:Leah Poulos, daughter of [[Grecian]]-born Theo & Helen Poulos and sister to Demetrii, Alex, & Chris, arrived in Summer Bay in episode 2793, 2000, as a runaway bride trying to get out of an arranged marriage. She soon found real love with local bad boy [[Vinnie Patterson]] ([[Ryan Kwanten]]), and in 2001, they were married. That same year, Leah gave birth to Vinnie "V.J." Patterson Jr. Things, however, took a turn for the worse when Vinnie went to jail to pay for his father's fraud crimes.
:Leah Poulos, daughter of [[Grecian]]-born Theo & Helen Poulos and sister to Demetrii, Alex, & Chris, arrived in Summer Bay in episode 2793, 2000, as a runaway bride trying to get out of an arranged marriage. She soon found real love with local bad boy Vinnie Patterson ([[Ryan Kwanten]]), and in 2001, they were married. That same year, Leah gave birth to Vinnie "V.J." Patterson Jr. Things, however, took a turn for the worse when Vinnie went to jail to pay for his father's fraud crimes.
:As Vinnie was killed by a fire, Leah fell in love with [[Jesse McGregor]] ([[Ben Unwin]]). They became a couple, but after she became a surrogate mother for Flynn ([[Joel McIlroy]]) and Sally, Jesse and Leah broke up. After Peter Baker told her that Vinnie is alive (albeit under a new identity in the Witness Protection Programme, as a result of having testified against a dangerous criminal), Leah went to drastic lengths, but fell in love with Dan Baker. In mid 2005, the couple got married, though Dan's ex-wife had tried to sabotage their day. In the 2005 season finale, Leah found out that Dan had started gambling again and was devastated. After Dan's son by his first wife, Ryan, was kidnapped because of his debts, she told Dan their marriage was over and they broke up, even though she was pregnant with his child. In early 2006, Dan and Leah become a couple again after working out their problems. However, Leah then kissed Peter in a moment of weakness, she went out for a walk to think about what she'd done and she fell off the rocks into the sea. This lead to her catching [[pneumonia]], and she lost the baby. When Dan discovered that she and Peter had kissed, they had a period of separation, though Leah and Dan are now back together.
:As Vinnie was killed by a fire, Leah fell in love with Jesse McGregor ([[Ben Unwin]]). They became a couple, but after she became a surrogate mother for Flynn ([[Joel McIlroy]]) and Sally, Jesse and Leah broke up. After Peter Baker told her that Vinnie is alive (albeit under a new identity in the Witness Protection Programme, as a result of having testified against a dangerous criminal), Leah went to drastic lengths, but fell in love with Dan Baker. In mid 2005, the couple got married, though Dan's ex-wife had tried to sabotage their day. In the 2005 season finale, Leah found out that Dan had started gambling again and was devastated. After Dan's son by his first wife, Ryan, was kidnapped because of his debts, she told Dan their marriage was over and they broke up, even though she was pregnant with his child. In early 2006, Dan and Leah become a couple again after working out their problems. However, Leah then kissed Peter in a moment of weakness, she went out for a walk to think about what she'd done and she fell off the rocks into the sea. This lead to her catching [[pneumonia]], and she lost the baby. When Dan discovered that she and Peter had kissed, they had a period of separation, though Leah and Dan are now back together.
*'''Drew Curtis''' ([[Bob Morley]]).
*'''Drew Curtis''' ([[Bob Morley]]).
Revision as of 23:16, 25 August 2006
These are the current main characters in the Seven Networksoap operaHome and Away, as can be seen on the episodes being shown in Australia. The show is shown at different paces in other countries. As such, character lists may differ in the episodes in those countries.
Rachel debuted at the beginning of the 2006 season as the new psychiatrist of Summer Bay and long-time friend of Leah Baker. As the cyclone was building, she saved the life of Kim Hyde, who had suffered a drug overdose. Kim fell for her and although initially wary of starting a relationship with her patient, Kim's persistence paid off and the two began dating. Around this time Rachel also became the victim of sexual harassment from her boss, Dr. Brian Helpmann, at the hospital. With the resolution of that saga, Kim proposed to Rachel (who said yes), only to be lost in the bush after a severe helicopter crash. After dealing with the fact Kim and Kit (a past flame), had spent the night together out in the bush, currently wedding plans are well and truly on track.
Rachel's brother, Brad debuted in July 2006, and had an instant attraction to Sally. But having fled town for the city, he has since arrived back in town as the new Principal of Summer Bay High (much to Sally's chargrin) complete with fiance, Emily who is suffering from cancer.
Dan arrived in Summer Bay in episode 3808 in 2004. He was the brother of local detective Peter Baker (Nicholas Bishop), who had been injured in the Sarah Lewis hostage crisis. Dan quickly fell in love with the charm and quirkiness of Summer Bay, as well as single mother Leah Patterson. Dan and Leah fell in love, and in mid 2005, they got married, but the party was ruined by Dan's ex-wife Amanda Vale. In the 2005 season finale, Leah found out about Dan's old gambling habits and was devastated. She tells Dan their marriage is over and they broke up, despite the fact that she was pregnant with his child. In early 2006, Dan and Leah work things out, and once again are back together. However, when Dan discovered that Leah and Peter had had a liaison, this leads to Leah losing the baby. Peter then began stalking Leah and taking photos of her. After a period of separation, Leah and Dan have decided to give their marriage another chance.
Leah Poulos, daughter of Grecian-born Theo & Helen Poulos and sister to Demetrii, Alex, & Chris, arrived in Summer Bay in episode 2793, 2000, as a runaway bride trying to get out of an arranged marriage. She soon found real love with local bad boy Vinnie Patterson (Ryan Kwanten), and in 2001, they were married. That same year, Leah gave birth to Vinnie "V.J." Patterson Jr. Things, however, took a turn for the worse when Vinnie went to jail to pay for his father's fraud crimes.
