Neighbours actor Terence Donovan dies aged 90

What the report says

BBC World News reports that British-Australian actor Terence Donovan, known to television audiences for roles in Neighbours and Home and Away, has died aged 90. His son, actor Jason Donovan, said on social media that Donovan died peacefully on Saturday night in Melbourne, Australia, with family by his side.

Born in London, Donovan moved to Australia as a teenager and first worked as a singer before beginning his screen career in the early 1960s, according to the BBC. He became a familiar figure in Australian television through police dramas including Division 4, where he played Detective Mick Peters, and Cop Shop, in which he appeared as Detective Senior Sergeant Vic Cameron. He later joined Neighbours in the 1990s as Doug Willis, after Jason Donovan’s own run on the soap, and also played Al Simpson on Home and Away.

The BBC notes that Donovan’s career spanned about six decades and included film and stage work. His film credits included The Man from Snowy River and Breaker Morant, two titles often associated with the growth of Australia’s screen industry in the late 20th century.

Jason Donovan’s tribute, written with his brother Paul, described their father as a major presence in their lives and said the family took comfort from being with him in his final days. The post also highlighted Donovan’s early-1970s campaigning for more Australian-made film and television, including public support for local stories at a time when imported programming from the United States and United Kingdom was prominent.