Following her character Sheila Canning’s strange closing scenes, Colette Mann has confirmed her departure from the long-running Australian soap.
Following the announcement that Channel 5 will stop airing the show in August 2022, and that if a new UK broadcaster is not found, production on the series will likely terminate, fans have launched multiple social media campaigns to rescue it.
They’ve also been publicly praising the actors and crew on social media, as fans reflect on what Neighbours has meant to them over the years in light of the show’s possible termination.
“There’s been a lot of focus on folks who got their start on Neighbours, and it’s been a lot of fun. Let’s show some love to the current stars, especially the long-termers, those who have returned in recent years, and the emerging stars. We are grateful to each of you “‘Takaya Honda, Alan Fletcher, April Rose Pengilly, and Rebekah Elmaloglou,’ one lifelong viewer posted on Twitter, accompanied a slew of photographs of actors including Takaya Honda, Alan Fletcher, April Rose Pengilly, and Rebekah Elmaloglou.
Mann expressed her gratitude in the answers after spotting a photo of herself among them, prompting another admirer to inquire whether she had departed “permanently.”
“Looks that way,” she answered candidly.
Sheila’s final scenes in Erinsborough aired yesterday (February 8), and there was no indication of an impending departure. She takes a last-minute ticket to Los Angeles next week to support her daughter Naomi after finding that the latter’s partner is ill.
The character first appeared on Neighbours in 2012, and she has been at the center of a lot of Ramsay Street turmoil in recent years since she can’t stop herself from interfering in her family’s love affairs. Mann had previously starred in Neighbours, filling in for original actress Caroline Gillmer in the character of Cheryl Stark for eight weeks in 1995 when she became ill.
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