Table of Content
The 2020 season return saw a series low for a premiere with only 548,000 tuning in. The 2021 season has seen an increase in ratings with most episodes attracting over 600,000. June saw a rise in viewers when the month peaked at 650,000 for episode which aired on 22 June, while in July, the show continues to receive steady ratings, and again saw a further rise in ratings with 657,000 viewers tuning in on 7 July. The 2021 Olympic return episode, which aired on 9 August 2021, attracted the highest rating in over two years, with 710,000 viewers, with an even higher increase of 733,000 viewers tuning in on 10 August. On 31 March 2022, two episodes achieved new series lows of 382,000 and 364,000 viewers respectively. From 2013 until 2017, Home and Away used a series of five-second opening titles, which changed every week.

On 12 May 2020, it was announced that the show would recommence production following the nine-week suspension. On 19 July 2021, Home and Away was forced to postpone scheduled filming due to new COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in Sydney. The show was already on a two-week production break, which was then extended. In early August, a spokesperson for the show confirmed filming had resumed. In the United States, Home and Away was first shown briefly on the FX cable network from the channel's launch on 1 June 1994 to February 1995.
Production
While on a trip to Kangaroo Point, New South Wales with his family, Bateman began talking to locals who were "up in arms" over the construction of a foster home for children from the city. Seeing the degree of conflict the "influx of parentless children on a tight-knit community" was having, Bateman came away with the idea for a new serial. While Seven Network executives were unconvinced by the idea, audience research was positive.

Meagher now holds that record alone and he is the only remaining original cast member in the show. Meagher along with Lynne McGranger , Ada Nicodemou (Leah Patterson-Baker) and Emily Symons are the longest-serving cast members currently in Home and Away. In 2010, Georgie Parker joined the cast of Home and Away as Alf's daughter Roo Stewart, originally played by Justine Clarke in 1988–89.
Top cast
Home and Away has been sold to over eighty countries around the world, making it one of Australia's most successful media exports. In the UK, it and Neighbours, another Australian soap opera, are the most popular of the genre that are filmed internationally, with them both airing on Channel 5. It is one of the highest-rating shows on RTÉ Television in Ireland and TVNZ 2 in New Zealand. In Australia, Home and Away is the most awarded program at the Logie Awards, with a total of forty-eight wins, including Most Popular Drama Program.
A 2010 episode which featured Martha McKenzie engaging in a sexual scene with Liam Murphy on a kitchen table was deemed "too raunchy" by a television watchdog in New Zealand, where, at the time, the series was aired in a G-rated timeslot. Since 2000, Home and Away has ceased broadcast mid-season for two weeks during the Olympic Games and the episode to screen prior to this is referred to as an 'Olympic cliffhanger'. An Olympic cliffhanger episode would usually involve increased drama, with the peak of a storyline, similar to a season finale episode, and the outcome of the cliffhanger to conclude after the Olympics. In addition to this, Home and Away took a transmission break on 3 April 2018 in order to broadcast the 2018 Commonwealth Games, and returned on 16 April 2018. While Home and Away features a mix of young cast members and older, more experienced actors, the show has always had a definite youth focus, with the younger characters dominating much of the storylines.
Opening titles
The first triple bill on 21 February pulled in 577,000 viewers and ranked 8th for the evening. The ratings for the triple bill episodes continued to fall from 524,000 to 414,000 viewers, and on 28 March 2019, the triple bill pulled in a series low of 383,000 viewers and ranked 14th for the night. April 2019 saw a slight rise in the viewing figures; the first episode of the month drew in 740,000 viewers and ranked 9th for that night. The triple bill episodes continued to receive low ratings until the Thursday, 9 May episodes, which improved with 617,000 viewers. The following week's triple bill saw a further rise with 627,000 viewers, while the episodes broadcast on 30 May received 638,000 viewers and ranked at 7th place for the evening.

In Ireland, Home and Away debuted on Monday, 3 October as part of RTÉ's re-launch of RTÉ2 as Network 2 - their secondary channel. Episodes screened at 6.30pm and in September 1997, a daytime episode was added at 1.25pm on RTÉ One with the 6.30pm episode becoming the replay of the daytime broadcast. Viewers in the Republic of Ireland are also able to catch up with episodes on the RTÉ Player. It was the most watched program of 2014 on the RTÉ Player with over four million viewers. As of 2014, the show is available to view in Northern Ireland on 5STAR daily at 3.30pm and 6.30pm as well as the regular Channel Five airings.
Pippa Doyle of 96FM reported that declining ratings in 2018 and Seven's decision to push the show back had created doubt about its future on the network, and whether or not a timeslot change or a move to a multichannel was likely. The season returned to a series low of 620,000 viewers and ranked 13th for the night. The following night, the viewing figure fell to 581,000 and the show ranked 10th for the night.

Over two decades later, the show began streaming on the subscription service Hulu on 2 March 2015, beginning with the 2015 season. The service no longer receives new episodes, although the complete twenty-eighth season is currently available. At the end of the first episode, Tom and Pippa take in their sixth foster child Bobby Simpson . Aside from New South Wales, Home and Away has also filmed scenes in other states of Australia. In May 2012, the show filmed scenes at Flinders Ranges and Nilpena Station in South Australia for a storyline in which Casey Braxton was kidnapped and taken to the outback by Kyle Braxton . The following month, Home and Away filmed scenes in Melbourne for the second time.
The soap opera was initially called Refuge, but the name was changed to the "friendlier" title of Home and Away once production began. Palm Beach in Sydney's Northern Beaches district has been used as the location for Summer Bay since Home and Away began in 1988. It has since become popular with tourists, and tours to the show's exterior sets at Palm Beach run throughout the year. The exterior scenes are filmed mainly at Palm Beach and at Fisherman's Beach in Collaroy.
Some cast members have won several other awards such as the Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television, Silver Logie for Most Popular Actor, and Most Popular Actress. On 22 March 2020, Home and Away suspended production over the COVID-19 pandemic. Although it was initially stated that the show would continue filming, the decision was later made to halt production, despite neither the cast or crew testing positive for the virus. Furthermore, on 23 March, the show was removed from Seven's schedule to make way for extended coverage on the pandemic.
After Cannan's version received many complaints from fans, the Seven Network decided to re-record the theme song in April 2007 with vocals provided by Luke Dolahenty. A shorter, 15-second version sung by Dolahenty and Tarryn Stokes debuted in 2009. Home and Away is set in Summer Bay, a fictional seaside town in New South Wales. Locations within the town include the beach, a high school, diner, bait shop, garage and a surf club, which includes a gym, small kiosk and an upstairs restaurant. Characters in the show live at surrounding neighbouring areas such as the Summer Bay House, Summer Bay Caravan Park, Beach House, The Farmhouse, Pier Flat, and Saxon Avenue. Other fictional towns mentioned and sometimes seen in Home and Away are Mangrove River and Yabbie Creek.
