Takaya Honda has played David Tanaka in the soap Neighbours since 2016, although he was a great star of some renowned children’s TV shows before that.
Following Gareth’s death, David Tanaka and Freya Wozniak are challenged by Gareth’s ex-girlfriend Emma this week on Neighbours.
Emma refuses to believe that David and Freya could not save Gareth after the tragic scenes at the River Bend.
What will their reaction be? What does this mean for David and Freya, specifically? The audience will have to wait and see what happens.
David Tanaka has been a part of many of Neighbours’ major storylines since joining the show in 2016, including the soap’s first on-screen gay marriage in 2020.
Away from the opera, actor Takaya Honda has had a fascinating life, including offering a touching farewell to the show when it was canceled.
Iconic children’s TV show role
Takaya Honda starred in the hit Australian TV series Girl’s World as well as Family Law before joining Neighbours as fan-favorite David Tanaka in 2016.
He was also a presenter on shows such as Play School and My Great Big Adventure, so it wasn’t his only memorable role in a children’s television show.
He is also a skilled theatre performer who has appeared on stage in Shakespeare productions such as Romeo and Juliet and As You Like It.
He is also an advocate for the Dementia Australia organization while he is not acting.
Soap tribute
Fans of Neighbours were recently heartbroken when it was announced that the show would be ending later this year.
The news came after Channel 5 announced that the show would be canceled after this summer, adding in a statement, “Neighbours will no longer air on Channel 5 beyond this summer.” We’d like to congratulate the cast, Fremantle, and the entire production crew for their excellent work on this landmark series, which has been a much-loved part of our schedule for more than a decade.”
However, it has subsequently been announced that the soap has yet to find a new broadcaster and that the series will conclude this summer.
Following the revelation, Takaya turned to Instagram to thank the renowned soap and its fans, writing: “You are the reason I am still on @neighbours and you have been my drive to continue telling David’s story for as long as I have.”
Following David’s marriage to Aaron in 2020, he and co-star Matty Wilson broke barriers when they were involved in the first gay wedding to be broadcast on Australian television.
“Not everything on Neighbours is ridiculous, and the effect it has on people certainly isn’t,” Takaya said in his emotive essay, reflecting on his character’s impact on the show.
“I have, on multiple occasions, received messages from fans stating that the show and David’s storylines have saved their lives, and they say this genuinely.”
He added that Neighbours has “offered a place to escape for so many who have been underrepresented”.
“I have been one half of, not only the first on-screen gay wedding in Australian history but, I’m pretty sure, also one of the longest-running on-screen gay relationships too,” David said.
“There are very few that span the length of time or episode count that @mattywilson and I have as #Daaron. I say this on top of being a POC too.”
Stunning wife
Takaya Honda lives with his lovely wife Amy Schwab, whom he married in 2020 at Sundays in Byron Bay – a luxury lodging venue with breathtaking views of the coast – away from our television screens.
However, because to the pandemic, not all of their wedding guests, including Takaya’s mother, were able to attend.
Despite this, the actor made sure his mother was present on the big day by incorporating her favorite color, purple, throughout the wedding, especially on the cupcake butterfly decorations at the reception.
In his reception address, Takaya paid an impassioned tribute to his new wife, Amy, saying, “Amy, you have never been a question, you have always been an answer, life never feels like an if, but a when, with you.”
Amy also paid tribute to her husband during their wedding vows, saying: “For me, home is not a particular place, it is whenever I am with you.
“Getting married is brave, and I choose to be brave with you, Takaya, you make life so special and there’s no one else I want to be walking this path with.
“I have loved building a life with you so far and I look forward to all our exciting adventures and chapters to come as husband and wife.”