The Neighbours Experience

With a hiatus of just over a year, Neighbours returned to our screens on 18th September.

Amazon Freevee has taken over the mantel for the show. Since its announcement has added a plethora of iconic episodes from the show’s back catalogue, as well as all the episodes from 2012 onwards.

In the run-up to new episodes, the marketing campaign has been on a roll, with press junkies left right and centre. I don’t think you could pass a bus station without seeing Neighbours being promoted.

As part of this promo campaign, was the announcement that The Neighbours Experience was coming to London. And best of all…it was 100%, absolutely, free!

This experience wasn’t about making money (it could have been). This was 100% a promo for the new show, and a thank you to the fans.

While I was lucky enough to get tickets (they sold out twice), I had no idea how I was going to do this whole thing. Thankfully the husby agreed to not only go, but to drive too!

Arriving at Harold’s

The experience was situated in Shoreditch, you turned the corner and you saw the outside of Harold’s. Granted it wasn’t an identical replica of the storefront, but you were automatically hit with the nostalgia that it was meant to provide.

As you walked through the door, you were transported to the cafe. You were provided with free coffee, which felt very Neighbour-esque. There was no food on the menu though. Which may be a good thing since their license expired in 2022!

While the event was sold out it was purposely not packed out! The whole thing felt so relaxed, and there was no pressure to get you through the event.

After a quick catch-up with peeps that I met from The Celebration Tour, it was time to delve into the experience.

Lassiters

As you wait backstage for confirmation to enter the experience, you are provided with a message from the Executive Producer, Jason Herbison thanking the fans for their support.

The full message reads “We’re so excited to bring a slice of Erinsborough to London. Neighbours would not be what it is without the love and devotion of the fans…this experience is for you. From this point onward, you are a resident of Ramsay Street. Which means you get your coffee at Harold’s, you drink at the Waterhole and you’re always grappling with a dilemma. Well, you might need to imagine that last part, but Susan Kennedy will be on hand to listen and give advice.

“We’ve also included lots of behind-the-scenes secrets as you move around the experience. We hope you enjoy this little taste of down under. Thanks for watching – and keep watching!”

The door knocks! It’s time to start the experience. It opens and you are behind the desk at Lassiter’s hotel.

You are being told what has happened, and what you need to do. It’s all fast-paced, you really have no idea what’s going on.

“Cut!” the director shouts from the corner.

We’re definitely no longer in London. We’re now in Erisnborough!

Ramsay Street

Every new cast member that joins the show has to have their obligatory promo photo with the Ramsay Street sign. Why should we be any different?

We held the street sign, and with the magic of photo editing, we were now on Ramsay Street.

When I visited Australia in 1999, and always wanted to do the Neighbours tour stuff, but Uncle Gert refused outright. And I haven’t forgiven him since!

Backstage

Now, I have watched many backstage videos from Neighbours, and I can tell you that the hair and make-up department was not the same as what was at the experience, but that wasn’t the point. It was all about the essence of what it would be like working on a show like Neighbours.

It felt lived in, and active. Surrounded by chaos, which I am sure backstage can be like at times.

Behind you was a wall of clothes from the past characters. Well, I presumed they were, I didn’t look into it properly. The wall could have just come from a charity shop!

However, some key costume pieces did make an appearance in the show, which included Paul & Terese’s wedding outfits and Mike & Jane’s clothes from the fake finale.

However, protected from the grubby hands of us mere minions, encased in a glass box, was the wedding dress, that Charlene Mitchell wore in 1987 when she walked down the aisle and said “I do” to Scott Robinson!

The Kennedy’s

As you go through the wall of clothes, like you were walking through the wardrobe in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, you are transported to a replica of the Kennedy’s living room.

The sense of warmth that you would expect from the Kennedys is there. You felt like Susan was going to come in, sit you down and give you some wise words.

Or Karl was going to get his guitar out and give a rendition of “(I got a) Crush of Susie K“

Through the Eras

As you walk down the corridor, you are provided with 4 sections of a living room, giving a glimpse of what it would be like in that era, watching Neighbours on the telly box!

If I’m honest, this was my least favourite section of the experience, it just felt like it was there to fill a gap.

I understood that it was trying to show the history of the show, but a gallery of the sets through the years would have been just as interesting.

Script room

Of all places in the Neighbours Experience, this was one of the busiest, as it felt like a treasure trove for the show!

There was a plethora of information available, past and future. I was aware that someone had seen the script for the first episode in the new chapter. It only contained the first 3 pages, but it was nowhere to be found when I looked!

However, you could spend hours in there. I felt like a spy, snapping away and stealing trade secrets. And I know I still missed loads!

There were cast photos plastered everywhere, scripts from past iconic episodes, scene plans, episode blocks, location lists and many other things.

We were told that there were a few secrets to be told, and I think most of them could be found here.

There were a few things that stood out for me, that I was fascinated with:

We have the block for the first 5 episodes, however, a lot of this is already known if you read the entertainment news.

There were several pages about the rebrand to Harold’s Cafe (2015ish), including the different logo ideas, and the storefront ideas. Turns out I prefer the one they didn’t use.

The other that caught my attention was the actual floorplan for 5 Pin Oak Court, aka 28 Ramsay Street (The Kennedy’s house). Which is not the same floorplan. Saying that the floorplan for any house on Ramsay Street changes depending on how many people need to live there!

Sign away

After a quick stop for a selfie, your time in Erinsborough is coming to an end, and it’s time to leave the set.

Now before you go, it’s custom to sign the back of the set, and why should we be any different?

On the launch day, the cast that was here placed their mark, and it was like trying to find a needle in a haystack to spot them amongst the mass of admiration for the show.

It was nice to see the devotion that was coming from the people who attended the show. There were a lot of references to past storylines that were iconic/dramatic/funny/stupid!

What did I add? Well, I wanted to know how Marlene Kratz was doing. Oh, and my love for Trevor who I know will steal any scenes he is in.

And that was it, back to Harold’s for a final coffee before reality strikes.

Final Thoughts

I had a fantastic time at the Neighbours Experience! And everything was FREE! I even got a little souvenier of a Lassiters’ hotel key!

It wasn’t busy, which was intentional. It was a relaxed experience, so you could take in everything.

We were informed it would take 20 mins to get around, but we took a lot longer than that.

With other TV shows doing these kinds of experiences, could we see the Neighbours Experience reappearing in the future?

Honestly, I could. It would need to be financially viable. So it would have to be a paid event. possibly taking it on tour like Friends Fest.

I envision the Neighbours Experience being expanded to include additional replica sets and other original artefacts.

And like anything, we would love merchandise!