"Neighbours: The Finale" comprises the 8901st, 8902nd and 8903rd episodes of the Australian television soap opera Neighbours. It premiered on 28 July 2022 on both Network 10 and 10 Peach in Australia, and on 29 July on Channel 5 in the United Kingdom. It was conceived as the end of the serial, after it was cancelled due to the loss of its UK broadcaster and failure to find an alternative buyer, and production ceased after it was filmed. The episodes were written by Shane Isheev (episode 8901) and executive producer Jason Herbison (episodes 8902 and 8903), and directed by Scott Major. Production on Neighbours ended on 10 June. Production and cast had known the show was facing cancellation since 2021 and ideas for a suitable finale were already being planned at that point. In response to the news of the show's potential cancellation becoming public in early 2022, an online petition amassed more than 67,000 signatures to save the show. The petition did not change Channel 5's decision, who maintained that Neighbours remained popular and ending the show was solely a "business decision". Production were then tasked with bringing the show to an end within a few months. Herbison had already envisioned an ideal way to end the series, and Isheev and other writers supported his plans. Herbison did not wish to end the show with excessive finality, such as in the destruction of the primary location of Ramsay Street, and opted for a celebratory theme that acknowledged the show's history.
Alan Fletcher, who played Karl Kennedy, regularly provided the media with updates about the finale's development. Neighbours writers finished storylining the episodes in March and in May cast members received their final scripts. The finale contains numerous cast returns, some of which were publicised, while others remained secret. Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue's returns as Scott and Charlene Robinson attracted much media attention. Other high-profile returning cast included Margot Robbie, Natalie Imbruglia, Holly Valance and Delta Goodrem. Many returns were facilitated by one of the episodes' main stories, the wedding of Melanie Pearson (Lucinda Cowden) and Toadie Rebecchi (Ryan Moloney). The episodes also featured the return of Guy Pearce as Mike Young. His story provided the finale with further nostalgia, as writers reunited Mike with his 1980s love interest Jane Harris (Annie Jones), who had returned to the regular cast in 2020. Other stories included all but one of the houses on Ramsay Street being put up for sale, and Amy Greenwood's (Jacinta Stapleton) plan to have more children. Herbison used the latter story to fulfil his wish to leave viewers with a remaining mystery.
There were post-production challenges, following Network 10's decision to broadcast the finale in a ninety-minute format. Episode 8901 was edited into the original sixty minute version, with the extended run-time allowing for extended dialogue and an extra cameo from Stephanie McIntosh as Sky Mangel. These were not featured in the British broadcast, where episode 8901 was broadcast earlier on the same day as the final hour, which was broadcast in a primetime slot. Herbison later revealed that there were more than fifteen minutes of footage cut from the episode. The episode featured more commercial music than any episode had done previously. One of the episode's most prominent features was a monologue performed by Jackie Woodburne as Susan Kennedy, which forms the final scenes of the show. Herbison wanted Woodburne to have the opportunity to have a final "performance of a lifetime" in Neighbours. Woodburne reads Susan's entry into the Ramsay Street history book as the character reminisces and walks around a party held on Ramsay Street. Many television critics and fans praised the scene for its sentimental and emotional value.
There was considerable hype and anticipation from the media in the build-up to the finale, and the episodes attracted much praise from television critics. It was a television event that garnered many positive cast and celebrity responses, although three former cast members were disgruntled and criticised the episodes. Ratings for the finale were high; in Australia the episode was watched by 1.382 million viewers and gave Network 10 its biggest audience of the year. In the United Kingdom the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board reported that 4.02 million viewers watched the finale, with the addition of recordings and catch-up services. The success of the finale led to Amazon Freevee commencing discussions with the show's production company to revive the series, with its return announced in November 2022.
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