Neighbours legend Jackie Woodburne was scared she would be unemployed when the soap was axed last year.
The 68-year-old actress assumed that her career was over when it was revealed that the beloved Aussie show was getting cancelled after 37 years. She’d played teacher Susan Kennedy since 1994, and now it seemed she would be waving goodbye to Ramsay Street.
She told Perth Now: “I never thought of it as retirement, only unemployment. When the show wrapped up without a new broadcaster, that was the end as far as we were concerned.”
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However, she had nothing to worry about as Neighbours was revived just months later. The star was absolutely gobsmacked when a Neighbours producer came over to her house to tell her she’d be returning to set.
(Image: PA)
Woodburne had only just started to come to terms with the soap being finished. In fact, she was so stunned by the news that she got the producer to repeat themselves.
“Our executive producer came to my house to tell me,” she explained. “I made him repeat it several times because my brain was not processing the information. I was in shock.”
(Image: five)
Jackie shared her hopes that the reboot would be a hit with American viewers. She added: “The US is such a huge market.
“I think they are interested in Australian film and TV having seen so many great productions. Good storytelling is an international language, I think they’ll love us.”
(Image: Channel 5)
It was Amazon Freevee that decided to swoop in and save Neighbours after it was axed by Channel 5 last year. The first episode aired last September.
Jackie’s character Susan recently returned to Ramsay Street after a few months away from the soap. The matriarch hadn’t been seen since Christmas but she re-appeared in April.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
