Happy Birthday Neighbours: 30 facts you may not know about the Australian soap
NEIGHBOURS celebrates it's 30th anniversary today, so here's 30 facts that you may or may not know about the hit Australian soap.
Lily Allen is just one of the famous faces who has visited Ramsay Street
1. Erinsborough, the Australian suburb where it is set, is an anagram of Or Neighbours
2. Approximately 28,000 cast and crew have worked on the show in the three decades
3. Since Neighbours was first broadcast in 1985, the soap has been watched in more than 60 countries around the world including Barbados, Norway and Belgium, as well as the UK and the US
4. An estimated 21 million people in Australia and the UK watched Neighbours during 2014
5. The Neighbours 30th anniversary tomorrow will mark episode 7,083
There have been 41 marriages in the last 30 years
6. If you were to watch all the episodes back to back, it would take approximately 147 days
7. It takes six months for an episode to be plotted, filmed and edited before it airs on screens
8. Ramsay Street is an actual residential street called Pin Oak Court in Melbourne's eastern suburbs
9. Five cast members have played multiple characters with Brett Tucker having portrayed five characters including his more regular role as Daniel Fitzgerald
10. In 2013, three backyards for numbers 22, 25 and 32 were built on the show's back lot making it the largest dedicated drama set in the Southern Hemisphere
David Walliams and Matt Lucas took Little Britain to Neighbours
11. There have been 15 births, 34 deaths and 41 marriages in the 30 years
12. Scott and Charlene's wedding (episode 523) in November 1988 was watched by 19.6 million people in the UK
13. There are approximately 3,320 pieces of clothing in the costume department
14. Neighbours has filmed outside of Melbourne on five occasions - twice in London and Sydney, and once in Port Douglas, Queensland
15. The show has launched the careers of global stars including Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan, Guy Pearce, Margot Robbie, Delta Goodrem, Jesse Spencer and Natalie Imbruglia
The soap helped launch Kylie Minogue's career
16. Stefan Dennis (Paul Robinson) is the only actor remaining who appeared in the first episode. He left Neighbours in 1993, before returning in 2004, making Paul the longest-running character on Australian television
17. Paul is also the most married character, with five former wives
18. Jackie Woodburne (Susan Kennedy) has filmed more episodes - close to 5,000 - than any other actress on the show
19. Ryan Moloney (Toadie) was originally an extra on the show more than 19 years ago.
20. Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne, the soap's longest-running married couple, played brother and sister in an 1980s police drama, Cop Shop
Stefan Dennis is the only actor remaining who appeared in the first episode
21. Harley Bonner, who plays Josh Willis, is the real-life son of Carla Bonner, who played Steph Scully
22. Harold Bishop's store has gone through six name changes over the years. It was first called Daphnes (1986-1993), then Hungry Bite Cafe from 1993 to 1995. It was later named The Holy Roll (1995-1997), The Coffee Shop (1997-2005), Bishop And Carpenter's General Store (2005-2008) before it was renamed Harold's Store in 2008 in honour of Harold (Ian Smith) leaving Erinsborough
23. The first words spoken on the show were: "No, no, Shane, no, no." by Danny Ramsay, played by David Clencie, having a nightmare
24. They may be twins on screen, but in real life Harley Bonner and Ariel Kaplan - Josh and Imogen Willis - are dating
25. Chris Milligan (Kyle Canning) and Jenna Rosenow (Amber Turner) are also a couple off screen
Ryan Moloney who plays Toadie was originally an extra on the show
26. Rebekah Elmaloglou (Terese Willis) is Dame Judi Dench's cousin in real life
27. Tom Oliver, aka Lou Carpenter, was born in Hampshire, in the UK
28. Oliver, Anne Charleston (Madge Bishop) and Ian Smith all went to school together in Brisbane
29. In April 1995, the entire cast went on strike for better wages claiming they were getting only half of what their counterparts in British soaps earned
30. Lily Allen, David Walliams, Matt Lucas, Paula Abdul, Dave Bautista, Neil Morrissey, Emma Bunton and Michael Parkinson are among the famous faces who have stepped onto Ramsay Street for a cameo appearance on the show