There is no place like Home (and Away)!
After being away for the last couple of years living in the UK and travelling all over Europe with partner Patrick O’Connor, Sophie Dillman has realised there really is nowhere quite as good as home.
So the actress has moved back with their cavoodle, Winnie, staying with family in Brisbane temporarily ahead of setting up base in Sydney.
“We were so lucky to be able to travel, but I couldn’t handle the cold anymore,” the 31-year-old admits to WHO with a laugh. “Over the last 10 days since our return, I have drowned myself in fresh fruit and salt water, and I feel fantastic.”
Of the things she missed most, family, friends and the beach are at the top of the list. But something unexpected rates pretty highly, too.
“In England, no-one has power plugs in the bathroom, so I always had to dry my hair in the bedroom, which is ridiculous to me,” she says.
Are Sophie and Patrick still together?
While Dillman and O’Connor, who have been dating since late 2019, are still very much together, her 32-year-old beau remains abroad.
“Patrick has a bit more travel he wants to do, which I am totally on board with,” Dillman explains. “He has been really leaning in and loving the experience. If he is still over there in summer, I will visit him. But definitely not until it warms up a bit!”
Their absence has made the couple realise there is nowhere quite like Summer Bay, either.
Towards the end of 2024, they both jetted back to Australia to film a significant guest stint on Home and Away.
Their big March 10 on-screen return comes two years after their characters, Ziggy and Dean, headed off for a new life in Queensland with their daughter, Izzy.
“I was a bit nervous about what the storyline might be as I am very protective of Ziggy,” Dillman says. “But I think we often see these characters drive off into the sunset and we don’t know what happens afterward, so it is exciting to continue their story.”
The scenes were filmed on location in the picturesque Whitsundays region on Queensland’s central coast.
“How lucky are we?” Dillman says of the experience. “Neither of us had done a huge amount of exploring up north. We shot on a boat, we shot on the ocean, we filmed in cane fields – the town of Bowen was so beautiful. It was an absolute traveller’s dream and we got to enjoy it with some of our best friends.”
Dillman admits she had some butterflies in her stomach after having taken time out from acting during her big overseas adventure, but returning to Channel 7 ahead of filming calmed her nerves.
“Acting is like a muscle – if you don’t use it, you lose it, so we were both pretty nervous, I think,” she says. “As soon as I walked into the building, it felt like I was just there yesterday and everyone was just as amazing as ever, so it was lovely. It’s corny but it really felt like coming home.”
Dillman hasn’t ruled out a permanent return to the long-running soap, either – if the right opportunity presents itself.
“I’ve always said I would love to go back,” she explains. “But it’s a big job for the writers to juggle all the characters and storylines to make that happen. If the puzzle pieces fall that way, that would absolutely be great, though.”
