Dieter Brummer former Home Away heartthrob dead at 45

Former Home & Away star Dieter Brummer has died, aged just 45.

Brummer played Shane Parrish, love interest and eventual husband of Melissa George’s Angel Brooks, on Seven’s long-running soap from 1991 to 1996, appearing in 557 episodes. He also appeared in Neighbours, Underbelly and Winners & Losers.

Dieter Brummer, pictured here at the 2010 DVD launch of Underbelly: The Golden Mile in Sydney, has died at 45.Credit:Getty

NSW Police confirmed that local officers responded to reports of a concern for welfare at a home in Glenhaven, Sydney, at 1.30pm on Saturday, July 24.

“The body of a man was located inside the home,” they said. “His death is not believed to be suspicious. A report will be prepared for the information of the coroner.”

In a statement issued on Monday evening, Brummer’s family mourned the loss of their “handsome, talented, funny, complicated and beloved Dieter”, who had died on Saturday morning.

“He has left a massive hole in our lives and our world will never be the same. Our thoughts go out to all of you who knew him, loved him, or worked with him over the years,” the statement reads. “We appreciate you respecting our privacy at this terrible time”.

Dieter Brummer in 1995.

Channel 7 described Brummer as a beloved cast member who had fans around the world.

“Home and Away and Channel 7 are deeply saddened to hear of Dieter Brummer’s passing,” said a spokesperson for the network.

“Dieter was a much-loved Home and Away cast member and celebrated by Australian and international audiences for his award-winning portrayal of Shane Parrish. We send our sincere condolences to Dieter’s family and friends during this very difficult time.”

Brummer won two Logies as most popular actor for his role on Home & Away, which ended with his bad-boy character dying tragically young from blood poisoning after stepping on a rusty nail. But his attitude to acting and the very public profile it brought him was famously ambivalent.

He joined the cast of the show at the age of 15. Coming straight from high school to the height of teen adulation was, he told David Knox of industry site TV Tonight in 2010, “a pretty intense time”.

Leaving the show six years later wasn’t just about pursuing other career opportunities â€" it was also a chance to regain some semblance of normality in his life.

“I was so busy as a teenager I didn’t get to join friends on trips or do a lot of the things my friends got to do,” he told Knox. “I spent the early part of my 20s catching up on a few years that I’d missed out on.”

The work came intermittently â€" a role on Medivac, the odd miniseries or telemovie â€" but by the early 2000s he had left acting behind for a new career as a window cleaner on high-rise buildings. It wasn’t until 2009, when he scored a small role as policeman Trevor Haken in Nine’s Underbelly, that he once again felt the allure of the screen.

Dieter Brummer and Melissa George on Home & Away.Credit:Internet

Interviewed at the time that show was released, Brummer said he was quite happy with his “Plan B”.

“The good part about it is I don’t have to deal with people too much,” he said of his second career as a bucket- and squeegee-wielding abseiler. “If I was pulling beers I would have to put up with guys saying: ‘Oh you’re pulling beers now and you used to be in Underbelly’.”

Brummer would reprise the character of Haken in a vastly expanded role in the third season of Underbelly in 2010, and Nine’s head of drama, Andy Ryan, said the network was “privileged” to have him deliver an “indelible performance as corrupt detective Trevor Haken”.

“Everyone at Nine is deeply saddened by the news of Dieter’s passing,” said Ryan. “Even beyond his iconic role as Shane in Home & Away, Dieter was an outstanding and versatile talent ... our thoughts are with Dieter’s family and loved ones.”

The news of Brummer’s passing began circulating on social media on Monday afternoon, including on the Facebook page of Steve Comey, a friend, and former acting colleague, of Brummer, where others who knew him expressed shock and sadness at his passing.

At the height of his fame, Brummer and his Home & Away partner Melissa George were Australian television’s hottest couple. But in real life their relationship was strained.

In an interview to promote the 2018 special Endless Summer: 30 years of Home & Away, Brummer admitted the relationship between the pair “was all on screen”.

The comment echoed his statements from six years earlier, following an outburst from George in response to questions about her role on the soap, saying, “we may have been love interests on the show but the chemistry was far from real”.

But for the fans â€" who twice voted him Dolly magazine’s prince of soap â€" the affection was never less than genuine.

Crisis support can be found at Lifeline (13 11 14 and lifeline.org.au), the Suicide Call Back Service (1300 659 467 and suicidecallbackservice.org.au) and beyondblue (1300 22 4636 and beyondblue.org.au).

Email the author at kquinn@theage.com.au, or follow him on Facebook at karlquinnjournalist and on Twitter @karlkwin

Karl Quinn is a senior culture writer at The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.

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