Daphne Clarke

Fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours

Daphne Clarke (also Lawrence) is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Elaine Smith. Daphne was created by Reg Watson as one of Neighbours' twelve original characters. The producer had originally wanted Rebecca Gibney to play the role, but she joined the cast of another television series. When Smith came in to audition for a guest part, her appearance, particularly her short haircut, caught the attention of the casting director, who had been looking for an "outrageous image" for the character of Daphne. Smith won the role and she made her on screen debut in the soap's first episode, which was broadcast on 18 March 1985. Daphne was portrayed as a smart, confident and independent woman from a good background. She sported a short haircut and bright clothing, which made her stand out from the other female characters on television at the time. Daphne was not embarrassed by her profession as a stripper and her "no nonsense approach" to life made her an immediate favourite with the viewers. Daphne gave up stripping when her grandfather gave her the lease to the local coffee shop. She used her position to help customers with their problems and gained the trust of many of the teenage characters, particularly Mike Young (Guy Pearce). Daphne's marriage to Des Clarke (Paul Keane) was central to many of her storylines. After a brief relationship with Shane Ramsay (Peter O'Brien) and two engagements, Daphne married Des in July 1986. She gave birth to their son, Jamie (S. J. Dey), in July 1987. That same year, Smith announced her departure from Neighbours. Not wanting to kill off a popular character, the producers sent Daphne to care for her dying father and she made her last regular appearance on 27 October 1987, with the character removed from the opening credits in the following episode. However, viewers were not satisfied with this ending and producers decided to conclude Daphne's storyline by killing her off in a car accident. For scenes where Daphne was in a coma, producers had planned to use a lookalike. However, when Smith heard about this, she chose to return for the final scenes. Smith made her final uncredited appearance on 25 March 1988, becoming the first regular character to die on screen.

Daphne is one of the twelve original characters conceived by the creator and then executive producer of Neighbours, Reg Watson. When it came to casting, Waston had initially wanted actress Rebecca Gibney to play the role. However, she joined the cast of children's television series Zoo Family instead. In 1984, she came in to Neighbours to audition for the guest role of Lorraine Kingham and her short, spiky haircut caught the attention of the casting director, who asked her to do a screen test for Daphne. Smith told Hilary Kingsley, author of Soap Box, "The casting director of Neighbours was looking some outrageous image for Daphne, this stripper – he didn't quite know what, but my haircut was it!" Smith revealed that the idea of playing a stripper amused her and quipped that Daphne was the only stripper who never had to take her clothes off. They were rarely mentioned on screen, making her past somewhat of a mystery. Daphne had received a good education and worked in an office as a secretary, until she told her sexist boss to "jump in a lake." With her spiky hair and bright clothing, Daphne stood out from other female characters on television at the time. She was portrayed as a strong, smart and independent woman. She was often shrewd and "a warm friend" to those around her. She was a woman in charge of her own life, which helped her to become the serial's first "sweetheart." When the night was interrupted by a neighbour, Daphne left some belongings behind and returned the following morning to collect them. After Des's fiancée called the wedding off, Daphne realised that Des needed a lodger to help him pay the mortgage off and moved in. Josephine Monroe, author of Neighbours: The First 10 Years, wrote that the local men queued up to date Daphne, but it was Shane Ramsay (Peter O'Brien) who first caught her eye and they soon began a relationship. However, on the day of their wedding, Daphne's bridal car was hijacked by a bank robber and she was late to the church. Having been stood up five times in the past, Des gave up waiting and left. Smith told Cook "I don't know whether Daphne actually needs a man in her life but she's certainly got two men there. It's a triangle that's developed, but to try and give a rational explanation to it is next to impossible." She felt that while Daphne had been "a bit of a challenge at first", she felt trapped by her persona. Smith also believed that the role no longer offered her variety and she did not want to stay to be bored, but comfortable. Instead Daphne's father, Allen (Neil Fitzpatrick), re entered her life and told her he was dying. Realising that she only had a short time to make her peace with him, Daphne took Jamie and moved away to nurse Allen. Smith agreed to return for a few days in 1988 to finish off Daphne's storyline. Smith told Robyn Harvey from The Sydney Morning Herald, "I wanted Daphne to die. I didn't want to be stuck in a television series for the rest of my life. I'd taken Daphne as far as she could go. She's run the gamut of every life experience she could possibly have. I'd had enough." Smith told Nicola Murphy (TV Week) that she would resume filming in February but was not privy to the details of Daphne's final story because producers withheld her scripts. On screen Daphne was critically injured during a car crash on the way to her father's funeral and she was left in a coma. A writer for the BBC's Neighbours website thought Daphne's most notable moment was "Going into labour with Jamie at a riverside picnic." Claudia Pattison from mobile network operator Orange branded Des and Daphne one of the most popular couples in the serial's history, while a Virgin Media writer thought that they had "one of soapland's happiest marriages". The Sydney Morning Herald's Michael Idato called them Neighbours''' first supercouple. Mary Fletcher from Inside Soap commented that Des and Daphne's troubled romance was "one of Neighbours' best storylines." The couple's wedding gained a lot of attention in the UK and Terry Wogan even discussed the episode with Rolf Harris on his talk show the day after it aired. Tim Teeman and James Jackson from The Times named Daphne's death as one of their top 15 most memorable Neighbours moments. They commented "Like, was that her in the bed or an actress with a Daphne wig? The romance of Des and Daphne (Mr Ordinary and the ex stripper) was an early Neighbours classic so we felt this one hard". The reporter wrote that Daphne was a popular character during the serial's peak in 1988 and called Des "her soulmate". She called the relationship between Daphne and Des "one of the series' classic romances." Daphne was placed at number thirty five on the Huffpost's'' "35 greatest Neighbours characters of all time" feature. Journalist Adam Beresford branded her the "stripper with a heart of gold Daph."