Love it or loathe it, the Australian soap opera, Neighbours, has been a staple on UK television for nearly four decades.
A whole generation of youngsters in the 1980s, '90 and beyond grew up watching the ups and downs of the folk who inhabited the fictional Melbourne suburb of Erinsborough.
But the end for the show is nigh after a spokesman announced last week: "We are so sorry to say that after nearly 37 years and almost 9,000 episodes broadcast, we have to confirm that Neighbours will cease production in June.
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"Following the loss of our key broadcast partner in the UK (Channel 5) and despite an extensive search for alternative funding, we simply have no option but to rest the show." Read the full story here.
If Neighbours helped launch the careers of a host of stars, from Jason Donovan to Russell Crowe and Natalie Imbruglia to Margot Robbie, the show's most notable product was Kylie Minogue.
Starring on the programme as Charlene Mitchell, a schoolgirl turned motor mechanic, the Melbourne-born actress/singer would go on to become a major international recording artist and style icon, with the press dubbing her 'the princess of pop'.
Back in December 1989, when Kylie swapped the sunshine of Australia for wintry Tyneside, there was pandemonium.
More than 2,000 screaming fans greeted the star, who was dressed in leather hot-pants and a mock leopard skin cap, when she stepped out surrounded by burly body guards at the newly-opened nine-screen Warner Bros cinema in Manors, Newcastle.
The 21-year-old, who had quit Neighbours the previous year to concentrate on her singing career, was on Tyneside to attend the premiere of her first film, The Delinquents.
"A 600-strong celebrity audience in cinema six of the new multi-million pound complex heard Kylie officially declare the screens open," the Chronicle reported.
"The same audience, however, discreetly gave the thumbs down to her new film at a later banquet - attended by many familiar faces from Newcastle's sporting, showbiz and political circles - given in the Civic Centre by the boss of Warner Bros.
"They voted the cinema complex a resounding success, but questioned whether Kylie's new film would appeal to anyone other than her loyal fans."
Meanwhile, a spokesman admitted the heavy security presence for the star might have been "a bit too strong", but pointed out that the singer had been mobbed earlier that week in London.
As for Kylie herself, she told our reporter she had very much enjoyed making the film but ruled out a return to Neighbours.
"No, I wouldn't go back into the series. I enjoyed it while I was doing it and then I'd had enough."
Over the years, Kylie has returned to Tyneside to appear in concert on several occasions, including shows at Newcastle Mayfair, Whitley Bay Ice Rink, and more recently Newcastle Arena where she last performed in 2018.
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