Ben

I wasn't going to post in this thread, but I've seen several posts question the validity of the alleged victims simply b/c they didn't come forward at the time. I don't know how much (or if any) of the UK celebrity rape cases made the news in the States, but one thing I learnt from all of that was the era that the allegations took place in (and this is the same for the Cosby allegations) was very important as to why the alleged victims didn't come forward at the time. Those eras had a terrible stigma associated with women who reported rape: they may get blamed, made to feel like it was their fault; they were less likely to be believed; going up against a famous person who has national (and international) status made it even less likely you would be taken seriously. The 70s/80s/even the 90s, were eras where people turned a blind eye. So these alleged victims should not be blamed for not coming forward when it happened. That's victim blaming. Of course, not everyone who makes these kinds of allegations are legit, but it's important to take them all seriously for the ones who are genuine.

The way he described Darren and Nancy as being over for good, and signalling how they couldn't be together after the Sienna mess, sounded very final. They could have stayed together if he hadn't of ruined them by turning them into a toxic couple and ruining Nancy in the process. It does sound like Nancy's days are numbered (and I hope if true, that it was Jessica Fox's decision to leave), especially given that he states she will not get back with Darren ever. With a regular character being killed off in January, who else but Nancy could it really be? This Gloved Hand mystery reminds me of when Days had the Gloved Hand mystery... He does admit that they stole the story from one of the 80s soaps - probably one of the Oz soaps, like Number 96 or something similar.

Yeah, apparently the anniversary special is happening. It's a documentary and will air on Ten as part of the 30th anniversary. There doesn't seem to be a news story, yet, but apparently it was reported on NeighboursFans by a very reliable (and regular) poster (J Bar), who said the planned documentary featured in Ten's 2015 Upfronts. Here's the direct quote:

It's a shame to lose Johnny, as I think he is one of the better Carter kids, however, they've not done anything with him outside of his sexuality, not developed his character or given him any kind of story for months. Now he's saddled in this regressive love triangle with Ben/Abi, which doesn't do their characters any favours, and is actually quite weird and lazy. But, they've not developed any of Carter kids, so Johnny is not a lone there, merely a casualty of too many family members arriving all at once, and Mick/Linda/Shirley gobbling up all the story. I think it's a bit of a failure to have the brand new family - the saviours of the show - fall apart within a year of being on screen.

Well, Patrick told Sienna that Dodger is Nico's father... Basically, all we have is Patrick's word, and we all know how he likes to lie and manipulate people. Sienna believes him as she thinks it fits with what she remembers. I guess it leaves it open for them to change it later on if they want, without it being too ridiculous.

Both Christmas breaks for the UK and Oz begin Dec 5. The UK is 2 weeks behind Oz, so they create two season finales. The show will be off air for 4 weeks.

That sounds like one of those odd decisions that will either work or fail. Curtailing the number of episodes from being a daily drama to a weekly drama is one thing, but changing the whole show is completely different. They may as well start a new show. Current viewers may have problems adapting to the new format, as surely it will no longer feel like VL, even though it will centre around familiar characters. I guess they aren't bothered about existing viewers as there isn't many, and are hoping they can entice old viewers/new viewers to tune in. I guess they will be getting rid of several characters in order to sustain the weekly format? It does sound eerily similar to Revenge (right down to the new title), which I think shows a lack of imagination. What do current fans think of these plans? I wouldn't be happy if I was a fan.

The days of having money to spend on sets has long gone. When I first started watching, Lily was in Salem with Greta, so I missed seeing this set.

Neighbours Vs Zombies webisodes photos: David Bishop, Stingray Timmins, Drew Kirk and Robbo Slade have been confirmed to return as zombies, while Mason Turner returns along with an adult Hope Gottlieb (the daughter of Todd Landers and Phoebe Gottlieb from the 90s!). The series débuts on Monday October 27 @ http://youtube.com/Neighbours This does look pretty awesome, and a creative way of bringing back characters without encroaching the reality of the main show. Neighbours webisodes have so far been excellently directed, and I think the main show could benefit from more "edgier" directing.

