Fans’ fury as Neighbours faces UK axe
THE soap opera that launched the careers of Kylie Minogue and Russell Crowe may soon disappear from British screens.
Neighbours, which has been shown on Channel 5 since 2008, could be taken off the air after talks stalled between the TV company and the programme’s makers, Fremantle Media.
It is feared the Australian show could now face the axe after 31 years on British television screens.
A source said: “The renegotiation of the Neighbours Channel 5 deal has become very fraught and is in jeopardy.
“Channel 5 really want to keep the show. But the failure to reach a deal is being blamed on Channel 5’s new American owners Viacom refusing to sign off on the figures and not understanding the cultural importance of the show in the UK.”
Fans have launched a petition on the website Change.org to save the soap.
More than 2,300 people had signed it last night.
The show, set on Ramsay Street in the fictional Melbourne suburb of Erinsborough, started in 1985 and quickly became one of the hottest programmes in Australia.
In 1986 the soap made its first appearance on UK screens when it was shown on BBC One. It quickly became a huge success and was broadcast twice a day.
Arguably its biggest popculture impact was the 1988 wedding of Charlene, played by Kylie Minogue, to Scott, played by Jason Donovan.
Both actors went on to have successful music careers as a result of their roles.
Other Neighbours alumni to have big pop hits include Natalie Imbruglia, who played Beth Brennan, and Holly Valance, who portrayed Flick Scully.
Ramsay Street has also provided a showcase for some of the country’s most successful stars.
Oscar-winner Crowe, Guy Pearce and Margot Robbie all made appearances.
A spokesman for Channel 5 said: “We don’t comment on commercial contracts.”
Daily Express TV expert Matt Baylis said the programme was significant for many Britons and claimed its impact was the opposite of the Ten Pound Poms – the scheme which saw thousands of emigrate to Australia after the Second World War, lured by cheap tickets.
He said: “It was a big thing for people growing up in Britain.
“People would come home from school, drop their bags, have something to eat and watch Neighbours.
“It’s like the reverse of the £10 immigrant programme for Australians – it has sent people who have become stars across the world.
“The real tragedy is that we won’t lose it because of the scripts, or because people aren’t watching it, but because of internal wranglings between money men.”