Strictly star Stefan Dennis' marriage to Neighbours co-star and brother's tragic death

Stefan Dennis, the veteran Australian actor best known for his role as the ruthless Paul Robinson on the long-running soap Neighbours, has joined the latest series of Strictly Come Dancing, bringing decades of experience in television drama to the glittering BBC ballroom.

It marks a new chapter in a career that has spanned more than 40 years and made him a household name both in Australia and the UK.

Dennis, 66, who was born in Tawonga, Victoria, before moving with his family to the Gold Coast as a child, began his acting journey at the age of 11, performing in a local amateur production of Oliver.

He then went on to appear in a string of Australian television dramas including Prisoner, The Henderson Kids, The Sullivans, Young Doctors, and Sons and Daughters, as well as later appearances on shows such as The Bill, Dream Team, River City, and Casualty.

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Stefan then found lasting fame in 1985 when he first took on the role of Paul Robinson in Neighbours, a character who would become one of the soap’s most iconic and long-running figures.

The much-loved actor has appeared in over 6,000 episodes across four decades and known for his scheming business deals, complex relationships, and numerous personal dramas that kept audiences hooked day after day.

While Stefan left Neighbours briefly in 1992, he returned a year later, and again in 2004, maintaining a constant presence in the fictional Ramsay Street community until the show’s cancellation on Amazon Freevee, with the final episode airing later this year.

Speaking to Loose Women, he revealed that the show’s producers honoured his long tenure by giving him the final line in the soap’s concluding episode, saying: "I say the very last line in the show. It was a nice tribute Jason, our executive producer, gave to me because he said, ‘You were in the first episode. It’s a no-brainer that you have to say the last thing'."

Despite planning to “semi-retire” following the news that his long-standing character would be permanently written out, Stefan was persuaded to take on the Strictly challenge, joking on the ITV panel show: "I always say actors don’t retire, they die. I planned to semi-retire, maybe getting one good gig a year."

"Then, Strictly came along. Bye bye semi-retirement,” he said before describing his excitement at joining the competition alongside professional dancer Dianne Buswell.

"This is an opportunity for me to once again learn to step out of my comfort zone in the world of television. Looking forward to the sparkle and reaching for the sky," the Neighbours legend added.

Away from the stage and screen, the actor has experienced profound personal tragedy, including the death of his older brother at the age of 12 in a crash caused by a drunk driver.

Stefan says it's a life event that continues to affect him decades later. "The repercussions of someone getting behind the wheel on drugs or drink, it’s devastating… It still affects me today," he revealed in a previous interview.

"The man who killed my brother was going just 30km/h. That’s all it took,” adding that the driver received a surprisingly light fine of AUD$200, which contrasted sharply with heavier penalties for other minor incidents at the time.

His personal life has also included high-profile relationships, including a marriage to model and The Price Is Right hostess Roz Roy from 1979 to 1989.

Stefan has also enjoyed romances with co-star Gayle Blakeney and singer Natalie Imbruglia, and a marriage to actress Gail Easdale in 2000, who played his on-screen nemesis Julie Quill in Neighbours, with the couple sharing three children, Cameron, Declan, and Darci.

In addition to acting, Stefan has explored music, releasing singles in 1989 including Don’t It Make You Feel Good, which reached No.16 in the UK charts, and This Love Affair, which peaked at No.67.

His music career demonstrates a versatility that has helped him maintain a long and varied career, and as he prepares to compete on Strictly Come Dancing while bidding farewell to Ramsay Street, Stefan shows no sign of slowing down.

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