List of Neighbours characters introduced in 2014
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera. It was first broadcast on 18 March 1985 and airs on digital channel Eleven. The following is a list of characters that appeared in the soap in 2014, by order of first appearance. All characters were introduced by the shows executive producer Richard Jasek, or by his successor Jason Herbison. The 30th season of Neighbours began airing from 6 January 2014. Kathy Carpenter, Sienna Matthews and [|Naomi Canning] made their debut appearances in March. Will Dempier and [|Daniel Robinson] arrived in April, while [|Ethan Smith] began appearing in May. [|Paige Smith] made her debut in June, while [|Nate Kinski] arrived in August. Dakota Davies was introduced in September. October saw the debut of Rain Taylor, while [|Gary Canning], Ezra Hanley and Erin Rogers arrived in November.
Kathy Carpenter
Kathy Carpenter, played by Tina Bursill, made her first screen appearance on 10 March 2014. Bursill's casting was announced on 22 November 2013, while Kathy has previously been mentioned in the series. A Neighbours spokesperson confirmed that Bursill began filming her scenes in early 2014. Kathy is the former wife of established character Lou Carpenter. Bursill and Oliver previously worked with each other in the 1970s and Bursill commented "While it has been a long time between takes, it was lovely to work with Tom again and also a lot of new faces." In May 2014, Calen MacKenzie, who plays Kathy's on-screen grandson Bailey, confirmed Bursill had reprised her role as Kathy for a second guest stint. Kathy returned on 18 July 2014. Bursill reprised the role again in 2016, and returned on 4 November 2016.Kathy comes to Ramsay Street to visit her daughter Lauren. Kathy is the only other person who knew Lauren had been pregnant with Brad Willis's child and she helped her daughter to hide the pregnancy. Executive producer Jason Herbison commented that during her visit, Kathy would deliver news that will rock the Turner and Willis households, setting the stage for "some major fireworks throughout the year." Bursill later said that Kathy would shock Lauren when she reveals her child is alive and added "Kathy had been trying to protect her daughter by concealing the truth." Daniel Kilkelly from Digital Spy also reported that Kathy would clash with Lou.
Lauren calls Kathy to say that she is going to tell her husband, Matt, and Brad Willis about the baby she gave birth to twenty years ago. Kathy arrives in Erinsborough to see Lauren and instantly clashes with her former husband Lou. Lauren intervenes to say Kathy is staying with them. She then takes her mother to see her coffee shop and they discuss the phone call. Kathy tells Lauren that she should keep quiet about the baby. Kathy's youngest grandson, Bailey, tries to get to the bottom of his grandparents' issues and sits them both down to talk. With Lauren determined to tell Matt about the baby, Kathy admits that the baby was not stillborn and is still alive. Lauren is devastated by Kathy's revelation. Kathy goes on to explain that the baby was adopted out. Lauren is unable to forgive Kathy and asks her to leave. Kathy stays at Lassiter's Hotel, where she meets Brad's wife, Terese. Kathy tells Terese that she is stopping Lauren from trying to find her daughter. Kathy then informs Bailey and Amber about their half-sister, leading to a confrontation with Lou. He asks Kathy to leave, as she is making things worse. However, Kathy stays and buys Number 32 for Lauren. Lauren accepts Kathy's offer on behalf of the children. She then asks her mother to stay away from her family and Kathy leaves town.
Several months later, Lauren invites Kathy back to Erinsborough for Amber and Bailey. She is surprised when, after reconciling over the phone, Kathy makes a sudden arrival, and tells her to book at a room at Lassiter's. Kathy clashes with Terese and Lauren's employee, Paige Smith. When Paige shows an interest in Kathy's homeware business, she apologises for her earlier behaviour and Kathy agrees to mentor her. Paige learns that Kathy has hired a private investigator to search for her granddaughter. Paige asks Kathy to abandon the search for Lauren's sake, but Kathy goes ahead with it. Paige later sees Kathy taking some medication and Kathy tells her she has a heart condition. Kathy's private investigator informs her that her granddaughter has been found in Canberra. Kathy meets with [|Megan Dennison], but she is not happy when Paige interrupts them. Megan later leaves and sends Kathy a text saying the meeting was a mistake. Kathy becomes suspicious of Paige and starts asking around about her. While they are out driving, Kathy goes through Paige's bag and finds a sketch pad with drawings of the Turners and Willises. Kathy realises Paige is the granddaughter she has been searching for, and she has a heart attack causing her to lose control of the car, which then hits Toadfish Rebecchi. Kathy's scarf becomes caught in the door, strangling her. Paige frees her and Kathy and Toadie are taken to the hospital, where Kathy undergoes surgery. When she wakes up, Kathy tells Matt that Paige is Lauren's daughter. Kathy abandons her plans to open a store in Erinsborough and she decides to return to Queensland.
Kathy returns to Erinsborough ahead of Lauren's wedding. Lou follows shortly after and they are hostile towards one another. Kathy explains to Lauren that she and Lou had sex, but when she woke up, Lou had gone. They later learn that Lou thought Kathy had ordered him to leave, but she was actually talking to the cat. They decide not to get back together and Kathy leaves for Brisbane. She returns for the wedding, where she and Lou realise that they still have feelings for each other. They reconcile and hold a small ceremonial vow renewal. They then leave Erinsborough in Lauren and Brad's wedding camper van.
