Sophie Ramsay

Sophie Ramsay
Neighbours character
Portrayed by	Kaiya Jones
Introduced by	Susan Bower
Duration	2009–
First appearance	18 May 2009
Classification	Current, regular
Profile
Date of birth	12 May 1997
Home	22 Ramsay Street
Occupation	Student at Erinsborough Primary (2009) Student at Erinsborough High (2010–12)
Family Family Ramsay Father Patrick Mooney Mother Jill Ramsay Brothers Harry Ramsay Sisters Kate Ramsay Grandfathers Max Ramsay Grandmothers Anne Robinson Uncles Shane Ramsay Danny Ramsay Paul Robinson Scott Robinson Aunts Julie Martin Lucy Robinson Cousins Hannah Martin Amy Robinson Cameron Robinson Elle Robinson Robert Robinson Andrew Robinson Daniel Robinson Madison Robinson Moira Ramsay Gemma Ramsay Henry Ramsay Charlene Robinson Other relatives Madge Bishop Tom Ramsay

Sophie Ramsay is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Kaiya Jones. She made her first on-screen appearance on 18 May 2009. The character was created as part of a new generation of the Ramsay family. Sophie is the youngest of the Ramsay siblings, which also include brother and sister Harry and Kate. Jones began filming her first scenes with Neighbours in February 2009.

Character creation and casting

In February 2009, Channel 5 announced Neighbours were introducing a new generation of the Ramsay family to the show. At the time of the casting announcement, the Ramsays had not appeared in Neighbours for over a decade. Executive producer Susan Bower said the introduction of the new Ramsay family members was based on the American drama series Party of Five. Bower explained "We have three orphans, basically. That, as you can imagine, has a tremendous amount of story material with it and they're fabulous! Wait until you see this cast. They just clicked". Bower introduced the new characters despite the show receiving criticism because they did not have a nuclear or "normal" family. Brisbane actress Ashleigh Brewer was cast as the eldest member of the new family, Kate, and Will Moore was cast as the only boy, Harry.

Kaiya Jones, a former cast member of The Saddle Club, was cast as Sophie, the youngest member of the Ramsay family, following a competitive audition process. Jones began filming her first scenes with Neighbours in February 2009. Jones was born and raised in Scotland and has lost her Scottish accent while living and filming in Australia. Of her casting, Jones told Samantha Booth of the Daily Record, "Filming Neighbours is so much fun. I just love my job and wouldn't want to be doing anything else. The cast and crew are so kind and lovely. They are practically my second family now. They're also very patient".

Development

Characterisation and crush

Sophie was initially described as being the "baby of the family", who was trying to come to terms with the death of her mother, Jill (Perri Cummings). Channel 5 said Sophie was traumatised by Jill's death and she and her siblings had to fend for themselves. Sophie began communicating through drawings and revealed she knew more about her mother's death than anyone else. Sophie and her siblings soon settled into Number 24 and Sophie "found her feet", especially with the support of her friend, Callum Jones (Morgan Baker). Both Sophie and Callum bonded over mutual ground, as they were without their real parents. As she gets older, Sophie develops into a pretty, "free spirited" teenager.

Sophie develops feelings for neighbour and friend, Zeke Kinski (Matthew Werkmeister). Zeke finds out and he mistakingly tells his friends about her schoolgirl crush. Sophie is publicly humiliated and vows not to leave her house again. Zeke tries to make things better by going to visit her. A Neighbours insider told the Daily Star, "Sophie is humiliated and ends up running away to hide from everyone. Zeke feels terrible and is determined to help her."

Noah Parkin

In July 2011, Orpheus Pledger joined the cast as Noah Parkin. Pledger began filming his first scenes opposite Jones and many of Noah's early scenes were with Sophie. Channel 5 reported Noah would get close to one particular Erinsborough local and they should prepare for "heartbreak and havoc." Sophie and Noah connect as they are both really into music. When asked how Noah feels about Sophie, Pledger said "She's just a friend and another student who happens to be into the same thing. He just wants to help her." Noah agrees to help Sophie with her guitar lessons and she develops a crush on him. However, Sophie is unaware that Noah is attracted to her sister instead. Sophie is left heartbroken when she discovers Noah does not like her romantically and has a crush on someone else. Of the development, Susan Hill of the Daily Star explained "The pretty student has been dreaming about Noah and would love to be his girlfriend. So when she finds out he's in love with someone but he can't tell her who, she gets her hopes up." However, Sophie is devastated when she learns Noah has his eye on Summer Hoyland (Jordy Lucas). Sophie feels like she cannot compete against someone as attractive as Summer and she has a "pretty tough time of it." Sophie discovers Noah actually likes Kate and she is devastated. She decides to drop out of Noah's band. After Kate tells Noah to stay away from her and Sophie, he reveals their kiss to everyone. He later admits to lying to get her into trouble. However, Andrew Robinson (Jordan Smith) finds Sophie having a go at Noah for trying to ruin her sister's career and he tells her the kiss did happen. Sophie tells Priya Kapoor (Menik Gooneratne) that Noah was not lying and she falls out with Kate.

