just tak

Scott Major joins Tak for a funny, candid and wide-ranging chat about Heartbreak High, 17 years on Neighbours, acting, directing, indie filmmaking and what comes next for Australia’s creative industry.

What we get into:
Returning to Heartbreak High and playing Rivers again
Why both generations of Heartbreak High connected around the world
Becoming drama coach on the reboot
Saying goodbye to Neighbours after 17 years
Why the loss of Neighbours matters for the Australian screen industry
Life after Ramsay Street and working in indie film
Acting, instinct and staying present on set
Building Major Look TV
Creating a more sustainable model for actors and filmmakers
Why actors still need to be paid for their craft
Going from acting on Neighbours to directing it
Directing the Neighbours finale — twice
Darren Stark, Lucas Fitzgerald and directing himself
Whether Steph and Lucas should have been endgame

just tak. is an interview platform dedicated to unmasking the reality of the creative industry. Hosted by Australian actor and presenter Takaya Honda, the show strips away the polished PR narratives to ask the most important question in performance: Why?

Support Just Tak on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/justtak

Follow Scott Major:
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/scottmaj/

Major Look TV:
https://www.youtube.com/@Majorlooktv

Website:
http://www.scottmajor.com.au/

Sponsors:
BeautyBoat.com — use code BIN25 for 25% off your entire order:
https://beautyboat.com/
RØDE: thanks for the mics making us sound so good.

Support:
If you’re having a tough time, please don’t struggle alone.
Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14, 24/7 crisis support and suicide prevention. If life is in danger, call 000.
United Kingdom: Text Shout to 85258 for free, confidential 24/7 crisis text support. If you are in immediate danger, call 999.

Watch just tak on YouTube (and subscribe so you don't miss special live events).

Catch up with all things @justtakpod on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Madeleine West joins Tak for a raw, funny and wide-ranging conversation about Neighbours, surviving a near-fatal accident, rebuilding her identity, stand-up comedy, advocacy and the landmark Survivors Law.

What we get into:
* Motherhood and embracing the chaos
* The landmark Survivors Law and why it matters
* Speaking publicly about childhood sexual abuse and confronting her perpetrator
* Landing Dee Bliss after just two days with an agent
* Walking away from Neighbours at the height of her success
* The bus accident that shattered her face and her sense of identity
* Rebuilding a career beyond being “the soap girl”
* Doing stand-up comedy while heavily pregnant
* Dee’s wedding-day cliff plunge and one of Neighbours’ most iconic exits
* Returning as Dee and evil twin Andrea
* The physical tricks she used to switch between the twins
* Why she could not return for Neighbours’ first finale
* Playing Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire

just tak. is an interview platform dedicated to unmasking the reality of the creative industry. Hosted by Australian actor and presenter Takaya Honda, the show strips away the polished PR narratives to ask the most important question in performance: Why?

Support Just Tak on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/justtak

Promotion / Links:
Follow Madeleine West
https://www.instagram.com/msmadswest/

Survivors Law / access to offender superannuation:
https://ministers.ag.gov.au/media-centre/transcripts/press-conference-parliament-house-canberra-25-03-2026

A Streetcar Named Desire - Bangalow Theatre Company:
https://www.bangalowtheatre.com.au/

Sponsors:
BeautyBoat.com: use code BIN25 for 25% off your entire order.
https://beautyboat.com/
RØDE: thanks for the mics making us sound so good.

Support:
If you’re having a tough time, please don’t struggle alone.
Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14, 24/7 crisis support and suicide prevention.
Watch just tak on YouTube (and subscribe so you don't miss special live events).

Catch up with all things @justtakpod on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Something a little different from Just Tak this week…

No guest. No edit. Just Takaya, live on YouTube and answering your questions.

In this special live episode, Tak takes questions from viewers around the world and chats all things Neighbours, Play School, acting and the realities of working in the Australian screen industry - with plenty of stories and tangents along the way.

We get into:
· Neighbours memories and behind-the-scenes stories
· David, Aaron and life on Ramsay Street
· Play School and what’s coming up
· Acting, auditions and the state of the industry
· Future Just Tak guests
· Your questions, answered live

just tak. is an interview platform dedicated to unmasking the reality of the creative industry. Hosted by Australian actor and presenter Takaya Honda, the show strips away the polished PR narratives to ask the most important question in performance: Why?

