Shane Ramsay is a fictional character from the Australian television soap opera Neighbours, played by Peter O'Brien. He made his first appearance during the show's first episode, broadcast on 18 March 1985. Shane is the son of Max Ramsay (Francis Bell) and Maria Ramsay (Dasha Bláhová). His storylines included training to be an Olympic swimmer and being involved in two car crashes, with the second killing Jean Richards (Margot Knight), leaving Shane facing manslaughter charges. Writers also created a relationship story with Daphne Lawrence (Elaine Smith). O'Brien decided to leave Neighbours in 1986 and Shane departed during the episode broadcast on 3 March 1987. O'Brien reprised the role in July 2022 for the show's final episodes. Casting Peter O'Brien auditioned for the role of Shane Ramsay twice in 1984 and following the cancellation of medical series Starting Out, he was cast as the older Ramsay brother. O'Brien made his debut in Neighbours' first episode. Shane was one of Reg Watson's original Neighbours characters. The role of Shane made O'Brien a household name in his home country of Australia and overseas. Stefan Dennis originally auditioned for the role of Shane, but he was later cast as Paul Robinson instead. In the video The Official Neighbours Special: The First Ten Years, released in 1995, O'Brien said that he was working in England at the time when he received the role of Shane and he was not expecting Neighbours to last more than two years. Development Shane was described by Network Ten as a "very together guy, despite being deprived of a normal childhood because of his father's obsession with his diving training". They also added that Shane had independence and an "inner strength". O'Brien described the character of Shane as "a bit of a misfit". In their 1989 book, The Neighbours Factfile, Neil Wallis and Dave Hogan wrote that Shane's father Max Ramsay (Francis Bell), had an obsession with him becoming a champion diver and that made Shane's childhood difficult. He gained an "independent spirit" and became "easygoing" and a "genuine nice guy". Shane has a keen interest in motorbikes and this often leads him into trouble. He is a "strong silent" type of character but he still managed to "break the hearts of most of the available women who strolled down Ramsay Street." Mary Riddell of the Daily Mirror observed "Like any self-respecting male sex symbol, Shane has designer muscles and