11 shock twists that left Neighbours fans STUNNED
Do you remember these surprise plot twists?
For a little Australian suburb, Erinsborough in Neighbours has had more than its fair share of death, affairs and destruction. But which are the biggest storylines that have left fans stunned?
Here are our top 11 Neighbours plot twists that have left us on the edge of our seats since the soap began 35 years ago...
1. Harold returns from the dead
Back in 1991, Harold and Madge had gone for a walk by the sea, only for him to vanish, leaving only his iconic glasses behind. But fast forward by five years and Helen Daniels found him working in a Salvation Army shop and calling himself Ted. Harold and Madge were finally reunited, and the rest was history.
2. Helen Daniel's sudden death
Anne Haddy played Jim Robinson's mother-in-law Helen Daniels from the soap's start in 1985 until 1997. Helen was best known for being Madge's best friend, a budding artist and being the caring grandmother of Ramsay Street.
But in a sad turn of events, Helen suddenly died one episode while trying to settle a feud between the Ramsays and the Robinsons. The Ramsay Street matriarch had gathered the two families to watch Scott and Charlene's wedding video, but as everyone remembered the old times and put their differences aside, Helen quietly passed away on the sofa.
3. Toadie's doomed weddings
Not only did Toadie's first wedding to Dee Bliss end in tragedy when their car plunged off a cliff and into the sea as they headed off on honeymoon, but his second wedding to Steph Scully was all a farce.
But there was yet more drama to come when Toadie married Sonya, only for a gas canister to explode in their wedding marque killing two regular characters, Rhys Lawson and Priya Kapoor.
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4. Sonya's heartbreaking death
While we had plenty of notice that Sonya wouldn't be around to watch her children get married, or to grow old with husband Toadie, it didn't make her demise and less shocking.
In tragic scenes aired a year ago, Sonya was heading for one last holiday with her family when she realised her time was near and she died in Toadie's arms before she could hold her kids close one last time. The fact that Sonia died might not have been the biggest shock, but the fact that Neighbours bosses killed her off definitely is.
5. Dee is still alive
While we were all left stunned when Toadie found himself targeted by fraudster Andrea Somers, who pretended to be his dead wife Dee Bliss, the real shock came when it turned out Dee wasn't actually dead after all.
The twist revealed that Andrea and Dee were actually long-lost twin sisters, who had been separated at birth. Whether Dee and Toadie will ever get back together remains to be seen... but we can still live in hope.
6. Josh Willis dies in hotel explosion
In 2016 Neighbours aired 'Hotel Death Trap' week, which saw an explosion rip through Lassiters after Julie Quill paid Jacka Hills to tamper with the building's boiler.
After Josh and Daniel Robinson got trapped under a huge pillar, Josh sacrificed himself so that the paramedics could save Daniel, and he eventually said a tear-jerking goodbye to his daughter, Matilda, via a video call.
7. Waterhole explosion
In 1993 a gas leak in the basement of the Waterhole caused an explosion which totally destroyed the pub and left Stephen Gottlieb fighting for his life.
Following the drama the venue was rebuilt and renamed Chez Chez by Cheryl Carpenter. Since then it has been called Lou's Place, Scarlet Bar, and Charlie's, before being reverted to its first name, The Waterhole.
8. Plane crash kills three Ramsay Street residents
There was tragedy in Erinsborough when half of Ramsay Street's residents got on a plane, only for it to crash, killing off David Bishop, his wife Liljana and their daughter Serena.
The drama was caused by Paul Robinson's evil son Robert Robinson (the same Robert who has returned as Harlow's dad recently) when he planted a bomb on the plane that was meant to kill Paul, but ended up wiping out the Bishop family instead.
9. A tornado rips though Ramsay Street
In 2014 a huge storm hit Erinsborough, which later developed into a tornado. At the time long-standing characters like Paul Robinson and Lou Carpenter were feared dead... while both survived, there was just the small matter of Susan Kennedy having to perform an emergency tracheotomy on Lou to save his life while he was trapped under a beam in Harold's.
Several wind and rain machines were used for the storm effects, and fans loved it.
10. Susan gets retrograde amnesia
One of the best storylines Neighbours has ever seen was when Susan Kennedy slipped on some spilt milk in 2002, only to hit her head and wake up thinking she is her 16 year old self. Not only did she not want to be anywhere near Karl, it also meant she didn't even recognise her own kids!
11. Kate Ramsay shot dead
There wasn't a dry eye in the country when Kate was brutally shot dead in 2014 just moments after Mark Brennan had got down on one knee and proposed. Mark was left shattered when Kate died in his arms, and it eventually turned out that Kate had been shot by Victor Cleary as revenge for Paul killing his brother Gus ten years earlier.
Neighbours airs weekdays at 1.45pm and 5.30pm on Channel 5
Claire is Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch and has been a journalist for over 15 years, writing about everything from soaps and TV to beauty, entertainment, and even the Royal Family. After starting her career at a soap magazine, she ended up staying for 13 years, and over that time she’s pulled pints in the Rovers Return, sung karaoke in the Emmerdale village hall, taken a stroll around Albert Square, and visited Summer Bay Surf Club in sunny Australia.
After learning some tricks of the trade at websites Digital Spy, Entertainment Daily, and Woman & Home, Claire landed a role at What’s On TV and whattowatch.com writing about all things TV and film, with a particular love for Aussie soaps, Strictly Come Dancing and Bake Off.
She’s interviewed everyone from June Brown — AKA Dot Cotton — to Michelle Keegan, swapped cooking tips with baking legend Mary Berry backstage at the NTAs, and danced the night away with soap stars at countless awards bashes. There’s not a lot she doesn’t know about soaps and TV and can be very handy when a soapy question comes up in a pub quiz!
As well as all things soap-related, Claire also loves running, spa breaks, days out with her kids, and getting lost in a good book.