It definitely takes away the shows security, as on Ten, it always formed the majority of their local drama quota, but digital channels don't have such restrictions. In terms of the show, it will allow it to become PG rated, instead of G, which can only be a good thing, as long as Susan Bower implements it into the show.

I guess in the long run, it can't be a good move, unless it does exceptionally well in ratings/demos/audience share.

Loving thy Neighbours

NEIGHBOURS marked its 6000th episode last night the way it has marked so many others before: with a cliffhanger. As the show broke for the weekend, resident bad guy Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) lay in a crumpled heap outside his hotel, Lassiter's, having apparently been pushed from its recently added second-storey balcony.

''Is he dead?'' a shocked Toadfish (Ryan Moloney) asked.

''I've got a pulse,'' Dr Karl Kennedy (Alan Fletcher) replied. ''It's very faint though.''

Cynics might say that's a fair diagnosis of the show as it limps along with about 600,000 viewers an episode versus the 1.3 million its 6.30pm rivals A Current Affair and Today Tonight manage, not to mention the 1 million-plus who tune in for Seven's rival teen-heavy soapie, Home and Away, half an hour later.

But after 25 years on air, perhaps Neighbours deserves a little more credit than that.

The ''serial drama'' (the show's producers prefer not to use the term ''soapie'' because of its negative connotations) is the seventh-longest-running such show in the world still on the air, and the longest in Australia. Only three other five-days-a-week shows in the world have run for longer.

Its makers produce about 230 episodes a year. ''To churn out 2½ hours a week is a huge task - it's more than a feature film a week,'' says Mike Murphy, former worldwide head of drama for FremantleMedia (the show's producer) and now a special consultant to Neighbours. ''You try every week to hit that 100 per cent, but mostly if you hit 80 per cent you're pretty happy.''

Famously, Neighbours is the show that launched many careers, from actors Guy Pearce, Peter O'Brien and Russell Crowe to actor-singers Jason Donovan, Kylie Minogue, Natalie Imbruglia and Delta Goodrem, to writers Kate Langbroek and Marieke Hardy.

Its producers argue that it has also helped guide many a teenager through the turbulent ''Straits of Coming of Age'', with problem-and-solution storylines that help them deal with everything from family breakdown to coming out (a recent case of the show boldly going where its G rating and 6.30pm timeslot had made it hesitant to go before).

And while it no longer enjoys the massive ratings of its late 1980s heyday, the program remains a vital cultural export, being sold to 48 countries. According to Fremantle, each episode is watched overseas by about 60 million people.

That's not a bad effort for a show that was dropped by original broadcaster Seven in November 1985 after eight months and 170 episodes.

When Ten picked up the cast-off, Brian Walsh - now executive director of television at Foxtel but then Ten's head of publicity - realised changes were needed if it was going to work. So Darius Perkins was bumped from the Scott Robinson role to make way for Jason Donovan, Guy Pearce joined as Mike Young and, three months after the move, Kylie Minogue was introduced as feisty tomboy mechanic Charlene Mitchell.

Seven had destroyed the sets but Walsh, who was determined to draw major attention to the new version of the show, managed to salvage some props, which found their way into a spectacular publicity stunt. ''I hired two semi-trailers and I had the sets department build the Robinson house on the back of one of them and the Ramsay house on the other, and we drove around with the cast on the trucks waving, and these big banners saying, 'Neighbours is moving to a new home'.''

That got a lot of coverage, but the show struggled to make a dint in the all-important Sydney market until Walsh got the attention of Roy Miller, editor of the Daily Mirror, with another stunt. ''I told him Scott and Charlene were going to be in school uniform, having teenage sex in a hotel in Manly, and he spoke to his teenage daughter, who told him everyone was talking about Neighbours. So one day in May 1986, the Daily Mirror came out with this front-page banner - I've still got it today - saying, 'TV shock: teen sex on Ten tonight'. And that really triggered everything.''

