Anne Haddy, who played Helen Daniels in Neighbours for 12 years, died in 1999 from kidney-related problems, just two years after leaving the soap. The actress had been privately battling multiple serious health conditions for decades.
Secret health battles
In 1971, while rehearsing for the stage play National Health in Sydney, Anne fell and broke her wrist. Eight years later, in 1979, she suffered a massive heart attack which led to her undergoing a quadruple heart bypass operation. Shortly afterwards, she fell and broke her hip.
Anne would soon learn that she had cancer of the stomach, although, since it was detected early, the Neighbours star was successfully treated surgically. In 1983, she was back in hospital battling heart troubles and had to have one of her four heart grafts of her bypass unclogged (angioplasty).
Leaving Neighbours
The beloved TV personality had to have a hip replacement in 1996, which eventually resulted in kidney problems, forcing Anne to leave the show the following year and retire from acting. After that, Anne decided it was time to slow down.
The Independent reports the soap star as saying at the time: “In the past, I have been seriously ill, but nobody ever told me I was going to die. Staying healthy is our only goal at the moment. To keep living, laughing and loving.”
Life and career
Born on October 5, 1930, in Quorn, South Australia, Anne Haddy was the only child of Allan Ross Haddy and Mona Lowas (née Graham). She was keen on becoming an actress from a young age and was gifted the complete works of Shakespeare for her 15th birthday by her parents.
At the age of 18, Anne made her professional radio debut with the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC). She went on to act in radio plays and school broadcasts while simultaneously working in the University of Adelaide's book room. She starred in several plays and later attended the Sydney Theatre Company.
In 1953, at the age of 23, Anne relocated to the United Kingdom to look for acting gigs, and eventually landed a role in The Pied Piper in London's West End, however her time in the country was short-lived and by 1955, she had moved back to Australia, new husband in tow.
While in London, Anne had married her first husband, Maxwell "Max" Dimmitt, in April 1955, and a few months later the pair returned to Australia. They went on to have two children together, but their marriage eventually ended in divorce.
By and large a struggling actress, Anne took up a myriad of roles in stage and radio plays as well as radio serials. She was also one of the first presenters of Play School — Australia's leading children's television series at the time. She landed her first big acting gig in 1966 when she appeared in the feature film They're a Weird Mob. From there on, Anne did bit roles in several movies and television series, before she finally bagged the show that would put her on the map — Neighbours.
On-screen legacy
Joining the Neighbours cast in 1985, Anne was one of the original 12 main cast members of the show. She played the role of Robinson family matriarch Helen Daniels and went on to star in 1,162 episodes before quitting the series in 1997 and retiring from acting altogether.
Anne got married for a second time in real life in 1977 to radio and stage actor James Condon. James himself appeared in Neighbours while Anne was still playing Helen on the show, and her character eventually got married to his (Reuben White).
Anne's Neighbours character was a central figure on the show and Helen was involved in several major storylines, from her romance with Reuben White to her family mysteriously disappearing. In 1997, Helen's character peacefully died in her sleep onscreen while watching a video of her grandson Scott Robinson's wedding to Charlene Mitchell. Jason Donovan and Kylie Minogue played Scott and Charlene on the show, respectively.
Anne Haddy eventually died from kidney-related problems on June 6, 1999, just a few months shy of her 69th birthday. At the time of her death, Anne and James shared six children and gave grandkids.
In Britain, the Neighbours episode which was broadcast on BBC One the following day concluded with a dedication to her memory and was accompanied by an announcement of Anne's death. Neighbours' broadcaster in Australia, Ten Network, released a statement at the time: “The network was very saddened to hear of the loss. Anne had been out of the show for a couple of years, but she would still come in to answer her fan mail from overseas.”
