With over 32 years on Home and Away and two Logies (one gold and one silver) under her belt, Lynne McGranger was one well-respected member of the Summer Bay crew – except when she filmed scenes with one particular person around on set.
The Aussie TV icon, who played Irene Roberts on the beloved Aussie soap, has candidly opened up about a time she was bullied while working on the show.
Appearing in the launch episode of her H&A co-stars Sam Frost and Sarah Roberts’ new podcast, Cracking On, the 73-year-old recalled a time she confronted a colleague over constant attacks in front of crew and cast members.
“There was a time where I felt bullied, doesn’t matter how old you are,” McGranger revealed.
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While she is careful not to name the individual, the star says the words she often received came from someone who should definitely have known better.
“I felt it came from quarters that it shouldn’t have come from,” she continued.
“One day it just got … because I’m a bit of a red mist person … I’ll put up with that stuff, put up with stuff and then I just lose it.”
And one day, she most certainly did.
“Of course we’re in a situation where almost the whole cast was there, and extras, because why do something in private? And I just remember saying to this person: ‘Are you always an asshole or is it just towards me?’ and this person said, ‘Oh it’s just towards you’ and I went: ‘I thought so.’”
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Thankfully, the tense confrontation stopped any further incidents.
“You know what? Never again. Never again!” she added.
Lynne filmed her final scenes in 2025 – officially farewelling her time on the show that earned her the incredible title of the longest-serving female cast member in an Australian television soap opera.
In a devastating but powerful final storyline that she actually pitched to producers herself, beloved local Irene is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
Rather than a tragic on-screen deterioration, she bows out on her own terms – signing the diner over to Leah (Ada Nicodemou), throwing an emotional farewell bash, and handing John Palmer (Shane Withington) a plane ticket to Paris before jetting off to travel the world while she still can.
Speaking on her monumental exit, the soap legend called leaving Summer Bay “bittersweet,” but proudly described her decades-long stint in a statement as “the best and longest gig of my life.”
Earlier this year, it was announced that McGranger would be starring in a new TV show,SHARK, on rival network, Channel 9.
The new series, with an air date yet to be confirmed, will feature six Australian celebrities who will face their greatest fears, entering the waters of the Bahamas with some of the most frightening shark species known to humans.