After Karl hides a huge deception from his wife this week, Karl and Susan Kennedy’s relationship may be on the rocks once more in Neighbours.
Karl has recently made a large investment, but Susan is unaware of the idea.
Will Susan find out if you’re lying to her? What effect will this have on their relationship if she discovers the truth?
It’s just another twist for the couple, who have become one of Neighbours’ most legendary soap couples, leading viewers through their family and love lives.
Away from Ramsay Street, Alan Fletcher, who plays Karl Kennedy, has had an equally intriguing life, from marrying his famous wife to having a successful music career.
Forgotten Neighbours role
Karl and Susan Kennedy are essential characters on Neighbours, but many viewers are unaware that Alan played another role on the drama in the 1980s.
In 1987, he also acted as Greg Cooper, a boxer who worked in the Robinson family patriarch Jim’s garage.
After acting in 1982’s Cop Shop, the TV series The Love Boat, and films such as Mercy Mission, it was one of the actor’s first appearances.
However, he and Susan Kennedy actor Jackie Woodburne made their debut on Ramsay Street in 1994, and have been delighting fans ever since.
The duo has become one of the most legendary couples on the serial, thanks to their various affairs, funny bedroom antics, and roles as parents to residents of Erinsborough (and fans at home).
“Alan [Fletcher] and I knew each other, we’d worked together previously,” Jackie told the Daily Star of their first day on set, “but it was the first time that the five of us had shared a scene together and there was just this amazing, instant connection and rapport.”
“We just got to a place of deep familiarity, so quickly, and I think that’s why the family worked so well. “
It’s not something you can necessarily prepare for, but it just happened for all of us.
“Fletch and I are both always hunting for the gags,” she remarked about working with Alan. Because individuals have a sense of humour, we’re constantly eager to find any joke that is acceptable in a story.
“Even when the most dramatic things are happening, sometimes you still laugh at stuff.”
Devastating axe
In the summer of 2022, Neighbours will come to an end. (Image courtesy of Channel 5)
Neighbours fans were heartbroken when it was announced earlier this year that the iconic Australian soap would end production in summer 2022.
Alan paid a touching tribute to on-screen wife Jackie Woodburne and the soap, telling Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield on This Morning: “Jackie and I have been dear good friends for 40 years and we will miss being on set, it will be a tremendous loss to be honest.”
“It will leave a big hole. But she’s just down the street, we won’t be strangers. And we’ve got a lot to talk about.
“We’ll still be interacting with the fans. I believe Neighbours will have a life after the show is gone.”
Rock band fame
Alan may be one of the most well-known soap actors in the world, but his rock music career has also earned him a legion of followers.
Alan is a member of The Waiting Room, a band that includes Tommy Rando, Chris Hawker, and Jeff Consi, and performs a combination of original songs and covers.
In 2007, the actor performed a cover of Oasis’ Wonderwall on BBC Radio 1’s The Live Lounge, and in 2010, he appeared on The Xtra Factor to discuss the show’s finalists.
With the band constantly touring the UK, it’s no surprise that Alan has also appeared on several of the country’s music shows, including Soapstar Superstar in 2007, where he placed sixth.
Alan Fletcher appeared on Soapstar Superstar in 2007
That’s not all: he recently revealed a new collaboration with Alyce Platt, who portrayed Olivia Bell on Neighbours.
The duo has collaborated on a song called Sorry Is The Word, which will be released later this year as part of Alan’s forthcoming solo album.
“Like a lot of songs, ‘Sorry Is the Word’ originated from my personal life experience,” he told Digital Spy about the tune.
“I have learnt over time that pride and an inability to accept blame and apologise is responsible for so much heartache and missed opportunities.”
He added: “I wanted to write a classic country duet. That has become such a traditional medium for telling stories about love and loss. Duets allow for truthful emotional expressions with irony.”
Famous wife
Away from the spotlight, Alan Fletcher is married to news anchor Jennifer Hansen, with whom he has been married since 1990.
Jennifer is a journalist who used to host Network 10’s News At Ten in Melbourne, Australia, and now co-hosts a breakfast programme on Smooth FM 91.5.
Veronica, a patisserie chef, and Tom, a university student, are the couple’s two children.
Alan also made a touching homage to his wife, Jennifer, after releasing a holiday track called Holding My Girl At Christmas in 2019.
The song’s video also features Paul Robinson’s Stefan Dennis, Chris Milligan, and James Mason, all of whom have appeared in previous episodes of Neighbours.
Jennifer said of the song, “I adore it, but then I’m biassed because he says he wrote it about me,” according to Daily Mail Australia.