In October that year, BBC1 started screening the first Seven-produced episodes to an afternoon-only audience. By 1989, the show had become the hottest property on British TV, with Scott and Charlene's wedding watched by 20 million viewers, more than one in three Britons.

According to Murphy, it managed simultaneously to be the sort of show the Brits can't get enough of and a breath of fresh air. ''The UK is a very mature market for multi-episode serials, but shows such as EastEnders and Emmerdale are pretty dark,'' Murphy says. ''Neighbours was light and sunny and pretty frothy, with people popping in on each other with unlocked doors and having barbecues around the swimming pool. And in a cold, grey English winter, that's escapist viewing.''

According to Michael Sergi, head of the film and television school at Bond University and a director on Neighbours from 1991 to 1995, the show's central appeal is encapsulated in its famous theme song: if you've got good neighbours, you've got good friends.

''The reason it connects is that a lot of people have very isolated lives and what Neighbours does is provide a sense of belonging to a large social network,'' Sergi says. ''People have quite traumatic things happen to them in the show, because it is a melodrama, but at the end there are reassuring solutions. It sends the message that your network will help you through.''

''It's inoffensive,'' says the show's executive producer, Susan Bower, unapologetically. ''It is a show the whole family can watch and it's not going to bring up issues that are offensive, scary or that the parents aren't able to discuss with the children. That's our 6.30pm timeslot and that's our brief.''

Bower generally relishes the challenge of keeping the show fresh and relevant for its core audience. ''Twenty years ago when Kylie walked into the show as Charlene, a female mechanic was something different,'' she says. ''Now it's not. Back then it was, 'Oh, they're sleeping together; how do we explain that?' Now it's, 'Why the hell aren't they sleeping together?' ''

Under Bower's direction, the show has returned to the kind of family-focused storylines on which it was built. But despite occasional highpoints since her appointment in 2008, the ratings look unlikely to return to the heights of its glory years.

The reasons offered range from the proliferation of viewing options to the rise of the computer as the central entertainment platform for today's teens to the increased homework burden and the demand that the TV be turned off for precious family time at the dinner table. Whatever the reason, questions about the place of Neighbours in Ten's future strategy are inevitably being asked.

''Obviously, you would always like better raw numbers, but the demography of Neighbours, given the environment, remains very compelling,'' says Rick Maier, executive producer, drama and production, at Ten. ''It's all about available audience in the timeslot. Is Neighbours still successful? Imagine a grand final crowd at the MCG, multiply that by six or seven, then deliver that audience five nights a week for 48 weeks a year for 25 years straight. That's a phenomenal result.''

Despite that, Ten announced on Thursday that it would move the show, along with The Simpsons, to its new youth-oriented (13-29 years) digital channel, Eleven, when it launches early next year. Ten will run a current affairs program at 6pm (with Jennifer Byrne rumoured as host) and a local news bulletin at 6.30pm.

The expense of replacing it means that Neighbours' place at its new home should be relatively secure. In May 2007, UK channel Five (then owned by RTL, the media group that also owns Fremantle) won the rights to the next 10 years of the show at a reported cost of £300 million, or £140,000 an episode. At the time, that equated to $A333,000 an episode; today, it's about $A243,000. As a rule of thumb, it costs about $350,000 to make a half-hour of television drama in Australia, so the British money covers the bulk of the cost. According to some industry estimates, Neighbours could cost Ten as little as $20,000 per half-hour.

But if Neighbours is in some senses increasingly a show made for the British, those associated with it say that doesn't significantly change it. ''My brief was and is to make the show for Australia, and that's what I've been doing,'' says Bower. Nonetheless, she admits that ''obviously one keeps an eye on the British audience'', which, she says, has a preference for the older characters (in Australia, we prefer the kids).

''The show is really made for the Ten Network in Australia,'' says Murphy. ''The overseas market is a distribution situation; they just buy the Australian program.'' But, he adds, ''the more elements of Australian life you can incorporate the more the show will appeal to foreign audiences''.

