Kirsty Phillips
Kirsty Sutherland/Phillips (2000-2005, 2008-2009)
Christie Hayes
Episodes: 2856–3903, 4651–4973
Date of Birth: 27th November 1986
Parents: Rhys & Shelley Sutherland
Step Parents: Beth Hunter (former)
Siblings: Dani & Joe Sutherland (deceased) and Laura de Groot; Jade Sutherland (legal sibling)
Step Siblings: Scott, Kit, Robbie, Henry & Matilda Hunter (former)
Foster Siblings: Brodie Hanson
Marital Status: Kane Phillips (2004-2008, separated)
Children: Oliver Phillips
Occupation: Student; Kiosk Worker; Hairdresser; Waitress; Maid; School Secretary; Escort
In 2000, it became a new era in Summer Bay for the Sutherlands arriving. When Kirsty first arrived in Summer Bay she was a skater girl. She was sporty and was very disappointed when she came to the bay that there were no skate parks or nice places to go to.
Kirsty and Jade when they came to the bay had this special bond as they were twins and if one was in trouble they knew it and so helped each other.
When she had been there for a few months she started mixing with Nick Smith who she seemed to like very much and it wasn’t too long before they started to go out together. They didn’t last very long because when they were going out, Nicks father Ken died and he was very upset about this. Kirsty didn’t really notice that much but Jade did at the time. Jade and Nick got very close and soon after, this made Kirsty and Nick break up. When Kirsty found out about Jade and Nick kissing when she was going out with Nick, she was very upset and couldn’t believe that he sister tried to take away Nick from her but it didn’t last for very long. Then after that she was just going to Summer Bay high and living life normal.
In 2001/2002, she started showing another interest in a boy. This boy was called Seb. They started going out and when they were in relationship she was getting fed of being at school as she was 15 at this time and she could not go to school if she didn’t want to go . So she left school at the age of 15 and started looking for work and she got a job as a hair dresser. She found the job very hard but kept it. This is where she met a girl called Gemma and some other people. She got on very well with these people and started going clubbing with them at the age of 16. she really enjoyed going clubbing coming back all hours of the night and everything. But soon after that, she started taking drugs which she knew were bad for her but she wanted to fit in with these friends she had made. But when she took one of the drugs, she got a really bad effect from it. Her friends took her home as she was sweating and not feeling very well at all. Jade saw her and she was extremely worried about Kirsty as she fell to the floor and no one could wake her. When Shelley and Rhys saw this, they were really angry and upset, so Kirsty was rushed into hospital but thank god nothing serious happened. Well she got over the drug problem but she couldn’t work so she gave that up because she was ill for awhile and it took her awhile to get her parents to trust her again.
In 2002 (July time), her life was going great as she was looking for work and when the boat crash happened she started becoming friends with Kane Phillips which was very wrong because he had hurt Dani the worse possible way a guy could do to a woman. Then she started bonding with Kane as Kirsty felt she had a close connection with him.
They started to hang out more with each other and then Kirsty kissed Kane when he was hit by Josh. She always knew it would be hard if she went out with Kane. Kirsty first said she didn’t want anything to do with Kane, then she decided to go with her heart and Kane and her went out. They went out for a few weeks before Kirsty’s parents found out. Then Rhys and Shelley banned her from Seeing Kane. Kirsty was a real mess, and when the family was out she phoned Kane saying she’s not in a good way. Kane went round and they ran away together.
They had problems finding jobs at a farm but they found a job and the farmer said Kirsty was too young to work there and had problems with a drunken person there too. So they went off and Kane knew she couldn’t cope without her family, so he told her to go back. He had to cruel to be kind and he threw her out of his car.
He left the bay.
Kirsty found it hard to get over him but when she did a play about Romeo and Juliet. It was about her and Kane who was played by Seb and Jade. Soon after this Dani found out this destroyed her by Dani leaving home.
Around October 2002, Kirsty fell for anew boy called Dylan. Angie and Rhys tried to keep them apart from the truth about Dylan being Kirsty’s half brother. Then they broke up, and soon found out the truth from her dad ripping the Sutherland family up. Then at the end of the year, the whole Sutherland family broke apart by Shelley leaving for the city.
