Chris Pappas (James Mason) will stage his comeback during Neighbours’ final ever week, as he returns to Ramsay Street with daughter Annie in tow.
Just in time for the last episodes of the programme, the former staple who made history as Neighbours’ first regular gay character will return to Erinsborough.
When Chris and Annie arrive, Lucy Robinson (Melissa Bell) is overjoyed to see them, and Paul (Stefan Dennis) also extends a cordial welcome to them.
As viewers will soon learn, Paul is considering going to New York and selling his hotel chain to Shane Ramsay (Peter O’Brien), with David and Leo Tanaka (Takaya Honda and Tim Kano) deciding to follow him.
Will the entire Robinson ultimately join Chris when he returns to the US?
That remains to be seen.
Chris, as fans will recall, featured in Neighbours for five years, appearing between 2010 and 2015.
He made friends with a number of the show’s then-mainstays as a student at Erinsborough High, notably Andrew Robinson (Jordan Patrick Smith) and Summer Hoyland (Jordy Lucas), and eventually began dating the latter.
In a plot that was well-received by both viewers and critics at the time, Chris quickly realised that he was gay and subsequently came out to girlfriend Summer.
The character began dating Nurse Aidan Foster (Bob Morley), and the two became Neighbours’ first gay couple as a result of their relationship.
Later, Chris and Aidan split up.
Chris would appear in a number of major events over the following two years, including a homophobic attack and relationships with Nate Kinski and Hudson Walsh.
His final scenes were broadcast in 2015 after he decided to leave Erinsborough to become a full-time parent after having a kid, Annie, with friend Lucy.
It was confirmed earlier this year that Chris would be one of several characters who would stage a comeback for Neighbours’ final episodes, after the soap was controversially axed by Channel 5, despite being a ratings success.
