Glen Donnelly
Encyclopedia
Glen Donnelly is a fictional character
from the Australian soap opera Neighbours
, played by Richard Huggett. He made his first on-screen appearance on 7 December 1990. Glen was the secret son of Jim Robinson
. He arrives in Ramsay Street to meet his father and to ask for money to pay for his mother's funeral. Glen's most notable storyline was an inappropriate relationship with his sister, Lucy
. Scenes between them were edited out by the BBC
on their UK airing. Glen departed on 6 February 1992 after running away from a hospital, following an accident which left him paralyzed.
, for which he won a Logie Award
. On his arrival, Huggett said Glen "very different" from Sonny. Huggett was forced to move from Sydney to Melbourne for the role and said it had a negative impact on his personal life.
) did not want to know him and he comes in a "fight-picking mood". Jim eventually persuades Glen that he knew nothing about him. Glen and Jim's oldest son, Paul
(Stefan Dennis
), do not get on. Glen resented that the only jobs he can get mean Paul would be his boss.
). This was Neighbours first incest storyline. Neither Lucy or Glen were aware that they were related after he arrived in Ramsay Street and before she returned home from boarding school. When Glen and Lucy meet they are "unable to deny the attraction between them". Glen and Lucy kiss and they are discovered in a compromising situation that angers their father, Jim. On the storyline Huggett said "The story of Glen's and Lucy's growing feelings for one another might seem pretty audacious, but I think it works because it has been handled sensitively. It was a great acting challenge". He added that incest was a brave subject for Neighbours, a family show, to tackle and that he was surprised about the reaction it caused.
Viewers in Australia called Network Ten
to complain about the storyline, which was branded a "scandel" and "one of television soaps' most daring encounters". Scenes showing the relationship were edited out and cut by the BBC in their UK airing. The scenes were later shown uncut in repeats on UK Gold.
(Anne Haddy
), Jim's mother-in-law, was shocked to learn about Jim's affair, but she gradually began to look on Glen as part of the family. Julie (Julie Mullins) and Scott
(Jason Donovan
) accept Glen, but Paul refuses to and he and Glen fail to get on. Lucy was away at boarding school and she returns home before Jim tells her the truth about Glen. Lucy is attracted to Glen after she arrives home and finds him wearing nothing, but a bath towel. Glen is also attracted to Lucy, but he knows that she is his half-sister and he refuses to let anything happen. Jim tells Lucy about Glen, but they still end up kissing. Both of them realise what they were doing is wrong and stop things before they develop any further.
Glen get a job as a barman at The Waterhole pub. Glen preferred working outdoors and he became a labourer with Doug Willis' (Terence Donovan
) construction firm. Glen has a brief romance with Gemma Ramsay
(Beth Buchanan
). Karen Constintine (Fiona Jarvis) shows up in Erinsborough and reveals that she is pregnant with Glen's child. Glen is shocked, but resolves to do the right thing and he and Karen become engaged. During their wedding, Karen confesses that Glen is not the father of her baby and leaves.
Glen then began dating Gaby Willis (Rachel Blakely
) after she comforts him on the anniversary of his mother's death. After a brief split, Glen proposes to Gaby who accepts. Just as the wedding plans were getting started, Glen fell from the roof of Lassiter's Hotel while trying to fix a banner for Paul. Glen is paralysed from the waist down, which devastates him. Feeling like he is a burden, he begins to reject Gaby's support.
Paul begins acting differently towards Glen and Glen realises that Paul is terrified he is going to be sued. Glen initially wants nothing from Paul other than his medical expenses paid for. However, when Paul attempts to get Glen to sign a document wavering his rights to sue his company, Glen decides to sue Paul for a large amount of money. Glen finds himself alienated by his family. Karen returns, with her daughter, when she hears of Glen's accident. Glen turns to her for support and falls in love with her again. Glen secretly agrees to take an out-of-court settlement from Paul and he flees Erinsborough with Karen. Jim and Gaby search for Glen, but they never find him.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the Australian soap opera Neighbours
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...
