of the Canning family would be introduced to the show in the coming months. She said the new arrival would start "a big new storyline" for the family. The following month, it was announced that Lilly Van der Meer had joined the cast as Xanthe, Sheila's granddaughter and the half-sister of Kyle Canning (Chris Milligan). Van der Meer taped an audition with the help of her mother at their home. Two days after her 16th birthday, she was contacted by the producers and asked to fly to the studios in Melbourne. Van der Meer learned she had won the role of Xanthe during her lunch break while she was at school. She then had to relocate from Queensland to Melbourne. The role marks her first major acting job, and she commented "The filming has been going really well, so it's amazing to finally get to see them on screen." To keep up with her studies, Van der Meer does her schooling online in between her scenes. Of Van der Meer's casting, Mann said "Lilly's world has certainly been opened up since joining the show and we're loving having her here. She was already a Canning after just a couple of weeks, we had converted her." Van der Meer made her first appearance as Xanthe on 22 January 2016. Development Characterisation and introduction Mann thought viewers would like Xanthe, commenting, "There is a toughness to her, but she has a fun side, too." While Van der Meer said Xanthe's arrival would "shake things up a bit". The character's profile on the official website describes her as "naturally confident", but adds that she had to hone her "survival skills" as she grew up with her "flighty" mother Brooke Butler (Fifi Box). Van der Meer enjoys portraying Xanthe's "bubbly personality", commenting "she's so bouncy and in your face the whole time, it's great." Van der Merr said she and Xanthe did not have much in common, which she found "exciting" as an actress, as she did not want to play a copy of herself. She explained, "I'm making completely different character choices for Xanthe. She does everything with a good heart but gets mixed up in the wrong things and goes about it the wrong way." Van der Meer described Xanthe's style as "very girly". She said Xanthe often wore tight tops, and favoured purples and pinks, whereas Van der Meer preferred loose