Then she started anew year in 2003 by, getting along with Dylan, being at school and later in the year she getting back with Seb. Then about August time, one of her ex boyfriends came back called Kane. When Kirsty found out about Kane being back, she couldn’t help that she still loved him deep in her heart but she wasn’t sure what to do as she loved Seb still. But she choose her heart and broke up with Seb and this broke Seb’s heart. Soon after this she got back with Kane knowing it would tear her family apart if they ever found out. But Sally and Dani found out just before Rhys was home. Rhys was going to ban Kirsty from seeing Kane but they had a family meeting Dani, Rhys and Kirsty decided Kirsty could see Kane but he couldn’t come anywhere near the house.
In October, Dani ran over Kane when she was coming back from university. Kirsty found out about this when she was playing football and was devastated and very upset what Dani did.
Soon after this Dani was tried in court about this and she was found guilty and sent to Jail. Kirsty was very shocked after this and was more shocked Kane left her for that week but her family thought Kane left her for good but they had a surprise of their life, when they got back together.
At the end of the year (2003) Kane threatened Kirsty’s dad at the school dance Kirsty was angry about this and before Kane could say sorry. Kirsty’s life was in balance as they were stuck in the cave. Were they going to be saved?
At the start of 2004, they are saved from inside the cave with a lot of help from Kane. They were all rushed to hospital and Kirsty was okay. When Kane came to the hospital to give her birthday present she was over the moon but was angry with him still about him threatening her dad. She got over this quickly and soon after, they tried to run away but Dani and Josh stopped them.
In February, they ran away to get married and started anew life together.
After a week, they had a place which Kane rented out but Kirsty missed her family so she asked Kane if she could go back and he agreed.
When they got back, they could live at Irene’s if Kirsty went to see her dad, so Kane and Kirsty went to see Rhys who wasn’t happy about them getting married. He was going to stop the marriage and then Kirsty said she was pregnant. Everyone was shocked including and Kane but Kirsty was lying to keep her marriage with Kane together.
Awhile after this, she started to get really moody with Kane when he talked about the baby and they were talking one afternoon and Kane nearly raises his hand to Kirsty.
Kirsty is really upset that he nearly hit her and goes off to the city. She went for three weeks and then came back. She told who put the AVO on him and told Kane the truth about the lie that she was pregnant this time.
When they got back together, they were happy until Kirsty started to get high blood pressure so she was taken to hospital for tests and found out she had problems with her kidneys. Soon after Shelley said she would give one of her kidneys and she had the operation but there was a risk she could lose the baby. She had the operation which was a success but she lose the baby which she was very upset by.
Then in June, Hayley got married and everyone knew Kirsty wanted to be married in front of her family, so they arranged Kirsty and Kane to renew their vows. Kirsty sang a song to Kane and Kirsty fell in the water saying I love you. Everyone enjoyed themselves.
After this Kirsty got something from a girl called Sarah who was causing trouble in the bay and she told Kane was cheating on her. Kane told her it was all lies and Dani agreed. Sarah kept making their lives a nightmare and she got a few people from summer bay by putting their life on the line. Thank god it wasn’t Kane. The funeral happened for Noah who had died and Kirsty and Kane had a quiet life for awhile.
Then in September Kirsty took her exams which she was nervous about but got through them easily but didn’t know Kane was keeping a big secret. Then just before her last exam, she found out Kane’s secret which was that he had cancer. She didn’t take it too badly and with the help of Laura a little bit she got thought her last exam. After this, they had a low life but in November Kirsty found out she was pregnant and was over the moon about it.
In 2005, she was helping Kane to the hospital with his cancer treatment and soon she found out that Kane’s dad was back in town. She knew Kane was angry with his dad but tried her best to make him see sense but it didn’t work. But before she went to the city, she got her HSC results and then Kane started to see his dad differently which Kirsty loved.
When Kirsty was in the city thought she had to rush back as Kane was charged with the money Gus stole.
They tried to find Gus but they just couldn’t. The court case was coming near and they had a solicitor called Morag. Just before the court case Kane asked Kirsty if it goes their way he wants to make a fresh start. Kirsty wasn’t all pleased about this but when she asked Beth what she thought. Kirsty made her decision to leave the bay with Kane if it went their way.
