2 months ago
13
It all ended with a small act of resistance. A quiet show of defiance by Susan Kennedy (Jackie Woodburne), keen to fight for the future of Ramsay Street, when all around her has changed.
“I love Ramsay Street, I love our friends, I love our neighbours,” she said, while standing in the world’s most cursed cul-de-sac, flanked by the ever shifty Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) and her husband, Dr Karl (Alan Fletcher). “I don’t want to find a new perfect blend, I want to stay in this one.”
Susan Kennedy (Jackie Woodburne) contemplates the end of Ramsay Street.
Cue the drone camera, swooping up over Erinsborough, and that was it. Done. Finished. After 9363 episodes, Neighbours was officially over. Not bulldozed by a freeway, but instead flattened by the streaming giant Amazon after its two-year-long resurrection.
Loading
The duelling visions of Ramsay Hills and Robinson Towers will remain a dream; we’ll never know if Paul’s city-living utopia, of “a latte by the Yarra” will ever be; or if Shane Robinson’s bucolic vision – complete with Kennedy Street – will eventuate.
What I do know is that the parade of younger characters who turned up in the final two episodes with a dream to invest in Ramsay Hills or Robinson Towers are dreaming. Paul Robinson may have mellowed in his older years, but he’s not an idiot. Affordable housing this ain’t.
If the 2022 final had some joy about it and the star power of returning faces – Kylie! Jason! Guy! The ghost of Madge! – this felt muted. Only a few of the old guard remain, with the bulk of the cast made up of new faces that casual viewers would struggle to connect the dots between.
Terese and Paul got their happy ending in the final episode of Neighbours.
Sure, it ticked off the soapie staples – a commitment ceremony between Paul and Terese (Rebekah Elmaloglou) a pregnancy announcement, couples and families reunited – but it felt like a funeral. Even the party at the Watering Hole at the end, where the cast danced to a truly terrible remix of the theme song, felt forced.
None of Karl and Susan’s three children arrived to help them pack (that cursed portrait of the Kennedy children still hangs above the fireplace) and I have lost track of how many kids Paul Robinson actually has (seven apparently, of which maybe four were in last night’s episode). Jane (Annie Jones) has moved on from Mike (Guy Pearce), who turned up in 2022 on a motorbike and then left, again, for the UK.
One of Toadie’s ex-wive Melanie (Lucinda Cowden) even popped up, cackling, “I still can’t believe it, the end of Ramsay Street!”
Was it all a ruse? Was it just some elaborate set-up for a spin-off called Return to Ramsay Street? Or Ramsay Hills? Where Karl and Susan solve murder mysteries and Paul plots from his tower?
Stefan Dennis, Jackie Woodburne and Alan Fletcher in the final episode of Neighbours.
No, it wasn’t. Instead, it was like watching the death of Australian drama in real time. You may scoff and complain – I read the comments – that no one watches free-to-air any more and that Neighbours hasn’t been relevant for decades, but that’s beside the point.
Neighbours’ axing is a blow to a local industry already struggling. Home and Away is now the last soap standing. None of the commercial stations announced any new scripted drama or comedy in their 2026 programming upfronts this year. Our weekly free-to-air schedules are now largely made up on game shows, reality TV and sport.
Loading
And while it’s easy to only remember the famous faces Neighbours has given us over the years, don’t overlook the less obvious. It has worked hard over recent years to produce a TV show that actually reflects what our suburbs look like, with a diverse range of characters with different backgrounds and sexuality on screen. Home and Away does not do that.
Neighbours was a great training ground for young actors, as well as the many people behind the scenes – directors, writers, crew, production staff. Yes, the streamers are commissioning locally made programs, and yes, some of those shows will eventually filter through to free-to-air TV, but is that enough? We want a viable, healthy industry that thrives and works for everyone.
As Paul Robinson said, “I guess it boils down to what makes a street.” The same can be said for our local TV industry.
I’m sad Neighbours is gone. I cried when it ended in 2022, weirdly attached to the nostalgia, but now I’m just mad. So farewell, Neighbours, we will not see your like again (again).
Neighbours is now streaming on 10Play.
Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.
Most Viewed in Culture
Loading