I don't know what I think about Elaine. That scene with Dean was great, and kinda cemented who the character is, but a lot of her dialogue sounded like recycled Pub Landlady Clichés. I also hate how Linda hasn't told a soul about the rape, and how every time she tries to, each character gives her inappropriate advice. Not everything has to be a secret for the sake of having a secret, and this story doesn't feel organic with Linda purposefully suffering in silence until Christmas day. I think it would be great if she confided in someone random, a character who she doesn't share much screen time with, as it could be a good opportunity to develop friendships. This whole Max/DC Dull story is so dull. Emma has turned out to be such a bland, whiny character, and I don't believe that Max is in love with her. I do like Abi's snarky comments, and how she's now a pessimist after being dumped by Jay. I hope these cops don't turn out to have anything to do with Lucy's murder, as that would be a cop out (no pun intended!). I don't get why the DS Bryant is stalking Lauren in such a creepy fashion.

It's disappointing that they basically dropped the Robbie/Finn friendship as soon as fans pointed out they had chemistry and would make an interesting couple. Suddenly, Kate Oates said they were not going down that route, b/c they didn't want to turn a straight character gay, even though it would have been quite plausible with Robbie, considering he was an outsider, and hasn't been developed much at all. Fielding the question of a Finn/Aaron hook up, and it was two characters shouldn't be thrown together just b/c they're gay. Fair play. Only, Finn and Aaron had a one night stand the first minute they made eye contact. They were well aware of how hated Robbie was last year, and well aware of how likeable he had become this year. It's a shame they killed him off now, and couldn't see the potential he had. It's good for ED, considering they have had zero promotion. EE has had promos playing the last couple of weeks, and DTC went out of his way to drum up hype on Twitter. Even with no promos, ED still managed a ratings increase. ITV treats the show poorly compared to Corrie.

This has been an awesome climax to what was a mediocre story. Declan has only ever been interesting when he turns psycho. Poor Robbie. Should have taken out Megan instead. Or Pete. Or Jai (some convoluted explanation could have been given for being there). I'm not counting Declan out just yet.

Everything (bar Ronnie) about Peggy's cameo was awful. The acting was seriously bad, chewing the scenery bad, and the dialogue was the worst - 90% exposition and unnecessary recap. Peggy declaring all out war on Sharon felt like they'd accidentally added in scenes from 2001. The characters had moved on, and while they will never be BFFs, Peggy would have declined the invite, not had a silly OTT meltdown. On the plus, I did like the scenes with Sharon softening towards Ben, and that scene in The Vic with Shirley being put in her place by Ben declaring his support of Sharon marrying Phil. I feel like they're trying to downplay Ben's previous psychotic behaviour a bit, probably so they can "feasibly" pair him with Johnny.

Killing off Dean will make Shirley a martyr, so this cannot happen for that reason alone. Shirley has yet to take responsibility for being an awful mother, so I don't want to see her having a pity party over her dead rapist son who hated her guts. I think they've missed heaps of opportunities for Dean's character, and I think they've brought him back just to throw him under the bus to prop Mick/Shirley. When the truth comes out, you know Shirley will finally have the son who treats her right. Sharon/Linda would have made better frenemies than forcing them into the best friend category. They have no depth and no real chemistry. I thought Sharon's revenge would rejuvenate the character and be really interesting, but it's been mediocre so far. It didn't get much air time, and it was full on contrived set ups, like Marcus meeting Sharon in The Albert where he could easily be spotted by Phil. I think Sharon would be better leaving the show, as they continue to waste her.

Spoiler photos of the tornado story: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neighbours/news/a591392/neighbours-tornado-causes-chaos-in-erinsborough-new-spoiler-pictures.html#~oNpsOnEmGtJf0s This looks pretty epic!

Australia does get tornadoes. Here's a handy link that charts tornado activity since 1795-2012. http://www.theage.com.au/data-point/TornadoesInAustralia That promo looks hilarious. I think this will be fun. I just hope their budget stretches to something that doesn't look cheap.

Yeah, public school, AKA private school, boarding school, and independent school. Not to be confused with state-funded school, which sounds like it should be public! For a small country, we do have a strong north-south divide with naming things. The dinner/lunch thing bugs me, too. On another note, I really hate how Sharon looks like she's just stepped out of the 90s. I'm all for rebooting the character back to her 90s glory days (seeing as they don't know how to develop her any other way), but there's no reason why she has to dress like a 90s reject. So, Nick Cotton is alive - tell us something we didn't already know, EE! They could have had this "twist" months ago. And lets not mention the stupid, contrived debt story, that turned out to be a big fat plot device, of which Bianca will learn nothing from.