As Vinnie was killed by a fire, Leah fell in love with Jesse McGregor (Ben Unwin). They became a couple, but after she became a surrogate mother for Flynn (Joel McIlroy) and Sally, Jesse and Leah broke up. After Peter Baker told her that Vinnie is alive (albeit under a new identity in the Witness Protection Programme, as a result of having testified against a dangerous criminal), Leah went to drastic lengths, but fell in love with Dan Baker. In mid 2005, the couple got married, though Dan's ex-wife had tried to sabotage their day. In the 2005 season finale, Leah found out that Dan had started gambling again and was devastated. After Dan's son by his first wife, Ryan, was kidnapped because of his debts, she told Dan their marriage was over and they broke up, even though she was pregnant with his child. In early 2006, Dan and Leah become a couple again after working out their problems. However, Leah then kissed Peter in a moment of weakness, she went out for a walk to think about what she'd done and she fell off the rocks into the sea. This lead to her catching pneumonia, and she lost the baby. When Dan discovered that she and Peter had kissed, they had a period of separation, though Leah and Dan are now back together.
Teenaged Drew arrived in Summer Bay on July 6, 2006, and was soon revealed to be the long-lost son of the now-deceased Peter Baker.
Drew has recently formed a relationship with the feisty Belle TaylorJessica Tovey, Much to the disapprovement of Dan Tim Campbell and Amanda Holly Brisley.
Tony arrived in Summer Bay in 2005, in episode 4020, with his sons, police officer Jack and teenager Lucas, moving in next door to the Hunter family. He then began a relationship with Beth Hunter (his wife, Kate, died 14 years previously) and the Holdens eventually moved in with her and her children, including her teenage daughter Matilda, (who happened to be Lucas' girlfriend). The harmonious atmosphere fell apart when Lucas and Matilda broke up, with Lucas going off the rails and causing a whole heap of trouble for himself and others. Tony is the Physical Education teacher at Summer Bay High.
Jack Holden is a police officer who shot a teenage girl dead in self-defence as she carried out an armed robbery. The girl's father, Harry Chambers, swore revenge on Jack Holden and promised to follow him wherever he went. Seeking a supportive, safe community, the Holdens fled to Summer Bay. Following a town meeting at which they heard both sides of the story, the Summer Bay community accepted Jack's innocence and welcomed him with open arms. Jack asked Martha McKenzie out, but she said no - due to the fact that she was still resentful about Jack pulling her over in her car for speeding. However, he kept trying. Martha played a practical joke on Jack by planting a rubber spider in his bedroom (after having heard that spiders were Jack's greatest fear), which ended up going very wrong: on seeing the spider, a terrified Jack stumbled, fell and hit his head, and had to be taken to hospital to have an operation on his ear which he injured in the fall; he became partially deaf for a short time. After Jack found out about Martha's practical joke, Martha did everything she could to make it up to him. He decided he wanted her to jump off a cliff (Martha is afraid of heights), but after realizing she really was going to jump off the cliff for him, he set a new task and they engaged in a passionate kiss. Martha and Jack then became a couple. Jack and Martha were together for a while, but after he lied about getting his hearing back, Martha got furious with him, storming out of his house and suggesting that they better split up. After that, Martha started dating Corey Anderson, Jack's police partner. Jack became deeply frustrated by this, and after Kim Hyde and Hayley Lawson's (Ella Scott Lynch) engagement party, he saw her at the diner and said, "I have never felt these feelings for any one else." She told him it was too late and that she was with Corey. Then, when Corey asked her to move to the city with him (he wanted to be closer to his mother, who is in a mental hospital), she accepts and they leave promptly. On the journey over, they stop for a picnic, which is when she finds liquid mercury in his backpack and a book with all the people he has killed crossed off from a list of jury members who sent his father to jail. He was the one poisoning Irene Roberts. Martha then went to ring Jack, who then went to find her. Finding out that she had seen his book of kilings, Corey grabbed her, but she pulled free and ran for her life. Jack eventually found her, and then went to arrest Corey. Martha and Jack went back to being good friends, until Baby Noah's christening, were they were found flirting with each other by Matilda and Lucas who said, "It is obvious that you guys are meant to be together. So why don't you just get your acts together?" When Martha went into another room, Jack came and sat next to her on Hayley's bed, and said,"Maybe it is time we get our acts together". Martha smiled, and he kissed her, and they are back together again. Jack planned to propose to Martha but pretended that he thought marriage was just a dumb tradition. As Martha really wanted to get married, she thought seriously about breaking up with him. Tasha had to tell Martha why Jack had been acting that way, and Martha ended up proposing to Jack. They became engaged. At Jack and Martha's wedding day, their happiness turned to tragedy after the Summer Bay Stalker crashed the party, and there was an explosion at the barn. Peter Baker was killed in the blast, while Jack was injured very badly and almost died. He was devastated when Martha was in the ill-fated helicopter crash, and bonded with Tasha, whose husband Robbie was also on the helicopter. Jack fears Martha may never be found alive, and is oblivious to Tasha's growing feelings for him.
Lucas moved with his family, brother Jack and dad Tony to Summer Bay in 2005. After his brother caused a stir, Lucas met Matilda, daughter of his father's new love interest, Beth Hunter. During preparations for Colleen's play, Ric and Cassie were fired after a rivalry sprung up between the two. Maddie and Lucas were hired to replace them. On the night of the play, Maddie and Lucas changed the lines to make it more interesting and amusing - which it definitely ended up being. Lucas and Maddie shared their first kiss, witnessed by the whole of Summer Bay. The relationship fell apart when Lucas became friends with Belle Taylor, the girl who had single handedly split up Ric and Cassie. Lucas and Matilda argued over who they should stay loyal to: Ric or Cassie. After one argument the two broke up and Lucas put the final nail in the coffin by going to bed with another girl, only to be caught by a heartbroken Matilda. Lucas fell in with a bad crowd, and, unable to cope with being so close to Matilda everyday he hid how hurt he was about their break up by recklessly going off the rails and causing trouble, including lashing out at those closest to him; resulting in Lucas punching his father, Tony. Lucas then realized he was missing a 'mother figure' in his life and that his problems were caused by the difficulty he was having accepting Beth Hunter into his life. Lucas and Beth sorted things out, and Lucas cleaned up his act. He and Matilda then became friends again. Lucas looked after Matilda following the explosion and took tentative steps at a reconcilliation. This was blown apart when Lee, the girl found in his bed that he claimed he did not sleep with, returned and announced to everyone that she was pregnant with Lucas' baby. Even though it was untrue, Lucas has let everyone believe it to protect Lee, even if it means losing Matilda.
