Neighbours Star Miranda Fryer Dies Suddenly Aged 34: Former Actress Who Played Sky Mangel as a Child ‘Went To Sleep and Never Woke Up’, Her Devastated Family Reveal
By Jesse Hyland
The family of former Neighbours actress Miranda Fryer is awaiting a coroner’s report on the cause of her death after she died aged 34.
Famous for her role as Sky Mangel when she was a child, Fryer died in her sleep last Thursday at her home in Glen Iris, Melbourne, her family confirmed to TV Tonight.
No cause of death has been revealed but her family said she had a heart condition.
Fryer had married her fiancé, Arthur Pothitis, in November 2020 in a beachside ceremony and was looking forward to starting a family.
After Neighbours: Fryer never pursued an acting career after her stint on Neighbours. She recently completed a nursing degree at Monash University in Melbourne during the pandemic
‘True soulmates, Miranda and Arthur were making plans to start their family, when one day last week she went to sleep and never woke up. We do not know why,’ her family said in a statement.
‘She had had some health issues with her heart. Maybe her beautiful persona was just too good for this world of ours. We, who all loved her so much, shall treasure the memories she has left us with and mourn our loss forever.
‘A beautiful child, stunning teenager, beautiful inside, and out… a woman, with so much love and happiness given and received. So many friends, so much still to offer this world, gone.’
Fryer, who trained as a nurse after retiring from showbusiness, was the on-screen daughter of couple Joe Mangel and Kerry Bishop – who were played by actors Mark Little and Linda Hartley-Clark.
Fryer featured on the long running soap opera for three years from 1989 to 1991.
She got her start on Neighbours when she was just 18 months old and was the first child actor contracted to the series.
The role of Sky Mangel was later taken over by Stephanie McIntosh from 2003 to 2007 and again from 2015 to 2020.
Fryer never pursued an acting career after her stint on the program.
Tragic: Australian former actress Miranda Fryer, who played Sky Mangel on Neighbours as a child, has died at the age of 34. She is pictured here with her on-screen parents Joe Mangel (played by Mark Little) and Kerry Bishop (Linda Hartley-Clark) on Neighbours
After finishing high school, she got a certificate in hospitality and an art diploma, and finished a nursing degree at Monash University last year.
Most of her studying was limited to Zoom lectures due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Fryer was due to start work on February 7 in the neuroscience department at Monash Hospital and was also considering a master’s degree in that field.
Fryer’s mother, Traci Hunter, told the Herald Sun: ‘She was the most wonderful daughter. She had so much love and passion for life.
‘She was a truly kind, loving person, almost too good to be true… Miranda was adored by everyone.
‘She just went to sleep and did not wake up. It is a terrible shock to us all.’
TV casting director Jan Russ added: ‘I feel so very sad to lose one of my cast and especially one so young as Miranda who spent her very young years on the show.
‘I love them like my own and feel the loss when they pass.’
