Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera. It was created by Reg Watson and first broadcast on 18 March 1985. The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the soap in 2001, by order of first appearance. All characters were introduced by the show's executive producer Stanley Walsh. The 17th season of Neighbours began airing on 15 January 2001.[1] Jess Fielding made her debut in the following month. Matt Hancock arrived in March, while his father, Evan, and Jack Scully began appearing from April. Maggie Hancock made her debut in May and Larissa Calwell arrived the following month. September saw the introduction of Tim Collins. Sandy Allen began appearing from October, while Mitch Foster followed in November. December saw the introductions of Liz Conway, Stuart Parker and Elly Conway, as well as the year's first birth, Ben Kirk.