EXCLUSIVE: Are Kylie Minogue and Kate Ritchie planning TV comebacks on the shows that shot them to fame?

While it’s been more than 10 years since she left her character Sally Fletcher behind, actress Kate Ritchie hasn’t stopped hinting that her days at Summer Bay are far from over.

Kate, 43, sent tongues wagging when she was spotted having lunch with Home And Away’s Ray Meagher, 77, in Sydney, prompting many fans to beg for her return to the show.

“I think Home And Away needs Sally back,” one fan commented, while another added, “The show isn’t the same without you!”

Last month, Kate sent fans wild again when she posted an image of Sydney’s Palm Beach, where the series has long been filmed, on Instagram.

Despite becoming a highly successful radio star on Nova, Kate has made no secret of her desire to be back in front of a camera, with a source telling Woman’s Day last year that she “admitted to feeling like an outsider” in the “boys’ club” that is mainstream radio.

And while she was offered a healthy pay rise to stay on, Kate has still expressed her desires to return to acting.

“The day I walk back onto a film set will be a very happy one,” she told the media last year, and added that she “will always feel attached to Home And Away”.

“Even now, with some distance from those days and having had the chance to develop into my own person without the security blanket of Sally, I still miss it desperately.”

Kate also revealed earlier this year that she had “felt lost” after leaving the long-running soap, having played the role of Sally since she was eight.

“She [Sally] gave me purpose and a sense of achievement,” she said on Anh’s Brush With Fame.

“I thought the only thing I’d ever done of value in my life was when I was her.”

Meanwhile, it’s been nearly four decades since Kylie Minogue appeared on Neighbours as the feisty yet lovable Charlene Robinson.

And now there’s word the Aussie pop princess could be headed back to Ramsay Street.

Talking to Woman’s Day, an insider says a return to the soap has definitely been on the 53-year-old’s mind after announcing she would be moving back to Melbourne after more than 30 years living in the UK.

“She’s absolutely open to it. She has said that Charlene belongs in the past, but given the right circumstance – and right figure – she’d definitely consider it,” says the source.

The insider also adds the show’s producers would be “champing at the bit” to get Kylie back on board amid its floundering ratings.

The show has struggled to regain its viewership since it was shafted to 10 Peach in 2011, so much so that Ten has pulled its Friday night episode, meaning the soap now only airs four nights a week.

The rumours come after Neighbours veteran Alan Fletcher hinted that Kylie could be headed back to her old stomping ground, saying she may “make a cameo for the 40th anniversary special”.

“She’s always expressed gratitude and fondness for Neighbours,” says Alan, 64.

The actor added that fans could also expect to see a reunion with Kylie and her onscreen husband Jason Donovan, saying that Jason – whose character Scott Robinson married Charlene in one of the most watched weddings in Australian TV history – also expressed interest in returning.

“It’d be ratings gold to get those two back onto Ramsay Street together,” says our insider.

“Can you imagine, catching up with Charlene and Scott after all these years?”

Kylie has already dipped her toe into the Neighbours universe in recent years by inviting her ex Jason, 53, on stage to perform their hit Especially For You in 2018.

And if she was to return, it’s not like she’d need a costume.

In 2019, Kylie donned a curly Charlene wig and slipped back into her famous grease-stained overalls for a Tourism Australia ad, and admitted to pocketing the outfit.

“I can tell you I kept the overalls from the… shoot. They were so comfy!” she enthused at the time.