Neighbours spin-offs
Neighbours is a long-running Australian television soap opera created by television executive Reg Watson. It was first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985 and currently airs on digital channel 10 Peach. Since its inception, several spin-offs have been produced, including books, music, DVDs and internet webisodes. Several annuals and books by pulp fiction writer Carl Ruhen were released in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Barry Crocker's version of the theme tune was the first music release from the show, which also has included a Christmas album and the show's love theme. Two potential television spin-offs have reached the pilot stage, while five DVD box sets of Neighbours episodes from the beginning have been released. In 2013, Neighbours launched their first webisode series Steph in Prison. Several other webisode series have since been released. Other merchandise includes official video and board games, stationery and clothing.
Books
Several fictional and non-fiction books about the show and its cast and characters have been released. During the 1980s, pulp fiction writer Carl Ruhen penned nine tie-in books. In 2005, four novellas based on characters from Neighbours were released. The books were available to buy at Australia Post outlets and on the internet. Three of the four books focussed on the post-Ramsay Street lives of Felicity and Michelle Scully, Libby Kennedy and Darren Stark, and Jack Scully and Nina Tucker. The fourth novel centred on Liljana and David Bishop's early relationship. Of the books, a spokeswoman said "It's different to what happens in the show; it's more like a fantasy of what happens, might have happened, in the show, they would take about an hour to read if you're a quick reader".Fiction
Non-fiction
Home media
Episodes of Neighbours have been released on several VHS and DVDs. The first ever Neighbours video was released in 1989 and contains three wedding episodes. In 2012, three DVD box sets featuring the early episodes of Neighbours were released in Germany. From April 2012, Shock Entertainment began releasing DVD box sets of Neighbours episodes in broadcast order from the beginning. As of October 2014, five box sets have been released.VHS
DVD
Internet
Neighbours' official website is located at http://tenplay.com.au/channel-eleven/neighbours and is part of Tenplay, the official website of Network Ten and its sister channels One and Eleven. The website contains information on the cast and characters, news, interviews, photos and a catch-up service. UK broadcaster Channel 5 launched Holy Soap in June 2010 as the official UK website for both Neighbours and Home and Away. The website contained information about the cast and character profiles, and exclusive interviews. It also allowed viewers to watch full episodes of the shows. After the closure of Holy Soap, Channel 5 moved Neighbours to its new home at channel5.com.In 2009, Neighbours became the first Australian series to establish Twitter accounts for four of its characters; Declan Napier, Donna Freedman, Ringo Brown and Zeke Kinski. The accounts sent daily updates to their followers, gave advice and talked to each other. The updates were "complementary to the show's on-air storylines" and FremantleMedia Enterprises vice-president of licensing Ben Liebmann believed it was a good way to get the audience to engage with the characters off-screen. The messages were overseen by the Fremantle digital team, which integrated with the story department of the Neighbours production team.
In December 2012, Neighbours launched Amber's Blog on the official website. It featured Amber Turner documenting her family's move from Mount Isa to Erinsborough ahead of their debut on-screen. The website later used the character of Sheila Canning to document the week's events in a feature called "Sheila's Recap".
In 2014, Neighbours became the first Australian drama series to feature on-screen conversation-starter Twitter questions during each episode's three commercial breaks. The questions were tweeted during each broadcast from the official Neighbours Twitter account, accompanied by a relevant photo from the storyline. Tony Broderick, the head of TV Partnerships Australia, said "It's an impressive innovation from a TV series in its 30th season on air, and shows that the residents of Ramsay Street can still teach the television industry some new tricks." The on-screen conversation-starter Twitter questions were later removed. On 16 March 2015, in honour of the show's 30th anniversary, Channel 5 released a webisode titled Harold Bishop: The Musical, which sees cast members breaking into song to celebrate Harold's return. On 31 August, ahead of the show's first three-hander episode, a "digital-only bonus scene" was released featuring Brad Willis and Lauren Turner discussing their feelings after they had sex.
A new online series, Neighbourshood, was launched on 7 March 2016. It is a behind-the-scenes show presented by former Neighbours actor Ben Nicholas. Episodes were uploaded to the official YouTube at the beginning of the week. A second 22-part series was commissioned in 2017. The format is similar to the previous series, with viewers meeting a different Neighbours cast member each week and shown various spoilers.
Webisodes
''Steph in Prison''
To coincide with Stephanie Scully's return to Neighbours in April 2013, the serial released six webisodes on their YouTube channel that featured Steph talking to a psychiatrist before her release from jail. Steph talks through a variety of issues and explains that she is returning to Erinsborough for someone. The webisodes also provide an insight into Steph's actions upon her return. The webisodes were directed by former Neighbours actor Scott Major. He explained that being part of Steph's original exit storyline did not influence his approach to directing the webisodes. He decided to film the webisodes in a different style to show viewers what it was like in Steph's head. He said "I wanted viewers to be a little uncomfortable, make them feel they were intruding on these private conversations."''Brennan on the Run''
's return to Neighbours in February 2014, was preceded by the webisode series Brennan on the Run, which focused on his time in witness protection. A trailer for the spin-off was also released. The webisodes were interactive, with viewers able to choose the outcome of the story and take control of Brennan "as he faces challenges, dodges danger and encounters a little bit of romance". Each webisode ended with a "yes" or "no" answer, which then took viewers to a different video in the style of a choose your own adventure. The webisodes were shot using a Red Scarlet camera by digital producer Ric Forster, which gave them "a different, edgier look and feel" compared to the main show. Mark's girlfriend in the spin-off, Sienna Matthews, was later introduced to Neighbours. While his witness protection handler Greta Jackson made an appearance in September 2014. In the same month, Brennan on the Run was shown at the Raindance Web Fest.''Neighbours vs Zombies''
In March 2014, a new zombie webisode series was announced. Digital producer Ric Forster pitched the idea of a zombie series featuring former characters in 2013. Upon learning about Screen Australia's Skip Ahead programme, which gives help with funding and resources, Forster contacted YouTube vlogger Louna Maroun to join the project. Maroun commented "There's a huge fanbase for the zombie genre. It's so fresh and amazing that FremantleMedia are willing to do this sort of thing. It's just a fan dream." Forster wanted Neighbours: Zombies on Ramsay Street to be different from Neighbours, and said the visuals would reflect the dark nature of the story. Scenes were shot in both interior and external locations. An abandoned hospital and Kennedy bedroom sets were specially created for the series. Maroun appears as Hope Gottlieb, a former character who previously appeared in the show as a young child. The storyline sees Hope teaming up with Mason Turner to try and stop a zombie invasion.On 18 September 2014, it was confirmed that Dan Paris had reprised his role as Drew Kirk for the series. Paris was reunited with his former co-stars Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne who played Drew's in-laws Karl and Susan Kennedy. Of his return, Paris commented "This was just too much fun to pass up and it was great to see Alan and Jackie again, it was as if no time had passed – not unlike how a zombie feels I guess." On 15 October, it was announced that actors Ben Nicholas, Kevin Harrington and Aaron Jakubenko would reprise their roles as Stingray Timmins, David Bishop and Robbo Slade respectively. Many current cast members appear in the series including, Fletcher, Woodburne, Ryan Moloney, Josef Brown, Jenna Rosenow, Eve Morey, Stefan Dennis and Calen Mackenzie. The five-part series made its debut on the Neighbours YouTube channel on 27 October.
James Brinsford for the Metro praised the series, saying "it is a fantastic coming together for Halloween and makes you wonder if it will catch on with British Soaps."