| Shannon Reed | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home and Away character | |||||||||||
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| Portrayed by | Isla Fisher Ashley Murray (flashback) | ||||||||||
| Duration | 1994–1997 | ||||||||||
| First appearance | 16 September 1994 | ||||||||||
| Last appearance | 6 August 1997 | ||||||||||
| Classification | Former; regular | ||||||||||
| Introduced by | Andrew Howie | ||||||||||
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Shannon Reed is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away , played by Isla Fisher. She made her first on screen appearance on 16 September 1994. She departed on 6 August 1997. Ashley Murray played a young Shannon in flashbacks.
Actress Isla Fisher was eighteen when she joined the cast of Home and Away in 1994, shortly after finishing the role of Robyn Devereaux on Paradise Beach . Fisher was cast alongside Shane Ammann in the respective roles of Shannon and Curtis Reed. [1] [2]
In an interview with Rachel Browne of The Sun-Herald , Fisher spoke of her success and experiences on the show. "I would be stupid to let it go to my head because it could all end tomorrow and I would just fade back into obscurity." She added: "I like working on Home And Away but it's a heavy workload so I get stressed out a lot, We work about 15 hours a day, including the time it takes to learn lines. "I know a lot of people work those sort of hours but I think we really feel it because most of us are young and fairly inexperienced. I don't have a life, really. What you see on the screen is what I do. But I am very grateful because it is good experience. It's like an apprenticeship but we do it in front of 20 million people so all our mistakes are up for the world to see." [3]
Shannon loses confidence in herself when Shane Parrish (Dieter Brummer) rejects her romantic advances. She begins starving herself and develops anorexia. [4] Shannon manages to convince everyone that she is fine, and although she skips family meals, it takes her guardian Pippa Ross (Debra Lawrance) a long time to realise something is wrong. [4] Shannon faints and almost drowns while she is out swimming one day. After she is rescued, her friends and family rush her to the hospital for treatment, and she begins a long recovery process. [4]
Producers explored the character's background further with the introduction of her biological mother, politician Katherine Walker (Linden Wilkinson) in 1996. [5] The storyline begins with Shannon deciding to find her mother, against Pippa's advice. The state's fostering department arrange a meeting between Shannon and her mother, who does not show up. Instead, Katherine watches Shannon from afar, as she cannot gather the courage to speak to her. [5] An Inside Soap writer explained that Shannon was fostered by Elizabeth Reed when she was 12 years old. Elizabeth eventually adopted Shannon and her foster brother Curtis. Elizabeth was later killed in a car accident. [5] The writer thought that Shannon did not need rejection from her mother in addition to her recent "teenage problems". [5] Katherine feels that with her growing political career, she does not want a scandal, but she returns to Summer Bay as she wants to see how Shannon has turned out. At the same time, Shannon is tasked with interviewing Katherine. She is unaware of their connection, until she recognises a ring Katherine is wearing from her childhood memories of her mother. [5] Katherine appears to want to get to know her daughter, but Shannon soon realises that she is just using their connection to improve her political ambitions. [6]
Shannon is bisexual. In her final storyline it is implied that she moves away with a female partner, but that is never directly stated. [7] Shannon has several romantic relationships with male characters during her time in the show, but formed a close relationship with Mandy Thomas (Rachael Blake), an author who inspires her to pursue a career in writing. Her friendship with Mandy, an older lesbian, leaves Shannon questioning her own sexuality. [8]
