As Neighbours Royalty Scott Robinson and Charlene Mitchell, Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue had soap fans gripped on both sides of the planet - and their offscreen romance proved to be every bit as compelling.
Melbourne-born Jason, 56, shot to fame as likeable Erinsborough High student Scott, who viewers saw mature and fall for feisty tomboy Charlene. The pair proved to be pure soap world magic and their 1987 wedding remains one of the most iconic telly ceremonies ever aired.
Jason and Kylie, 56, fell for each other at the same time Scott and Charlene did, making their relationship all the more fascinating to fans. They went on to enjoy success beyond Ramsay Street as a singing duet, with their catchy track 1988 Especially For You proving to be a hit.
Sadly, their 'first true' love ultimately wasn't to be, with their once-passionate bond eventually crumbling in an agonising manner. As Jason shares his joy at being reunited with his cat after five 'traumatic' months, the Mirror takes a look at his and Kylie's legendary romance...
'Full on' first love
The Aussie soap stars first locked eyes as teens (Getty Images)
Their onscreen wedding is still regarded as one of the most iconic of all time (Fremantle Media/REX/Shutterstock)Kylie and Jason first locked eyes as teenage stars of Neighbours in 1984 and dated right up until 1989. During an eye-opening interview with the Sydney Morning Herald in June 2023, Jason reflected on their behind-the-scenes romance, describing the pop princess as his 'first love'.
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Jason shared: "I was in a number of relationships before I married. The first true one was with Kylie Minogue from 1984 to 1989. That was full-on, for obvious reasons.” He added: “It was great and we created magic together on screen – we were boyfriend and girlfriend on Neighbours – and off-screen. We're still good friends."
Travelodge passion
The amorous pair cemented their love at a 'posh' Travelodge (Fremantle Media/REX/Shutterstock)
Jason reckons Kylie was the one who did all the 'chasing' (Getty Images)Jason opened up to Piers Morgan on his show in 2012 about his relationship with Kylie. "She chased me and then I guess I gradually gave in," he said. "The next thing you know we were working and having this relationship. At the time it was great. We cemented it in a Sydney Travelodge. There were a number of promotional trips we would do each weekend and the Travelodge was the place. Travelodges in those days were posh places."
Touching on their highs and lows, the Neighbours star continued: "I did not lose my virginity to her though. I knew I was in love with her when she became successful on her own. It was a jealousy thing. I could see her slipping away. I am sure it happened before that but it was not until I could see her going off in one direction I thought I was going to lose her."
But as Kylie's pop career went from strength to strength, with huge hits including I Should Be So Lucky, their relationship hit the rocks. "We did live together for a while and there was a lot of chemistry between us. This was the first time I had truly been in love with someone," Jason explained.
"That is a very powerful emotion to have, coupled with the fact that you are one of the most successful and talked-about couples in Australia, which was our backyard at the time. We argued a lot about her wanting to go off and do other things."
Betrayal and painful split
As Kylie's star continued to rise, the couple drifted apart (Mirrorpix)
Jason was left heartbroken when Kylie ditched him for INXS rocker Michael Hutchence (Andrew Murray/REX/Shutterstock)The once inseparable pair eventually drifted apart when, from Jason's perspective, Kylie began to outshine him in terms of star status. In 1989, their soap fairytale came to a heartbreaking end when Kylie left Jason for INXS rockstar Michael Hutchence. According to Jason, he'd been working in New York when Kylie called him from Japan, telling him that it was over.
Speaking with the Mirror back in 2016, Jason spoke candidly about the 'extremely painful' split, describing it as a 'pretty big punch to take'. Jason revealed: "It was an extremely painful parting of the ways and, without doubt, I took a long time to recover from it. Years, definitely." He continued: "It was bad enough that she'd run off with anybody, but she happened to run into the arms of the greatest rock god of the period, the very guy who I secretly wanted to be. That was a pretty big punch to take."
In a heartrending three-word admission made during another interview with Daily Telegraph, Jason admitted he'd felt like a 'little lost boy' after the brutal breakup. Kylie and Michael's whirlwind romance ended in 1991, with the rock god reportedly calling it quits just before a stadium show.
Tragically, Michael passed away in 1997 at the age of just 37, with the coroner later ruling that he had died by suicide. Opening up about their 'doomed' relationship in the 2019 documentary Mystify: Michael Hutchence, Kylie reflected that her late former lover had 'opened up a whole new world for [her]'.
Addiction and finding love again
After descending into drug addiction, Jason found a light at the end of the tunnel with now-wife Angela (Getty Images)
The smitten couple now have three children (James Curley/REX/Shutterstock)The actor then sank into drug addiction and ended up snorting up to 30 lines of cocaine a day. It was his now-wife Angela Malloch who finally helped him quit substance abuse and become a healthier man. The couple met on the touring production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, where Angela was working as a stage manager and Jason was playing Dr Frank-N-Furter. They had their first daughter, Jemma, in 2000, and went on to tie the knot in 2008.
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"Once Jemma was born things started to dilute," Jason told Piers. "Drugs were no longer the priority. Gradually I ended up falling out of love with cocaine and in love with my daughter and back in love with the woman who changed the landscape of my life. Getting married made us stronger and it is great for the kids. She is the love of my life. I saved my life, but she was a woman who came round and stood up to me and made me accountable."
Jason and Angela went on to have two more children Zach, born in 2002, and Molly, born in 2011, and are still going strong to this day.
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