Martha is the granddaughter of Alf Stewart. she arrived as an adult into Summer Bay in 2005, having been given up for adoption by Ruth 'Roo' Stewart. She was involved with Jesse McGregor, but they broke up after a little while. Martha first met Jack Holden at Tasha and Robbie's house-warming party. Jack (a police officer) knocked on the door to ask Tasha and Robbie to turn down the music because of a complaint from the neighbours. Martha became upset with Jack because of this, but Robbie turned down the music and Jack left, leaving Martha furious. The next day, she was pulled over for a speeding ticket. To her surprise, it was Jack again, making her more furious. Martha went to Beth's house and met the new neighbours, only to find that Jack is amongst them. Martha became very angry.
From the moment they met, Martha had an instant attraction to Jack, but didn't want to show it, and persistently declined his proposals of dates. At one point, they played a game of pool, with the loser (Martha) having to do a naked run. Tony told Martha that Jack is afraid of spiders, so Martha decided to put one on his bed, not thinking that it could cost Jack his hearing. When Jack saw the spider, he jumped and hit his head on the cupboard, then fell unconscious. In hospital, Jack was told that he could be deaf in one ear. When Jack found out that it was Martha who put the spider there as a joke, he was furious and screamed at her to get out of his room. Martha was shattered and ran out crying. Tony told Jack that he saw Martha crying at the beach, and admitted that she likes him, reasoning that if she didn't, she wouldn't be crying. Jack went down to the beach to talk to Martha. He said it will be hard to forget, but she can make it up to him by facing her fears and jumping off a cliff (Martha is scared of heights). They went up to a cliff and Jack was shocked when he realised that Martha would jump off for him. Jack stopped her leap at the last moment, and told her that there is another way she can make it up to him. They begin to kiss, and Jack and Martha became a couple.
The couple were inseparable. Jack told everyone that he was starting to get his hearing back, but Martha found out he was lying. She told Tony, who then informed Jack's superiors at the police station; Jack was restricted to station duties until his hearing had fully recovered. Jack and Martha got into an argument, and he told Martha that it was her fault in the first place that he lost his hearing. Martha stormed out. Before leaving, she said that it is better if they break up. Jack apologised, but it was too late. Martha then dated Jack's working partner, Corey. On the night of Kim and Hayley's engagement party, Jack informed Martha how he really felt, stating "the way I fell for you, I have never felt for anyone before". Martha responded that it was too late, as she was with Corey now.
After Corey was jailed for poisoning Irene Roberts, Martha and Jack became good friends, until Baby Noah's christening when they were flirting and Matilda and Lucas came up and said, "You two are hopeless; it is obvious you two are meant to be together, so why don't you get your acts together?" Martha and Jack shrugged it off, but inside Martha had strong feelings for Jack. She went into Hayley's room and was followed by Jack, who sat down on the bed opposite her and said, "Maybe it is time we got our acts together." She smiled and then Jack kissed her. They were a couple again.
Jack and Martha finally got married. Jack and Martha's happiness turned to tragedy after the Summer Bay Stalker crashed the party and and there was an explosion at the reception. Jack was injured very badly and almost died. Dr. Armstrong then arranged for a plastic surgeon in the city to have a look at Martha, Robbie, Kim, Kit and Belle's burns. The helicopter that would transfer them to the city got caught in a storm and dropped off the radar. Alf sent out a search party for them, but could not find them. The crash victims have now been found alive.
Hunter family
Elizabeth "Beth" Walters Hunter Sutherland (Clarissa House).
Beth grew up a country girl and had no aspirations but to marry a farmer. She found what she was looking for when she married Jack Hunter, a man 12 years her senior, before she was eighteen. She gave birth to her first son, Scott, ten months later.
Beth’s first appearance was in episode 3489 when Scott took her as his date to the fundraising dance for Scott's boatshed. This was the first time she met Rhys Sutherland, who Dani Sutherland (Tammin Sursok), his eldest daughter, had taken along as her date. She talked about how she had left university when she was younger to look after the kids.
She was understandably taken aback when Alf Stewart announced Scott and Dani's engagement. However, Colleen and Alf had simply got their wires crossed and the situation blew over. Rhys and Beth got friendly and soon enjoyed a dance together, only to have it interrupted by Angie Russell (Laurie Foell) crashing the dance, where she then ripped into Rhys.
After that point, Beth did not appear for a few weeks until she came around looking for Scott. As she did so, she asked Rhys if he wanted to grab a coffee. In the Beachside Diner, they talked about the dinner dance and Rhys brought up the fact that he had asked Beth out on a date. A few days later, Rhys kept his promise and took her out for dinner, but on the way they narrowly avoided hitting a motorcyclist. When they rushed over to see who the motorcyclist was, they found it to be Kit, Beth’s daughter, who had stolen Noah Lawson’s (Beau Brady) bike. Fortunately, she wasn’t hurt.
Beth was later joined by another son, offbeat inventor Robbie, in late 2003. Around that time, Rhys, his "twin" daughters Kirsty (Christie Hayes) & Jade (Kate Garven), and his nephew Max (Sebastian Elmaloglou), got trapped in a mineshaft, fighting for their lives (an event that took place in the final episodes of 2003 and climaxed with a rescue in the 2004 season premiere).