Fisher chose to leave the serial in June 1997. [9] She admitted that she was sad to leave the show, but she wanted to go and do other things. [8] Fisher moved to London after leaving Australia, [8] before moving to Paris, where she was to attend the L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq, a theatre and arts training school. [1] Her character's final storyline saw her choose between her partner Lachlan Fraser (Richard Grieve) or Mandy, who has recently returned to the Bay. Fisher did not think Shannon and Lachie's relationship was working out, and Mandy's arrival had made her realise how much she had missed her. [8] She commented, "And although she loves Lachie as a friend, it's not to the degree that she loves Mandy." [8] Shannon opts to leave the Bay for Paris, leaving Lachie behind. Steven Murphy and Simon Timblick of Inside Soap branded her exit at the time as "the most controversial departure in the show's history". [8] However, Fisher was happy with it and glad her character was shown doing what makes her happy. She added, "Love is love – it doesn't matter if it's between a boy and a boy, a girl and a girl or a girl and a boy." [8]
Shannon and Curtis arrive in Summer Bay to be fostered by Michael (Dennis Coard) and Pippa Ross. The Rosses only have room for one of them, so Alf (Ray Meagher) and Ailsa Stewart (Judy Nunn) foster Curtis. When Shannon and Curtis are caught kissing by Alf, it causes controversy, but the fuss dies down when they reveal they are foster siblings. Shannon clashes with Selina Cook (Tempany Deckert) who takes an interest in Curtis but they soon become best friends. Shannon and Curtis split up and she dates Eric Phillips (Daniel Goddard), who is revealed to be a drug dealer. Damian Roberts (Matt Doran) and Jack Wilson (Daniel Amalm) warn Shannon but she will not listen and tells them to keep out of her business. Shannon later breaks up with Eric after he gets heavy with her. She then experiences recurring nightmares of sexual abuse at the hands of her Uncle Tim and confides in teacher and counsellor Donna Bishop (Nicola Quilter).
Shannon begins babysitting Angel Parrish's (Melissa George) son, Dylan (Corey Glaister) and forms an attraction to Angel's husband, Shane. She tries to seduce Shane but he rejects her. When Angel confronts Shannon, she lies and tells Angel she and Shane have been sleeping together, which Angel believes and promptly leaves Shane, taking Dylan with her. Angel and Dylan are involved in seaplane crash which leaves them stranded in the bush for several days but they are found and reunited with Shane. Angel refuses to forgive Shannon and her guilt spirals into anorexia, causing her to nearly drown when she passes out during a swim one day. Angel dives in to save her but is still frosty towards her. At Pippa and Michael's insistence, Shannon seeks help for her condition. After recovering, Shannon takes an interest in writing but things are still no better with Angel, who accuses her of stalking her. The culprit is revealed to be Angel's ex-boyfriend, Paul Harris (Ramsay Everingham), Dylan's biological father. Shannon saves Angel and Dylan when Paul attacks and Angel finally forgives her.
Shannon invites author Mandy Thomas to stay in Summer Bay. Shannon admires Mandy and they begin spending a lot of time together. Shannon's crush on Mandy becomes apparent and when Mandy's editor and former lover Toni Jarvis (Bridie Carter) arrives she is extremely put out and begins avoiding Mandy altogether. However, Shannon and Mandy reconcile at a Benefit cruise to raise money for victims of the recent bush fire. Pippa and Selina become concerned when Shannon and Mandy openly dance with each other and Selina's comments do little to impress Shannon. Mandy leaves after reading a love story Shannon wrote with the characters based on her and Shannon.
Shannon is devastated by Mandy's sudden departure but enters a relationship with local artist Alex Bennett (Nick Freedman) who saves her, Selina and Damian from a gang of youths. Their relationship is met with disapproval from Michael once he learns Shannon plans to pose nude for one of Alex's paintings. When Alex rescues Selina from his father, Saul Bennett's (David Ritchie) commune, Shannon becomes momentarily worried Selina may have a crush on Alex. Mandy returns telling her that she wants to dedicate her next book to her and Alex is jealous of their closeness, however he develops a friendship with Mandy. After Donald Fisher (Norman Coburn) discovers that Shannon and Mandy have unconsciously plagiarised each other, Shannon forfeits an award in order to save Mandy's career.