Support Just Tak on Patreon:
Patreon.com/justtak

Sponsors:
BeautyBoat.com: use code BIN25 for 25% off your entire order.
https://beautyboat.com/

RØDE: thanks for the mics making us sound so good.
Watch just tak on YouTube (and subscribe so you don't miss special live events).

Catch up with all things @justtakpod on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Debra Lawrance joins Tak for a warm, candid and deeply personal conversation about Home and Away, Neighbours, Please Like Me, nearly 50 years in acting, learning to listen to her body, surviving the industry and the moment she finally became Debra rather than simply Pippa.

What we get into:
· Stepping away from the Steel Magnolias tour
· Why actors push through illness and exhaustion
· Learning to rest after nearly 50 years in the industry
· Discovering acting and leaving Melbourne for NIDA
· Training alongside Judy Davis, Mel Gibson and Steve Bisley
· Learning not to envy another actor’s success
· Missing a major role and the advice that stayed with her
· Taking time away from acting for family
· Returning through Blue Heelers
· Life after Pippa and becoming Debra Lawrance
· The responsibility and social impact of television
· Please Like Me and telling stories without labels
· Coaching young actors on Neighbours
· Jackie Woodburne, Alan Fletcher and on-set mentorship
· Playing Liz Conway and crossing from Summer Bay to Ramsay Street
· Working through grief while filming Home and Away
· Signs, dreams and unexplained moments after loss
· Acting coaching, career mindset and creating your own work

just tak. is an interview platform dedicated to unmasking the reality of the creative industry. Hosted by Australian actor and presenter Takaya Honda, the show strips away the polished PR narratives to ask the most important question in performance: Why?

Support Just Tak on Patreon:
https://Patreon.com/justtak

Promotion / Links:
Debra Lawrance on IMDb
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0492592/

Watch Please Like Me
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2155025/

Sponsors:
BeautyBoat.com: use code BIN25 for 25% off your entire order.
https://beautyboat.com/
RØDE: thanks for the mics making us sound so good.

Support:
If you’re having a tough time, please don’t struggle alone.
Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14, 24/7 crisis support and suicide prevention. If life is in danger, call 000.
United Kingdom: Text Shout to 85258 for free, confidential 24/7 crisis text support. If you are in immediate danger, call 999.

Watch just tak on YouTube (and subscribe so you don't miss special live events).

Catch up with all things @justtakpod on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

George Zhao joins Takaya Honda for a funny, open and vulnerable chat about Ghosts Australia, The Family Law, acting, ego, imposter syndrome, identity, clown doctoring, almost quitting the industry and learning that casting is not a competition.

What we get into:
· George’s Logie nomination for Ghosts Australia
· Meeting Takaya on The Family Law
· Moving from Sydney to Melbourne
· Growing up between New Zealand and Australia
· His first brush with performance through The Lion King auditions
· Dance, school, shame and self-awareness
· Almost training to become an Anglican minister
· Finding acting at drama school
· Early success, ego and The Family Law
· Ghosts Australia and playing Joon
· Anxiety, self-worth and almost quitting acting
· Working as a clown doctor in children’s hospitals
· Disability support, counselling and life outside acting
· Asian actors, comparison and competition
· Why booking the role is not the same as “winning”
· Neighbours auditions, David, Leo and old friendships
· Voting for George at the TV Week Logies

just tak. is an interview platform dedicated to unmasking the reality of the creative industry. Hosted by Australian actor and presenter Takaya Honda, the show strips away the polished PR narratives to ask the most important question in performance: Why?

Support Just Tak on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/c/justtak

Promotion / Links:
Watch George Zhao in Ghosts Australia
https://10.com.au/ghosts-australia

Watch George Zhao in The Family Law
https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-series/the-family-law

Vote for George Zhao at the TV Week Logies
https://tvweeklogies.com.au/

Find out more about Clown Doctors Australia
https://clowndoctorsaustralia.org.au/

Sponsors:
BeautyBoat.com: use code BIN25 for 25% off your entire order.
https://beautyboat.com/
RØDE: thanks for the mics making us sound so good.

Support:
If you’re having a tough time, please don’t struggle alone.
Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14, 24/7 crisis support and suicide prevention. If life is in danger, call 000.
United Kingdom: Text Shout to 85258 for free, confidential 24/7 crisis text support. If you are in immediate danger, call 999.

Watch just tak on YouTube (and subscribe so you don't miss special live events).

Catch up with all things @justtakpod on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.