Neighbours fan favourite Annie Jones has spoken for the first time about her exciting return to Ramsay Street, describing the experience like ‘going home.’ But she’s also revealed the sad truth about her absence from our TV screens.
The 51-year-old actress, who plays Jane Harris, was one of the major stars of the show’s eighties heyday, along with Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan and Guy Pearce.
Jones first played the role of sheepish Jane, who was dubbed ‘Plain Jane the Superbrain’ in 1986 and was introduced into the cast as the granddaughter of Nell Mangel. Her last appearance was in 2005.
The seasoned actress told ITV’s Lorraine of her character’s return, ‘Well, she’s been living in London for the last 29 years, looking after Mrs Mangel, and she’s back to finish some unfinished business on behalf of Mrs Mangel.’
On her return to the Neighbours set, Jones said: ‘It was like walking through a portal back into a previous life.
‘A lot is exactly the same, there are a lot of beautiful crew members still working on the show…it was wonderful, it was kind of like going home.’
Sadly, Annie has had a tough time offscreen during her absence, revealing she had been looking after her mother.
‘My mother had Alzheimer’s and she passed away a couple of years ago. So, for a good 15 years or so, I had to make sure she was OK and so there were a lot of roles I couldn’t take.
‘I sort of stuck to little guest roles here and there, which, as an actor, is a little unsatisfying because you just get started and then it’s all over.
‘So what I was really craving was a challenge like series television, this whole set of skills you only get to exercise on a show like Neighbours, and it’s been fantastic to be back.’
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