Neighbours spoilers follow from the final ever episode. We recommend only reading this interview once you’ve seen how the show ends.

It’s the end of an era for Neighbours fans – again! The show’s two-year revival run has reached an emotional conclusion today (11 December), as the residents of Ramsay Street all reached a major crossroads in their lives.

Following the news that the Street was likely to be demolished to make room for a freeway, the community braced themselves for big changes by checking out Paul Robinson and Shane Ramsay’s proposed alternatives: Robinson Towers and Ramsay Hills. But others, like Susan Kennedy, weren’t ready to give up on the battle for the Street just yet.

In the end, the fate of Australia’s most famous cul-de-sac was left unresolved, with a hopeful and optimistic ending leaving viewers to imagine how things would turn out and where many of the characters would end up.

Digital Spy recently caught up with Neighbours’ executive producer Jason Herbison for an exclusive chat about all the behind-the-scenes secrets from the finale.

Can you tell us how your plans for the finale all came together?

“I always knew that if the show ended, I would have to go a very different way to 2022. There was just no way to compete with the last finale and I needed a fresh angle.

“I also knew that we’d be saying goodbye to our Nunawading Studios shortly after production ceased, meaning any return for the show would require a huge reimagining.

“So I put those two elements together and decided a threat to the Street was in order. I planned to revisit the Linwell storyline and when I knew the end was upon us, I connected the stories.”

How did you decide who to bring back? There were some welcome wildcards in there, like Levi and Ned, who fans might not have expected to see…

“It felt right to make this ending a celebration of the Amazon era, which is why most of the names are recent cast – or past cast that returned during this era.

“Levi and Ned were exceptions as we hoped to bring them back for other storylines, however those plans never eventuated.”

Was there anyone you hoped to get but couldn’t? Was there ever a plan to approach the big-name legends again?

“Ryan Moloney (Toadie) was very missed, but we also knew he was busy on another project, so we understood.

“It wouldn’t have felt right to try and entice the ‘big names’ to make another appearance. They were gracious to agree the first time around.”

Were the ideas of Robinson Towers and Ramsay Hills purely story-driven? Or did you have one eye on how these concepts could also be viable production-wise for future seasons or spin-offs?

“A bit of both. As I mentioned, with the demise of our studios and backlot, I realised any comeback for the show would need to look very different.

“I personally believe shorter run seasons and spin-offs would be a great way for the world to be revisited. I’d love to do rotating seasons of Robinson Towers and Ramsay Hills. Perhaps something might happen with them, perhaps not. In any case, it’s leaving the fans with something to speculate on.”

Can you tell us your thought process behind leaving the fate of Ramsay Street uncertain at the end?

“It was a dilemma for sure. If I’ve learned anything in this job, it’s that you can’t please everyone. It just felt like a different way to go.”

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If you lived on Ramsay Street yourself, would you go for Ramsay Hills or Robinson Towers? Or stick with Susan, chained to the Street sign?

“I’m a city guy so I would head straight for Robinson Towers. I often ride my bike past the plot of land that we chose for filming. I could totally see myself in a high rise there. Paul as my landlord – perhaps not so much!”

Can you tell us about the Easter eggs you weaved in, like the nods to the 2022 finale? We also thought we spotted a cheeky shout-out to Home and Away, with the reference to a similar community just outside of Sydney that’s managed to keep going?

“I loved the 2022 finale and it’s very fresh in everyone’s minds. Since history has repeated, it felt right to hark back to it in some way. Some of the references are more subtle than others.

“Well done for spotting the Home and Away reference. You’re in good company – Matty Wilson (Aaron) was actually the only person to spot it during filming.”

Wendy and Andrew’s future was left unresolved after their big story. Did you have ideas in your mind as to where they were going?

“If the show had continued, I would have told Andrew, Wendy and Holly’s story differently. Holly would have had the baby and we would have got great mileage out of Andrew, Wendy and Sadie having to navigate that.

“With such limited time, I tried to give some closure to the story instead. It’s way too soon for Wendy to forgive Andrew, so I left it on an ambiguous note.”

Holly’s miscarriage meant that the final week had some tragedy, providing a different tone compared with the last few episodes in 2022. Can you tell us why you went in this direction?

“It was a dilemma but I wanted to keep the stakes high right until the very end. It didn’t feel right to fill the final week with nostalgia or devote every minute of screen time to the freeway, as that might be too depressing.

“I wanted to show that there was still plenty of mileage in the characters and give the actors one last chance to stretch themselves.”