As 2004 began, Rhys & Beth bought the caravan park from Josh West. Because money was tight, it was decided that Beth's youngest children, twins Henry & Matilda, should come out of boarding school and live in Summer Bay. A few weeks later, Rhys & Beth got married. Unfortunately, the marriage fell to pieces months later when Rhys cheated on her with his ex-wife, Shelley (Paula Forrest), which led to a divorce and Rhys' departure later in the year.
In 2005, the Holdens moved to Summer Bay, and Beth soon pursued a relationship with the patriarch, Tony, while Matilda started to date Lucas, Tony's youngest son. Meanwhile, Beth wasn't pleased with the romance going on between Scott and Summer Bay High's new drama teacher, Amanda Vale, who Beth thought was shady and manipulative. Although Scott eventually saw through Amanda and dumped her, Beth was shocked and livid when Amanda married her father, millionaire Graham Walters (Doug Scroope). Beth was really devastated when her father, Graham Walters, died of a heart attack, and in resulting his will, Amanda inherited all of Graham's money, but was appeased when Amanda gave the Hunters all Graham's medals from the Vietnam War.
Robbie arrived in late 2003 in episode 3647 as a guest role and became a regular at the beginning of the 2004 season. As the middle child of the Hunter clan, he was quite eccentric and odd, as he is always trying to come up with new and crazy inventions (all of which rarely get off the drawing board and when they do, never quite work as they should!) and made out-of-place comments to the Sutherland clan. His intentions are usually always good, but they almost always end up in disaster. Robbie is also a bit of a klutz. For example, when Tasha Andrews went missing, Robbie had an invention to catch her, but only ended up catching himself. When he escaped, he was bitten by a snake. After Tasha found him and went to get help, they became friends, and eventually lovers. In 2005, Robbie "married" Tasha in an unofficial ceremony, only to be dumped by her at the end of the season when she joined a Sydney-based cult called The Believers. When Tasha finally realised what the Believers were really like, she attempted to escape, only to be help captive by them. She eventually got away, with the help of two other members, Rebbeca and Jonah. Robbie and Tasha are now married for real. Robbie and Tasha's marriage is not perfect, however, as Tasha is pregnant with Jonah's baby.
Maddie came to Summer Bay in early 2004 in episode 3658 with her twin brother Henry and wasn't subtle about how mad she was to move in with her mother, Beth, and soon-to-be-stepfather Rhys. Since then, she has had several romances, first with Ric Dalby, then Diesel Williams, and then Lucas Holden. Her close relationship with best friend Ric has caused Cassie Turner to go mad with jealousy, but it seems these two were just destined to be soul mates rather than lovers. She suffered a number of traumas living in the Bay ranging from being run over (by big brother Robbie), drugged and almost raped by evil Callan and abducted and held hostage by the strange Terry Rawlings. Luckily she had moved on to be happy with true love Lucas until recently when Lucas' friendship with Belle put their relationship in trouble. Eventually, like Ric and Cassie, the pair broke up in April 2006.
As the youngest member of the Hunter family (Henry is 7 minutes older) Matilda likes to be the centre of attention and is quite the little actress, yet hates the way her family treats her as a little girl rather than the young woman she has grown into. Her romance with Lucas was going from strength to strength and helped Matilda work through some of her insecurities, especially where boys are concerned. When Belle stole Ric from Cassie, Matilda stayed loyal to her best friend and was horrified when Lucas became friends with Belle himself. The pair argued and eventually broke up, something which has hit Maddie hard especially as she now has to live with him. Despite their break up Matilda hoped they could work things out, but was devastated when she caught Lucas in bed with another girl. However, Lucas has since cleaned up his act and he and Matilda have resumed their friendship.
Matilda suffered horrific burns during the explosion at Jack and Martha's wedding, resulting in Matilda's body issues to come back. Her self esteem was lifted slightly by Lucas' obvious concern for her, but was shattered when Lee, the girl he claimed he didn't sleep with returned and announced she was having his baby. This sent Matilda over the edge and she has developed an eating disorder and self loathing, much to the concern of her mother Beth and best friends Ric and Cassie.
When Tasha first debuted in episode 3564, she was spotted by Max Sutherland as he was walking along the rocks. Startled by his presence, she jumped into the ocean, leaving Max believing he had encountered a mermaid. It was later revealed that she only spoke Pig Latin and wasn't used to living among common people, as she was adopted into a family of survivalists. Since then, Tasha has been taken in by Irene Roberts, has learned that the sinister Angie Russell is her birth mother, has survived a plane crash along with other Summer Bay residents, and has fallen in love with and even "married" the off-beat Robbie Hunter in an unofficial ceremony that took place in 2005. Prior to this she was seduced by the evil Josh West who took advantage of her naivity. Later in 2005 she joined a cult , the Believers, leaving Robbie behind. Tasha leaves the cult along with another member Jonah Abrahams (James Mitchell). Robbie and Tasha got engaged and this time, they were married legally. Tasha discovered on her wedding day that she is pregnant and that Jonah, who drugged and raped her whilst she was with the Believers, is the father. While Tasha's husband Robbie (Jason Smith) is missing in the chopper crash, she becomes close to her best friend Martha's husband Jack.
When Sally debuted in Home and Away's first episode in 1988, she was the youngest child in a family of foster kids. Sally was just three years old when she lost her parents in a boating accident. She went to live with her grandmother and her love helped Sally adjust to the loss of her parents and feel secure again.
When she was 5½, Mrs Keating was diagnosed as having Alzheimer's disease. As her condition worsened, the household routine fell apart and Sally often missed school to stay home and look after her grandmother. One of her teachers brought the situation to the attention of the Welfare Dept, who put her in a home when they realised she wasn't being properly cared for. When she arrived at the home, she put up walls and retreated into a fantasy world, creating an imaginary friend called Milko.
Sally was fostered by Tom and Pippa Fletcher, who eventually decided to adopt her as their own child. Sally was devastated when Tom died in 1990, and wasn't too keen on Pippa seeing Michael Ross. Her animosity was eventually relieved, when Michael reassured her he wasn't going to replace Tom. When Sally reached her teens, she began to rebel. She was caught by Alf drunk at a beach party.
