List of Neighbours characters (2014)

Kathy Carpenter, played by Tina Bursill, made her first screen appearance on 10 March 2014. Bursill's casting was announced on 22 November 2013, while Kathy has previously been mentioned in the series. A ''Neighbours'' spokesperson confirmed that Bursill began filming her scenes in early 2014. Kathy is the former wife of established character Lou Carpenter (Tom Oliver). Bursill and Oliver previously worked with each other in the 1970s and Bursill commented "While it has been a long time between takes, it was lovely to work with Tom again and also a lot of new faces." In May 2014, Calen MacKenzie, who plays Kathy's on-screen grandson Bailey, confirmed Bursill had reprised her role as Kathy for a second guest stint. Kathy returned on 18 July 2014. Bursill reprised the role again in 2016, and returned on 4 November 2016.

Kathy comes to Ramsay Street to visit her daughter Lauren (Kate Kendall). Kathy is the only other person who knew Lauren had been pregnant with Brad Willis's (Kip Gamblin) child and she helped her daughter to hide the pregnancy. Executive producer Jason Herbison commented that during her visit, Kathy would deliver news that will rock the Turner and Willis households, setting the stage for "some major fireworks throughout the year." Bursill later said that Kathy would shock Lauren when she reveals her child is alive and added "Kathy had been trying to protect her daughter by concealing the truth." Daniel Kilkelly from Digital Spy also reported that Kathy would clash with Lou.

Lauren calls Kathy to say that she is going to tell her husband, Matt (Josef Brown), and Brad Willis about the baby she gave birth to twenty years ago. Kathy arrives in Erinsborough to see Lauren and instantly clashes with her former husband Lou. Lauren intervenes to say Kathy is staying with them. She then takes her mother to see her coffee shop and they discuss the phone call. Kathy tells Lauren that she should keep quiet about the baby. Kathy's youngest grandson, Bailey (Calen Mackenzie), tries to get to the bottom of his grandparents' issues and sits them both down to talk. With Lauren determined to tell Matt about the baby, Kathy admits that the baby was not stillborn and is still alive. Lauren is devastated by Kathy's revelation. Kathy goes on to explain that the baby was adopted out. Lauren is unable to forgive Kathy and asks her to leave. Kathy stays at Lassiter's Hotel, where she meets Brad's wife, Terese (Rebekah Elmaloglou). Kathy tells Terese that she is stopping Lauren from trying to find her daughter. Kathy then informs Bailey and Amber (Jenna Rosenow) about their half-sister, leading to a confrontation with Lou. He asks Kathy to leave, as she is making things worse. However, Kathy stays and buys Number 32 for Lauren. Lauren accepts Kathy's offer on behalf of the children. She then asks her mother to stay away from her family and Kathy leaves town.

Several months later, Lauren invites Kathy back to Erinsborough for Amber and Bailey. She is surprised when, after reconciling over the phone, Kathy makes a sudden arrival, and tells her to book at a room at Lassiter's. Kathy clashes with Terese and Lauren's employee, Paige Smith (Olympia Valance). When Paige shows an interest in Kathy's homeware business, she apologises for her earlier behaviour and Kathy agrees to mentor her. Paige learns that Kathy has hired a private investigator to search for her granddaughter. Paige asks Kathy to abandon the search for Lauren's sake, but Kathy goes ahead with it. Paige later sees Kathy taking some medication and Kathy tells her she has a heart condition. Kathy's private investigator informs her that her granddaughter has been found in Canberra. Kathy meets with Megan Dennison (Stefanie Jones), but she is not happy when Paige interrupts them. Megan later leaves and sends Kathy a text saying the meeting was a mistake. Kathy becomes suspicious of Paige and starts asking around about her. While they are out driving, Kathy goes through Paige's bag and finds a sketch pad with drawings of the Turners and Willises. Kathy realises Paige is the granddaughter she has been searching for, and she has a heart attack causing her to lose control of the car, which then hits Toadfish Rebecchi (Ryan Moloney). Kathy's scarf becomes caught in the door, strangling her. Paige frees her and Kathy and Toadie are taken to the hospital, where Kathy undergoes surgery. When she wakes up, Kathy tells Matt that Paige is Lauren's daughter. Kathy abandons her plans to open a store in Erinsborough and she decides to return to Queensland.

Kathy returns to Erinsborough ahead of Lauren's wedding. Lou follows shortly after and they are hostile towards one another. Kathy explains to Lauren that she and Lou had sex, but when she woke up, Lou had gone. They later learn that Lou thought Kathy had ordered him to leave, but she was actually talking to the cat. They decide not to get back together and Kathy leaves for Brisbane. She returns for the wedding, where she and Lou realise that they still have feelings for each other. They reconcile and hold a small ceremonial vow renewal. They then leave Erinsborough in Lauren and Brad's wedding camper van. Provided by Wikipedia