Anthony's scenes with Kat were awesome. I loved them as a couple back in the day, and you could see they still had chemistry. But, I thought his guest appearance ended on a negative and sour note. He basically came back to say that he wasn't going to look after Patrick, b/c he's got enough on his plate and still holds a grudge from all those years ago when Patrick wasn't around during his childhood. He could have said all that in a one-sided phone call to Denise. I don't remember Anthony leaving the last time holding on to this grudge against Patrick. It seemed very cold and callous, and kind or random. I know they couldn't have Patrick move to Scotland to be cared for by Anthony, as the story would be over, but they could have come up with something much better that didn't make Anthony look like a jerk. On a separate note, I see they're doing their best to reboot Sharon to the character she once was by giving her self assured lines, like: (Linda: "You're Sharon Rickman.") "No. I'm Sharon Watts!" I did like her blackmailing the Mitchell's ex-bent lawyer, Marcus Christie, plotting to leave Phil penniless.

Yes. Ashleigh Brewer (ex-Kate) landed the role of Ivy Forrester on B&B. I'm a couple of months behind on episodes, so I'm unclear when her first episode airs exactly, but I think I read that she first appeared last week? Someone would have to verify that though.

Is that IMDB rating for original Crossroads or the reboot versions or just the show generally? Original Crossroads from what I've gathered used to get slated for having wobbly sets and being so bad it's good. The reboot version in 2001(?) was dull and didn't get good reviews, but the revamp of the reboot in 2003 was an horrendously cheap-looking mess. I think the reboots tarnished the original a lot.

What do you think the likelihood is of a network picking up Marienhof? And do you think it's a good idea?

I guess there are two major things you need to know: 1. Kate was murdered (and is now on B&B!) by a man called Victor Cleary who was out to make Paul pay for the murder of his brother Gus 10 years ago in the infamous Lassiter's inferno that Paul started. I think Hulu picks up the climax to this story. 2. Lauren and Brad kissed while searching for their long-lost daughter, who has come to town searching for them - this is Paige, who's keeping her identity a secret until she's fully sussed out the reason why she was given up for adoption. Paige is awesome - she's got a lot of personality, and it's really interesting introducing her like this, as gives the whole story a more interesting development. Look out for Naomi Canning, she's a femme fatal, and is Sheila's daughter. Her father died of a heart attack, which has left its mark on her. She's looking for love and is finding it in married men! She's currently scheming to win Toadie by stalking herself. Toadie and Sonya have some issues of their own, namely Sonya's addictive personality that has seen her need to help people take over their life. Her current "charge" is Mark Brennan - Kate's ex who was in witness protection - who's grieving for Kate and involved in a vendetta against Paul. Toadie & Sonya's son Callum has just left for Silicon Valley after randomly becoming a child genius. Also of note is Daniel Robinson, Paul's nephew, and the son of Neighbours' 80s golden super-couple, Scott & Charlene. He's a nice guy, with a boho, hippy-ish personality. He's developed "an intense vibe" (yeah, he talks like this) with Amber, who's falling for him even though she's with the self absorbed Josh. Basically. Amber has become a much more interesting character around Daniel. Elsewhere: Karl and Susan's daughter Libby has returned for a short guest stint. Paula Abdul makes a cameo appearance. Oh, and, Kyle and Georgia are back together.

I forgot all about Hollyoaks being on Hulu. Why did you stop watching Neighbours, AMS? Not enough time? If you liked it earlier in the year, then you'll like it now. It has upped its game. I don't think Neighbours is anything like any other soap on air (or not on air). It has a different feel, tells stories differently to other soaps; it has a more positive outcome. It's character driven for the most part. You really need to sample the show for yourself. I haven't watched Corrie for months, so I can't really say. Hollyoaks is a bit of a mess. Blessing's story is the best, but the rest is sensationalistic, OTT BS.

Yeah, watch out for FremantleMedia's dodgy press releases, BetterFogotten. There is always a distinct lack of research when it comes to Neighbours. Unless they were referring to it being a first time venture into online media? I wonder if Errol will run an article on this (if he hasn't done so already, as I haven't checked)? I'd love for it to do well that Hulu extends their contract beyond the trial period. I think it would give Fremantle some confidence in the show and its future potential. Hopefully American's will watch and like the show. Is Hulu still streaming Coronation Street? Anyone know how that does?

Yeah, Michael French was a huge loss. I didn't realise how much, or that it would happen so damn quickly. There's a lot of potential being wasted, which is a shame. I understand that they don't have the use of certain actors and characters, and that the summer is usually quiet on the story front, but if they're going to churn out filler, then at least make it good filler.