‘NCIS’ recurring guest Alan Dale says he’s ‘happy’ to be out of ‘Neighbours’

Kiwi actor Alan Dale has recently blasted Australia’s long-running soap “Neighbours” anew, admitting that he’s glad not to be part of the TV drama anymore.

The 69-year-old became known for his role as Jim Robinson, which he played from 1985 to 1993. When it was time for his exit, Dale’s character was killed off in a fatal heart attack. After leaving “Neighbours,” he moved to the US and built himself a successful acting career. Since then, he appeared in various American TV shows including “Lost,” “ The X-Files ,” “ 24 ,” “ The O.C.” and “ Ugly Betty .” He also played Director Tom Morrow in the high-rating show “NCIS.”

When asked about his stint in “Neighbours,” Dale said he’s happy to be out of it. “Look at my career,” he told TV Week. “I made some sort of crack about the fact that when we started doing “Neighbours,” we got paid the same money as when I was doing “The Young Doctors.’”

In a prior interview with Stage Magazine, he blasted the show for having producers who were greedy and nasty. “There are many examples of the things these people did and, as far as I know, are still doing. I used to fight them all the time, which is one of the reasons we parted company,” he said, as reported by Digital Spy.

Meanwhile, another former “Neighbours” star Kym Valentine revealed how she struggled to return to the soap after giving birth to her daughter Millana. Earlier this year, the 39-year-old Australian actress was reminded of this difficulty when she delivered a baby boy named Phoenix.

Valentine, who has played the character of Libby Kennedy since 1994, said that she was looking forward to spending quality time with her son, having regretted going back to work when Millana was just 12 weeks old. “I've worked a lot of her life and I used to sometimes drive out to the ‘Neighbours’ set crying, having left her asleep in her bed with a babysitter. It broke my heart,” she told Woman's Day. “It feels so great to finally sit on the couch for two hours and watch Phoenix sleep in my arms and not have to rush back to work.”

Valentine’s most recent appearance in “Neighbours” was in 2014. She gave birth to Phoenix in March this year, with her partner Trent Croad, a former AFL player.