Sally was kidnapped by a person who had a crush on her when they were at school. Sally was with a few boys in her teenage years, and had tough times with them. Scott almost raped her, and Tim became so obsessed with her that he became jealous when he saw her with any other boy, even if they were only friends. When Pippa decided to leave the bay and move to the city, Sally was forced to choose between the surf and the city. As she had just started her archaeology degree at the time, Sally chose to stay in the bay, to the delight of many of her friends.
Sally was a university student and a manager for Bonza Burgers. When Adam returned to the Bay, she was eventually sacked for refusing to meet Adam's demands. She helped Vinnie with his war against Adam; in the end they won and she got her job back, on her conditions. However, Sally later ended up unemployed after all when Bonza Burgers went bankrupt.
Before the days of Flynn Saunders, Sally didn’t have many serious relationships, but her first long-term relationship was with Vinnie Patterson. This eventually ended due to Vinnie's immaturity. Sally then left for Ireland for a brief holiday. When she came back, she brought Kieran with her. After a short time they became engaged. Their wedding was arranged for the middle of 2000. She was delighted when old faces returned to the Bay to see her wedding. The wedding was never finalised, because Gypsy revealed Kieran's actions towards her. Sally demanded the truth from him and they eventually broke up. Most recently Sally found a stable relationship in Flynn Saunders, and the two got married and eventually moved into Sally's old home (Summmer Bay House) at the caravan park. Sally continued to use her adoptive maiden name of Fletcher instead of taking on Flynn's name. Sally & Flynn couldn't afford to buy both the house and the caravan park, so she was surprised when her foster-mother Pippa bought the caravan park for her some time later, knowing how much it meant to Sally.
Not too long ago, Sally and Flynn decided to start a family, but Sally was found to have ovarian cancer, and was unable to have children of her own. After having an operation to get rid of the cancer, Sally realised that her dream of having kids would never come true. However, before the operation Sally had some of her eggs frozen and was told that with the help of a surrogate mother she and Flynn would be able to have the family that they always wanted. The two of them spent time looking for a surrogate mother to have their baby. Luckily for them, Sally’s foster sister Sophie came forward and offered to help them out. Over Christmas, all the arrangements were made and Sally and Flynn were expecting to bring home their own baby in around seven months time. Unfortunately, Sophie miscarried their baby and the couple turned to their friend Leah instead. Their daughter, named Pippa after her foster mother Pippa Fletcher/Ross, was born in 2004.
In 2005, they took in homeless teenagers Ric Dalby (Mark Furze) and Cassandra 'Cassie' Turner (Sharni Vinson), who they are now raising as their own, just as Sally's foster parents did at the beginning of the series. Sally was recently kidnapped by a boy called Diesel who was one of her students. Diesel had said that Sally had behaved inappropriately towards him, for which Sally almost lost her job, but he finally confessed the truth when he was caught and overpowered by Flynn, after Diesel had got into the house with a duplicate key and threatened to harm baby Pippa. Later that year (2005), Sally was devastated to learn that Flynn had cancer in vital organs of his body and had only three months to live.
Flynn died on February 13, 2006, leaving Sally to bring up her young family on her own.
Cassie made her first appearance in episode 3920 when she arrived on the beach riding a jet-ski and met Ric Dalby. (It turned out that Cassie had actually stolen the jet-ski, and when the angry owner turned up, she and Ric had to run for it!) She was a sexy fiery troublemaker from the start, but if there was a reason for that, it was because she was a victim of sexual abuse by her uncle, Ben Foxton. When her grandmother, Joy, died, she was taken in by the Saunders family. Her relationship with Ric has suffered many problems including her jealousy over Ric and Matilda's obvious closeness, keeping secrets from each other and a clash of their strong egos. Flynn's death has put further strain on their relationship plus Cassie has found a rival for Ric's affections in troublesome newcomer Belle Taylor, the disagreeable misfit who Cassie understandably has taken an instant dislike to. The animosity between Cassie and Belle boiled over into a vicious catfight when Cassie caught her bitter rival with Ric. Ric and Cassie broke up for good after both agreeing that the relationship was not worth all the trouble. Ric also fell in love... Cassie was forced to move on and did so by falling for Martha's brother Macca who had arrived in town to visit his sister. Sally was disturbed by the age difference between Macca and Cassie, and Martha was worried as her brother had a reputation for being fickle with girls. Sally clashed with Cassie over the relationship especially when Cassie was caught out for underage drinking. Eventually Cassie was forced to break up with Macca when he told her that he was leaving town. She was delighted when Macca returned but he started showing an aggressive side to his personality caused by his drug abuse. He lashed out a number of times and hit Cassie.
Now that Macca is out of the picture Ric and Cassie are back together and trust each other now more than before. Ric and Cassie are also becoming very concerned about how depressed Matilda has become following her injuries in the explosion, her problems with Lucas and the fear that her brother Robbie and sister Kit could be dead. She still has some rivalry with bitter Belle, whom Ric dumped to get back with Cassie. Cassie thinks Ric is her 'true' love until she sees Belle kissing Ric. At first, Cassie doesn't want to listen to Ric, but then it all backfires when she sees the two talking on the beach. Cassie slaps Belle. While the girls are arguing, Amanda gets involved but pushes Cassie over.
Alf is a true blue Austalian bloke and a good natured rogue with a finger in every pie. The character was most known for his use of declining Australian Slang, such as the words "flamin," "strewth," "strike my living harry" and his most famous quotes are "stone the flamin' crows" "flaming mongrels" and "flaming galah". By the age of 30, he owned the Summer Bay Liquor Store, the Boat Hire Service, the Summer Bay Caravan Park and a yacht brokerage business. He is a brother to Celia and Morag Bellingham, who was later revealed to be Bobby's mother. He is also a brother of Barbara Fisher, who is an ex-wife of Donald Fisher. Alf was married to Martha Stewart, a local lass whom he adored very much. She died from drowning in 1985; it shattered Alf so much. They lived in Summer Bay house, which later became the Fletchers' house. After her death, Alf could no longer stand living there. As a tribute to her memory, he kept the house spick and span; in the meantime, the caravan park worsened into a state of disrepair when sold to the Fletchers. He also lost other businesses.
