Neighbours fans call for Guy Pearce and more to return for revival
Fans have had their say on what they want to see from the soap when it heads to Freevee.
Fans will be able to return to Ramsay Street once more, after Australian soap Neighbours was saved by Amazon Freevee earlier this month.
The series came to an end in July after 37 years on our screens, but in a major shake-up, the streaming giant confirmed on 17th November that it would be bringing the soap back after all.
It is set to resume filming in Australia next year, and will once again chronicle the lives of Erinsborough’s much-loved residents.
Thousands of episodes from the show’s back catalogue will also be available to stream on Amazon Freevee too, in a bonus for dedicated fans looking to brush up on past storylines.
Stefan Dennis (Paul Robinson), Alan Fletcher (Karl Kennedy), Jackie Woodburne (Susan Kennedy) and Ryan Moloney (Toadie Rebecchi) are all set to return.
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So what will fans be hoping for as the series returns? RadioTimes.com put out a call on Twitter, and soap devotees weighed in with their ideas.
Viewers were rooting for Hollywood star Guy Pearce to head back to Ramsay Street, following his cameo in the show’s star-studded finale, with one fan calling for “the return of Guy Pearce”.
Others were holding out for a happy ending for Pearce’s character Mike Young and his former on-screen love interest Jane Harris (played by Annie Jones) with one fan Tweeting that “Mike 'works away' while Jane lives with his daughter” while another said they would want to see the couple back together “if that’s possible”.
Another viewer called for “the same as it was before in terms of tone and diversity of characters” and also wished for higher production values and more location shoots, writing: “Before it was axed, they had started to go on location more and filmed in a style that was more reminiscent of a high-quality drama you'd expect to see at 9pm and that was GREAT!”
Another fan agreed, and asked for “bigger house sets” and “location shooting”.
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Meanwhile, another viewer suggested that the show would benefit from “a good range of ages; a good blend of comedy and drama; a bit of a shake up in the cast (some were due to leave I reckon)” while retaining “some of those very strong newer characters (Freya, Levi, Kiri, Nic)”.
Indeed, it seems like the show’s balance of dramatic storylines and lighter comic moments remains a major draw for viewers, with some hoping that the reboot will preserve “the perfect blend of drama and humour”.
They were also holding out for happiness for Jane and Mike, as well as David and Aaron, and crossed their fingers for “more Freya, Mackenzie, Nicolette and the Rodwells. Izzy and Shane” as well as “new characters and families”.
Perhaps most controversially, one fan called for a shake-up to the iconic theme tune, writing: “All I want different is a new opening set of titles and theme tune with original lyrics”.
We’ll have to wait and see whether any of these fan hopes come true when the show returns to our screens next year.
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