Home and Away has aired a new promo previewing Felicity Newman’s death, after she collapsed in tonight’s Australian episode.
Today’s episode saw Flick (Jacqui Purvis) and Remi (Adam Rowland) blindfold newly engaged Cash (Nicholas Cartwright) and Eden (Stephanie Panozzo) and lead them down to the beach, where they revealed a surprise engagement party, complete with food, bar, DJ and dance-floor.
Recent episodes saw Cash make a spur-of-the-moment decision to propose to Eden, having never previously suggested that marriage was on the cards.
In fact, when Eden pranked Cash into thinking he’d proposed after Tane (Ethan Browne) and Felicity’s wedding, he was horrified at the idea.
It was partly that reaction which caused Eden to hesitate in saying yes, but after a little encouragement from Remi, and assurance from Cash that he was indeed sincere in his proposal, she excitedly told him that she’d marry him.
As Summer Bay’s younger members gathered to celebrate, the party also provided a reunion of sorts for Felicity and ex-husband Tane, who split late last year.
The pair had agreed to start trying for a baby, but Felicity wasn’t ready and continued to take her birth control pills behind Tane’s back. When Tane discovered the truth, he ended their relationship immediately.
As the festivities got underway, Tane invited his estranged wife to dance with him, and they both looked blissfully happy as they chatted and danced together.
When they headed up to Salt to grab more alcohol, Flick began flirting, telling Tane to “put those muscles to good use” as she ordered him to the store room to grab some crates of wine.
Felicity then uttered the immortal words that would guarantee the arrival of tragedy: “You know what I think? It’s only good things for the both of us from here on out. I think we deserve it.”
The sight of the pair slow dancing was a concern for Dana (Ally Harris), whose sister Harper (Jessica Redmayne) is currently hiding the fact that she’s pregnant with Tane’s baby.
Asking Xander (Luke Van Os) whether he thought that Tane and Flick were going to get back together, he replied: “Well if you ask me, I feel like they never stopped loving each other.”
At the end of the evening, as Flick, Tane, the engaged couple, and the remaining stragglers headed back to Salt, disaster struck.
Felicity took her brother to one side and told him: “Maybe we’re not cursed. We deserve to be happy, and I have a feeling we’re gonna be.”
She then gave Tane a longing glance as he stood by the bar, seemingly hoping he’d be caught up in the romantic atmosphere and give their relationship another chance. Yet it wasn’t to be.
As Tane brought up more drinks in the Eskee, Flick told him to leave it, before directing Xander to finish his shift and have a dance with Dana.
She opened Tane a beer, and told him “it’s funny how things turn out.”
“Yeah. That was us not long ago,” he replied, looking in Cash and Eden’s direction. “I’ll always be there for you, you know that, right? If you ever need anything.”
“So are we gonna dance again?” Flick asked. But seconds later, her vision went blurry.
Putting her hand to her head after feeling a sharp pain, she collapsed, hitting the ground hard.
Tane rushed over to her as she lay on the floor, bringing the emotional episode to a close.
Now, a new promo has previewed the aftermath of Flick’s sudden collapse.
It begins with footage of one of Felicity’s first appearances on the show, when she danced on the bar of a city club, before setting eyes on Tane, the man who she would go on to marry.
Other clips of her early days show her pouring a bucket of water on two brawling men at the caravan park, a flirty interaction with Tane, and a tender moment as they shared a kiss at a barbecue.
The promo then shows Felicity and Mackenzie dancing at Salt, and Tane spinning her round at one of the venue’s glitzy but ill-fated poker evenings.
Returning to the present day, we then see Tane telling Felicity, “if you ever need anything…”, before the pair shared a dance at the engagement party.
The promo then previews the dramatic scenes from next week’s episodes, as Felicity is rushed to Northern Districts Hospital after her collapse.
We return to much happier times, when Felicity told Tane, “I’m completely and hopelessly in love with you.”
We see Tane looking panicked as he rushes to Felicity’s side, where he finds his ex-wife hooked up to a life support system.
Home and Away recently teased that one of our favourites wouldn’t make it. Irene (Lynne McGranger) was one of the characters at risk, but she exited the show last week as she headed to a rehab clinic, and she’s expected to return in early 2025.
Cash, Harper and Eden were also on the list of potential casualties, but with actors Nicholas Cartwright, Jessica Redmayne and Stephanie Panozzo all having been seen filming in recent months, it only left one name – Felicity.
As Cash and Tane talk in the corridor, Cash gives Tane a pessimistic prognosis: “It’s bad.”
More highlights of Flick’s years in Summer Bay are interspersed with shots of her lying unconscious in her hospital bed, as Cash holds vigil.
“I’m not ready,” Cash tells Tane, after being given the worst possible news.
“I know. But it’s time,” Tane replies, his arm around Cash’s shoulder.
“When is the right time to say goodbye?” asks the promo.
In a scene from later in the week, it appears that Cash has learnt that there is no hope of recovery for his sister.
He and one of the hospital nurses are then seen escorting Felicity’s body through the corridors of Northern Districts on an honour walk, a ceremonial event held to commemorate patients whose organs are to be donated after their death.
Tane is seen giving Felicity one final kiss on the forehead, and he rests his own forehead against hers.
“This week’s episodes and leading into next Monday are simply unmissable,” series producer Lucy Addario revealed to 7News. “The community will rally in what will become a fight of a lifetime, and ultimately end in a death that will rock the Bay.”
“We have not seen a goodbye like this in years. All I can say is make sure your tissue box is close by — you will need it!”
Teaser spoilers for the next week of episodes give some clues as to the timeline for Felicity’s departure.
In tomorrow’s episode, Felicity fights for her life, while “Cash is left in the dark.”
On Wednesday, “Cash holds onto hope,” while Northern Districts doctors “Bree and Levi are put to the test.”
Then, next Monday 19th August, “Cash makes a difficult choice,” as he grapples with whether to give the go-ahead to switch off his sister’s life support machine.
Felicity made her first appearance nearly exactly three years ago, on 19th August 2021. Her death was first teased last week, when a promo revealed that either Flick, Eden, Irene or Harper would die within days.