When Ailsa Hogan arrived in Summer Bay, he went out with her. He was attracted to her, but was unsure of how far he would like his relationship with her to go. However, it took only the first 20 episodes of Home And Away for them to decide to get married. Alf's daughter, Ruth, whom everyone called Roo, hated Ailsa so much that she went to great lengths to find something unsavoury about her. Despite Roo's hostility, Alf stuck with Ailsa, which Roo later accepted. They married on the spot in a registry and surprised Roo and Celia.
In 1989, Alf was delighted when he had a son, whom they called Duncan. Unfortunately for him, Ailsa suffered from post-natal depression. At one stage, she nearly suffocated Duncan in his cot. In later years, he had businesses in different locations, but they rarely stayed long — one was damaged by an earthquake, another by fire, and so on. Alf opened a business with Jesse McGregor, who was a crook in his younger days; they opened a bait store which they called 'Alf and Jesse's Baits and Bits Store'. However, the place was burnt down by a madman.
In 1995, Ailsa went through a period of depression following an armed hold-up at the Diner. She was on tranquilisers and had a vision of Bobby coming out of the fridge one night. Alf tried to help her, but to no avail. Alf had a few near heart attacks and was constantly told to slow down, and tone down the flames and not lose his temper so much. Despite this, he still continued his busy life. Duncan had an accident on council lands which ended in him being in hospital for a long time. This angered Alf, and since then, he lost interest in the council.
Despite his old fashioned ways, he is a good natured person who meant well. He was shocked when female lifeguard Shauna Bradley was employed, but accepted it. Alf received a devastating blow at the end of the 2000 season when Ailsa suffered a fatal heart attack. Ailsa's funeral was held in the 2001 Season Premiere and although it's been tough, Alf has in a sense recovered from losing the love of his life. After Ailsa's death, Alf found it more and more difficult to control Duncan, who in the end moved away from Summer Bay to live with his Aunt Morag in the city.
A couple of years later, Alf started to get absent-minded which resulted in him forgetting people's names, threatening to fire Leah from the Diner (which he couldn't, since she was a partner) and on one occasion answering the Diner's phone thinking it was the Bait Shop, upon which Alf had a sudden angry turn and threw every customer in the Diner out. At first, it appeared that Alf had Alzheimer's Disease, but one night he came home to the Diner to find Ailsa working in the kitchen as if nothing had happened to her.
He kept the secret that he believed that he was with Ailsa for months, but his behaviour got worse, even violent at times (at one point he pushed Morag down a flight of stairs), until it eventually transpired that he had a brain tumour, but not wishing to be separated from Ailsa again, Alf refused to have the operation, despite everyone in town urging him to do it. Soon, the Ailsa vision turned evil and started to scare Alf; finally, he agreed to have the operation. During the operation, his heart suddenly stopped, and while the surgeons tried to revive him, Alf underwent a vision in which he was shown by Ailsa what Summer Bay would be like in a future without him, and it was a very sorry place indeed. The town had been virtually taken over by Josh West, who was turning it into a more city-like place. He was married to Hayley, who was clearly unhappy with her marriage, although she tried to hide it.
The Diner was shut down, as Leah and VJ had returned to the city, and Donald Fisher had become a disspirited man, whose only reason for living was to try and prevent the demolition of the Surf Club. Colleen was a sad old woman who was living alone at the Caravan Park (paid for by a now wealthy author Max Sutherland) and Noah was an alcoholic after Seb had stolen his bike and was killed on it. Realising how important he was, Alf was able to pull through the operation and recover, while at the same time fully accepting Ailsa's death...
Alf was looked after while recovering by Donald and Seb, and Alf persuaded Donald to take up his retirement and live with his girlfriend in Queensland. However Seb didn't want to leave Summer Bay, so it was decided that Seb would move in with Alf. However some people were convinced that Alf hadn't fully recovered from the tumour, after trying to persuade Josh and Hayley to break up (after his vision) in the middle of a packed diner. When Donald left for Queensland, Alf left with him for an extended holiday. Alf returned after a month in Queensland fully recovered from the tumour and complete with a new zest for life. Seb moved in with him, and the two got along really well, and since he was no longer living alone, Alf found himself far more cheerful than he had been in a long time.
Everything was pretty much fine for the next several months, although there was an incident where Seb stole Noah's bike for a joyride, causing Alf, in a rage, to smash it up with a sledgehammer (he later paid for a new bike). Also, Alf entered his first relationship since Ailsa with Rosemary, Colleen's long lost daughter, although she later left the Bay.
Soon Duncan came home for the first time in years to stay with Alf for a while, however it soon turned out that, rather than choosing to stay with his father, Duncan actually had no where else to go while Morag's apartment was being renovated. It was obvious that Seb and Duncan weren't getting along, due to Duncan's friendship with Seb's girlfriend (and Duncan's ex) Jade Sutherland. Jade was already going off the rails after finding out that, due to a mix-up at the hospital when she was born, she was given as a baby to the wrong parents. Everything came to a head a few days later...
Hayley and Robbie decided to hold a huge birthday bash, since they shared the same birthdate. Duncan however invited gatecrashers, and the party soon turned out of control. Eventually Alf was horrified to learn that Duncan, Jade and Seb (who was trying to stop the two) had gone for a joyride in Robbie's new car. The car went over a cliff, and while Duncan had jumped clear, Seb and Jade were missing. The two were soon found, and while Jade only had minor injuries, Seb's spine had been shattered and he learned that he would never walk again.
