Home and Away fans can get excited because fan favourites Sophie Dillman and Patrick O’Connor are returning to the show!

That’s right – their respective characters Ziggy Astoni and former River Boy Dean Thompson are set to make an explosive return on March 10, at 7pm.

On October 14, 2024, Channel Seven first confirmed that they would be reprising their roles on the beloved soap opera.

“It feels so good to be home,” Sophie shared when the news was first announced. Patrick adding: “I can’t wait for the action, and for fans to see this storyline play out.”

While the location was top-secret at the time, Channel Seven has since revealed that their return was shot in the picturesque Whitsunday region, featuring Airlie Beach, Daydream Island, Bowen, and Proserpine.

See what’s around the corner below.

What happens when Ziggy and Dean return to Home and Away?

Instead of Summer Bay, Ziggy and Dean’s comeback starts in their new home state Queensland, with Levi (Tristan Gorey) and Mackenzie (Emily Weir) set to visit the pair.

Mackenzie is ecstatic about the holiday, but she realises Levi has other plans, and wants to get closer to her half-brother.

Upon seeing each other, Dean is less than impressed to meet Levi, saying he cannot be trusted because he cheated on his wife.

Despite the friction between the two men, viewers will see the four characters enjoy the wonders of the Sunshine State.

Their feuding is the least of their worries when Mackenzie and Ziggy are then taken hostage by two escaped prisoners, so they decide to put their issues aside to save the loves of their lives in a stolen car.

Are Sophie Dillman and Patrick O’Connor still together?

Yes, they are!

Surprisingly, the set of Home and Away wasn’t the first time Sophie and Patrick crossed paths, the pair actually meeting long before they each started working on the long-running soap.

“We actually knew each other at uni – we went to acting school together years ago,” the 32-year-old revealed on The Morning Show in March 2021.

“We were friends then, and then we were in different years, so we didn’t really see each other – but then we found each other on the show. And conveniently, our characters got together on the show.”

Sophie made her debut as Ziggy on Home and Away in June 2017, with her future partner Patrick arriving on screens in February 2018.

In September 2019, the budding young actors made their relationship public, although it is unclear when things became official between the two, with fans and paparazzi spotting the pair out and about on dates in the months prior.

Three years on, Sophie reflected upon the decision to date her co-star in her column with Yahoo Lifestyle, writing: “We decided to give the relationship a go, and thank goodness we did.”

“We have a few years under our belt, a fur baby, many crazy holiday stories, and have moved across the world,” she added.

“Thank goodness Ziggy and Dean found each other. Not many people get to be so lucky.”

Since their public debut, they have gone from strength to strength, and Australia behind in early 2024, to start a new chapter in London.

What have Sophie Dillman and Patrick O’Connor said about their relationship? 

Speaking with our sister publication TV WEEK, Sophie made the unsurprising admission that she loved having her boyfriend by her side at work.

“It’s great working with him – it’s always fun. I can never guess what I’m going to get from him [while filming], which is the best,” she said.

“We can be really straight up. We’ve got a great dialogue, so we can say what we need from each other and it will happen.”

In a follow-up interview, Sophie shared how having a friendship first, helped build strong foundations for their relationship.

“At the core, we are best mates first and we treat each other like that, but it’s also made our relationship stronger starting out that way,” the actress mused.

Doting partner Patrick has also shared just how in awe he is of Sophie’s acting talents.

“I think Sophie’s an amazing actress and it’s a good feeling on set to know you’re comfortable with each other,” he said.

Why did Sophie Dillman and Patrick O’Connor leave Home and Away? 

In January 2023, the actors departed the shores of Summer Bay for a cooler climate, making the move to the United Kingdom for a new chapter of their lives together.

Fans were left devastated, but for Sophie and Patrick, it was an easy decision.

“For so long we essentially played someone else far more than ourselves. Now we just want to see the world,” Sophie divulged to our sister publication Woman’s Day in May 2023.

Breaking the news of their character’s on-screen departure in a March 2023 interview with TV WEEK, Sophie added that their storylines in the drama had come to a natural end

“We have both done everything possible with our characters and it was time to start a new chapter.”

Do Sophie and Patrick have any kids?

The young couple have yet to start a family of their own (despite their on-screen counterparts taking this exciting next step together) but did adopt a cavoodle named Winnie in March 2021.

Speaking with New Idea in 2023, Patrick explained how adopting Winnie was like a “trial run” for him and Sophie in expanding their family.

“He’s just the absolute best little dude and it was the first time I’ve had someone totally relying on me, so it definitely helped me know that starting our own family is the direction we want to move to,” he shared.

Are Sophie and Patrick engaged? 

While Sophie Dillman and Patrick O’Connor are still together and very much in love, there is no news about an engagement as of yet.

However, Sophie has previously hinted to New Idea what type of wedding she and Patrick will be having.

“I’ve recently had a few girlfriends wed and seeing them go through all the stress of planning bid days…maybe we’ll just elope in Vegas!

“The full Las Vegas Elvis drive-through wedding experience.”

But Patrick has other plans, “I don’t think our families would ever forgive us,” he joked at the time.