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Neighbourhood > Guest Character Profiles > Bobby Hoyland Andrew McFarlane

The errant father of Izzy and Max Hoyland, Bobby had been absent for much of their lives. His job as an engineer took him all over the world and provided Bobby with plenty of excuses to disappear for months on end as his wife, Rosie, coped alone. The marriage finally broke down for good when both Max and Izzy were still young and the kids were sent off to boarding schools as Rosie left to travel and find herself, eventually settling on a new life as a vicar. Meanwhile, Bobby made fleeting visits to his family, which left Max resentful as he grew older, though Izzy still worshipped her dad.

As both Max and Izzy were settled in Erinsborough, they received an unexpected letter from their dad, who’d been working in Finland. Although Max wanted nothing to do with him, Izzy was delighted to have contact, and even more thrilled when he suddenly arrived in town shortly afterwards. Bobby found things in disarray for the Hoyland family, as Max’s son, Boyd, was in a coma following an operation to remove a brain tumour. The family were beginning to give up hope and that evening, Bobby visited his grandson and began talking to him, at which point Boyd woke up. Max was thrilled when Izzy phoned with the news, but horrified when he arrived at the hospital to be confronted with his father. Both Izzy and Max’s wife, Steph, convinced him to allow Bobby to stay the night, but it became clear that Max wasn’t about to let his father get too close. However, Bobby worked his usual charm and, before long, he was sleeping in a room at the back of the Scarlet Bar, co-owned by Max and Izzy, and also working a few shifts there.

It didn’t take long for Bobby to catch the eye of the local women either, and, on his first night in town, he accompanied Janelle Timmins to the Crown Casino, though she refused to take things further as she was still involved with her absent husband, Kim. Soon after, Bobby managed to work his charms on teacher Susan Smith, then Susan’s best friend – and Max’s mother-in-law – Lyn Scully. When news came through that Rosie would be coming for a visit, Bobby’s true colours began to show, as he packed his bags to leave. However, Lyn managed to stop him and he talked his way out of the situation when Rosie suddenly cancelled. In the weeks that followed, Bobby attempted to win back Max’s favour by getting the money, at an illegal casino, to fund Steph’s appeal against a murder charge which was preventing her and Max from adopting a child. Although Steph won the case, Max was unimpressed with his dad’s grand gestures. Things only got worse when Max realised that Summer, his daughter, had been given Bobby’s mobile phone to use, on the pretext that she field calls from all of his lady friends.

Meanwhile, Bobby had managed to win over both Susan and Lyn and had started secretly dating the pair of them. The women had agreed with each other to stay away from men, after a series of terrible relationships, so Bobby easily talked them into keeping it all a secret. However, as Lyn grew closer to Bobby, she finally confessed all to Susan, who quickly told Bobby that it was over between them. Things then got worse for Bobby as Lyn started coming on strong, and wanted to tell the rest of the family about them, so he unceremoniously dumped her. As a tearful Lyn told Susan and Janelle what had happened, the three women realised that they’d all been played for idiots and set about getting their own back. Janelle talked Bobby into abandoning a quiet dinner with Izzy and her partner, Karl Kennedy, to have some fun with her. However, as he settled down on the couch with Janelle, Susan and Lyn suddenly appeared. The three women tied him to a kitchen chair in his underwear, and proceeded to tell him exactly how he’d left them feeling, before kicking him out. Unfortunately, the incident was witnessed by Izzy, who’d grown suspicious of her dad’s nocturnal activities and followed him.

With few friends, and his family all against him, Bobby began to make plans to leave town. Despite all that he had done, Izzy found it difficult to lose her dad from her life. However, when he started talking about borrowing money from her – on the pretext of setting up his own business – she realised exactly what was going on. Bobby had secretly arranged an engineering job in Malawi and was making a quick getaway. Unfortunately, he wasn’t quick enough and Max spotted him at the bus stop, where he proceeded to tell his dad exactly what he thought of him. And so, having broken a few hearts and disappointed his kids once again, Bobby left Erinsborough, seemingly for good.

Biography by Steve

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