That doesn't necessarily make the show any less Australian, but it almost certainly influences the kind of Australia it depicts: racially uniform (ie, white), safe, neat and tidy. ''People live in houses, as opposed to apartments,'' says Sergi. ''The weather is generally not bleak. You rarely see graffiti or street crime or vandalism. The life it portrays in Australia is quite different to what audiences in Germany and France, say, experience.''

It's quite different to what many people in Australia experience, too.

To visit Pinoak Court in Vermont South, the real-life Ramsay Street, is to see at first hand the disjunction between the screen vision and the reality. On a wintry day, with the bruised sky about to burst, it's difficult to see how this cul-de-sac could have become the site of so many fantasies in so many parts of the world. But the barricades that go up at the end of the street between 8pm and 6am each day, the security guards who stand present 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and the residents who scurry from car door to front door lest they be accosted by the curious, all testify to the fact that this nondescript patch of Australian suburbia continues to exercise a powerful magic.

And for those who are entrusted with keeping that faith, not even the relentless churn of 230 episodes a year can dim it. ''It's like a tsunami every week,'' says Bower. ''You finish one, you turn around and there's another one. It's exhausting, but it's exhilarating.''

Source: The Age

In regards to the bold part, I do have to wonder if Aussie's do prefer the teen domination, to that of a more multi-generational cast. If they did, wouldn't the ratings be higher? Wouldn't it be the topic of conversation with teens? Wouldn't they actually think of it as being relevant, instead of obsolete? Packed To The Rafters is a multi-generational show and they pull in high numbers and is popular with all, so why change what Neighbours all ways was, for something that is new and clearly not working?

I love Neighbours, its the best Aussie soap around at the moment. H&A is too depressing and so boring.

I hate the new Declan, he is lifeless and is ruining the character,I want the original one back.

New character:

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s14/neighbours/scoop/a269105/time-to-meet-a-neighbours-newcomer.html

Interview with Susan Bower:

http://www.atvnewsnetwork.co.uk/today/index.php/atv-today/3866-interview-with-neighbours-boss-susan-bower

Thanks for that!

Some fans feel that the show is too teen orientated, are you now trying to strike a balance?

That question surprises me and I can understand it being asked 12 months ago but definitely in the last six months, the storylines have been very balanced involving all our cast members. And just for example Toadie, Steph, Libby, Lucas and of course Paul Robinson, are the key players in the stories now airing and coming up.

I think that can be taken as confirmation of her admitting the show was too teen-centric, and how she talked a load of BS when fielding this question during this time. But, I do agree with her, that this is a weird time to bring this question up, as the show has made an active attempt to address the teen issue, and the dumbing down of the show.

Interview with Carla Bonner (Steph)

Does anyone else thing that Carla's decision to leave was in part due to the storyline and the negative fan reaction to her character? Also, I'm unsure what to think of her exit being out-of-character - not that surprises me, but I hope the writing supports this kind of exit.

It looks like the new Declan, Zeke, and Rebecca are all being written out. I think that's a waste for Rebecca, she's a great character.

That is a shame that Zeke and Rebecca are being written out. At this rate by 2014 (assuming the show hasn't been cancelled by then but I do think it will be given a few years on Eleven) there will be no characters left over who joined during the 2000s just like how by 1994 all the eighties characters except Helen, a recast Julie and a recast Cody were gone (not including Lou in that list because his first stint in 1988 was short). Although at least this time we still actually have some characters left over from the nineties and Paul is back from the original cast.

I guess what I am trying to say is that Neighbours has really struggled with developing long term characters in the past few years after having great success with the likes of the Kennedys and the Scully's. So it really is a shame that Jane Hall (who seemed happy to stay put) and Matthew Werkmeister (who I'd hoped would stay for a bit longer as he has been there for five years despite making noises about leaving some time ago)

Won't really miss reacst Declan though

Edited October 11, 201015 yr by Dion

Helen was the older woman? She wasn't around long past 94 was she?

It doesn't make any sense to me to get rid of Rebecca. I think she still could have found a place even without Declan. She worked well with Paul and with Susan.