Were there any stories you wish you’d had more screen time for?

“I wish I had more time for everything! Story pacing is very challenging and it’s often dictated by cast breaks and guest star availability.

“Probably the story I think was most short-changed was Remi’s amnesia. I wanted to do something in the final week where we learned through flashbacks that there had been another incident prior to her hitting her head and this triggered the trauma-based memory loss.

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“I should have made the space – it’s just something that got away from me. I’m the first to admit this story arc didn’t come off as planned, however the actors did a terrific job.”

The show seemed to have a well-received refresh for the final three months, with Colton, Zac, Felix and Elle being added to the regular cast. Was this purely to keep cast numbers at a certain level, or was this a glimpse at how the next era would have looked if the show had continued?

“It’s definitely a glimpse into what could have been. The cast always needed to be a certain size in order for filming to be sustainable, as we had two crews going every day, five days a week.

“The new generation of characters were intended to have major arcs and in the case of Zac, hopefully a return of mum Gaby Willis at some stage.

“When we heard that the show was ending, I truncated a lot of stories or nixed set-ups that would have gone nowhere.

“The backstory around the deaths of Colton’s parents was one example I kept. I thought it was good character stuff for him, even if it didn’t end up going anywhere. I would love to have seen more of Elle and Felix too.”

For the 2022 finale, you mentioned 15 minutes of footage having to be cut for time restrictions. Was it a similar story this time?

“Once again there was a lot of material on the floor, not just in the final episode but in the episodes leading up. I’m a nightmare for directors because I always write long and I enjoy having material to play with in the edit.”

Did you ever consider incorporating Christmas into the finale given you were ending in December?

“There was a practical reason why I didn’t go there – I wanted to spare our hard-working art department! I knew we would have a lot of pick-up scenes from previous blocks to get through – i.e. scenes overhanging.

“I didn’t want the added continuity of decorations that might need to come up and down to complete these scenes. I didn’t want anyone melting down over a reindeer!”

Looking back more generally, if you had your time again, would you still do the Toadie and Terese wedding twist after the huge stir it caused?

“If I did, I imagine I would do it a bit differently. I was playing with the notion that anything could happen during the two-year time jump, even something as outrageous as that. It probably needed its own flashback week so that viewers could really understand it, rather than have it be backstory.

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“Having said all that, I would do nearly every story differently if given the chance, simply because hindsight is a wonderful thing. I’m very self-critical. Serial dramas move so fast and many things change as you go along, so there are always things that I would tweak if I could. But I also know you can’t please everyone and that soaps are about journeys, not destinations.”

Let’s clear up another mystery while you’re here! What is JJ’s full name? Is it written down anywhere what it stands for? Or is he just JJ?

“Not only was it written down, it was filmed! I think it was Jakov James but I might have the James bit wrong. I had the idea that Nell would use his full name when she said goodbye to him and moved to Colac, as if she – and everyone – always knew his full name but the audience never heard it.

“The problem was, it was spoken over some other action and the moment was lost. I decided to cut it there with a plan to do a moment later. It’s another thing that never happened.”

What are you most proud of from the past two years?

“I’m very proud that the show launched so well on Amazon Freevee. We didn’t receive viewing figures, however we were shown data to indicate that the viewers who came to the new era stuck with it, which is fantastic. Obviously the closure of Freevee was disappointing and it would have been great if Prime kept us on, but we understood the decision.”

Even when the show moved to Prime Video, it was at or near the top of the Most-Watched chart most days. Do you hope more streamers take a gamble on soaps as the appetite still seems to be there?

“As for the future of soaps, I think they need to evolve, as we are seeing. I believe there’s a middle ground between the shorter seasons that we see on streamers and the 200+ episodes that traditional soaps deliver each year. I’m actually very interested in the South American telenovela format – I’d love to make an English-speaking one.”

Fans seem less optimistic this time over a potential revival, although the recent news of Australian content quotas being introduced for the international streamers has perhaps provided a glimmer of hope. Do you think the show still has a chance? And if it came back again, would you still want to be steering the ship?

“I think there is a chance for the show to return in a different form, such as a short run series. Robinson Towers and Ramsay Hills are examples of how that could happen. Or it could be something else entirely.

“As for my involvement, I honestly don’t know. I will always have an interest in the brand but it would depend what I’m up to at the time. I’m enjoying the chance to do different things now but who knows what the future holds?”

Neighbours episodes are available to watch for free on Prime Video in the UK and US.