Death teased in first promo for Neighbours finale

A new Neighbours promo hints that a death could be on the way before the show’s grand finale in August, as it tells us that “it’s time to say goodbye” to “an Aussie icon”.

10 Peach, which has aired Neighbours in Australia since 2011, has posted a Neighbours promo to its Twitter account previewing the end of the “Aussie icon”.

There are now just 2 1/2 months left before the show’s final ever episode airs on 1st August, with some huge returns and emotional storylines coming our way.

The promo begins with a shot of the iconic Ramsay Street sign, before showing a glamorous publicity shot of Karl (Alan Fletcher), Terese (Rebekah Elmaloglou), Susan (Jackie Woodburne), Toadie (Ryan Moloney) and Paul (Stefan Dennis), the show’s longest serving current characters.

Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne, who have played Karl and Susan Kennedy since 1994, feature in the promo.

Alan is seen saying “I’m gonna miss this place”, and Jackie says “it’s time to say goodbye.”

24 ex-Neighbours cast members were recently announced as returning for the show’s final weeks, but the new promo hints that there could be even more returnees in store.

After a title card reading “Who returns?” we see stills of three of the previously announced returnees – Joel Samuels (Daniel MacPherson), Izzy Hoyland (Natalie Bassingthwaighte), and Scott and Charlene Robinson (Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue).

However, it also shows three faces who haven’t yet been announced as returning – Mike Young (Guy Pierce), Beth Brennan (Natalie Imbruglia) and Donna Freedman (Magot Robbie).

Could these simply be red herrings, or will the trio really be returning on top of the ones already announced?

Ned Willis (Ben Hall) has only just left Ramsay Street – in fact, his exit scenes haven’t yet aired in Australia – but he has already been announced as one of the returnees.

Ned headed off to Sydney to reunite with his mum, Beth, so could we be able to see the mother and son pairing return to Erinsborough before the show’s final episode?

The trailer also hints that at least one character may be saying goodbye before the end.

“Who leaves forever?” asks the promo, before shots of tearful mourners at a funeral, a number of pallbearers carrying a casket, and a mourner placing a red rose down on a gravestone.

None of the mourners appear to be current or past Neighbours characters.

Could these be red herring shots to stop fans figuring out the identity of the death, or could the unrecognisable characters be the friends an ex-Ramsay Street resident has made since they left?

With so many characters set to return before the end, there are countless potential options – or could it be a current Neighbours favourite who bows out in the final months?

Australian viewers are currently watching Neighbours approximately one month behind UK broadcasts, as a result of 10 Peach only airing episodes from Monday to Thursday.

However, the Aussie network will begin airing double episodes of Neighbours from Monday 13th June, allowing it to catch up with UK broadcasts in time for the finale.

The final episodes of Neighbours air on 1st August in both the UK and Australia.