in the police force and reports it. Harold Bishop returns and marries Carolyn Johnstone (Paula Duncan).

Callum's biological father, Troy Miller (Dieter Brummer), arrives and meets his son. Lyn and Charlie leave for Bendigo and Summer moves in with Susan and Karl. Troy leaves town after learning that Toadie and Sonya are back together. Natasha meets Ivan DeMarco (Ben Knight), an older man who persuades her to send him naked pictures of herself. The pictures go viral and Natasha is humiliated. Mark goes into witness protection and left during a real time episode. A couple of weeks later Toadie learns of his death. Karl tells Susan that he thinks they are heading in different directions and he worries that he is not enough for her. Their eldest son, Malcolm, returns. Susan begins supporting Jim Dolan (Scott Parmeter) through his cancer treatment. Jim dies, without Susan present and she blames Karl for keeping her from him. Karl and Susan later announce they are separating. Toadie begins working for a law firm and becomes a legal adviser to the Hamilton Group, a company who wants to build a large shopping complex in Erinsborough. Sonya buys the community garden and turns it into a nursery. Paul and Kyle Canning (Chris Milligan) try and fight the development. Natasha decides to learn more about her mother and meets her estranged aunt, Emilia (Freya Stafford).

References

1. ^ Green, Kris (14 April 2005). "More Neighbours returns confirmed". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi UK. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/news/a20611/more-neighbours-returns-confirmed.html. Retrieved 12 July 2011. 

External links

• NeighboursFans.com - Episode Summary Archive