What to Watch Verdict
There was romance and reunions plus some SURPRISE appearances in an emotional send-off for the long-running Aussie soap
Pros
- +
Previously unannounced surprise appearances!
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Lots of 1980s nostalgia
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Susan's heartfelt tribute to Ramsay Street
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Scott and Charlene
- +
Appeal to both occasional and long-time viewers
Cons
- -
Not hearing Scott and Charlene's wedding theme, Suddenly
- -
Very brief screen time for some returning characters
After 37 years and 8,903 episodes, Neighbours has come to an end. Sob...
An hour-long finale of the classic Aussie soap aired on Channel 5 tonight (see our TV Guide for listings), as part of a Neighbours Night of celebrations.
So, where did you watch the finale? Did you have your very own #NeighboursWatchParty with family and friends? Did anyone dress-up as their favourite character? And will you be singing the Neighbours theme tune out LOUD for the rest of the weekend?
So much emotion! So much nostalgia! How did Australia's longest-running drama series wrap-up? Let's get into it...
The BIG news is that Mike Young (played by Guy Pearce) moved back to Erinsborough and turned out to be the dad of Lassiters employee, Sam (Henrietta Graham)!
Jane Harris (Annie Jones) was happy to be reunited with her former Erinsborough High School boyfriend after all these years.
But Jane found herself in a muddle of emotions as both Mike and Clive Gibbons (Geoff Paine) made their romantic intentions clear.
We loved seeing Jane give Mike a tour of the Ramsay Street houses.
(Yes, how does the roof of Number 28 stay-up without that original brick pillar??)
Plus, there was that squabble/struggle between love-rivals Mike and Clive over an old lamp!
Then suddenly, Des Clarke (Paul Keane) turned up!
If you haven't watched Neighbours since the late 1980s, we're sure you got a kick out of those scenes.
And how great that the now busy international star, Guy Pearce, could return for THREE episodes.
Meanwhile, it wouldn't be a soap send-off without a wedding.
In a sweet and funny ceremony, Melanie Pearson (Lucinda Cowden) became legal eagle Toadie Rebecchi's (Ryan Maloney) FOURTH wife.
Luckily, unlike the DISASTER of Toadie's short-lived happiness with his first wife, Dee Bliss, nobody plunged to their doom this time around.
Fortunately, the lake at Lassiters just ain't that deep!
It was great to see the brief return of some more recent characters for the couple's Big Day including Lauren Turner (Kate Kendall), Lucas Fitzgerald (Scott Major) and Ned Willis (Ben Hall).
Long-time viewers of Neighbours probably had their suspicions that there was unfinished business between Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) and his SIXTH wife, Terese Willis (Rebekah Elmaloglou).
Toadie and Melanie's wedding got Paul and Terese thinking about their own feelings for each other.
With their divorce just about to be finalised, Paul and Terese had a heart-to-heart outside Lassiters and realised they're not ready to give up on their relationship after all!
Of course, their decision caused a bit of DRAMA, since Paul was planning to move to New York and sell Lassiters to Shane Ramsay (Peter O'Brien).
Now, how about some of those SURPRISE appearances?
Yes, the long-awaited return of Scott and Charlene Robinson (played by Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue) had been previously announced.
But if you happened to look away from social media over the past 48 hours, you would not have been expecting to see 90s characters, Beth Brennan (Natalie Imbruglia) and Felicity Scully (Holly Valance) in a scene together!
Plus, it was nice to see Donna Freedman (Margot Robbie), Nina Tucker (Delta Goodrem) and Billy Kennedy (Jesse Spencer) among the former Ramsay Street residents who sent video messages to Toadie and Melanie on their Big Day!
Susan Kennedy (Jackie Woodburne) has lived on Ramsay Street for 28 years with her husband, Karl (Alan Fletcher).
So it was only right that school headmistress Susan write the introduction for Harold Bishop's (Ian Smith) beloved "The History Of Ramsay Street" archive book.
There can't be many viewers who didn't get emotional as Susan's voiceover was heard while she walked around Ramsay Street during Toadie and Melanie's wedding party celebration.
It was bittersweet seeing SURPRISE ghostly appearances from residents that have been loved and lost over the years including Doug Willis (Terence Donovan), Madge Bishop (Anne Charleston), Hendrix Greyson (Ben Turland), killer Finn Kelly (Rob Mills) plus Toadie's beloved wife, Sonya Rebecchi (Eve Morey).
More Neighbours on TV
- Neighbours: The Finale
- Neighbours Made Me A Star: From Ramsay Street To Hollywood
- Neighbours: All The Pop Hits And More, Especially For You
The finale and all these additional special programs are available to stream for free on My5for the next 30 days.
