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Neighbours to officially end after 37 years on air – and people are gutted
The iconic Australian soap will "cease production" this summer.
Neighbours is to officially end after 37 years on air, and people are now reminiscing on the iconic Australian soap.
The news that the beloved soap – which is famously set on the cul-de-sac Ramsay Street in the fictional Melbourne suburb of Erinsborough, and first appeared on UK television screens all the way back in 1986 – is to “cease production” this summer was confirmed on social media this morning.
Announcing that the show is to end via its official Twitter account, Neighbours said: “We are so sorry to say that after nearly 37 years and almost 9,000 episodes broadcast we have to confirm that Neighbours will cease production in June.
“Following the loss of our key broadcast partner in the UK and despite an extensive search for alternative funding, we simply have no option but to rest the show.
“To our amazing, loyal fans, we know this is a huge disappointment, as it is to all of us on the team [but] we thank you for all your messages and support and promise to end the show on an incredible high.
“From here on, we are celebrating Neighbours.”
A spokesperson for the production company Freemantle added: “Everyone at Neighbours has been overwhelmed by the love and support from the audience since the news came out.
“The show has brought a sunny slice of Australia into the homes of millions of viewers around the world launching the careers of dozens of household names along the way, but as this chapter of Ramsay Street comes to a close, we promise to do everything we can to give the show the send-off it deserves.”
Ex-cast members and fans of the show have since been paying tribute.
One of the soap’s most well-known stars, Kylie Minogue – who got her start on the show, before going on to become a household name – has lead the tributes, saying on Twitter this morning: “I’ll be forever grateful for the experience and the friends I made on Neighbours. We had no idea how big the show would become and how passionately viewers would take it to heart. Pure love. I can still hear Madge calling … CHARLENE!!!!”
Alan Fletcher – who played probably the show’s most popular character, the iconic Dr Karl Kennedy – has also paid tribute in a tweet: “I want to express my deepest gratitude to the millions of fans all who have supported us for 37 years.”
He also gave “huge thanks” to the show’s broadcast partners.
Guy Pierce, who too started his career on Neighbours by portraying Mike Young from 1986-1989, also took to Twitter to pay tribute and reminisce about his time on the show, saying: “I’m so sorry to hear Neighbours will end as aside from being the incredible launch pad, it’s been no one can deny the effect it’s had throughout millions of homes around the world.
“It’s bonded all of us in immeasurable ways. A true honour to have been a part of it. Great memories.”
After it was announced last month that Channel 5 would stop airing the show on its network, the channel described the show in a statement as being “a much-loved part of our schedule for more than a decade”, while it thanked “the cast, Fremantle and all of the production team for their fantastic work on this iconic series”.
“We’d also of course like to thank the fans for their loyal support of Neighbours across the years,” Channel 5 concluded.
Featured Image – Channel 5
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ITV to be bought out by Sky in transformational British broadcasting deal worth £1.6 billion
Danny Jones
In a watershed moment for British broadcasting, Sky has reached a transformational agreement worth more than £1.6 billion to buy out ITV in a landmark takeover deal.
With Sky already owned by US telecommunications corporation Comcast, this is set to be one of the biggest shakeups in TV and streaming for some time.
Talks actually started last November, but the process to complete a buyout like this has obviously taken a significant amount of time and money already.
It’s also worth noting that the deal is still pending full approval from the relevant regulators; nevertheless, it’s fair to say that it could change the face of the British media giants – who are based here in Greater Manchester over at MediaCity – but might signal a significant overhaul of our media landscape.
The Sky Group have assured there will be no immediate change to popular shows and will not be put behind a paywall at present (for now, anyway), with ITV still under a free-to-air service until 2034 as part of its public licensing contract.
Aquisitons/mergers of this size like this don’t come around very often, at least not across this side of the pond, with the growing Disney’s growing multinational monopolisation being one of the biggest examples of conglomerates mopping up major networks and huge brands over the past decade.
Writing in a statement, Sky said: “The UK media market is undergoing a profound and rapid transformation, and as competition for audiences intensifies, scale matters more than ever in order to compete with global streaming giants and YouTube in the UK.
“Viewers will continue to enjoy the shows they know and love, such as Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Love Island, I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, This Morning, Loose Women, Lorraine and News at Ten – alongside major live sporting events.”
That lattermost example feels particularly poignant at the moment, as this also means that the likes of ITV’s impressive World Cup coverage will come under the Sky umbrella in the near future.
It’s being seen as an ambitious attempt to shake up traditional terrestrial telly and digital platforms, with the ‘old guard’, as it were, having to move forward and fast to keep up with the mercurial market becoming evermore dominated by streaming services.
Of course, there are plenty raising questions and concerns over yet another domestic institution becoming deeper and deeper entwined with big American business; on the other hand, former ITV chairman Sir Peter Bazalgette, who still owns shares, says the deal was “essential” for its survival.
ITV will also receive £1.2bn in cash and Sky’s Love Productions business in return for ownership of their media and entertainment arm, whose shows include the Great British Bake Off.
Moving forward, ITV will also get a further £200m in 2028 if they meet revenue targets when it comes to advertising, with Sky promising to spend over £2.1bn on content from ITV Studios over a five-year period. You can read the full update from ITV right HERE.
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Featured Images — James West (via Flickr)/Publicity picture
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Wayne Rooney ‘agrees’ to bizarre bet ahead of 2026 FIFA World Cup quarter-finals
Danny Jones
England and Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has seemingly roped himself into a bizarre bet of his own making after yet more teams booked their place in the quarter-final stages of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
It’s not quite Gary Lineker doing Match of the Day in his underpants after Leicester won the league, level, but we’d still pay to see it.
However, after the bedlam following England booking their spot in the quarter-finals this morning (feels odd to say and we’re still not quite sure what day it is), you might be surprised to learn it has nothing to do with the Three Lions’ historic victory.
It does have to do with who they’ll be facing in their next game, though: Norway, as Rooney seemed confident enough in his prediction that the Scandinavian side wouldn’t make it into the final eight that he wagered he’d row down the River Mersey. Well, they did…
Yes, in case you missed it, the Norwegians did make it past Brazil with a 2-1 win – and, of course, more goals for Erling Haaland – before Thomas Tuchel’s side had barely even woken up for their very long day at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico.
While no one was quite sure why ‘Wazza’ was quite so confident that the ‘Seleção’ were going to go through, especially since Norway had shown just as much star power in spells in the opening four rounds, he still decided to throw down the gauntlet on himself.
As you can see in the clip above, he says he’s a “man of [his] word” and looks to have even roped in the likes of fellow former pros turned punditry colleagues on the night, Micah Richards and Joe Hart.
That being said, he did make the caveat that perhaps it would be better if the BBC could somehow sort them to sail down the Hudson River in New York instead, simply for the sake of ‘time’.
Now that would be quite some sight, wouldn’t it?
We’re not sure exactly how easy it is for the British broadcasters to simply secure permission to take a rowboat down one of the busiest and most famous waterways in the world, but you never know.
Here’s hoping they at least try to make something happen, anyway.
There’s been plenty of curious and comedic moments already this tournament, but for anyone who hasn’t yet watched Harry Kane’s post-match following the tense 3-2 thriller against Mexico, you really need to.
He was given the chance to chat to the media once again after his voice recovered, but let’s just say the memes that have already come from THAT interview are almost as memorable as the match itself.
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Featured Images — BBC Sport (screenshots)
Emily Sergeant -
3rd March 2022 
