For more than thirty years, Irene Roberts has been a pillar of Summer Bay. But behind the curtain of Home and Away, her future once balanced on a knife’s edge that could have changed everything fans thought they knew about the beloved character.
The Long Road in Summer Bay
Lynne McGranger first walked into Home and Away back in 1993, and she never looked back. Now, she holds the title of Australia’s longest-serving female soap star. This year, after decades of storylines, heartbreaks, and triumphs, she finally decided it was time to step away from the show. But what fans may not know is that Irene’s future once hung by a thread.
In 2003, the producers had a plan that would have cut her time short. Irene, who by then had become a beloved Bay staple, was at risk of being axed. The tide turned thanks to writer Coral Druyn, who wasn’t having any of it. McGranger recalled how Druyn fought tooth and nail, insisting that Irene had more stories left to tell. Without that intervention, Summer Bay could have lost one of its most iconic residents long before her time.
Home and Away: She Was Saved from the Axe!
Looking back, McGranger admitted the team probably felt Irene had been written into a corner. She said sometimes storylines take the wrong turn, and characters end up stuck. But that doesn’t mean you let them sink. She explained how Druyn encouraged the writers to dig deeper, find Irene’s essence, and bring her back to life.
Describing her character, McGranger laughed that Irene “calls a spade a front-end loader.” Fans often compared her to Alf Stewart, but she argued that Irene wasn’t just a female version of him. While Irene saw her fair share of wild drama, McGranger confessed there was one storyline she never got the chance to explore.
Unfortunately, she was never abducted by aliens. It’s a shame in her view, because she thought it would have made a great plot. Still, she described her time on the soap as nothing short of “a ride.” Well, she may not have had her alien abduction, but she gave audiences unforgettable stories that will live on. Stay tuned to Soap Opera Daily for all the latest Home and Away news and gossip.