Shannon discovers that her real mother, Katherine Walker, is a ruthless politician and their relationship is very antagonistic. Alex soon leaves for Paris and Shannon begins dating Mandy's brother, Geoff (Martin Henderson), a sailor on shore leave. She and Geoff know they only have a short time so they put on a play showing how they would live their life in a day. After completing her HSC, Shannon enrolls at University and decides on an image change by dyeing her hair black and dating Kye Lyons (Ian Bliss) and moves in with him. She soon realises Kye is violent and dumps him. Kye then follows her to Summer Bay house and gets violent and he hits Pippa, leaving her comatose. Shannon then blames herself, Pippa recovers but is left with temporary memory loss.
Lachlan Fraser, the new local doctor takes an interest in Shannon and they become a couple. He takes her to have lunch with his dysfunctional family, most of whom are doctors and they witness his parents Peter (Helmut Bakaitis) and Diana (Kerry McGuire) arguing. After a brief spell of living together, Shannon and Lachie cool things down but Lachie soon proposes. Mandy returns once more and asks Shannon to join her in Paris. After much soul searching, Shannon decides her future is with Mandy and shares emotional goodbyes with Pippa, Lachie and Selina.
For her portrayal of Shannon, Fisher received a nomination for the Logie Award for Most Popular New Talent in 1995. [10] In 1997, she earned a nomination for Most Popular Actress. [11] Nina Myskow of the Daily Mirror branded Shannon "feisty". [1]
In November 2021, three critics for The West Australian placed Shannon at number 13 in their feature on the "Top 50 heroes we love and villains we hate" from Home and Away. [12] They praised the character, stating: "Shannon was an impressively progressive character for the 90s. An aspiring writer, she battled anorexia and later fell for an older female writer who, it was implied, she left Summer Bay to be with." [12]
Sally Louise Fletcher is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by Kate Ritchie. She made her first screen appearance during the serial's pilot episode, which was broadcast on 17 January 1988. Sally became the longest running original female cast member. She departed on 3 April 2008. Ritchie earned various awards and nominations for her portrayal of Sally. In February 2013, it was announced that Ritchie would be reprising her role. Sally returned during the episode broadcast on 15 July 2013 with her daughter. They departed on 5 September 2013.
Jesse McGregor is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by actor Ben Unwin. He made his first screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 20 May 1996. The actor departed in 2000, but returned in 2002 and departed once again on 26 July 2005.
Curtis Reed is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by Shane Ammann. He made his first appearance during the episode broadcast on 16 September 1994. He was introduced alongside his adopted sister, Shannon Reed. He departed on 15 April 1997.
Sophie Dean is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Rebekah Elmaloglou. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 23 January 1990 and appeared as a regular until 1993. Elmaloglou returned to filming when Sophie made subsequent guest appearances in 2002, 2003 and 2005.
Chloe Richards is a fictional character from the Australian television soap opera Home and Away, played by Kristy Wright. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 28 June 1995. Chloe left in 1999, making a short return stint in 2005 when she died from the resulting injuries of a car crash. Chloe has relationships with Jack Wilson, Curtis Reed, Lachlan Fraser, James Fraser and Jesse McGregor.
Jack Wilson is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Daniel Amalm. He made his first appearance on 1 April 1994. Jack was introduced as a new foster child for the characters of Michael and Pippa Ross. Amalm auditioned for the role in the place of his friend, who could not attend. Many actors auditioned to play Jack, but Amalm was eventually cast. Jack is characterised as a "bad boy" and a "wild child" and Amalm enjoyed playing the role of the "baddie". Jack's storylines feature racial abuse, rebellious behaviour, joy riding and various romances. In 1996, Amalm quit the series to concentrate on a music career. The actor did not like the monotony that accompanied playing the same role, but he remained open minded about a future return. He did so in 2000, when Jack returned as part of episodes centred on foster sister Sally Fletcher wedding.
