Janet Andrewartha as Lyn Scully on Neighbours.
Janet Andrewartha has been playing Neighbours' Lyn Scully longer than any other role in her career but still holds her in affection.
Neighbours' Janet Andrewartha has notched up over 30 years as an actor, but no role has ever been quite as enduring as Ramsay Street's resident "fishwife", Lyn Scully.
Since first appearing in 1999, the character has departed and returned on at least two occasions. In that time she has seen the character undergo a number of changes.
"I've never played a character for this long before. I think three years is most before 'Lyn'," she said.
"I had to make, as the story requires, changes in 'Lyn'. I had to map the journey as an actor to make it make sense for me as well as the story. I think people do change. Not at their fundamental core but people go through 'stuff'.
"But she's still got all of those same qualities and faults that she originally had. I mean she's quite, in some ways, narrow-minded because if it's not morally correct in the instances of Christian-way then she won't sort of see the light side of it. She can only see it as that."
Andrewartha says Lyn's unique way of working through her problems is one of the character's more endearing qualities.
"It gets her into terrible dangerous places though, because I think in the end she can be quite judgmental.
"But I always love the way she does it because she just gives it all her heart. It's always so well-meant and coming from a place of love and good intentions. But boy does she get it wrong."
In the world of soap opera where an actor sometimes has a longer connection to a character than the turnover of writing staff, Andrewartha says there are times when it is necessary to question character moves in the script.
"Occasionally stuff comes up and I have to say 'I wonder why she would do this'," she said.
"It doesn't happen every week, far from it. But now and again I will put my hand up and say 'This is a long bow I'm wondering how she came around to this'.
"Sometimes after a discussion we can modify that. It may not all be necessary, the whole change, or there maybe ways of me finding a way to do it that they can help me with. Both things have happened."
"Lyn Scully" sometimes divides viewers with her wild reactions, but Andrewartha's popularity as actor still resonates both in Australia and the UK. She recalls one visit to the UK with co-star Carla Bonner to an awards night at Albert Hall. But despite preparing a speech on behalf of the show it all went pear-shaped.
"I can't tell you the disappointment when we didn't win because I thought 'I have to give this speech!' I went home to the hotel and gave the speech to a few of the London actors who had been on Neighbours at one stage or another and were all having a party. But that was a fun night.
"But we got to spend the entire week in London that year and I met a lot of the Neighbours fans, and I did a lot of interviews and met some gorgeous people. It was really nice, it just makes you feel so grateful that they love the show so much.
"It just re-energises you and makes you want to work harder and make it work even better if you can."
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