Neighbours starlet Pippa Black returned to her old school this week giving teachers and students at Beaconhills College a thrill. James Degenhardt, teacher Jill Porter, Neighbours star Pippa Black, student Liam O’Kane, with teacher Jeff Porter and Tom Black (front).By Rebecca Fraser
NOT many people can claim that Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan are their aunt and uncle but former Pakenham local Pippa Black can.
Seven months ago the talented 24yearold landed a role on the iconic Australian soapie Neighbours, playing the role of Elle Robinson.
The former school vicecaptain at Beaconhills Christian College said this had been the “massive” break she had been waiting for after years of auditions and knock backs.
“To be part of an Australian icon is just amazing especially when I came in during their 20th anniversary,” Ms Black said.
“I remember my first morning in makeup and I was sitting next to Ryan Maloney and I was like oh my god that is Toadie.”
Ms Black said she also enjoyed a great friendship with the cast and particularly with her screen dad Paul Robinson, played by Stefan Dennis.
The former St Patrick’s Primary School student is now an ambassador for the Narre Warren Lighthouse Foundation and said she often returned home to stay and visit her parents and family who both still lived in the area.
The actress said she did not get the “acting itch” until she completed high school and deferred her Animal Technology studies to pursue her new ambition.
“To begin with I was trying to juggle fulltime studies with acting studies as well so I thought well I will give myself two years and then I will go back and knuckle down with my science.
“Then it went from two to three to four years and I thought I can never give this up,” she said.
Ms Black said the early starts, long days and countless hours spent memorising lines were hard work but said she would never take the role for granted.
“I tried so hard to get work and to get a foot in the door.
“I really had to bust a gut.
“They would say for about every 10 auditions you would be lucky to get the 10th one but to me it felt like you went for 20 and you were lucky to get the 20th one.
Ms Black said she looked back on her years in Pakenham with much fondness remembering her times with Pakenham Little Athletics and at the Pakenham Pony Club.
She said that many teachers at Beaconhills had also “bent over backwards” for her and she was very grateful for their support.
Ms Black is also in the running for a Best New Talent Award nomination at this year’s Logies and said she was looking forward to “frocking up”.
She said she was just days away from moving to London when she received the call that she had landed the part on the longrunning soap.
“When Grundys called I was crying and shaking and my agent had to send me out of the room,” she said.
