Kelly O’Mara
Kelly O’Mara (2011)
Martika Sullivan
Episodes: 5340–5374
Parents: Unnamed father (deceased) & Rhonda O’Mara
Sibling: Dean O’Mara
Occupation: Farmhand, Pizza deliverer
Kelly arrived in town with her brother Dean in order to attend the charity ball being held at the Walker farm. They ran into April and Dexter and Dean managed to convince Dexter to let them camp in one of the empty fields, paying him rent behind Sid’s back. At the ball, Kelly saw Xavier and approached him, with them spending the rest of the evening talking to each other. She told him she lived on a farm in a small town inland and had only seen the ocean once in her life.
Next morning, Dean wanted to leave town early but Kelly refused so he drove off without her. Kelly met up with Xavier, reminding him he promised to show her around town. They ran into April and Dexter, with April warning Kelly that she and Xavier had just broken up and he might be on the rebound. Dean returned and tried to drag Kelly into his car but Xavier stopped him and Dean left town without her.
Xavier and Kelly asked John and Gina if Kelly could stay with them and they agreed on the understanding that the pair were just friends. Xavier tried to get Kelly his old job delivering pizzas at Angelo’s only to find Dexter had already taken it. Xavier used the fact Dexter and April had cheated on him to guilt trip him into giving the job up but Kelly was unhappy with his methods and refused to take it. Dexter smoothed things over by convincing Xavier to make up with him so Kelly would accept he was giving up the job as a favour. She had a difficult first morning in the job when she nearly ran Colleen over on the scooter and April had to talk Colleen out of making a complaint.
Xavier and Kelly shared a kiss but agreed the next morning that it was a mistake. Kelly chatted to Gina about leaving school to help out on the family farm but made it clear she thought Xavier should stay on. After the farm, Kelly was finding spending time on the beach a bit of a culture shock and started feeling homesick. Xavier and Dexter arranged for Xavier to take her horse riding at one of the Walkers’ neighbours’ farms. Afterwards, Xavier and Kelly slept together in the stables. Although neither of them regretted it, Kelly felt bad about going behind Gina’s back and confided in April. When Xavier finally admitted the truth, Gina and John agreed to Kelly staying provided her mum was aware of the situation.
When she heard Dean was coming to see her, Kelly got Marilyn to give her a new, more sophisticated hairstyle. She and Dean argued when he asked her to sign over some land that their father had left her, which she’d intended to build a house on. After he explained he needed to mortgage the whole property to pay for drought protection, she agreed but Xavier stopped her signing the contract until they’d had it looked over. After doing some digging, they learned Dean intended to send the land to a mining company. Dean grabbed Kelly to try and force her to sign and ended up scuffling with Xavier before John threw him out.
Kelly was shocked and confused when Liam accosted her and demanded to know what route Dean was taking, saying Bianca had identified Dean as the man who raped her at the charity ball. Kelly ended up arguing with April, who told her Dean had run Bianca over. John, Gina and Xavier were sympathetic but doubted Dean’s innocence and when Kelly found out Bianca had been drugged with ketamine, an animal tranquiliser Dean had access to, she admitted another girl had accused Dean and not been believed. She agreed to make a statement, even after she saw Dean dragged into the police station protesting his innocence, which resulted in Dean confessing.
Kelly locked herself away in the house, thinking everyone blamed her for what Dean did. Xavier got April to chat to her and reassure her but when she approached Bianca and tried to apologise it sent Bianca into a panic. Kelly packed her bags but Xavier talked her out of leaving. Not long after, however, Kelly spoke to her mother Rhona on the phone and realised she was having difficulty handling the farm on her own. She decided she needed to go home and said goodbye to Xavier.
Kelly was delighted when Xavier followed her to the farm but Rhona was less welcoming and seemed to resent both of them for their part in Dean being jailed. A chat with Xavier saw her mellow but also made Xavier realise he didn’t fit in on the farm. He and Kelly spent one last night together, reflecting that they came from different worlds, before he returned home.