Makeover and Corey O'Donahue

In September 2011, the official Neighbours website reported Jones had decided to cut her waist length hair into a Bob cut. The website said the reason why Jones' character was sporting a new look would be revealed in the coming months. Jones explained Sophie's styling choices are "pretty extreme" compared to her own casual style and she added "I can't give too much away but her look is very radical, she's definitely discovered what eye-liner and mascara is all about." On 6 October, Channel 5 reported Sophie would undergo a radical rock chick makeover. They said "The transformation reflects Sophie's shift from demure school girl to would-be rock chick, and is key to a major storyline which sees her rebellious side start to emerge." News of Sophie's "drastic" makeover followed Jones' decision to have her hair styled into a bob to reflect the personality changes in her character.

Sophie moves in with her uncle, Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis), following her falling out with Kate and more of her rebellious nature begins to come out. Jones told a writer for Inside Soap "Sophie wants to be independent. Now she's living with Paul, she thinks she can do what she wants because her sister, Kate, isn't looking over her shoulder all the time." Paul tells Sophie she is too young to attend a Red Cotton gig, which makes her more determined to go. She asks her cousin, Andrew, to help her out as he organised the gig. Jones said Sophie is manipulative and uses emotional blackmail to get what she wants. Andrew manages to persuade Paul into letting Sophie attend the gig, saying he will keep an eye on her. The storyline also saw the introduction of a new love interest for Sophie. Sophie meets and develops an attraction to Corey O'Donahue (Toby Wallace). Of Corey, Wallace said "He meets [Sophie] at one of his brother's gigs - they both click and she really likes him. But there's this wall between Sophie and Corey in that she doesn't really know who he is. She likes that mystery." Corey impresses Sophie and he gives her her first kiss. Wallace said he and Jones found the scene awkward to shoot at first, but it became comfortable after a while. When Paul turns up at the gig, Andrew finds Sophie and Corey together and pulls them apart. He orders Sophie to stay away from Corey, but she refuses. Jones said "Sophie thinks of this guy as a great distraction. She threatens to tell Paul that she kissed Corey at the gig - and Andrew knows that his dad will be furious with him if he finds out..."

Storylines

Sophie's mother, Jill, dies after a hit-and-run accident and she, Harry and Kate are left to fend for themselves. Kate buys Sophie a bike and when she falls off and hurts her ankle, Kate realises that the family need help. The family then move into Ramsay Street. Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) became the prime suspect in Jill's death, but Rebecca Napier (Jane Hall) realises that Sophie witnessed her mother's accident. Sophie explains that Paul was helping Jill and Sophie thanks him. Sophie befriends Callum Jones and they bond over shared interests. Sophie encourages Kate to start dancing again. When the family is put at risk of being split up by the DHS, Harry tries to keep the situation a secret from Sophie. Sophie finds out and makes Harry and Kate promise to tell her everything.

Callum and Sophie begin attending Erinsborough High. Callum strikes up a friendship with some other boys and Sophie is bullied. Callum gets Sophie's pencil case back from the bullies and she prevents his friends from embarrassing him in public. Sophie admits that she has applied to the National Basketball Academy on Harry's behalf and he got in. Harry is delighted and he gets into the academy and leaves for Sydney. When Sophie gets a low mark on a Maths paper, Natasha Williams (Valentina Novakovic) becomes her tutor. Sophie, Kate and their guardian, Lou Carpenter (Tom Oliver), invite Lucas Fitzgerald (Scott Major) to move in with them. Sophie develops a crush on Zeke Kinski and she joins the school social committee as Zeke is a member. Callum teases her about her crush and they fall out. Natasha learns of Sophie's crush on Zeke and blackmails her into voting for the things she wants for the social.

