Neighbours - where is Susan Kennedy and will she be back?
Neighbours spoilers follow.
Neighbours fans have been forced to cope without one of the show's most popular characters in recent weeks, with Susan Kennedy on an extended break from Erinsborough.
The Ramsay Street icon last appeared on the soap in late December, when she took on celebrant duties at the wedding of Elly Conway and Chloe Brennan.
Since then, Susan has been absent for some key dramas involving her loved ones. These have included her stepdaughter Holly Hoyland splitting from Haz Devkar, and the Kennedys' lodger Melanie Pearson getting back into the dating game following her break-up from Toadie Rebecchi.
Neighbours bosses wrote in an explanation for Susan's disappearance in the final week of December.
Elly and Chloe briefly considered cancelling their honeymoon after learning that Elly's young daughter Aster was being neglected by her grandmother Liz.
Aster, who's just 6 years old, confided in Susan about how Liz had been leaving her home alone for hours on end when she was supposed to be babysitting.
Liz was due to look after Aster again while Elly and Chloe were away on holiday, as the youngster's father Shaun Watkins was out of town.
Filling in at the last minute, Susan offered to travel to Sydney and look after Aster in familiar surroundings for the young girl while Elly and Chloe were away.
Last week, there was a further update as Susan's husband Karl was seen finishing up a phone conversation with her.
When Melanie optimistically suggested that Susan would be back soon, Karl replied: "Well actually, she's going to stay for two more months.
"She found a self-development course at a local community centre that she wants to do. I'll have to head up there to see her soon."
While no official reason has been given for Susan's temporary departure, Jackie Woodburne – who plays her – was pictured on a holiday in London late last year, so it appears that she took an extended break.
Digital Spy understands that show bosses had to fit in some existing commitments and holiday plans for the established cast when Neighbours was dramatically saved by Amazon Freevee.
The show's stars learned that Neighbours was coming back in November 2022 and filming began in April 2023. For context, there's now a longer gap between filming and broadcast compared to the Channel 5 days – Elly and Chloe's wedding scenes were filmed in late July last year.
This is the reason that Karl also disappeared a few weeks into the new season, as Alan Fletcher had UK tour dates booked in. Sadly for fans, this has meant we've only had a few weeks of Susan and Karl appearing on screen at the same time since Neighbours returned to screens in September.
If we take Karl at his word, it seems that we can expect to see Susan return to Ramsay Street in March and we're sure that fans will be delighted to have her back.
Neighbours releases new episodes from Mondays to Thursdays for free on Amazon Freevee in the UK and US. In Australia, the show airs from Mondays to Thursdays at 4pm on Channel 10, with a 6.30pm repeat screening on 10 Peach.
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