Reg Watson, creator of Neighbours, has passed away after suffering from a short illness.

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Watson also created the women's prison drama Prisoner (known as Prisoner: Cell Block H in the UK) and The Young Doctors, and worked on long-running British soap Crossroads.

Neighbours' current executive producer Jason Herbison paid tribute to Watson in a statement, saying that his "legacy lives on".

https://twitter.com/programme/b-566p2l/neighbours//status/1182909535062638592

Ex-Neighbours stars Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan were among those who took to social media to pay their respects to Watson

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Born in Brisbane, Queensland in 1926, Watson worked extensively within the TV industry in both Australia and the UK from the 1950s onwards.

He was involved in the development and launch of ITV soap Crossroads in 1964. ,and after returning to his native Australia, launched series including The Young Doctors and Prisoner throughout the '70s.

He created Neighbours in 1985, with the show going on to become the longest-running drama series in Australian TV history.

Watson retired in 1992, but in 2010 was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for services to the media.

Neighbours airs weekdays at 1.45pm and 5.30pm on Channel 5 in the UK.

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Visit our dedicated Neighbours page for all the latest news, interviews and spoilers.

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