Neighbours actor Darius Perkins, who played the original Scott Robinson before Jason Donovan, has died aged 54.
The soap star, who also appeared in Home And Away, had been suffering from cancer.
He played the part of Robinson for eight months when Neighbours first launched back in 1985. The role was later taken over by Donovan.
Perkins briefly returned to the Australian soap in 2013 when he played another character, Marty Kranic.
Former Neighbours co-star and close friend David Clencie told the Herald Sun: "We had this incredible bond. We were mates to the very end.
"He was completely selfless."
Clencie added: "I am so sad, really devastated to lose my mate."
Such sad news that #dariusperkins the original #ScottRobinson has died after battling cancer #RIP #Neighbours thoughts with all that knew him
—
TeamDonovan
Fans paid tribute to Perkins on Twitter.
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A fan site dedicated to Jason Donovan tweeted: "Such sad news that #dariusperkins the original #ScottRobinson has died after battling cancer #RIP #Neighbours thoughts with all that knew him."
Another fan wrote: "Genuinely sad to hear about the death of Darius Perkins. I actually preferred his version of Scott Robinson in Neighbours to Jason Donovan's. Condolences to all who knew him."
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