'Neighbours' actress rushed to hospital

Neighbours star Kym Valentine was rushed to hospital at the weekend after being struck down with pneumonia.

The actress, who plays Ramsay Street favourite Libby Kennedy, became seriously ill while on a flight home from New York. At one point, cabin crew administered oxygen as the soap star drifted in and out of consciousness.

Valentine is now recovering in hospital in Melbourne with her actor boyfriend Vince Colosimo by her side. Her Neighbours character will be written out of scenes for at least two weeks.

"It was a chest infection that was exacerbated by being on the plane and she became sick quite quickly," Valentine's manager Jacinta Walters said. "She is following doctors' orders and is in the best possible place."

Kym returned to Neighbours in 2007 following a three-year break from the Aussie soap.