New deal will see Neighbours return to UK TV screens
Neighbours will be back on UK television this summer.
Neighbours will return to UK TV screens this July thanks to a new deal.
The agreement between UKTV and Fremantle means that 420 episodes of the Australian soap, based on Ramsay Street, will be shown on the streaming service now titled U - kicking off with the very first episodes from the series’ start in 1985.
Reflecting on the deal, Emma Tibbetts, UKTV’s Director of Programming for Scripted, said in a statement: “Neighbours is one of television’s most iconic and enduring dramas, and we’re thrilled to bring the back-catalogue to U.
"This acquisition further expands the breadth of scripted entertainment available on our free streaming service, strengthening our growing slate of global IP.
“We can’t wait for both long‑time fans and new audiences to rediscover the series in its entirety.”
While Louise Toner, VP Distribution UK and Ireland, International, for Fremantle, added: “Neighbours is a truly iconic series, loved across generations.
“We’re thrilled to partner with UKTV to bring its classic episodes and unforgettable characters back to audiences old and new.”
The first 115 episodes of Neighbours will be launched on U this July.
Five more episodes will be added weekly until the entire early catalogue of the beloved soap is available to watch.
The fledgling episodes of the programme featured storylines including the romance between Jason Donovan’s Scott Robinson and Kylie Minogue’s Charlene Mitchell, Danny Ramsay being revealed not to be Max’s biological son, and the turbulent marriage between Des Clarke and Daphne Lawrence.
Neighbours was first screened on UK television back in October 1986, when it premiered on BBC One.
The show moved to Channel 5 in 2008, and became the first Australian drama to air all year round when a new deal was made in 2018.
In February 2022, Channel 5 announced that they would be dropping Neighbours from their schedule - with programme makers announcing the following month that they were cancelling the show as a whole.
The finale aired as a 90-minute episode in Australia in July 2022, and as a 30-minute episode followed by a one-hour special in the UK.
In November that year, it was announced that the programme would be restarted, with production resuming in April 2023, before being cancelled again in February 2025, with the final episode airing on 11 December.
