Neighbours star Alan Fletcher – who plays Karl Kennedy – has revealed that he thinks viewers of the Aussie soap will “come to accept” Erin Mullally taking over the role of Declan Napier.

Napier was previously played by James Sorenson, but the show’s writers decided to keep Declan’s character in the show when James announced he was leaving to join the army.

Alan described Erin as, “tall, dark, handsome with a mellifluous voice.

“He’s best described as you would here in Australia as a spunk. People are going to love him”.

And in the interview with the PA about Erin, Alan added, “This is always a really difficult matter in ongoing shows like Neighbours. It has of course been done plenty of times in the past…

“It can be unsettling for fans to begin with but you generally find the new actors settle in very quickly and the audience comes to accept them very quickly.”

Alan also hinted that there would be some major storylines for Declan in the show this year. He said, “The character of Declan was too important to the programme to let him lapse.

“His relationship with Kate and baby India, they were integral part of the street.

“James was no longer available so it was a natural progression to replace him with another actor.

“I’m sure the fans will come to accept Erin as much as they like James.”