Neighbours and Home and Away star admits soap return doubts

Neighbours star Tammin Sursok has admitted that a return to the world of soap hadn't been on the cards for her after a long-term stint in Home and Away, saying that she had initially thought that "chapter" of her life was over for good.

Tammin first rose to fame playing Dani Sutherland in Home and Away between 2000 and 2004, during which time she played out a number of dramatic storylines, including one in which Dani was sexually assaulted by Kane Phillips.

The actress, who has also starred in Pretty Little Liars, told TV Week that she never thought that she would return to a soap, until she landed her current Neighbours guest role as fashion mogul Montana Marcel.

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leo tanaka and montana marcel in neighbours

Fremantle

"You know, I always said I'd never come back into soaps," she said. "It's not because I don't love it or it wasn't a great experience. It's because I felt like this chapter of my life was over."

But Tammin ultimately decided that the Neighbours opportunity was worth going for, particularly as the 18-year gap between soap stints gave her the chance to reflect.

"It changed my life completely and defined who I was from a very young age," she said of her Home and Away role. "I felt like I really needed to make sense of that whole period of my life and realise that it wasn't so big, scary and overwhelming.

"It was a wonderful thing to be part of. It was definitely very cathartic."

tammin sursok as dani sutherland, home and away

Channel 5

But would the actress, whose family now splits their time between LA and Australia, ever consider stepping back into Dani's shoes? It doesn't sound like we can expect to see her back in Summer Bay anytime soon.

"I definitely know 100% that I would never go back to a long-term character," she said. "The work is too intense and it's continuous.

"It's hard to spend time with family when you're working that many hours. I prefer shorter six-week roles or a guest spot, but you know, never say never."

Michael Kovac//Getty Images

Tammin has certainly been getting stuck into the Ramsay Street action since her Neighbours arrival, with Montana getting romantically involved with Leo Tanaka (Tim Kano) as she sets out to put on a Fashion Week event at Lassiters.

This week, however, she finds herself on the wrong side of Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) and ends up being blackmailed when he discovers some of her secrets.

Neighbours airs weekdays at 1.45pm and 6pm on Channel 5 and streams on My5. In Australia, the show airs Mondays to Thursdays at 6.30pm on 10 Peach and streams on 10 Play.