Alf was very concerned for Seb, and admitted that he felt far closer to Seb than Duncan. Donald arrived in the Bay to check on Seb, and Seb decided to live with his grandfather. Alf was furious with Duncan after finding out he had not only invited the gatecrashers but was also taking drugs. He and Morag decided that he shouldn't return to live with her and that he should stay in the Bay. However Duncan's behaviour got far worse and, in the end, he left the Bay to live with Roo in New York.
Over the next few months, Alf tried to keep a brave face, but he was becoming depressed, and for a while allowed a coin to make all of his decisions for him. This caused him to sell his half of the Diner to Irene Roberts, and Alf came out of his depression and decided to enjoy his retirement. A couple of months later, Alf had several run-ins with a young tearaway named Eric Dalby, and the two had a mutual loathing of each other (given that Dalby had set fire to the Surf Club kiosk and blamed Henry Hunter for the crime), but he also discovered that 'The Guv', who had looked after Dani during her spell in prison, was his first true love Viv Standish, who had suddenly left him due decades ago due to the fact that she was Catholic while he wasn't.
Viv was dying, and Morag arranged for her to be given parole for her last few weeks. Meanwhile there was shock around the Bay when Dalby appeared to have murdered his father while he was being beaten by him (Dalby had been on the receiving end of beatings for years). After showing Viv around the bay, she confessed that the true reason she had left him was that she had discovered she was pregnant with their child, and was too afraid to tell him. Alf forgave her, and she died in his arms. Alf was devastated, but was determined to find the son he never knew he had! Alf did some digging, and Colleen remembered a couple who had adopted a baby at around the same time that Viv would have given birth. Alf was shocked to find the couple's name was 'Dalby'. Alf realised that not only was his son dead, but the boy who he hated, Eric, was his grandson and was currently charged with murdering Owen.
Alf decided that Eric had enough to worry about, and kept the information to himself, but Eric escaped from hospital and went on the run. Alf was upset, and spent the majority of the next few months following leads, all of which led to dead ends. Meanwhile it turned out that Owen had died not from the blow to the head that Eric had given him but a heart attack, meaning Eric was no longer charged with murder.
During the plane crash, Alf was helping with rescue efforts when he heard that Eric had turned up in the bush. Alf was originally going to keep the news that he was Eric's grandfather to himself, until Morag persuaded him otherwise. Alf told Eric the full story, and the shocked and confused teenager ran off. Alf worried about his grandson, until he turned up the next morning at the diner giving the two a chance to talk. However the small amount of headway the two made during the day (including Eric deciding to go by the name of 'Ric') was almost destroyed when Alf entered his flat to find Ric injecting himself with a needle. Instantly jumping to the wrong conclusion, Alf angrily demanded to know what his grandon thought he was doing over Ric's pleas of innocence. It was only after Ric ran off that Alf saw that he had been injecting himself with insulin (Alf was previously unaware Ric was Diabetic). Alf caught up with Ric and apologised for his outburst and while Ric accepted the apology, the two agreed they didn't know enough about each other to just start living together and Alf took Sally and Flynn up on their earlier offer and Ric moved into Summer Bay House. Alf and Ric's relationship continued to grow especially when Alf learned Ric had a liking for fishing. However, the day the two were due to go on a camping trip, Alf received news that Roo had been seriously injured in a traffic accident in New York. Alf caught the first available flight to New York to be with his daughter.
Weeks later, Alf returned to the Bay and instantly became partner in Noah's Bar due to the recent space created when Josie Russell had been bought out following her and Jesse's break-up. It turned out that running around in New York made Alf realise how much he enjoyed being busy and decided to put his retirement on hold. However he had an even bigger surprise in store as he had returned with Martha McKenzie, his granddaughter that Roo gave birth to and had given up for adoption. Later that year, the town of Summer Bay celebrated Alf's 60th birthday, with past citizens returning for the occasion, including his sisters Celia and Barbera who Alf hadn't seen for years. Duncan also returned to visit his father, and as a result of Roo nearly dying in the traffic accident he now regretted his earlier actions in the Bay and sought his father' forgiveness. While Alf pretended to be getting along with Duncan at the party, he clearly felt uncomfortable and found any excuse to leave his side, causing Duncan to storm out of the party. The night ended in tragedy when a car carrying Alf, Kim, Ric, Martha and Chloe (who had recently returned to the Bay) was hit dead on by a driver who drove straight at them and then fled the scene. While Alf, Ric and Kim only suffered superficial injuring and Chloe suffered a broken arm, Martha was seriously injured and was nearly paralysed. However Chloe, while originally in high spirits while in hospital, suddenly died due to a blood clot caused by the broken arm. Alf was convinced that Duncan was responsible for the accident and upon running into him a couple of days later grabbed him and angrily accused him of killing Chloe. When the police deduced that Duncan couldn't have been responsible, Alf tracked his son down and the two finally made up. Duncan left for New York later that day and both were pleased they were now on good terms.
Ric debuted in episode 3818, 2004 and was considered the worst bully at Summer Bay High. But unknown to most of them, Ric was being constantly bullied himself by his alcoholic father, Owen. The only thing Ric felt good about was bullying others and swimming. In 2005, Ric, who would become a regular character, found out that town legend Alf Stewart was his grandfather. But when Ric resisted Alf's chances to reach out to him, he was put into a foster home with the Saunders. He has matured from a school bully to a rough-around-the-edges good guy with the help of, amongst others, his closest friend Matilda Hunter and his new family of Alf, his cousin Martha, Sally, Flynn and baby Pippa. He has also had a romance with his foster sister, Cassie Turner, despite how rocky it has been. This relationship has come under a lot of pressure recently due to family tragedy (Flynn's death), Ric's deepening frustration with life and newcomer Belle's obvious interest in him, which Cassie is none too happy about. This bond eventually drove a wedge between Ric and Cassie, and the couple broke up, leaving Ric to spend more time with his "friend" Belle, who unbeknown to Ric was partly responsible for his foster dad Flynn's accident (Flynn had discovered Belle in the house and, in the ensuing struggle, stumbled and fell down the stairs; an accident which proved disastrous for Flynn in his severely weakened condition) just before he died.