Sienna Matthews
Sienna Matthews, played by Sarah Roberts, made her first screen appearance on 21 March 2014. Roberts previously appeared in Neighbours as Clare Henderson and Jess Walker, while Sienna first appeared in Brennan on the Run, a series of webisodes that focused on Mark Brennan's time in witness protection. Sienna arrived in town to win Mark back and she immediately confronted his former girlfriend Kate Ramsay. Kate assumed Mark has invited Sienna to Ramsay Street because he wanted to get back together with her. However, Brennan told Sienna that he was still in love with Kate and a "furious" Sienna demands that Kate stay away from Mark. When Sienna moved in with Mark, TV Week's Rebecca Lake commented, "After an unwelcome kiss from Sienna, Brennan now realises what we've known since last week. Yep, it's time to kick his crazy ex out!" Another TV Week contributor branded Sienna "loopy", "unstable" and a "psycho".After arriving in Erinsborough, Sienna breaks into Mark's house, surprising both him and Kate Ramsay. Sienna wants to get back together with Mark, but he rejects her as he is in love with Kate. Sienna confronts Kate and asks her to tell Mark that she does not love him. Sienna then speaks with Mark and tells him about the conversation with Kate. She declares her love for Mark, but he rejects her advances again. Paul Robinson encourages Sienna to stay and fight for Mark. A couple of weeks later, Sienna breaks into Mark's house again and sees that he has bought an engagement ring for Kate. Sienna tries to tell Mark that Kate does not love him, but Mark reveals that he and Kate are back together. Sienna becomes a suspect in Kate's murder after she is found to have given a false alibi. When Sienna claims she has been fired and kicked out of her house, Mark allows her to stay with him. Sienna helps Mark to go through Kate's things and she kisses him. Mark asks her to leave, but changes his mind when Sienna tells him she has nowhere else to go. Sienna then goes away for a few days to give him space. On her return, Mark confronts Sienna with a threatening note she wrote to Kate before her death. Sienna is questioned by the police, but she maintains that she did not shoot Kate. A taxi driver then comes forward to back up Sienna's alibi. Mark tells Sienna to go back home and she wishes him luck in finding Kate's killer.
Naomi Canning
Naomi Canning, played by Morgana O'Reilly, made her first screen appearance on 25 March 2014. The character was teased in an October 2013 interview by cast member Colette Mann, who plays Naomi's estranged mother Sheila. Mann commented that the actress was in the process of being cast, while on-screen, Sheila revealed that she had a bad relationship with her youngest daughter. O'Reilly's casting was announced on 30 December 2013. She filmed her first scenes the previous month. Of her casting, she stated "When I was offered the role, I reverted back to my teenage self and was jumping and squealing. I was so excited." O'Reilly said Naomi was a lot of fun, but would be hiding some secrets from her mother. Shortly before her arrival, it was confirmed that Naomi would test one of the show's established relationships, after she sets her sights on a married man.Will Dempier
Will Dempier, played by Christian Heath, made his first screen appearance on 8 April 2014. The character and Heath's casting was announced on 7 April 2014. Heath began filming three months prior to his casting announcement. He told the Buckinghamshire Advertiser's Camilla Goodman that he was "ecstatic" when he learned that he had won the part of Will. He landed the role after seeing the casting director at Neighbours just once. Heath did not need to perfect an Australian accent for the part and he explained, "When I initially read the sides, I could see this character as English and created a whole backstory that he was from England. I auditioned in my natural accent and luckily got it, they never asked me to change."Will was introduced as a love interest for established character Chris Pappas. Will is a nurse who works at the local hospital. Chris notices Will during his stay in the hospital, after he is attacked. Digital Spy's Daniel Kilkelly said there would be "an instant spark between Chris and Will when they first meet", which leaves Chris with a tough decision whether to break up with his boyfriend Hudson Walsh or not. Heath reprised his role in 2017.
Will fetches a pair of crutches for Chris Pappas when he comes into the hospital with a knee injury. Will is later assigned to care for Chris following surgery. Chris has a reaction to the analgesic and flirts outrageously with Will. The following day, Chris apologises to Will, who laughs it off and then gives Chris his number. Will discovers Chris has a boyfriend and tells him that his boyfriend should be by his side, but Chris tells him it is complicated. Will and Chris arrange to meet up for a drink, but Chris cancels at the last minute. He is later admitted to hospital with a blood clot in his leg and Will helps to prep him for a procedure. Chris apologises for leading Will on and tells him about his boyfriend, Hudson, who is in jail. When Will learns from Georgia Brooks that Chris and Hudson have broken up, he calls on Chris to see if he wants to talk. However, Chris tells Will that he cannot deal with him right now and shuts the door in his face. Will helps Georgia and Chris plant some trees at the local high school. Chris flirts with Will and later asks him on a date. After some initial cold feet from Chris, he and Will being dating. Will and Chris bring their dogs, Napoleon and Bossy, to meet, but Napoleon bites Bossy's leg, which needs treating by a vet. When Will and Chris later meet up, Will refuses to accept responsibility and apologise, so Chris breaks up with him.
Three years later, Will flirts with David Tanaka, while David is a patient at the hospital. David and Will share a coffee, but Will is later hostile towards David and reveals that someone has reported him for acting inappropriately with a patient, so he has been placed on night shifts. Will blames David, but Paul Robinson later admits that he made the complaint. David invites Will out for a drink, and explains that he has only just come out and is nervous. Will walks David home and they kiss. Aaron Brennan overhears Will talking on the phone about how inexperienced David is, and Aaron warns him to stay away from David.