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Home & Away confirms gay character for the bay

"And we're all very pleased about it, by the way!" says veteran Ray Meagher.

You heard it here as a rumour last December, and now Home and Away has confirmed a gay character is entering Summer Bay.

Soapie veteran Ray Meagher was asked whether he’d like to see a gay character introduced to Home and Away, by UK’s Digital Spy.

“That’s already happening – there is a storyline coming up,” he said.

“Our writers do try to keep abreast with the times, so there is an interesting character coming in. I won’t tell you too much more about him, about how he works out or what happens, but that is being addressed.

“And we’re all very pleased about it, by the way!”

The arrival will follow repeated criticism that the show needed to improve its diversity, after the last inclusion of any note in 2009 sent network executives into a spin. After media whipped up headlines, ahead of a same-sex kiss between Charlie (Esther Anderson) and Joey (Kate Bell), it was edited out before broadcast.

Last August all networks signed an industry charter to encourage greater diversity, both on and off-screen.

Home and Away has featured gay / bisexual characters fleetingly in the past, as far back as 1995, but trails the inclusiveness of TEN’s Neighbours.

19 Responses

  1. Prepare to be disappointed, the gay character (Ty) will be played by Darius Williams and it’s only a six week guest role. LGBT people have been thrown under the bus again, one has to wonder if Cory Bernardi is secretly the producer of Home & Away.

  2. Let’s hope none of Seven’s other programs does a hatchet job on the show and character like Today Tonight did with the last gay character. I still can’t believe they put such a homophobic story to air and why it wasn’t killed off by one of the big nobs at Seven before it went to air.

  3. ugh! well there goes another show i cant let my children watch. this world has gone pc mad. hopefully they see common sense and drop this pc thought bubble fast bwfore the audience ups and leaves and mark my words i wont be the only mum who bans her children from seeing this nonsense.

    1. It isn’t nonsense but a true depiction of the times we live in. I’m sorry your children will grow up feeling less in touch with the current day we live in. I’m sure your children have never seen two people of the same sex as a couple in the real world *sarcasm*…smh

    2. so finally reflecting the real world is nonsense? forget about pc thought bubbles … maybe putting children in plastic bubbles and hiding them away might be the only answer. ugh indeed!

    3. It was already off the radar in this house because of all the bed-hopping, so I am glad I don’t need to fight this particular battle. Well done, haalover, for your sense of parental responsibility.

  4. Am intrigued as to how this will roll out. As any gay person will share sexuality is one aspect of our character and make up. Just like our fave TV shows, musical taste, food and beverage choices and desired holiday destinations!

  5. this won’t last. the H&A audience has a reputation for being close minded and homophobic. hence why the story lines are rinse and repeat. Every character over 50 has a love child from their teen years. Rinse and repeat.

  6. its 2018. Surely we are all mature enough to watch a gay character on a tv soap. Neighbours have had one for years and other Australian dramas have had gay characters.

    Should be interresting to see the storyline.

  7. “Our writers do try to keep abreast with the times”. What century are they living in? Number 96 1972 there was a gay storyline. This isn’t something new. Just don’t have him murdered the first week he’s there.

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