When the court case on, it wasn’t looking good and just before they were going to find out if they were going to be let off, they decided to leave the bay. They said a few last words to each other and then Kirsty left the bay with Kane.
Three years on, Irene received a mysterious phone call and went to meet with somebody to collect a sick child, the incredibly cute Oliver. When he was admitted to hospital Irene contacted his mysterious parents to tell them and later she was shocked to find Kane at her house. He told her that life on the run was no place for Oliver and that he and Kirsty wanted Irene to raise him. Irene refused though and insisted that she wouldn’t do anything until she spoke to Kirsty. Alf walked in mid conversation and agreed to keep seeing Kane a secret and Kane, realising the pressure he had put Irene under, agreed to bring Kirsty to meet with her.
He returned with Kirsty who admitted to Irene that she did not really want to give Oliver up. Irene convinced her that she should give herself up and Kirsty became adamant that she would try and talk Kane into it. They rented a caravan from an unwitting Miles in order to be near Oliver and Kirsty became more keen to stay in the Bay. She ran into VJ and was shocked to realise how much he had grown and very nearly missed running Matilda, giving her even more reason to want to turn herself in.
What Kirsty didn’t realise though was that while she was telling Irene that she was sick of running and wanted to be normal again, Kane had taken the law into his own hands. Having stolen from Leah he then attempted to rob a store only to be stopped by Security Guard larry Jeffries. Knocking Larry unconscious Kane managed to get the gun and used it to hold Ric hostage whilst he fled. Returning to the caravan he insisted that Kirsty pack their things up and they went to the hospital to get Oliver. Se was reluctant but sensing Kane’s desperation, she agreed.
On realising that Oliver was missing and hearing about the robbery, Irene came clean to the cops and a police chase began with Jack and Lara chasing The Phillip’s car. It was found abandoned off the side of the road and Kirsty later turned up at Irene’s house with Oliver. Kane meanwhile was fnally cornered by police and realsing the game was up he lowered his gun and was arrested by Jack.
The Police came for Kirsty who defiantly turned up at the station intending to stand by her ‘innocent’ husband. She was horrified though to hear from the Police that he was wanted for a string of crimes across many states. Though initially she refused to believe it, the evidence mounted up and Kirsty was horrified to realise what Kane had been up to. In a tearful interview he told her he had done it all for her and Ollie and Kirsty insisted she’d stand by him.
Morag agreed to represent him but Kane accepted a deal from the prosecutors to plead guilty in exchange for all charges being dropped against Kirsty and Irene. Kirsty was horrified on hearing the news from Morag and went to see Kane to beg him to change his mind but was devastated when Kane told her tearfully that he wanted her to move on and not see him any more.
With no other choice Kirsty attempted to move on with her life. Initially staying with Irene, it became clear that there was no room so Miles offered to let her have a van. When she couldn’t pay him though he offered her free of charge rent. She began spending time at The Caravan Park House, joining the family for meals until one day Miles suggesyted that she was there so much she might as well move in.
After Ric, upset at being dumped by Matilda, attempted to kiss her, Kirsty decided against moving in but when Ric apologised and Miles appealed to her once more, she saw the sense moneywise and agreed to move in. She also gained a job at the same time working for Martin Bartlett at the school but it was quickly clear that she had no computer literacy skills and was forced to get Jai’s help when she deleted a whole load of files from the computer. She was sussed by Martin who surprised her by telling her he admired the way she was trying to bring up her son on her own and seemed to definitely have a soft spot for her even loaning her money.
Meanwhile at The Caravan Park she and Miles began to grow closer and shared a moment on the couch after hearing news of Cassie’s baby.They were interrupted by Jai but after he later walked in on her in her underwear they shared a tentative kiss and agreed to see where things went.
Just as things with Miles began hotting up, Kirsty received a letter from Kane begging her to help him with money to fund an appeal Keeping the letter from Miles, Kirsty struggled to make ends meet, instead taking another loan from Martin Bartlett. It became clear though after he gave her a massage, kept her back at work for drinks and bought a motorbike after she said she liked them, that he felt more for her. When he hurt his leg falling off the bike Kirsty took him home and he offered her a plavce to live with him. Freaked out she confided in Leah who insisted that she confront him.