You also have to wonder how much more they can really get out of characters like Toadie or Libby.

Jane Hall chose to quit, so it's not like TPTB are writing her out. I always felt like she was going to be a main stayer, but I guess the move to digital had her rethink her time with the show. It's sad, and a real blow to the show, but that's life. Rebecca will be missed.

My guess is, that once Jane decided to quit, they decided to write out NuDeclan too, as he really isn't working as well as what he should have. I do like how her and Declan's exits will involve the returning Oliver & Carmella.

Zeke is a bit of a mystery, as it could've been his decision or TPTB's. I think he lost some fans during the time he dominated story with his rubbish love interests, and nonsensical moments in Sunny and Mia, which is probably why he's been a supporting character for most of 2010. I won't really miss him at all.

This, though, does present an interesting opportunity for the Kennedy's, as they're gonna be without any one to look after, and a good time for TPTB to move Chris into their care. But, it has been reported that the writers are struggling with long-term story for their first gay character outside of love interests and relationship angst, which I guess they don't want to tackle due to the classification restrictions.

These are definitely make or break times for show, as it will leave a lot of characters swinging in the wind. I do wonder how much longer Scott Major and Janet Andrewartha will stay with the show... and how much life Neighbours has left in it.

So she wanted to leave? I guess I can understand that. It's better than them firing her. I just hate to see such a great character go.

Me to. But, they never would've fired her. They know how popular Rebecca is, and the asset she was to the show. The move to digital was always going to cause some cast members to re-evaluate, considering it'll mean less exposure within the industry.

I read at DS that she was saying not long ago she saw the show as a long term job. I guess the digital might have changed that though. Was that digital move unexpected?

Some also think that

she might have quit because she was upset that Rebecca pushed Paul.

There wasn't really anything AFAICR. We knew about Eleven, and then one day there was the rumour that Ten were going be extending their news and revamping the pre-7pm timeslots, which they then assured fans that Neighbours was safe (remember, they issued that statement about their love for the show), and then suddenly, it was being moved. I'm not sure how far in advance the show knew, but they must have had a heads up, and heard whispers long before.

IMO, Jane leaving is the reason why Rebecca pushed Paul. Due to there advance filming and scripting, and the close proximity the 6000th event is to Rebecca's departure, I'd say her decision to quit influenced their decision to make Rebecca Paul's attacker.

No-one's posted in here for a while, so I'll give it a bump.

For those of you that are still watching, how have you found the show over the last couple of months? Say, since around the time Steph's secret was exposed till now.

I think they've demonstrated that they can tell good stories. The shows not perfect, but the fall out from Steph's secret has been big, and some of the best acting moments in soap from Kym Valentine and Carla Bonner. And its allowed for Sonya to come into her own, as one of the most level headed characters the show had had in years.

Got to say, Jane Hall is a treasure, and one I'm so sad the show will be loosing. Jane has played Rebecca's wrath of emotions with such nuance and ease, especially when Rebecca discovered Paul's affair, and most recently when she broke down in Lyn's arms. She deserves to be nominated and win a Logie, but they normally go to more younger and higher profile actors, which is a shame.

I don't think I've ever seen a soap portray a coma victim quite like Neighbours did today. Normally, the character wakes up, says/does something dramatic, then falls back to sleep, only to wake up again and be completely recovered. I liked how they put emphasis on the medical side, and had Paul unable to speak, and needing help with giving him water, wiping his mouth, and generally having his family be his nurse. I liked how they showed the reality with Andrew and Rebecca at the prospect of Paul needing long term care, and Susan's stunned reaction, when Paul got agitated and embarrassed with Rebecca's nursing. Stefan's doing an awesome job, as usual.

Sad that the show took another ratings dive last Friday in Oz, as it has been doing so well. It seems like most of Ten's line up have been doing badly, so not just Neighbours. But, when B&B out-rates it, there's definitely a problem. Shame Ten execs no longer care.