Former Home and Away favourites are stepping back into the spotlight in spectacular fashion, as a wave of familiar faces reunite for what is shaping up to be one of the most gripping television events of the year.

The upcoming psychological thriller The Imposter, airing on Channel 5, brings together soap legends, music icons, and award-winning actors in a dark, emotionally charged story

that explores family loyalty, betrayal, greed, and the devastating consequences of long-buried secrets. For fans of Home and Away, the project carries particular emotional weight.

Not only does it mark a high-profile reunion of former cast members, but it also signals a long-awaited acting return for Dannii Minogue, whose last scripted TV role was as Emma Jackson in Home and Away back in 1990. More than three decades later, Minogue is returning to drama in a role that is as complex as it is provocative—one that proves this is far more than a nostalgic cameo.

A Family Torn Apart by Secrets

At the heart of The Imposter lies the powerful and deeply unsettling story of the O’Reilly family. Set against the backdrop of a once-prestigious Melbourne hotel, the series dissects how blood ties can quickly become battlegrounds when money, resentment, and unresolved trauma collide.

Helen O’Reilly (played by Neighbours icon Jackie Woodburn) is the formidable matriarch who owns and runs the family hotel with an iron hand. For decades, Helen has controlled not just the business but also the lives of her three adult children—each shaped, and in some cases scarred, by her relentless expectations.

Her eldest son Simon (Don Hany) is reckless, impulsive, and riddled with self-destructive tendencies. His past infidelity has already cost him his marriage and his relationship with his teenage son, leaving him bitter, defensive, and desperate to reclaim a sense of control. Kate (Jane Harber), the dutiful middle child, is hardworking and morally grounded but emotionally exhausted, trapped between loyalty to her mother and the quiet collapse of her own marriage. The youngest sibling, Ian (Jackson Gallagher), is the family’s conscience—kind, sensitive, and quietly hopeful. Alongside his partner Lee (Kabir Singh), Ian dreams of starting a family through surrogacy, a future that hinges on whether the hotel is sold.

That fragile equilibrium shatters when Amanda arrives.

The Arrival That Changes Everything

Amanda, portrayed by Kim Marsh and Dannii Minogue, appears seemingly out of nowhere, claiming to be Helen’s long-lost adopted daughter. Her arrival sends shockwaves through the O’Reilly household. Is she a long-lost child seeking connection—or an opportunist targeting the family fortune?

To Simon and Kate, Amanda’s timing is deeply suspicious. With the hotel’s sale looming, they fear she is positioning herself to claim a share of the profits. What follows is a chilling descent into paranoia and cruelty, as the siblings resort to increasingly underhanded tactics to protect what they believe is rightfully theirs. Lies spiral into manipulation, moral boundaries are crossed, and what begins as a financial dispute escalates into acts of medical malpractice and, ultimately, murder.

Yet The Imposter refuses to offer easy villains. Amanda herself is a study in contradictions—resourceful, resilient, and shaped by a lifetime of instability. She believes the world owes her something, and she is not afraid to bend ethical rules to survive. Whether she is truly who she claims to be—or whether she is playing a much darker game—remains one of the show’s most tantalizing mysteries.

A Cast of Powerhouse Performances

Jackie Woodburn delivers a commanding performance as Helen, showcasing a steely matriarch whose emotional armor begins to crack when confronted with the possibility of reclaiming a child she lost long ago. The role marks Woodburn’s first major TV appearance outside of Neighbours since the mid-1990s, and she brings decades of gravitas to a character forced to re-evaluate her life amid a looming health crisis.

Kim Marsh shines as Amanda with a performance layered in vulnerability and menace, while Dannii Minogue’s involvement adds an extra emotional resonance for soap fans. Her return to acting is one of the most talked-about aspects of the series, and her presence underscores the show’s themes of reinvention and unresolved pasts.

Don Hany is magnetic as Simon, capturing the volatility of a man who lashes out as his power slips away. Jane Harber brings quiet heartbreak to Kate, portraying a woman who has done everything “right” yet finds herself suffocating under expectation. Jackson Gallagher’s Ian offers a rare tenderness amid the chaos, while Kabir Singh’s Lee provides a grounded counterpoint as the family’s reluctant peacemaker.

Former Home and Away star Charlie Clausen also features as Todd, a smooth-talking real estate agent whose polished exterior hides deeper ambitions—adding yet another layer of intrigue to an already combustible mix.

A Thriller That Hits Close to Home

What sets The Imposter apart is its unflinching exploration of how quickly familial love can curdle into something dangerous. This is not just a thriller about deception—it is a meditation on entitlement, identity, and the scars left by abandonment. Each character believes they are justified, and that moral ambiguity keeps viewers constantly questioning where their loyalties lie.

The final episode delivers a jaw-dropping climax that leaves little doubt about the show’s impact. While Channel 5 has yet to confirm a second season, the explosive ending has already sparked intense speculation among viewers, many of whom are calling for the story to continue.

When and Where to Watch

The Imposter airs on Channel 5 at 9:00 p.m. from Monday, December 15 to Thursday, December 18, with all four episodes available to stream afterward. For fans of Home and Away and high-stakes family drama alike, it promises an unforgettable viewing experience—one that proves some reunions are far more dangerous than they first appear.