She confronted Martin and he insisted that everything between them was okay and that she had misread his intentions. Later though, her relationship with Miles became public knowledge thanks to Annie jumping to conclusions and Martin started to turn against him. When she questioned his judgement over Melody Jones he presented her with an official warning and when he caught her borrowing money from petty cash, he sacked her.
Miles, furious to find out about Martin’s harrassment confronted him and a sheepish Martin offered Kirsty her job back but pride made her refuse. She did accept a glowing reference from him and when she confided in him about kane’s appeal he gave her another loan to tide her over. hanks to Leah’s intervention she landed a job at The Sands but was still struggling to make ends meet.
Another girl at work talked her into working as an escort and reluctantly Kirsty agreed, desperate for the money. Her date for the hospital ball though turned out to be Bartlett and when Miles showed up and Kirsty was forced to lie to him, she told the girl she worked with that she wasn’t doing any more escort work. Her boss though refused to take no for an answer and threatened her with no shifts if she didn’t do the escort work. With Miles already angry at the long hours she was working, things became increasingly fraught between them.
Things came to a head when she left her internet banking on screen and Miles asked why Bartlett had put money into her account. Though she initially covered, she eventually told Miles the truth about Kane’s letter but lied to him that the money was a loan. Furious, that she’s lied to him after he had told her he loved her, Miles confronted Bartlett who unwittingly let slip about her escort work. Furious, Miles threw her out and Kirsty lied that she was staying at Irene’s.
Instead, with nowhere else to go she went to work for another escort shift but when the guy got a bit hot and heavy she phoned Miles in a panic. Having realised that she had lied about having somewhere to stay, Miles went after her, only to find her in the guy’s hotel room. Humiliated, Kirsty gave the guy back his money in front of Miles and attempted to explain herself but Miles didn’t want to listen. He gave her the key to a caravan to stay in and told her he needed some time away from her.
They continued to live separate lives but events with Melody and Jai kept conspiring to put them together and when miles overheard Kirsty admit to Leah that she’d have Miles back in a heartbeat he began to thaw. He later found letters in her bag from Kane and Kirsty explained that she wrote to him, telling him she wasn’t going to fund his appeal because she wanted to move on and Miles, finally believing her, took her back.
After bonding over Melody, Kirsty told Miles she loved him but just as they were leaving for the school formal, Kane turned up. He explained that he had been released from prison and Kirsty asked Miles to leave them alone. With Miles gone she told Kane that she had moved on and that she really does love Miles but that Kane turning up had confused her. she asked him to give her space and Kane agreed to. He later turned up at the formal and was sent packing once more but after encountering Jai and Annie, he helped them look for Melody only to find her drug addled, in the middle of the road. Swerving to avoid her he crashed the car into the wall of the Diner where the formal was being held.
In the aftermath of the formal disaster Kirsty and Miles rushed into rescue Kane but when Miles was knocked out she had to choose and chose to help Miles. they were both pulled from the building and Kirsty was devastated to think that Kane was killed but Charlie was revealed to have saved him in time. In hospital, she stayed by Kane’s side, avoiding Miles and admitted to Leah that she didn’t know who she wanted. When Kane was released he gave her an ultimatum but his actions caused her to choose Miles. She went to tell him but he told her that she should go with Kane, leaving her devastated so she agreed to leave the bay with Kane.
She returned a few months later distraught that Kane had taken Olly and promptly arranged a meeting where she snatched Olly back. Kane returned to town and took Olly once more and hit Miles before changing his mind. He and Kirsty had a long chat and admitted their marriage was over and Kane agreed to leave the bay quietly. Kirsty remained behind but things with miles were still tense. She tried to get her job back at the school and Martin relented but it bought her closer to Miles and things were strained between them.
