More than 19 million people in Britain tuned in to watch Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue tie the knot as Scott and Charlene on November 8, 1988. Minogue left the show the same year, followed by Donovan in 1989.

The show’s cancellation was driven by the loss of its key broadcast partner in the UK, Channel 5, which has paid for the bulk of the production costs since 2008, when it became no longer commercially viable for Network 10 to fund the production alone.

Despite attempts by the showrunners, Neighbours failed to secure alternative funding after Channel 5 pulled the pin in February.

The soap is still a drawcard for Channel 5, pulling in 1.4 million viewers across two daily screenings, but a decision to focus on “original UK drama” led to Neighbours being removed from its schedule.

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