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Terence donovan al simpson

Terence as Al Simpson (1990)

Terence Donovan (born 28th October 1942) is a British-born actor who played villain Al Simpson in early 1990. A veteran of Australian film and TV long before he appeared on Home and Away, he is nowadays best known for his long stint as Doug Willis[1] in Neighbours(1990-2016)[1].

Terence is the father of Australian actor and singer Jason Donovan[2]

Pre Home And Away career[]

Terence Donovan was born in Staines, Middlesex, England.[3] He migrated with his brothers to Australia in the 1950s. He had some minor acting roles on Australian TV before returning to his native Britain. There, he had roles in the cult TV shows The Prisoner and Man with a Suitcase. He made an uncredited appearance as a policeman in the musical Oliver! (he can be seen fleetingly during the "Consider Yourself" sequence). Back in Australia he continued working as an actor. From 1969-1975 he played Detective Mick Peters on Division 4. In 1979 he returned to playing a policeman, clocking up more than 160 appearances as Detective Mick Cameron on Cop Shop. In 1985 he appeared in 6 episodes of Prisoner. Later that year, and into 1986, he appeared in Sons and Daughters. He also appeared in E Street, The Flying Doctors, GP, Mission: Impossible and had a third stint on A Country Practice.

Home And Away 1990[]

Terence played the role of villainous Al Simpson, appearing for 24 episodes between January and March 1990. Al was the adoptive father of Bobby Simpson and father to Sophie Simpson. Al attempted to frame Donald Fisher for a murder he himself had committed several years previously. His misdeeds past and present caught up with him and he was arrested and jailed. Al's daughter Sophie, who had travelled with him to Summer Bay was fostered by the Fletchers. She went on to be a major character in the early years of the show.

After Home And Away[]

Naybers doug 2014

Terence Donovan as Doug Willis in Neighbours in 2014.

Shortly afterwards, Terence joined the cast of Neighbours. He played Doug Willis from July 1990 until September 1994. He reprised his role in 2014 and remained on the show until his character was killed off in 2016. During his second stint on Neighbours, his daughter-in-law Terese was played by Rebekah Elmaloglou. She, of course, had played his on-screen daughter Sophie on Home and Away.

Terence donovan neighbours ghost

Terence in the 2022 Neighbours finale

When not appearing on Neighbours, Terence continued to appear on TV. He was seen on Heartbreak High, Blue Heelers and MDA, amongst other shows. He appears to have retired from acting after a long career[2]. He made a surprise return to Neighbours during its finale in 2022. He appeared briefly as a ghost during Susan Kennedy's final voiceover.

Memorable info[]

Terence is just one generation of the Donovan family to have appeared on Neighbours. His son Jason became a household name in the late 1980s after appearing as Scott Robinson on the show. In 2020, Jason's daughter Jemma joined the cast [3]. Jason Donovan is reported to have once sung the theme tune to "Home and Away" at a concert.

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