NEIGHBOURS star Alan Fletcher sparked health concerns when he revealed he had shaved his head.
The actor, who plays Karl Kennedy in the Aussie soap, is known for usually having hair, so this sudden change worried his fans.
Why is Karl Kennedy bald?
Alan reassured his fans that he was OK in a Twitter video after he debuted his new look during an episode in May 2022.
Neighbours star Alan, 65, admitted that he had been diagnosed with alopecia areata.
The condition is an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss.
It can occur at any age but most cases first develop in teenagers and children.
Alan Fletcher debuted his bald head on social media
What has Alan Fletcher said about his condition?
Alan addressed the comments in a video, insisting that he was “fit and well”.
“Lots of fans have expressed a little concern about my health and there have been media enquiries as well,” he began.
NO GO
Neighbours' Alan and Jackie banned from travelling to the UK over coronavirus
“I just want to put something to rest. I am absolutely fine, I’m fit and well and working on Neighbours and having a great time.
“But, I can report to you, I do have a disorder called alopecia areata.”
The actor went on to explain how his condition can cause “patchy hair loss”, which was behind his decision to shave it all off.
“I started to lose hair into my beard and then on my scalp in patches so eventually I shaved my beard off,” Alan said.
“Then my hair became so patchy on my head, I had to get rid of most of that as well. I know a lot of you are going to be pretty shocked.”
Taking off his hat and revealing his bald head, he concluded: “I have no problem with it. In fact, it’s kind of fun.”
Will Karl appear in the Neighbours finale?
In March 2022, it was announced Neighbours would come off the air after almost four decades of storylines and almost 9,000 episodes.
The news followed Channel 5’s early February 2022 announcement it would no longer be able to host the iconic soap.
While fans were hoping the show could be saved, production failed to find another alternative and had to stop the programme.
The last episode will air on July 29, 2022, and the good news is, Karl Kennedy WILL be on the show.
Actor Alan – who has played Dr Karl in the Australian soap for 28 years – believes the ending will satisfy viewers.
Speaking exclusively to The Celeb Report, he said: “The storyliners and the script writer and the executive producer really wanted to focus on celebrating the show at the end, that was the big thing.
“There’s going to be a few little shocks and twists in there – it wouldn’t be Neighbours without them – but I feel the audience will celebrate the end of the show with us when they watch it.
“And I won’t be surprised at all if there’s quite a few lounge rooms all over the UK where tears are being shed come 9.30pm July 29.”
UK and Australian fans will get to watch the last ever episode on the same day.
