Neighbours fans will get a special Christmas treat this year.
The Australian soap traditionally takes a hiatus over the holiday, but not this time. Neighbours during the week of 12-25-23 features the first on-screen Christmas since 2018.
Mixed in with the celebrations are broken hearts and high drama, with some people having the worst Christmas of their lives.
Paul’s been having a miserable time, so much so that I almost feel sorry for him.
Being on the outs with David means he can’t openly celebrate with his granddaughter, even though Aaron and Nicolette don’t have the same qualms about letting Isla have a relationship with Paul.
Paul’s shenanigans have continued for years without becoming a tired TV trope. He’s always on the outs with some family member or other.
But an on-screen Christmas allows Stefan Dennis to portray Paul’s pain and heartbreak over the holiday. Paul may have brought this on himself, but that doesn’t mean his isolated, miserable Christmas won’t be painful.
He’s lost David, and any semblance of a friendship with Terese and Toadie has gone out the window now that he pulled his latest stunt. According to spoilers, Toadie will spend his Boxing Day, if not Christmas itself, telling Paul to stay away from Terese.
Meanwhile, trouble is brewing at the shared house.
Neither Holly nor Mackenzie will have an easy time, thanks to this friendship-imploding love triangle they’re involved in. Hopefully, Mackenzie and Haz are endgame, considering Holly’s bad behavior.
But things will get worse before they get better, with Holly issuing a ridiculous ultimatum that would make anyone with a modicum of self-respect run the other way.
The conflict won’t be a good look for Mackenzie, either, as she makes an impulsive decision leading to serious trouble.
Please scroll down to check out all eight Neighbours spoilers for the week of 12-25-23.
Not everyone feels like celebrating Christmas.
The Tanakas are set to have a lovely Christmas with their children. But as mentioned above, it isn’t so happy for Paul, who is barred from the celebration.
Will Paul make an uninvited and unwanted appearance, or has he learned there is no good to come from violating David’s boundaries?
Aaron also is considering sneaking Paul’s gift to Isla into the pile of presents, which can only lead to trouble for the family.
Mackenzie makes an impulsive decision.
Sooner or later, Mackenzie won’t be able to repress her jealousy and anger, and it seems the time is now.
According to spoilers, Mackenzie and Holly have a huge fight on Christmas Day that ends with Holly falling face-first into the pool.
Haz’ll jump in to save Holly, leading to even more drama. But didn’t we just go through this with Krista and Melanie?
Terese and Jane must decide whether to move forward despite the moral dilemma Paul caused.
Now that they know Paul bribed a council member to swing the vote their way, Terese and Jane aren’t sure they want to move forward with the combined school/retirement home project.
If the truth ever comes to light, they could get in serious trouble for being complicit in illegal activity.
But the kids and senior citizens will suffer if they back off the project now, and Jane sacrificed her Christmas visit to Mike to participate in the presentation to the council. So it’s not as easy as saying no, and there’s no telling what the women will do now.
Susan learns a secret that could tear her family apart.
The most logical possibility is that she learns about Paul’s malfeasance.
Karl is supposed to work for the retirement center, so he’d be upset if he knew it wouldn’t happen.
There are other possibilities, too. Elly may tell Susan about Chloe’s Huntington’s Disease, or Susan could find out something new about what Izzy is up to.
Izzy and Susan have a long, adverse history, so that some Izzy drama would make sense.
Holly issues an ultimatum after nearly drowning.
After Haz rescues Holly, she never wants to see Mackenzie again — and she plans to back that up by forcing Haz to make a choice.
According to Holly, either Haz stops living with Mack or the relationship ends.
The honorable thing to do would be to tell Holly she can jump back in the pool and move on, but TV characters never do that. This is shaping up to be similar to what happened to Otis and Maeve on Sex Education Season 2 and just as annoying.
Paul gives Krista what he thinks is an impossible task, but will she rise to the occasion?
Oh, Paul, will you ever learn?
His plans always blow up in his face, and this one won’t be an exception.
According to spoilers, Paul sets Krista the task of pleasing an impossible client in the hopes she’ll fail and have to leave Erinsborough.
I’m not sure why failure would mean Krista quits her job and leaves town, but in any case, she’ll likely surprise him and succeed in her mission.
Chloe and Elly’s wedding plans are in jeopardy because of Chloe’s health.
Chloe and Elly are set to walk down the aisle, but Chloe’s Huntington’s Disease has progressed, so she can no longer balance in heels.
This temporarily delays plans, but not to worry; the ladies will come up with a sweet solution that symbolizes their commitment to one another.
Later in the week, there will be a beautiful wedding, so stock up on tissues!
Ramsey Street celebrates Chloe and Elly’s wedding!
Susan will officiate as usual, and the women will say their vows and start their married life.
Neighbours does weddings well (not counting that hurricane during and after Roxy and Kyle’s that took Brit’s life!). This should be a gorgeous, emotional affair.
Hopefully, Paul won’t be moping in the shadows this time because he’s not with Terese like he did during her wedding to Toadie.
Your turn, Neighbours fanatics! How excited are you for the first Christmas Week since 2018?
Hit the big, blue SHOW COMMENTS button and let us know.
Check out the latest Neighbors reviews if you’d like to chat about already-aired episodes.
Neighbours streams on Amazon Freevee in the US and UK. New episodes drop on Mondays through Thursday mornings at 2/1c.
Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on X.