Neighbours is facing the axe from British screens

NEIGHBOURS could soon be pulled from British TV screens amid reports renegotiation talks have stalled between producers and the show’s UK broadcaster.

NEIGHBOURS could soon be pulled from British TV screens amid reports renegotiation talks have stalled between producers and the show’s UK broadcaster.

The popular Aussie export, which first aired in Britain 31 years ago, was moved from a prime time slot to Channel 5 in 2008.

“The renegotiation of the Neighbours deal has become very fraught and is in jeopardy,” a source told Sunday People .

“The failure to reach a deal is being blamed on Channel 5’s new American owners Viacom for refusing to sign off on the figures and not understanding the cultural importance of the show in the UK. Neighbours has become a British TV favourite and it would be a sad day if it were to go.”

We were all gripped by Dee and Toadie’s tragic love story.

Karl and Susan are longtime favourites.

The original crew: Lou, Madge and Harold.

Neighbours has been popular with British viewers for decades, attracting even more fans over there than in its home country.

In fact, in its earliest seasons, the show was aired in the UK twice daily in the morning and at lunchtime, before being moved to an early evening timeslot.

Thanks to its British fanbase, Neighbours has also managed to launch the international careers of a number of major Australian stars, including Kylie Minogue, Margot Robbie, Natalie Imbruglia, Guy Pearce and Jason Donovan.

Despite a recent decline in audience numbers, there has been a strong backlash on Twitter to news the soap could soon be axed.

A Change.org petition pleading with Channel 5 to keep the show running had been signed by more than 4,000 people as of Monday morning.