Ray Meagher will celebrate his 80th birthday on Thursday, but the TV veteran has no big celebrations planned for the milestone.
Instead, the long-time Home and Away star plans to go to work on set like every other day before having a quiet lunch and a ‘few beers’ with some close friends.
The Gold Logie Award-winning actor said he prefers to ‘fly under the radar’ and not make a big deal out of his birthday, reported The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday.
‘I’ve got seven straight scenes so I will be up at five in the morning and finish at seven,’ Ray told the publication of his upcoming birthday.
‘I’ve always shied away from celebrations a bit. I used to joke with Lynne McGranger [who plays Irene Roberts] because she would tell everybody her birthday was coming up a month in advance and keep celebrating it for a month after.
‘I am perfectly happy to slink under the radar and go along quietly but I love a party, meaning a few beers with a few friends.’
Ray is known for playing his beloved character Alf Stewart for the last 36 years on the Channel Seven show Home and Away.
During a candid interview in March, Ray criticised the soap for becoming less wholesome over the years.
Ray Meagher will celebrate his 80th birthday on Thursday, but the TV veteran has no big celebrations planned for the milestone
He said the crime-based storylines that have dominated the story action in Summer Bay for more than a decade have caused it to stray too far from its ’80s roots.
‘There is still a penchant for a River Boy,’ Ray said of the show’s recent cast of ‘bad boys’ in a chat with industry blog TV Tonight.
‘I mean, that was just a great period. But was it Summer Bay? Hmmm… in my humble opinion, not to that extent.’
Instead, the long-time Home and Away star, who has been on the soap for 36 years, plans to go to work on set like every other day before having a quiet lunch and a ‘few beers’ with some close friends
Ray’s comment referred to the popular ‘River Boys’ storyline which was launched in 2011.
It featured a trio of tough male characters, played by Lincoln Younes, Steve Peacocke and Dan Ewing, who brought trouble to Summer Bay.
Ray, who has been playing Alf on the show since its debut in 1988, praised the talent behind the ‘River Boys’ storylines.
But he believes it jarred against the show’s original premise which centered on a family bringing in foster kids to a little coastal village.
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