After 37 years and 8,903 episodes, Neighbors is no more – the emotional final episodes aired in Australia before the UK broadcast. Ever since it was announced that the soap was dying out, no doubt those of us of a certain age, the fans who were stuck around in its heyday, have been desperately scrambling for the last, oh, 20 or so years to make sure it’s up to speed.

  • Warning – this article contains spoilers for the latest episode of Neighbors double bill Okay, maybe it’s just me. But while growing up and moving on to adulthood meant we stopped our daily 5.35pm routine. not long ago, it still provided comfort TV on those days when we were at home and free to hang out. While faces changed, like any good friend you haven’t seen in a while, it was never too hard to pick up where we left off. Back in the 1980s and 90s, Neighbors was event TV. Scott and Charlene’s wedding, Bouncer’s dream, of course, but also so many other relationships, love triangles and tragedies. Brad and Beth! Phoebe and Todd! Libby and Drew! And I’m sure I’m not the only one who was convinced that Jim Robinson (Alan Dale, now of The OC and Lost fame) sang the theme tune. Correctly? So this really is the end of an era. And how do you end a show that’s been such a big part of our culture for so long? Well, if you’re Neighbours, have a Toadie wedding. You create a storybook story for people to share their memories, giving viewers a trip down Ramsay Street memory lane. And you invite the adults back. It’s no spoiler to say that Scott and Charlene are back, driving down Ramsay Street belting out a song that will no doubt delight fans of Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan. But Hollywood star Guy Pearce and Annie Jones are also there, as Mike Young and ‘Plain’ Jane Harris, and there are cameos from Delta Goodrum, Holly Valance, Natalie Imbruglia and Margot Robbie. There is something truly wonderful about seeing so many stars past and present come on screen to be a part of this final farewell. I mean Robbie is the highest paid actress in Hollywood – she’s Barbie! – Pearce hasn’t done too badly for himself and Kylie Minogue is Kylie Minogue. In an industry where huge stars sometimes want to distance themselves from any of their less serious roots, it’s a testament to the love for Neighbors and how these famous faces credit the show for their A-list leg. A voiceover by Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) sets the stage for what will be a tearjerker for many. “Ramsay Street,” it begins. “It’s just an ordinary street in an ordinary neighborhood … where extraordinary things tend to happen.” Jarrod “Toadfish” Rebecchi marries Melanie Pearson, who you may remember from the old days, the receptionist with the interesting laugh who married Joe Mangel. Melanie was a resident of Ramsay Street long before Toadie and his (RIP) ponytail entered the scene, so their union brings a neat reason to bring together faces past and present (even if some are on a video call). But as they prepare to marry, they realize it’s time for a fresh start. Given that Toadie’s first wife, Dee, perished when she drove off a cliff hours after their wedding, and another marriage ended in an explosion and his wife died of cancer, that seems fair enough. However, it’s not just Toadie and Melanie who want a fresh start. Everyone is moving! Everyone except Carl and Susan Kennedy. So this is really goodbye. Or is it? (We won’t spoil this). Elsewhere, Izzy, recently back as Mal’s girlfriend – yes, that’s Izzy, the woman who (temporarily) separated Karl and Susan, Ramsay Street’s beloved couple, and Mal, their eldest son – she has shown her true colors and ditched Mal. For whom? Shane Ramsay, one of the original Neighbours, ostensibly because he’s a two-car man. But at least he’s been honest about it, and in these last few episodes it seems like he’s finally made some sort of truce with Susan. Image: Former Neighbors star Scott Major directed the final episodes. Photo: Fremantle/Channel 5 Mike, re-entering his machine as if the last 30 years or so had never happened, once again charms Plain Jane Superbrain. And Paul Robinson, who has returned to the soap for years after an 11-year hiatus following his first stint, is embroiled in a romance with Terese Willis (Rebekah Elmaloglou, who you might remember as Sophie from Home And Away). There are some great nods back to the past: Harold with his bag, Charlene dressed in denim boilersuits and ready to break into her former home through a window like she did in her first scene, and all the messages from old friends. In the episodes that came out of it, there were also flashbacks to the old days. As this is a soap opera, some familiar faces may return from beyond the grave. Of course, it’s all in a healthy dose of cheese, but surely we wouldn’t have it any other way? Speaking to Sky News before the episodes aired, Jackie Woodburne, who plays Susan Kennedy, said the cast had made bets about how it would end. Would they be aliens? An explosion? A sinkhole? But while it always had its drama, in the end, Neighbors didn’t need any technical gimmicks, bombshell storylines or a marriage that ended in disaster. This was simply an opportunity to reflect and honor the people who call Ramsay Street home. And who better than Susan’s matriarch to do the honors? “Carl… I love you,” she tells her husband, for the last time, and I’m not crying, you’re crying. She then begins her message to the Ramsay Street history book, walking out onto the cul-de-sac she’s called home for almost 28 years, eyeing the celebrations. “Things rarely went smoothly, of course… but they usually worked out in the end,” he says. “Everyone deserves a place in Ramsay Street history,” Susan continues, now acknowledging the viewers. you will really need a hanky for this part. “Even those who were watching us from afar. “Together, we were… the perfect mix.” It’s no longer just a step away, Neighbors is no more. Consider this my request for a streamer to do a UK Gold and get it from scratch. The Neighbors final airs in the UK on Channel 5 at 9pm on Friday 29 July