Steven Matheson is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Adam Willits. Steven was created by Alan Bateman as one of the serial's original characters and he first appeared in the pilot episode. Willits received the role after being one of over three hundred actors to audition for the roles of the serial's foster children. He was a regular cast member from 1988 to 1991 and again between 1995 and 1996. He has continued to make guest appearances in from 1997 until 2008.
Selina Cook is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Tempany Deckert. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 5 May 1994. Deckert was given the role of Selina after her third audition for the show. In 1996, Deckert fell ill and Louise Crawford played Selina in her absence. In 1997, Deckert decided to leave the serial, however briefly returned in 1998. Her return was filmed in Ironbridge, Shropshire, as part of the serial's first ever overseas location filming. Selina's last appearance to date was on 30 March 1998, where she agreed to marry Steven.
Shane Parrish is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by Dieter Brummer. He made his first on-screen appearance on 28 May 1992 and he departed on 13 March 1996.
Travis Nash is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, played by actor Nic Testoni. He made his first appearance on 10 April 1995 and departed on 11 August 1999.
Philippa "Pippa" Ross is a fictional character from the Australian television soap opera Home and Away. Actress Vanessa Downing originated the role and made her debut during the pilot episode broadcast on 17 January 1988. Downing quit the role in 1990, and Debra Lawrance was then cast. Pippa departed on 18 March 1998, but Lawrance has reprised the role for numerous returns between 2000 and 2009.
Rob Storey is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Matthew Lilley. He appeared in the series from 13 July 1994 until 12 May 1995.
Angel Parrish is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Home and Away, portrayed by Melissa George. She made her first on-screen appearance on 30 March 1993, arriving as a teenage runaway. The character became popular amongst viewers when she was paired up with Shane Parrish, and to this day they remain one of the soap's most loved couples. George departed Home and Away on 30 August 1996. Angel said goodbye to Summer Bay and left for England with her children and new boyfriend.
Home and Away: Romances is an exclusive-to-DVD special of Australia's most popular soap Home and Away. It was released on 2 November 2005 and unlike it previous two DVD releases, Secrets and the City and Hearts Divided which only contained three episodes each, this release is completely different, this takes a look back at all the classic Home and Away relationships over the past 17 years of the show from 1988 to 2005. It is hosted by Home and Away star Beau Brady and has everything from first meetings to good and bad dates, first kisses to love triangles and proposals to happy endings. The DVD also contains the movie length pilot episode, which is a rare chance for fans to go back to where it all began.
Damian Roberts is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Matt Doran. The character debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 6 November 1991, and departed on 15 March 1996. Ben Hamilton played a young Damian in flashbacks in 1997.
James Fraser is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away. The character debuted on-screen on 1 July 1997. Sam Meikle played the character for one episode. When Richard Grieve quit his role as James' brother Lachlan Fraser; producers cast Michael Piccilliri to play James. They had invested time in Lachlan's relationship with Chloe Richards and wanted to replace the character. James soon begins a relationship with Chloe. Producers were pleased with his performance and invited him to join the show's regular cast.
Lachlan "Lachie" Fraser is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Richard Grieve. He made his screen debut on 19 March 1997 and last appeared on 27 November 1998. He joined the show after previously appearing in rival soap opera Neighbours. Lachlan is introduced as a new doctor working at Summer Bay's local hospital. Grieve had to research the profession and received help from an on-set medical advisor. Lachlan is characterised as a sweet and gentle person who is brilliant at medicine.
Alex Bennett is a fictional character from the Australian television soap opera Home and Away, played by Nick Freedman. The serial's producers thought of Freedman for the role of "easy-going hippy" Alex, having seen his previous work in other television dramas. Freedman was hesitant about accepting the role due to his career as a musician, so he only signed a year-long contract. He found the demands of filming the weekly serial intense, especially as he was used to late nights while performing with his band. He made his first appearance during the episode broadcast on 16 October 1995.