Sons and Daughters Website

The beautiful Alyce Platt has been kind enough to share with us some answers to those in-depth questions you have been wondering about ever since she left our silver screens a couple of years ago. Read on to discover her thoughts about her time on Neighbours, Sons and Daughters and the unique parallels between the two, and of course of most interest to her loyal and adoring fans, what Alyce is up to now and the singer/songwriter sensation she has blossomed into.

Apart from Neighbours, many of our members are also great Sons and Daughters fans. How did you come to land the role of Amanda Morrell in Sons and Daughters?
I was first cast as an extra... I was in a swimming pool scene with Kim Lewis and Stephen Comey... (Jill & Kevin)

How did you feel to find your first scenes involved walking around the set in nothing but your underwear?!
Very daunting!

Your exit from Sons and Daughters in 1985 was very sudden. Was it your decision to leave the show or were you told you were being written out?
It was my decision to leave the show. I wanted to pursue a film/theatre/music career.

Several months after you left Sons and Daughters, Amanda's storyline was wrapped-up in quite a nasty way when it transpired that she had died after getting involved with drugs and had become a prostitute to support her habit. Were you aware of this 'closure' and if so, how did you feel about it? Was it related in any way to discussions to try and bring you back into the show?
Well to be quite honest with you I actually don’t remember the details about the wrap up of my character... that is news to me... I vaguely remember them trying to entice me back with all sorts of offers... as far as I can remember Amanda came back as a ghost or in the woods or something like that...

You were originally paired with Ian Rawlings in Sons and Daughters (the onscreen romance of Amanda and Wayne); what was your reaction to discover this was to happen again on Neighbours? Which relationship did you prefer - the manipulating Amanda and Wayne or the ever so nice Jen and Philip?
I was delighted to be working with Ian again and I thought it quite amusing given our past on-screen history… I preferred Amanda and Wayne. Being nasty was fun.

Were there any storylines that you'd have liked to tackle or anything that you wish you hadn't had to do? Did you ever get chance to suggest storylines?
Sort of... I remember one occasion when I had a meeting with the writers and found it quite amusing to find things about my real life included in the storylines.

Was it always your intention to stay for a short period or would there have been circumstances where you'd have stuck with the show?
I was only ever going to do it for three months but they kept asking me back. In the end it was their decision to end Jen. There really wasn’t a lot of scope for my character. I think I was in-between the age group thing - not really mumsie and not really twenty...

Were you happy with Jen's happy exit or would you have preferred that she went with a bang?
I can’t remember my exit...

Did you watch Neighbours before joining? Have you seen it since leaving? What are your opinions of it?
No. And I don’t watch it now.

Which of your most famous TV moments do you remember most fondly - Sale of the Century, Sons and Daughters or Neighbours? How do the shows compare?
They were all wonderful experiences. And all very different. I suppose Sale of the Century was the biggest impact on my life as it was the number one rating show and I was on it for five years!

What was it like being reunited with people you'd worked with on Sons and Daughters on Neighbours years later? Had you kept in touch with any of them between those periods? Have you kept in contact with anyone since?
It’s always nice to work with people you know. I still keep in touch with Ally Fowler, Kim Lewis, Antonia Murphy and Peter Phelps.

And now importantly - on to what you are up to now, Alyce. How did your interest in music develop?
My interest in music began when I learned to play the guitar when I was eight years old. I wrote my first song when I was twelve.

How does it compare playing cover songs to your own music? Which are your favourite songs to perform?
I love recording my own songs and I love performing them too. But since last year I put together a cover band called Alyce Platt In the Flesh - we play mostly Eighties songs and we do only corporate work and I love it. I am also promoting my album which is called 'Beautiful Death' and it is available through Sound Vault records and Sanity Music Stores (here http://www.sanity.com.au/product.asp?intPr...rtistID=181276). You can go to my website (www.alyceplatt.com) to get details about where to get it and check out some reviews etc.

Tell us about your new album, 'Beautiful Death'.
How did it develop? 'Beautiful Death' is a collection of songs which I have written over the past ten years. A couple of years ago I did a charity concert at the Buddhist centre here in Melbourne's 'Tara' institute with some musicians and we recorded one of my songs called 'Still The Mind', which was the catalyst for this album.

Are you planning to tour your album? If so, where can we catch your performances?
I would love nothing more than to do a tour of Europe with my music… I think in fact it would be greatly received and would do very well in the
festivals... but it is all about money and support more than anything... Maybe some Neighbours fans might create a following to demand such a tour... Now that would be cool!

Interview with Alyce Platt