EXCLUSIVE: Home and Away’s Paddy O’Connor is best known for his role as Dean Thompson on the Aussie soap and revealed a major feature about his character that almost never happened
Paddy O’Connor, a star of Home and Away, acknowledged that a defining aspect of his soap opera character rarely appeared on television.
The 30-year-old actor is best known for his 2018–present depiction of River Boy Dean Thompson on the Channel 5 soap opera.
But according to Paddy, who spoke exclusively to Daily Star, it seems the persona almost came to Summer Bay under a totally different name.
“They have a scene or a character blurb when you get your audition for Home and Away, and that can change at any time before you start the role,” he said.
“And so originally it was Roy Thompson,” Paddy continued. Could you envision me being Roy?
In a humorous statement, Sophie Dillman, who plays Dean’s on-screen love interest Ziggy Astoni, said, “I don’t think Roy and Ziggy would’ve worked out.”
Paddy chuckled, “I don’t believe Roy would have survived.
Paddy and Sophie said this plot line helped them as a pair get ready for real life as Dean and Ziggy recently welcomed their first child together.
Since many of the discussions that took place in the scene would later occur in real life, Sophie, 29, said that having a fake pregnancy was a lot of fun.
Paddy concurred as Sophie continued, “Yeah, like names, types of birth, cravings, and all that kind of thing. We’d go home and talk about those things.”
“It was kind of cool to do all that but then not go home with an actual baby,” Paddy continued.
“We got to practise so it was kind of cool,” the blonde beauty chimed in.
Paddy and Sophie met around 12 years ago when they went to the same acting school but reunited when they were both cast on the soap.
Shortly after their characters Dean Thompson and Ziggy Astoni began a relationship, their romance evolved off-screen and the couple started dating in real life in 2019.