New 'Neighbours' bosses: 'Karl and Susan are soul mates'

The new producers of Neighbours have described characters Karl and Susan Kennedy as "soul mates".

Executive producer Richard Jasek and producer Alan Hardy, who were recently hired to take over the Australian soap, said that the separation of the fictional couple - played by Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne - had a great "impact" on viewers because they had been together for such a long time.

When asked if Karl and Susan will get back together again, Jasek only told The Age: "They're soul mates."

He added: "You can have another couple break up and hopefully the audience cares about it but with Karl and Susan, because of that history, because you know everything they've gone through, it has so much more impact.''

Jasek that he likes working for a show that has an "incredibly rich history", adding: "That legacy provides structure, but it's also a millstone. The thing is to appreciate it and work with it."

He also revealed that he appreciates the difference between the Australian audience and international Neighbours viewers, saying: "In the UK, the audience tends to be broader and skewed older, so we need to be a broad church so we can play to multiple age groups.''

Hardy described his job as "great fun", but joked: "Although, in 12 months time, when they're carrying me out of here on a stretcher, ask me if I'm still having fun."

Jasek recently announced that a new actress is being introduced to the Neighbours cast to play Kyle Canning's grandmother. He said: "We'll see more of the Canning family in the form of Kyle's grandmother coming and spending some time. [She will be] quite a big character - in all senses."

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