List of Neighbours characters introduced in 1986

Nikki Dennison, played by Charlene Fenn, made her first appearance on 28 January 1986. A representative from the Grundy Organisation discovered Fenn at a National Theatre workshop. She auditioned while studying for her HSC exams and was cast as Helen Daniels' (Anne Haddy) niece, Nikki. Of her reaction to winning the role, Fenn told Kelly Bourne of ''TV Week'': "I was six feet off the ground when I first heard, but now I'm down to about two feet." Nikki was Fenn's first television role and she admitted to feeling "a bit apprehensive", but the cast had been friendly and helpful to her. Nikki "casually" enters the show during one of her visits to Helen and the Robinsons. Fenn explained her character's fictional backstory to Bourne, saying "Nikki originally came from a small Queensland town, but she attends a boarding school in Melbourne. Her mother is Helen Daniels' (Anne Haddy) sister, so sometimes Nikki spends weekends with the Robinsons." Bourne thought the situation seemed simple, but for Nikki it was more complicated. Fenn stated "Nikki's widowed mother works in a bar to send her to a good boarding school. But Nikki doesn't really appreciate this because she feels her mum has forced her into a position where she has to lie to be accepted by other girls." This leads to Nikki putting on airs and graces during the week, while she is a fun and normal teenager at the weekends. Fenn thought the two sides to Nikki made her a more interesting character to play. She preferred "the real Nikki", who does not have to impress anyone and can be genuine and fun. Fenn continued, "She can be quite charming when she's with the people she loves – the people who she knows love her simply for herself." Fenn was not keen on boarding school version of Nikki, as she has elements of bitchiness, snobbery, and social climbing. Fenn left ''Neighbours'' less than a year after she arrived and she commented "I never thought I was going to be employed in this for the rest of my life."

Nikki was raised by her mother, Laura Dennison (Carole Skinner), in Queensland. Her father, Tom, died when she was young and Nikki became spoilt as Laura gave her everything she wanted. Laura found it hard to deal with Nikki when she became a teenager and decided to send her to Erinsborough to stay with her aunt Helen. Nikki becomes good friends with Charlene Mitchell (Kylie Minogue) and she begins dating Mike Young (Guy Pearce), after he defends her from Sue Parker's (Kate Gorman) rumours. When Lucy Robinson (Kylie Flinker) wins a dinner date with Grant Kenny, Nikki tells her that her father will not let her go on the date and that Grant would not want to have dinner with a child. Nikki manages to persuade Lucy that she should go on the date instead and she gives her some money. Nikki does not tell Helen about the date and lies that she is spending the night studying with a friend. The date with Grant does not go well and he leaves after the main course. Nikki brags to Sue that she had a great night and that she kissed Grant. She also tells her that Grant is going to call her about a second date. However, Nikki's lies are exposed when a photo of herself and Grant appears in a newspaper. Mike then threatens to end their relationship. When Nikki hears that her mother has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, she leaves Erinsborough to be with her. When she returns a few months later, Nikki expects to pick up her relationship with Mike, but she soon learns that he is dating Jane Harris (Annie Jones). Nikki tells Jane that she wants Mike back. However, Mike tells her that he is not interested in a relationship with her. Nikki decides to leave Erinsborough permanently to spend time with her mother in the United States. Provided by Wikipedia