Neighbours boss shares exciting spoilers for 40th anniversary and show's final months

 Get ready for a huge week.

With Neighbours turning 40 this week, we recently caught up with the show's top boss Jason Herbison for an exclusive preview of what's ahead.

The iconic Aussie soap is airing a huge set of episodes from today, featuring Leo and Krista's wedding drama, a dangerous fire at the garage, a shock death and the return of some familiar faces.

Of course, the celebrations are also bittersweet for fans, cast and crew, following the recent news that Neighbours will be ending again in December.

Here, Jason talks about this week's unmissable episodes and what's to come over the next few months.

How far in advance did you start planning the 40th anniversary episodes?

"I've been thinking about it ever since we announced the next chapter of the show, as of course I knew it would be coming up. The challenge was: 'How do we do something different to what we've done before?'

"The 30th and 35th anniversaries had a lot of nostalgia, as did the 2022 finale. I know viewers look forward to seeing past characters so I wanted to have an element of that, but I also wanted to look to the future as well."

Can you tell us how your plans developed?

"We landed on a simple theme of 'celebrating big soapie twists and turns' – contemporary stories that have a nod to the past, in the sense that we have done similar things before. Pretty much everything in soap has been done before and the key is always trying to do things in a slightly different way.

So with this anniversary week, we are shining a spotlight on it and celebrating the nature of classic, serial storytelling. Nell's 'Story of Erinsborough' exhibition is a device that links the past with the present. It's a little wink to the audience from us."

Leo and Krista are a big focal point of the week. There's a lot of uncertainty ahead for them, but do you see them as a strong couple?

"I think they have the potential to be a strong couple, absolutely. But like all soap characters and indeed people in real life, they both have past demons.

"Those demons come back to haunt them in this storyline. Krista's Achilles heel is her sobriety and anyone connected to that. Leo can be controlling and possessive – he can't help it, he's a Robinson!"

"It was certainly a huge day and director Harry Lloyd did an amazing job. They had a huge task wrangling many moving parts, not least Melbourne's weather.

"We looked at a few different locations before finally settling on the venue in Williamstown, which is on the west side of town. One of our biggest challenges was the sheer amount of story we had to try and get through across the block.

"We could've done more scenes at the wedding, but we needed to fly through it. Cast also had to come and go because we always have two units filming – not everyone could be there all day."

The dramatic garage fire involving Byron, Sadie, Nicolette, Max and Roxy is another key plot…

"These scenes were directed by Eugenie Muggleton and she did an amazing job. I have to confess, my amazing producer Andrew Thompson really takes the running here. I'm a bit like you – I was able to sit back in the screening and go 'wow'!"

Will that stunt sequence have longer-term repercussions? We know there's major drama for Byron, Sadie and Max…

"Definitely. That is always a priority for me when we do any story. If we're going to do something big then it must have consequences for the future."

Chelsea is back and claims to have changed her ways – is she being genuine?

"Chelsea is trying to be a better person – that's part of the reason she has stayed away so long. There are still some big twists ahead in the storyline. All is not what it seems."

Is Paul and Terese's relationship strong enough to withstand the drama caused by Chelsea's return?

"I think so. They are such an interesting couple. Most viewers seem to love them together, but I'm also aware that some of the audience prefer them apart.

"Stefan [Dennis, who plays Paul] and Rebekah [Elmaloglou, who plays Terese] have terrific chemistry and they've both been on the show a long time, so the challenge for us is to keep the dynamic fresh and interesting. We love to throw obstacles at them but there are harmonious times ahead as well."

Was Anne Charleston's return as a new character always planned, or was this story brought into the mix when Ian Smith (Harold Bishop) sadly had to leave the show?

"I always knew that Ian might only be able to do a year or so this time around, which is completely fair enough at his age. So it was in my mind to build to an exit story.

"I was a huge fan of Harold and Madge and I really wish she'd never been killed off, hence my habit of bringing her back in various incarnations. This is a different chapter, she's Agnes rather than Madge, which again is a nod to the times in the past when we've done stories like this.

Ian's diagnosis meant that we needed to truncate the story as every week, he wasn't sure whether he'd be back to do the next. Fortunately, things are looking much better for him health-wise now."

Where does Agnes and Harold's story go from here?

"Agnes moves into Eirini Rising, which as you can imagine is quite confronting for Harold. Of course everyone is intrigued by her resemblance to Madge – is it a coincidence or is there another explanation for it? JJ and Max become particularly intrigued by it all and set out to solve the mystery."

Darcy has been on our list of characters to bring back for many years. We've had a few different story ideas bubbling around but this is a new one.

"We will also be seeing another character from the past return, someone connected to a character Darcy never knew before. It becomes quite a big story from there.

"One thing I especially love is that it's a huge arc for Karl. You will see some amazing performances from Fletch as the weeks pass."

Wendy returns this week – are there big plans for the ever-popular Rodwell family?

"Yoo hoo she's back! Yes, absolutely, we have very big plans for the Rodwell family. We've had a massive story on the board for quite a while that we had to push back a little. But its time has come and it's going to be huge."

In broader terms, can you tease what's coming up beyond the anniversary week?

"Anniversary week sets in motion several stories that will continue for months to come.

"Beyond that, we have another returning character, who we are very excited about. This person was a huge Neighbours name in the 1990s."

Was Lakota Johnson (Taye) the final new regular cast member, or will we be introduced to some new characters?

"There are more regular cast members to come. The end of the show did change some of our longer-term plans, however you will see some more new faces on the opening titles.

"You will also see the wonderful gang from Eirini Rising on the titles too – including Vera, by popular demand!"

With the show wrapping up again this year, do you feel you have enough time to craft a fitting finale like last time? Do you have a bucket list of stories you want to get on screen before then?

"It's certainly a unique challenge, plotting another finale so soon after the last one. But it's also a privilege to continue to lead the show at this time.

"My goal is to make the final months of the show as fulfilling as possible and of course craft an ending that feels special and important in its own way. I won't compete with the last one – it'll be different, but hopefully capture the same warm tone."

Some cast and crew seem resigned to this being the end of Neighbours, while others seem more optimistic. Do you hope fans keep fighting for the show and is there any hope?

"Absolutely, there is always hope. Neighbours isn't ending because we don't have an audience. It's the opposite – we have an incredibly loyal audience. There are many more stories that can be told in the future and I hope to one day have the chance to tell them."