Characters who left too soon and what the writers could have done with them

[adam436]

On 17/08/2021 at 20:49, joany208121 said:

Was there different contract periods for actors in the late 90s/early 00s? Many key characters struggled to make it to 2 or even 3 years. (Tiegan, Liam, Casey, Steph, Aaron, Tom Nash, Natalie, Shelly, Peta, Edward, Judith, Harry, Mitch, Brodie)

 Adding a few more to your list: Ken, Charlotte, Jude, Shauna, Lachie, James, Flynn #1 and Kelly. 

I actually enjoyed the 1997 - 2000, perhaps because it was the era I initially started watching and grew up with, but in hindsight, it does feel like an awkward transition period between what many consider to be the "golden years" (1994 - 1996) and the Sutherland era. 

I imagine the show was struggling after the loss of big characters like Pippa, Michael, Shane, Angel, Jack, Selina, Shannon and Curtis and the revolving door of replacements (who are all listed above) probably didn't live up to expectations. 

Contracts must have been done for shorter periods back then, or at least had an "easier" clause which allowed actors to leave or be written out, since short lived regulars were much more common in the early years. Lynn, Floss, Neville, Morag, Viv, Emma, Ben, Karen, Haydn, Simon and Donna to name a few, all lasted a year or less as regulars. We even had odd situations with Greg Benson and Emily Symons were they were added to the opening credits for a few months, then left and were removed, then removed shortly after. 

 

[Homeandawayfan.]

Donna Bishop only lasted about 8 months. The actress Nicola Quilter must have been one of the cast members who had a clause in her H&A contract that allowed her to leave early, as she wanted to concentrate on a singing career. She is now a fashion designer and runs a stall in Camden, London. I met her there once.

Walter Bertram should have appeared more often.