Neighbours

Oliver Barnes grew up as the older brother of Sebastian, also known as Will. Although everyone believed him to be the true heir to the Barnes family empire, Oliver turned his back on the family fortune and travelled the world in search of a more meaningful existence.

Oliver stepped aside to let his brother inherit the family business and it was Oliver’s story that Sebastian used to create his alter ego when he arrived in Erinsborough. He took on the best characteristics of his free-spirited and big-hearted brother, without having the genuine sentiment behind the good-looking façade.

It was inevitable that shallow Sebastian would crack under the pressure and once again, it was up to Oliver to come to the rescue. He arrived in Ramsay Street ready to clean up after his irresponsible brother and to explain Will’s actions to those he left behind.

However, having met his brother’s newfound friends it appeared that the Barnes boys had more in common than good genes and some serious charm. There was an immediate connection between him and Will’s abandoned girlfriend Carmella. Could Oliver be the brother Carmella was always supposed to meet?

Honest, forthright and fun-loving, Oliver slipped naturally into life at Number 30 but it wasn’t long before the problems that Will encountered also came after his brother. Secretly threatened by the only man on the street potentially capable of matching his power and influence, Paul Robinson made it his goal to get Oliver together with his own daughter Elle. Little realising that Paul had deliberately destroyed both of their relationships in order to free them up for a marriage of convenience, Elle went along with the plan and Oliver found himself dangerously drawn to the Robinsons.

However, Ollie couldn’t ignore the fact that it was Carmella who had truly captured his heart and he got back together with the fiery Italian. Their resumed relationship didn’t stop Oliver from helping ex Elle out with her plan to bring down Paul. Proving that revenge is a dish best served cold, the two of them faked an entire engagement to convince Paul to hand over his shares in Lassiter’s and they seized control of the entire empire. The sexual tension rose between them once again and as Carmella spiralled into an unhappy addition to prescription medication, Oliver and Elle found themselves back together again.

In the midst of all of this, the executor of the Barnes family estate Alan Napier had been muttering dark warnings about secrets within the family. It transpired that Pamela and Clifford had not been Oliver’s biological parents. Oliver’s mother was, in fact, Rebecca Napier, Alan’s own daughter.

Meeting his real mother was a traumatic experience. Rebecca was hiding several dark secrets of her own, not least her fear that Oliver’s father was Paul Robinson. This would have meant that girlfriend Elle was his half-sister but DNA tests revealed that Rebecca was mistaken. Oliver and his new younger brother Declan shared the same father: the violent and abusive Richard Aaronow.

Oliver was keen to meet his father but quickly realised that Rebecca had been telling the truth about his disturbed personality. Although Oliver declared that he wanted nothing more to do with him, he did step in to donate a kidney to his critically ill dad when it looked as if he might die before being brought to justice for his attacks on Rebecca. Sadly Oliver’s actions were in vain and Richard did die before coming to trial. However, Rebecca got her apology and that was closure enough for the Napier family.

Indeed Oliver is now much more of a Napier than a Barnes. Having fought so hard to reclaim his inheritance from Sebastian, Oliver was forced to sign it away again when Sebastian discovered that they were not biological brothers. Although Oliver had been prepared to fight, Sebastian’s claim came at the same time as Declan’s kidnap and Oliver chose to accept the offer of cash in order to pay the ransom.

Having had such issues with his own family, Oliver had never given much thought to creating one of his own. When Carmella revealed that she was pregnant, Oliver was shocked but determined to be a good dad. Although he and Carmella agreed their relationship was over, he was more than a little miffed when Carmella found herself a new boyfriend. Concerned that he would be usurped in his daughter’s life, Oliver clashed constantly with Marco, even starting a fight at Chloe’s christening.

Family will always come first for Oliver but just how far will he go to protect Carmella and Chloe?