She took on the job of tutoring Trey Palmer but when Miles tried to warn her that Trey was interested in her, she refused to listen. Later Trey made a pass at her so she ended the tutoring but he used his Dad to bully her into resuming it. He tried to kiss her once more and they were seen by Miles. Kirsty fumed at him that she always ruined everything but Miles told her that she hadn’t lost him and they reunited. Kirsty moved back into the caravan park but the allegations with Trey were still hanging over her. She attempted to humiliate the truth out of him and later gave him an out by typing him a letter but when he used her as his alibi to the police, she denied it. He came round to confront her and went to hit her and was pushed by miles who stepped in to defend her. Kirsty admitted she had lied to the police and things looked grim but Miles managed to convince Trey to tell the truth and the charges were dropped.
Kirsty took a job working at the Diner but was shocked when Miles told her about what was going on with Gardy and wanted to go to the police, despite Miles’ insistence that they let Roman handle things his way. Miles surprised her by announcing that he wanted to try for a baby together. Kirsty was dead against the idea but, fearing that Miles would break up with her if she didn’t agree to it, she told him they should try but secretly kept taking the Pill. When Nicole came to stay with them, Kirsty was upset that it meant Trey kept hanging around the house and threw him out when she caught him in Nicole’s room. When he later played a video of him and Nicole having sex in front of the town, Kirsty, along with Miles, refused to let him see her to apologise and threatened to have him charged.
Kirsty was annoyed when Miles railroaded her into accompanying the school trek when May Stone dropped out and admitted to Leah that she wasn’t as keen on the idea of a baby as him. During the event, Miles found contraceptive pills in Kirsty’s bag and realised she had been lying to him. Kirsty was left to look after the children with Trey’s dad after Miles and Martin had to look for a missing Jai and Annie. The group ended up trapped aboard the bus after Trey placed a landmine on a timer underneath them and Kirsty did her best to keep the students calm. When Martha and Hugo arrived, Trey’s dad managed to direct them to defuse the bomb. Afterwards, Kirsty and Miles spoke and she admitted she didn’t want children at that time and wanted to teach instead. When she visited Trey’s dad, who had been hospitalised during the bomb incident, to discuss taking the surf club nippers’ class, Trey turned up with a syringe. Finally feeling sympathy for him, Kirsty told him that not everything that happened was his fault but he needed to face up to what was and persuaded him to turn himself in. The incident convinced her that she would be good at teaching.
Kirsty started a course at uni and brought her new friends back to the house to discuss the work. After they had spent several hours drinking and playing loud music, Miles threw them out of the house. Kirsty spending most of her time with her new friends and doing uni work instead of being at home with Miles, Ollie and the rest of the family caused tension between them. Then Leah saw Kirsty with one of her uni friends, Justin, upset and hiding from Miles, and told him she was having an affair. In fact Kirsty was pregnant but because Miles didn’t trust her she kept it from him until Jai found out and told him. At first she said she wasn’t sure if she’d keep the baby but later told him she would but wasn’t happy about it. The arrival of Romeo caused her more stress although he quickly charmed her. After they had been for an ultrasound, Miles told Irene, Colleen, Leah, Tony and Rachel about the pregnancy against Kirsty’s wishes, causing more upset and prompting Kirsty to say she knew the baby was a mistake. Irene offered her some support and after Kirsty told Ollie and he was happy about it Kirsty began to feel happy too.
Miles suggested they get married and Kirsty turned him down, explaining to Irene that she thought having a baby together was commitment enough. She later decided she would marry him if he felt strongly about it but he told her they were fine as they were. When she saw Nicole with Liam, she was concerned about the relationship and asked Miles to talk to him. They babysat Harry for the day for Tony and Rachel and after a rough start Kirsty was left feeling they would be good parents. But that evening, she collapsed from meningitis and food poisoning. She was taken to hospital and had a fit which caused her to miscarry. She told Miles she felt it was her fault for not wanting the baby.
Kirsty came home from hospital but shut herself away in her room and forced Miles to sleep apart from her. Miles called Shelley and Kirsty found her support a comfort but also admitted to her that although she loved Miles she felt they wanted different things from life. That evening, she cooked the family a special meal and had a last few words with Miles and Nicole before sending Miles to a meeting at the school. She then took Ollie and went to live with Shelley and the rest of the family in the city, leaving a note for him.