Neighbours last episode: 5 most memorable moments from Australian soap as finale airs on Channel 5 this week

The final episode of Neighbours will air in the UK on 29 July, closing the book on the lives of Ramsay Street residents after 37 years.

Over the more than 8,000 episodes that have been broadcast since 1985, the show has featured scores of shocking, memorable, and bizarre storylines.

As cast old and new reunite for the last episode of the soap, here are five of the most memorable Neighbours moments:

Harold’s return from the dead

Harold Bishop came to Ramsay Street in 1987 and became one of the longest-running characters, making more than 1,700 appearances.

But it looked like his time on the soap would be cut short when in 1991 Harold was swept out to see whilst on holiday with his wife.

Harold was presumed dead even though his body was never found.

But five years later Harold made a dramatic return to the street - struggling with amnesia and going by the name of Ted.

Harold had an emotional reunion with his wife Madge, and she was able to help him recover and regain his memory.

Bouncer’s dream

For those of you who don’t remember, Bouncer was Ramsay Street’s Labrador Retriever, appearing on the show from 1987-1993.

Normally pets don’t get their own storyline in a show, but Bouncer is a different breed.

His big moment came in a 1990 episode where Bouncer dreams that he is marrying Rosie, Clarrie McLachlan’s Border Collie.

The dream sequence, which was akin to watching Cbeebies on an acid trip, didn’t go down as Neighbours’ finest hour, and many of the show cast were left bemused at the fact that the scene made it to air.

David and Aaron’s wedding

The marriage of David and Aaron was not just an historic moment for Neighbours - it was the first legal gay marriage to be shown on Australian television when it aired in 2018, less than a year after gay marriage was legalised in the country.

The moment couldn’t have happened in the show which began airing only a few years after homosexuality was decriminalised in Australia.

David and Aaron’s wedding marked a turning point in both media and society, putting representation at the forefront of early-evening programming.

Their wedding day was plagued by bad luck, their celebrant cancelled, Aaron is injured and has to use a wheelchair - but eventually the pair get their big moment.

Karl Kennedy’s affair

Karl Kennedy’s shocking act of betrayal came at a time when Neighbours was suffering from a lull in viewership, and it helped to revive the ailing soap.

Alan Fletcher’s character Karl was a doctor and committed family man, married to Susan with whom he had three children.

But in a major 1997-8 storyline, Kennedy began a long running affair with his secretary, Sarah.

To make matters worse, Sarah was Susan’s best friend, and when she found out about the affair, she was devastated.

Scott and Charlene’s wedding

One of the most ‘80s things to be captured on film - full of big perms, bouffant dresses, and Scott’s mullet, Scott and Charlene’s wedding has to be the most iconic moment in Neighbours history.

The 1987 episode was watched by 2 million Australians and when it aired in the UK more than a year later, it garnered almost 20 million viewers.

One factor that made the wedding such a moment was that the actors Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue were dating in real life at the time.

Whilst the actors themselves did not enjoy the happily ever after fans were hoping for, Scott and Charlene did stay together in the soap - and the pair will return for the final ever episode.