Lionel Skeggins [SEP] present in work
Lionel Skeggins
Lionel Skeggins is a fictional character on the New Zealand soap opera "Shortland Street" who was portrayed by John Leigh. His casting on the show began in late 1993 as a guest role and ended in early 1999 as a fan favourite regular. Lionel returned for a cameo in the show's 25th Anniversary in 2017.
Creation and casting.
John Leigh auditioned for the role in 1993 but was considered risky due to his relatively "old" age and lack of TV experience. Leigh recalls the casting
occurred in 1997 when Kirsty became suspicious of new doctor Ian and suspected him of trying to take over the hospital. Kirsty started to investigate Ian when he was linked to the death of Rebecca and when he was proven to be responsible, Ian attempted to drown Kirsty in a pool.
Character development Kirsty and Lionel.
In 1994 Kirsty's romance storyline's drastically changed when producers paired her with the unlikely Lionel Skeggins. Several people involved in production were skeptical that the "Beauty and the Beast" storyline could actually work,