Amanda, a professional actress who had been living in Los Angeles for a couple of years with her young son, Ryan (Isaac Gorman), arrived in the middle of the 2005 season, episode 3994, on the eve of the wedding of Dan Baker (Tim Campbell), her ex, to Leah Patterson (Ada Nicodemou). Since then, she's has become the new drama teacher at Summer Bay High and has caused nothing but trouble for an unfortunate few of Summer Bay residents, including her now-former lover, Scott Hunter (Kip Gamblin). Her exploits include lying about becoming pregnant to hold onto Scott, and impersonating Hayley to obtain DNA samples to discover Baby Noah's true father. After discovering it was Scott and not Kim, as everyone else believed, Amanda kept this information to herself, only to be found out by Flynn after the baby's birth. Gold-digging Amanda is now chasing after Scott's grandfather, the much-older millionaire Graham Walters (Doug Scroope), who she succeeded in marrying at the end of the 2005 season. At the beginning of the 2006 season Graham finds out about Amanda's plan and tells her that he is going to divorce her; he then suffers a heart attack and Amanda refuses to call for an ambulance until Beth arrives. In hospital, Graham recovers and tells Amanda that he has copies of the Project 56 documents. Amanda restricts Graham's drip supply until he tells her where he has hidden the copies, which he never gets do to because he suffers another heart attack and is declared brain dead (Josh finds the copies in Beth's house and destroys them). Amanda comes up with a variety of different ways to get Graham's money and in the end she gets it. She soon discovers that Josh is cheating on her and dumps him, but he then threatens Ryan's life. Amanda buys a gun to protect herself and Josh ends up dead. It was revealed that the killer was Barry Hyde in May 2006. After the thing with Josh, Amanda again pursues Dan, and the pair end up in bed, but Dan later tells Amanda it was a mistake. Amanda grabs Ryan and flees, but she later returns and reveals that she is the producer of a movie that is being made in Summer Bay.
Belle mysteriously arrived in Summer Bay in 2006 and quickly caught the eye of Ric Dalby, making an enemy of Cassie Turner in the process. Her constant presence in their relationship has put them under a lot of strain, which Belle has taken advantage of in an attempt to steel Ric away from nemesis Cassie. Her scheaming paid off as, after a fight broke out between Belle and Cassie, Ric and Cassie gave up on their relationship much to the delight of Belle, who quickly snatched Ric up for herself. She continues to create havoc in the bay through manipulating Lucas and Ric to befriend her and causing a fierce rivalry between herself, Matilda and Cassie. She managed to in her short time in the bay to have already broken up both Cassie and Ric and Matilda and Lucas despite her unflattering personality. Belle received her comeuppance when one spiteful remark upset Matilda so much that she gave Belle an almighty slap around the face, much to the amusement of Cassie. Belle's purpose for coming to the Bay was to find her mother; she had met up with a woman who told her that she was her grandmother and that her mother died in childbirth. In April 2006 it was revealed that Amanda Vale is in fact the mother of Belle. (Amanda told people she had had a miscarriage when she was 14, this was in fact a live birth, and the baby was Belle.) When Belle found out Amanda was her mother, she flipped out as she had made Amanda her arch-enemy.
In the continuing tradition of the show, Irene has been a foster mother to kids in Summer Bay, such as Selina Cook, Chloe Richards, & Joey Rainbow, to the Smith kids (Will, Hayley, & Nick), and Tasha Andrews in recent years. She rebuilt a relationship with her own estranged birth kids, Damian (who later became a priest), Finlay, and Nathan (in prison until the early 2000s, when he reformed) in the early-mid 1990s after having them be taken away from her due to her alcoholism. Irene has also had the odd romantic relationship, such as Ken Smith, Paris Burnett, and most recently, Barry Hyde. Irene was once married to Murdoch Roberts (Fin, Damian and Nathan's father), who was murdered by Dodge in 1995 at Nathan's request. Irene first appeared in episode 999.
Colleen has been in Summer Bay for years, as the mother of original character Lance Smart. She first appeared in 1988, in episode 36 But it wasn't until 1999 that Colleen made a big impression on the Bay as the official town gossip (although she was one of Vera's gossiping mates in the early years of Home And Away). Colleen’s claim to fame is that she won the 'Miss Groper Pageant', years after the event she reorganised it and forced Tasha into the competition. Colleen once suffered a gambling addiction and was forced to go to “Gamblers Anonymous” classes by Shelley Sutherland. However, during her first class, Colleen said that it was Shelly who had the addiction. She engaged Norman Shadbolt in 2004. However, the engagement ended after Norman turned out to be a journalist and broke her trust when he revealed that there was a Summer Bay stalker after she told him in confidence. She currently works at the Diner and as a receptionist at Flynn’s surgery.
Kim arrived in 2004 in episode 3677 as the son of Barry Hyde, the new principal at Summer Bay High. He had been raised by Barry since he was 8 and has been rebelling against and feuding with him ever since. Upon his arrival unto Summer Bay, Kim quickly became friends with Robbie Hunter and Tasha Andrews. He also is very good at swimming and other sports. Kim had a very sweet romantic relationship with Kit Hunter during 2004, but their romantic relationship ended when Kit moved to Paris.
After the plane crash, he fell in love with Hayley Lawson and they became an official couple. A few weeks later, they eventually broke up. Just before Hayley slept with him as a one night stand, Hayley eventually got pregnant with Scott Hunter's baby, who Kim believed that he was the father. As it was their wedding day, Hayley finally gave birth to Baby Noah, and Kim was left devastated to find out that Scott was the real father of Hayley's baby.
To help cope with this trauma he turned to heavy partying and with a new girlfriend called Kylie who introduced him to the world of drugs. This relationship ended after Kim was hospitalised and his life was saved by new doctor Rachel Armstrong. Kim pursued Rachel, and although she initialy resisted his charms she finally gave in and agreed to date him despite the complications it would have on her career as he was one of her patients.