Zeke tries to let Sophie down gently, but she becomes upset. Jade Mitchell (Gemma Pranita) helps Sophie to get over Zeke. Sophie helps Callum to find out who his mother is. After Callum learns Sonya Mitchell (Eve Morey) is his mother, Sophie blames Sonya for him and demands that she leave. Sophie asks Lisa Devine (Sophie Tilson) to give her make over. She is teased by Dean Harman (Cameron Heine) and Summer Hoyland encourages her to wear what she feels comfortable in. Lyn Scully (Janet Andrewartha) allows Sophie to babysit Charlie Hoyland (Jacob Brito). While Sophie is on the phone, Charlie runs away. Lyn blames Sophie for losing Charlie, but when he is found, she apologises. Kate asks Sophie to drop everything and leave town with Mark (Scott McGregor). Sophie initially refuses, but changes her mind and she and Kate race to meet Mark. However, they are too late and he leaves without them.

Sophie starts learning the guitar and she is impressed by new student, Noah Parkin, who helps her learn the chords. Lucas buys her a guitar and Noah starts giving her lessons. Sophie later organises a gig for Noah to say thanks. Sophie swaps her guitar for a bass, so she can join Noah's music collective. She decides to change her image and undergoes a makeover. Sophie plays with Noah and the collective at Charlie's. Sophie finds Noah's sketchbook and is devastated to learn he has a crush on Kate. Noah reveals Kate kissed him and when Andrew confirms the allegation is true, Sophie tells Priya Kapoor, the acting principal. Noah reveals that Kate kissed him because she was grieving for Mark. Sophie confronts Kate about keeping Mark's death a secret. She then moves in with Paul Robinson and the sisters relationship deteriorates.

Sophie helps Andrew organise a gig for Red Cotton and Paul allows her to go. Sophie meets Corey O'Donahue and kisses him, but Andrew interrupts them and sends Sophie home. Sophie blackmails Andrew into letting her see Corey, behind Paul's back. Sophie realises she does not have much in common with Corey, but Andrew encourages her to keep dating him as he is close to signing Red Cotton, whose lead singer is Corey's brother. However, Sophie breaks up with Corey. Lucas informs Sophie that Kate has left and he does not know where she is. Sophie goes to help with Red Cotton's music video that Andrew is shooting in the school. Corey's brother is unhappy when Sophie turns up and she apologises for hurting Corey. Sophie halts filming because she feels the band needs more attitude, but she gets carried away and wrecks a bathroom.

Sophie believes Kate left because of her and Paul assures her she did not. When Sophie refuses to apologise for her actions, Priya expels her. Roz Challis (Janet Watson Kruse) of the DHS hears of Sophie's expulsion and explains that Kate has seven days to return or Sophie will be placed in foster care. Paul leaves Susan Kennedy (Jackie Woodburne) to look after Sophie while he searches for Kate and Sophie asks Susan to be her guardian, but she turns her down. Believing Kate will not return for the DHS meeting, Sophie runs away. Callum finds her hiding in Rani Kapoor's (Coco-Jacinta Cherin) bedroom and urges her to return home. Callum tells Paul where Sophie is and he comes to collect her. Kate returns in time for the DHS meeting and she and Sophie talk. They admit they do not want to live together anymore and Paul successfully applies to become Sophie's guardian.

Reception

Holy Soap said that Sophie's most memorable moment was witnessing the "crash that killed her mother" and communicating this through drawings in her journal, before coming forward to help Paul Robinson off the hook. Peter Dyke and Katie Begley of the Daily Star called Sophie a "pretty teen." A writer for the Herald Sun branded Sophie's crush on Zeke "creepy". When Sophie began to change her personality and appearance, Cameron Adams of The Advertiser said he knew Sophie had gone emo because she had her nose pierced. Adams added "Sophie's pierced herself for a boy, of course. Problem is, he's older. And a muso. So cue lots of pouting, jaw-dropping and "whatever" and "OMG" facial expressions. And then looking at him wistfully as they pretend to rock out." Adams later called Sophie "recalcitrant". The Herald Sun's Dianne Butler said Sophie wore too much eye make-up.

External links

• Character profile on the Official AU Neighbours website
• Character profile on the Official UK Neighbours website