After 37 years on air, Aussie soap Neighbors ended last week – and many tuned in to see some of the early stars of the show make their reappearance.
Fans especially couldn’t wait to see Scott and Charlene – aka Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue – return to Ramsay Street.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Neighbors star explains his changed appearance
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But they appeared only briefly, parking their red Mini on Ramsay Street before getting out and admiring their old home, then appearing later at Toadie’s wedding.
The pair was given next to no dialogue – in fact, Minogue spoke only five words all episode, three of which were “home sweet home.”
The other two? “Jane” and “Harold”.
Memes and jokes began flying: was Minogue being paid by the word and charging an exorbitant rate for each?
Having lived in the UK for so long, was her accent now too posh for mechanic Charlene?
Was she actually a DeepFake?
Were she and Donovan having trouble remembering their lines?
The answer to all these questions is no, according to the show’s executive producer, Jason Herbison.
Herbison told TV Tonight that Minogue and Donovan didn’t want to overshadow some of the more recent cast members in the finale.
And the timing of their “secret shoot” meant it had to stand apart from any of the finale’s various story threads.
“Our discussions with Jason (Donovan) and Kylie were always about making a small appearance,” he said.
“They didn’t want to overshadow the current cast or make the finale about them.
“We also filmed their scenes before I’d written the episode, so whatever we filmed had to fit in with that.”
That meant they couldn’t be part of any bigger plot line in the finale.
“I hate to see Kylie coping with any criticism – she was nothing short of amazing on the day,” Herbison said.
The producer also quashed rumors that sets at the Nunawading film site in Melbourne were being demolished.
“We haven’t made any decisions about the sets and nothing has been demolished,” Herbison said.
“We are in the fortunate position of having the Nunawading studios for several more months and we will be using the site for other productions.
“This gives us plenty of time to make provisions.”
It begs the question: Could a Neighbors museum be in the works?
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