, played by Richard Huggett. He made his first on-screen appearance on 7 December 1990. Glen was the secret son of Jim Robinson
Jim Robinson (Neighbours)
James "Jim" Robinson is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, played by Alan Dale. He made his first on-screen appearance on 18 March 1985, which was the shows first episode. Jim was the patriarch of the Robinson family. Dale departed the show in 1993 after...
. He arrives in Ramsay Street to meet his father and to ask for money to pay for his mother's funeral. Glen's most notable storyline was an inappropriate relationship with his sister, Lucy
Lucy Robinson
Lucy Robinson is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, played by Melissa Bell. She had previously been portrayed by Kylie Flinker and Sasha Close. She was created by producer Reg Watson as one of Neighbours' original characters. Lucy was a prominent figure...
. Scenes between them were edited out by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
on their UK airing. Glen departed on 6 February 1992 after running away from a hospital, following an accident which left him paralyzed.
Casting
Richard Huggett joined Neighbours shortly after leaving his role as Sonny in E StreetE Street
E Street is an Australian television soap opera created by Forrest Redlich and produced by the Ten Network from 1989 to 1993.Whereas Neighbours is set in a middle-class suburb, Home and Away in a seaside town, and Richmond Hill a semi-rural ordinary community, E Street was set in a tough inner-city...
, for which he won a Logie Award
Logie Award
The TV Week Logie Awards are the Australian television industry awards, which have been presented annually since 1959. Renamed by Graham Kennedy in 1960 after he won the first 'Star Of The Year' award, the name 'Logie' awards honours John Logie Baird, a Scotsman who invented the television as a...
. On his arrival, Huggett said Glen "very different" from Sonny. Huggett was forced to move from Sydney to Melbourne for the role and said it had a negative impact on his personal life.
Characterisation
Glen has been described as "independent, tough and mature beyond his twenty years". He is used to fighting his own battles. When his mother died of cancer, Glen was "full of grief for his mother and resentment for Jim". When Glen arrives in Ramsay Street, he assumes that Jim (Alan DaleAlan Dale
Alan Hugh Dale is a New Zealand actor. As a child, Dale developed a love of theatre and also became a rugby player. After retiring from the sport he took on a number of professions to support his family, before deciding to become a professional actor at the age of 27. With work limited in New...
) did not want to know him and he comes in a "fight-picking mood". Jim eventually persuades Glen that he knew nothing about him. Glen and Jim's oldest son, Paul
Paul Robinson (Neighbours)
Paul Stewart Robinson is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, a long-running serial drama about social life in the fictional Melbourne suburb of Erinsborough. He is played by Stefan Dennis. Paul debuted in the serial's first episode in 1985 and appeared on a...
(Stefan Dennis
Stefan Dennis
Stefan Dennis is an Australian actor, best known for playing the role of Paul Robinson in the soap opera, Neighbours, from its first episode in March 1985 to the present day...
), do not get on. Glen resented that the only jobs he can get mean Paul would be his boss.
Incest
Glen biggest storyline was his incestuous relationship with his half-sister Lucy (Melissa BellMelissa Bell (actress)
Melissa Bell is an Australian actress and singer. She was the third actor to play Lucy Robinson in soap opera Neighbours....
). This was Neighbours first incest storyline. Neither Lucy or Glen were aware that they were related after he arrived in Ramsay Street and before she returned home from boarding school. When Glen and Lucy meet they are "unable to deny the attraction between them". Glen and Lucy kiss and they are discovered in a compromising situation that angers their father, Jim. On the storyline Huggett said "The story of Glen's and Lucy's growing feelings for one another might seem pretty audacious, but I think it works because it has been handled sensitively. It was a great acting challenge". He added that incest was a brave subject for Neighbours, a family show, to tackle and that he was surprised about the reaction it caused.
Viewers in Australia called Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
to complain about the storyline, which was branded a "scandel" and "one of television soaps' most daring encounters". Scenes showing the relationship were edited out and cut by the BBC in their UK airing. The scenes were later shown uncut in repeats on UK Gold.
