For the culturally inept, Madge and Harold were the guardians of Charlene (played by world-renowned performer Kylie Minogue) and Henry (her brother, brought to life on screen by Craig McLachlan).
While Minogue, along with Madge and Harold, were all involved in the final episode of the 37-year soap opera — McLachlan was snubbed after a widely publicised court room conflict.
Madge and Harold were polar opposites, one a husky voiced female who had a long running feud with Mrs Mangel, the other a prim and proper Christian who never missed church on Sunday.
The Murrays have their own unique quirks, but life on Ramsay St has been good to them — and continues to be.
They don’t have a long walk to the bowling club, which is only a block to the north of their property — occupying numbers 74-76 in Ramsay St.
The town swimming pool is just a bit further up the street, where it crosses over Elizabeth St and becomes Railway Rd.
Fittingly the family were big fans of the soap opera, David recalling that at one stage the whole family would sit down to watch the Australian television institution.
David and Judy Murray moved into their Ramsay St home on January 15, 1980.
Since then the kids have all left, but they still have a son and daughter in Rochester, along with seven grandkids — who are as much a part of Ramsay St as the handful of children who now live in the street.
Jason Murray, 45, is in Perth, daughter Amber runs Rochester Sportspower with her husband and son Chris is a master builder from town who has four children.
“They always watched Neighbours,” David said.
David said another of Ramsay St’s long-time residents, Ernie Taig, may be the longest resident of the street and another of the long-time neighbours is Pat Wright.
“It is a neighbourly street, we pretty much all know one another,” he said.
David is a retired school teacher, who taught at Corop, Nanneella and Rochester primary schools.
For many years he didn’t have far to walk to school, with Rochester primary only a couple of blocks to the west.
“When I finished at the school instead of walking two blocks to the primary school I walked two blocks to the milk factory,” he said.
David now lives next door to a Rochester secondary maths teacher and his wife, along with their two daughters, but on the north side of his property will soon have new neighbours.
“My neighbour to the north has just moved to Moama, Barb Howard, and her husband Chris,” he said.
“She has been a hairdresser in town for 40 years. Luckily she is going to travel back for work, so I can still get my hair cut.”
Howard O’Sullivan and Becky Moroney, with their three kids, Patrick, Olivia and Jack are also on the street.
“The kids love their neighbours,” Becky said from Cairns, safe with the knowledge that the family home is being watched over be caring neighbours.
Because, after all, “everybody needs good neighbours’’ and ”that’s when Neighbours become good friends’’.
