British Neighbours actress Nicola Charles says her castmates tried to get her DEPORTED because she was ‘taking a job from an Australian’
- Nicola Charles has claimed that her castmates once tried to get her deported
- The British model, 51, played Sarah Beaumont from 1996 to 1999
- It follows two allegations of racism while working on the set of Neighbours
Former Neighbours star Nicola Charles has claimed that her castmates once tried to get her deported back to Britain because she was ‘taking a job from an Australian’.
The British model, 51, played Sarah Beaumont from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2013 to 2016.
Her character is best remembered for her extramarital affair with Dr Karl Kennedy, played by Alan Fletcher.
It comes after two Aboriginal-Australians claimed last week that they had witnessed racist incidents while working on the set of Neighbours.
Nicola Charles, who played Sarah Beaumont in Neighbours from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2013 to 2016, has claimed her castmates tried to get her deported. Pictured: Nicola Charles (right) with co-stars Jackie Woodburne, who played Susan Kennedy and Alan Fletcher, who played Karl Kennedy
The former Neighbours star said her castmates tried to get her deported back to Britain because she was ‘taking a job from an Australian’. Pictured: Nicola Charles and Alan Fletcher on the set of Neighbours
Nicola’s claim comes after two Aboriginal-Australians said last week that they had witnessed racist incidents while working on the set of Neighbours. Pictured: Nicola Charles on the Big Breakfast TV programme in 1997
Nicola alleges in her autobiography Soap Star, which is set to be released on Friday, that she found a handwritten letter sent to the immigration department shortly after her six-month probation ended in 1996.
While she didn’t identify the cast members in question, Nicola was stunned anybody would go to such lengths to make her lose her job.
‘I did know who they were, the individuals who did it, but I thought – who goes to that length, and what have I done to be disliked that much?’ she wrote, in an excerpt published by the Herald Sun on Monday.
‘That experience coloured my relationships with everyone on the cast and crew, because I kind of felt nervous about trusting anyone after that.’
Nicola claims she learned during a meeting with a producer that there was some ‘resistance’ to her involvement among certain cast members.
Her own immigration lawyer apparently later confirmed a complaint from two Neighbours actors had been made because a British actor was given a full-time role on the show, thereby ‘taking a job away from an Australian performer’.
Allegations: Former Neighbours star Nicola Charles has sensationally claimed her castmates once tried to get her deported back to Britain because she was ‘taking a job from an Australian’
Fame: The English model, 51, played Sarah Beaumont from 1996 to 1999 and again from 2013 to 2016, and her character is best remembered for her extramarital affair with Dr Karl Kennedy
Speaking out: Nicola alleges in her autobiography Soap Star, which is set to be released on Friday, she found a handwritten letter sent to the Australian immigration department in 1996
But Nicola said this didn’t make sense because her character was British, adding: ‘I did not take a role from a local actor because there was no role.’
In September last year, Nicola revealed sordid details of what she claims went on behind the scenes of the long-running soap.
She told the Herald Sun that a producer on the show once offered to pay for her to get a breast enlargement, and also encouraged her to leak naked photos.
‘I was patted on the knee in a very condescending way and told you can always leak photos of yourself after you wrap with the show to boost your image,’ she said.
Evidence: Nicola’s own immigration lawyer apparently later confirmed a complaint from two Neighbours actors had been made because a British actor was given a full-time role on the show, thereby ‘taking a job away from an Australian performer’
Exposé: In September last year, Nicola a producer on Neighbours once offered to pay for her to get a breast enlargement, and also encouraged her to leak naked photos
‘It’s from days of old that one, naked photos leaked online. This is the same Neighbours’ producer who said to me, “Would you like me to buy you a set of t**s?”
‘I said no thank you, I plan on breast feeding. He said, “It’s fine, I’ve done it for all the other girls,” and I said, “Really, I’m okay, thank you.”‘
She refused to name the producer, explaining he has since died.
Nicola said the culture of the show appears to have since changed for the better, and praised the series for including storylines involving gay people and minorities.
It comes after two Aboriginal-Australians claimed last week that they had witnessed racist incidents while working on the set of neighbours.
Shareena Clanton, 30, alleged producers fostered a toxic workplace environment and claimed the show was a ‘culturally unsafe space’ in a bombshell Instagram post on Tuesday.
Clains: Fremantle Media has launched an independent review of Neighbours after the actress accused the show of racism in a lengthy Instagram post
Among several complaints, Clanton accused a staff member of making crude remarks and claimed she heard the N-word used on set twice, prompting production company Fremantle to bring in an Indigenous consultancy firm to carry out a review.
A day later, former Neighbours actor Meyne Wyatt alleged that he had also experienced racism on set in a tweet.
In a statement, Fremantle’s Asia Pacific CEO Chris Oliver-Taylor said ‘all complaints are taken seriously and we are investigating all allegations fairly’.
‘Fremantle is committed to providing an environment where employees and others in the workplace are treated fairly and with respect, and are free from unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and bullying,’ Mr Oliver-Taylor said.
‘We do not tolerate behaviour that does not align to our Anti-Discrimination, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), Harassment and Bullying Policy and take all complaints very seriously, investigating all allegations fairly and thoroughly.’
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