Backstory
Glen was born as the result of an affair between Maureen Donnelly and Jim Robinson. Maureen decided not to contact Jim to tell him and Glen was raised only knowing his father's name. Maureen died of cancer when Glen was twenty and Jim was sent bills for her funeral costs from Glen. Jim sends the bills back as he did not recognise Maureen's name.1990–92
Glen turns up in Ramsay Street to see Jim and he reveals that he is his son. Jim is shocked and Glen realises that Jim had never been aware he existed. Jim wants to get to know Glen better and invites him to move in. Glen finds it difficult to fit in at first. Helen DanielsHelen Daniels
Helen Daniels is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, portrayed by Anne Haddy. Following the death of Jim Robinson in 1993, she remained the only original character left in the series until her own death in 1997, making her the second longest-serving original character...
(Anne Haddy
Anne Haddy
Anne Haddy was an Australian film and television actress, best known for her role in the long-running soap opera, Neighbours.-Early and personal life:...
), Jim's mother-in-law, was shocked to learn about Jim's affair, but she gradually began to look on Glen as part of the family. Julie (Julie Mullins) and Scott
Scott Robinson (Neighbours)
Scott James Robinson is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, played by Jason Donovan. He made his first on-screen appearance on 18 March 1985, in the show's first episode. Scott was originally played by Darius Perkins until he was recast.-Casting:Darius...
(Jason Donovan
Jason Donovan
Jason Donovan is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap opera Neighbours, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 million records, and his début album Ten Good Reasons was one of the highest-selling albums of 1989...
) accept Glen, but Paul refuses to and he and Glen fail to get on. Lucy was away at boarding school and she returns home before Jim tells her the truth about Glen. Lucy is attracted to Glen after she arrives home and finds him wearing nothing, but a bath towel. Glen is also attracted to Lucy, but he knows that she is his half-sister and he refuses to let anything happen. Jim tells Lucy about Glen, but they still end up kissing. Both of them realise what they were doing is wrong and stop things before they develop any further.
Glen get a job as a barman at The Waterhole pub. Glen preferred working outdoors and he became a labourer with Doug Willis' (Terence Donovan
Terence Donovan (actor)
Terence Donovan , also known as Terry Donovan, is an English-born Australian actor and the father of fellow actor and entertainer Jason Donovan...
) construction firm. Glen has a brief romance with Gemma Ramsay
Gemma Ramsay
Gemma Ramsay is a fictional character from the Australian Network Ten soap opera Neighbours, played by Beth Buchanan. She made her first on-screen appearance on 20 June 1990 and departed on 25 July 1991.-Storylines:...
(Beth Buchanan
Beth Buchanan
Beth Buchanan is an Australian actress. She is best known for the television roles of Gemma Ramsay in Neighbours, in the early '90s, and Susan Croydon in Blue Heelers from 1994. She is also a long-standing member of the Ranters Theatre company.-Early life:Buchanan is the daughter of musician Tony...
). Karen Constintine (Fiona Jarvis) shows up in Erinsborough and reveals that she is pregnant with Glen's child. Glen is shocked, but resolves to do the right thing and he and Karen become engaged. During their wedding, Karen confesses that Glen is not the father of her baby and leaves.
Glen then began dating Gaby Willis (Rachel Blakely
Rachel Blakely
Rachel Blakely is an Australian actress. Her works include films such as Love Until, Young Hercules and Counterstrike, as well as guest appearances on television shows such as Xena: Warrior Princess, State Coroner and Flipper; from 2006 to 2007 she starred as Glenda Fry in the Australian...
) after she comforts him on the anniversary of his mother's death. After a brief split, Glen proposes to Gaby who accepts. Just as the wedding plans were getting started, Glen fell from the roof of Lassiter's Hotel while trying to fix a banner for Paul. Glen is paralysed from the waist down, which devastates him. Feeling like he is a burden, he begins to reject Gaby's support.
Paul begins acting differently towards Glen and Glen realises that Paul is terrified he is going to be sued. Glen initially wants nothing from Paul other than his medical expenses paid for. However, when Paul attempts to get Glen to sign a document wavering his rights to sue his company, Glen decides to sue Paul for a large amount of money. Glen finds himself alienated by his family. Karen returns, with her daughter, when she hears of Glen's accident. Glen turns to her for support and falls in love with her again. Glen secretly agrees to take an out-of-court settlement from Paul and he flees Erinsborough with Karen. Jim and Gaby search for Glen, but they never find him.