Long-time fans of the beloved Australian soap opera Home and Away are about to witness the return of a truly forgotten Summer Bay landmark. Next week’s episodes will see the reintroduction of the exterior of the famed Beach House, a familiar site to viewers from the show’s past, but one that has been noticeably absent from our screens for over twenty years. The reappearance of this specific location is particularly poignant, as it is timed to coincide with a major upcoming storyline: the emotional farewell of fan-favorite character, Irene Roberts.

The revelation of the new filming location, however, is what will truly stun devoted viewers. In a clever nod to the show’s deep history, the stand-in property now being used for the exterior shots is none other than the former set of the iconic Bayside Diner . This location holds immense sentimental value for both the show and Irene herself, as the character, played by Lynne McGranger, worked at the diner during her early years in Summer Bay . The Bayside Diner’s onscreen closure in 2000, which followed a dramatic blaze started by Colleen Smart, was a memorable moment for the series, and the real-life property subsequently underwent a major facelift . While it made a brief, unconnected return in 2013 as the home of Adam Sharp, the brother of Ricky Sharp, its new purpose as Irene’s home is a full-circle moment for the enduring character.

The original exterior of the Beach House first graced screens back in 1990 . For nearly a decade, shots outside the property at the real-life location of Clareville Beach were a fixture of the show . However, by 1999, those direct exterior views vanished, replaced by reliance on stock footage of Clareville Beach. A further shift occurred in 2001 when Home and Away transitioned to widescreen. At that time, production began using a completely different property in Narabine for establishing shots. Crucially, no actual exterior filming was conducted at the Narabine house, meaning Irene had not been seen outside her own home for more than two decades, until this surprising recent development . The decision to restore an authentic exterior experience for such a pivotal storyline is a huge win for viewers who appreciate the show’s attention to detail.

While fans are delighted by the location’s return, they may observe a curious inconsistency in the visuals. The real-life house serving as the Beach House exterior looks markedly different from the fictional, internal set that viewers know intimately . Notably, the actual property is a single-story building, which is missing the upper level that has long been a defining feature of the Beach House’s on-screen design . Despite this slight difference between reality and the world of Summer Bay, the unexpected resurrection of a building tied to both the Bayside Diner and Irene’s past is a nostalgic and welcome surprise that sets the stage for what promises to be an emotional week of episodes.