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Guest Character Profiles > Carmel Tyler Kirsty Child

Carmel Tyler (née Smith) 2002, 2012-2013
Parents: Mr Smith and Grace Smith
Marital Status: Robert Tyler (Separated 2012)
Siblings: Liz and Susan
Children: Darcy
Family Tree: Tyler/Smith
Occupation: Drama Teacher

Sister to Susan Kennedy and Liz Conway, Carmel arrived in Erinsborough to visit her son, Darcy Tyler, and help Susan’s husband, Karl, to find his wife, who was missing, having run away after being diagnosed with retrograde amnesia. As soon as Carmel arrived, she and Karl started arguing, with Karl concerned that she wasn’t taking the issue as seriously as she could. He told her that she was the only person there who had known Susan in 1972 – the year she now believed it to be – and he needed to know of any old schoolfriends or boyfriends that Susan might have gone looking for. After seeing one of Susan’s old photos, Carmel quickly recognised a boy as someone Susan had been particularly close to, but struggled to remember his name, leaving Karl even more frustrated. Later that day, however, neighbour Lyn Scully mentioned the name Craig, saying that Susan had said his name a few times, and Carmel remembered Susan’s ex-boyfriend, Craig Benson.

Meanwhile, as Carmel went into the local Coffee Shop, she got chatting to the waitress, Penny Watts – Darcy’s girlfriend - who admitted that she was extremely nervous about meeting her boyfriend’s mum, with neither realising who the other actually was. That evening, Carmel went to the pub to have dinner with Darcy and his girlfriend, and the two women were embarrassed to admit that they had already met. The evening came to an abrupt end when Carmel left early, admitting that she couldn’t stop worrying about Susan. With Darcy fearing the worst about his mother hating his girlfriend, the two women decided to play a joke on him, and, whenever Darcy was around, they pretended to argue. However, Carmel’s brief visit came to an end, as the Kennedys tracked down Craig and Susan, and told Carmel that there really wasn’t much she could do, and she admitted to her son that she thought Penny was lovely, and warned him not to break her heart.

In November 2012, Carmel made a sudden and unexpected return to Erinsborough, having taken a few weeks off from her job teaching drama in Sydney. Susan was surprised, but delighted, to see her sister, who broke the news that she and Robert had split up, having been growing apart for a while, and she was determined to have a little fun in her life now, making her intentions clear as she openly flirted with Susan's married friend Ajay Kapoor. As Susan and Karl were also separated, Carmel suggested that they both try a speed-dating event at the local community centre, but things became a little awkward when Karl was also in attendance. Carmel and Karl happily chatted away, and it quickly became clear that Carmel was attracted to him, and she wrote down his number on her speed-dating card, though later had second thoughts, realising that it would upset Susan. Later, Karl invited them both over for brunch the next morning, and Susan was surprised as Carmel and Karl seemed to be getting on better than ever. Though Karl claimed that he only viewed Carmel as the big sister he never had, it was becoming obvious that Carmel had other ideas, and was happy to listen to his problems when Susan was busy with work. Meanwhile, Susan and Carmel were struggling to get along, their old sisterly bickering coming to the surface again, and with Carmel determined to have fun, Susan couldn't think of anything they could do together. With Carmel not wanting to go to a boring gallery or on a bush walk, Susan suddenly had a brainwave and took her along to a pole-dancing class she'd been attending to keep fit. Unfortunately, the class had barely started before Carmel fell off the pole and injured her knee, though the sisters were getting along better by now and Carmel was happy to accept when Susan asked her to stay a little longer.

Hearing that Karl and Susan's surrogate daughter Summer was at a loose end and needed some help with deciding the next direction her life should take, Carmel quickly swooped in and encouraged her to help with a Christmas gift drive at the community centre. Carmel was delighted when Karl agreed to come along, and it wasn't long before Summer picked up on Carmel's obvious attraction to her ex brother-in-law. Karl was amazed when Summer pointed out that Carmel had a crush on him, and tried to prove her wrong by asking Carmel out for an expensive dinner. As Carmel accepted, she was delighted that things seemed to be going her way, until Susan suggested that they go and see the Cary Grant film The Bishop's Wife. As she and Susan reminisced about watching Cary Grant films as young girls, Carmel realised that she'd have to cancel her lunch with Karl, as it clashed with the film, and she tracked him down to apologise. When Susan then offered her friend Priya, a place to stay as she went through marital problems, Carmel found Karl offering her a room and she gratefully accepted, though she ended up misreading the situation that night, when she followed Karl into his bedroom with a bottle of wine. Their brief encounter was interrupted when word came through that neighbour Sonya had gone into labour, and Karl rushed off.

The next morning, Carmel was with Susan when she heard about Sonya being in hospital, and the sisters rushed off to support her and Toadie. The tenstions between Karl and Carmel were obvious, but Susan's thoughts were occupied with worrying about Sonya. When word came through that baby Nell had been born, Susan was surprised to then be met with the news that Carmel had decided to leave, and shocked when Carmel told her that Karl had made a pass at her. Despite Carmel's attempts to get Susan to forget about the whole thing and move on, Susan confronted Karl, who told her the truth. Appalled, Susan asked Carmel to go, saying that clearly they hadn't sorted out their problems from childhood, if Carmel had tried to steal Susan's ex-husband. As she prepared to leave, Carmel admitted that she'd always been envious of the relationship between Karl and Susan; they'd been best friends as well as husband and wife, and she'd never had that with Robert. As the sisters again patched up their difference, Carmel agreed to stay on for a few more days.

Carmel soon realised that it was time for her to go back to Sydney, but before she went, she decided that it was her mission to try and get Susan and Karl back together. The three of them started looking at fundraising ideas for baby Patrick Villante and, as she noticed how well her sister and ex-brother-in-law were getting on, she made her excuses and left them alone. The plan had the desired effect, as Karl and Susan got chatting about old times over a bottle of wine, but at the end of the night, Karl tried to kiss Susan, leaving her upset and confused over her feelings. Carmel was disappointed that things hadn't quite gone to plan, but made sure to remind Susan how happy she'd once been with Karl, and what a wonderful man she was giving up, before she returned home to begin divorce proceedings from her own husband.

Biography by Steve

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