Neighbours bosses have confirmed the long-running Australian soap will be going off the air later this year.
Last month, it was revealed the future of the show was in jeopardy after UK broadcaster Channel 5 announced it would stop airing Neighbours from this summer.
Since then, producers have been trying to find another broadcaster to save the show, but they’ve now said this search was unsuccessful.
On Thursday morning, they confirmed: “We are so sorry to say that after nearly 37 years and almost 9000 episodes broadcast we have to confirm that Neighbours will cease production in June.
“Following the loss of our key broadcast partner in the UK and despite an extensive search for alternative funding, we simply have no option but to rest the show.
“To our amazing, loyal fans, we know this is a huge disappointment, as it is to all of us on the team. We thank you for all your messages and support and promise to end the show on an incredible high.”
Since the news first broke that Neighbours’ future was uncertain, former cast members Natalie Imbruglia and Jason Donovan have spoken out in support of it, voicing their hopes that it can find another home to keep it going in the UK.
Meanwhile, Neighours staple Alan Fletcher – who plays Dr Karl – penned a letter to fans saying the news had come “as a huge shock to a lot of people”.
Channel 5 has aired Neighbours in the UK since 2008, after poaching it from BBC One, where it had screened twice daily since 1986.
The network said the decision to drop Neighbours had been motivated by its “current focus is on increasing our investment in original UK drama, which has strong appeal for our viewers”.
Neighbours has been more popular in the UK than in Australia, where it airs to around 100,000 daily viewers on digital channel 10Peach, for many years now, with Channel 5 having heavily contributed to its production costs.
Filming is now expected to wrap on 10 June, before the show goes off the air for good in August.