Rachel Kinski

Rachel Kinski

Once upon a time Rachel was a home-schooled homebody who danced in school corridors like nobody was watching. Oh how times have changed…

As a kid Rachel Kinski had an insatiable appetite for knowledge. She was an excellent student, both when she was home-schooled by her dad Alex and late mother Francesca and when she entered mainstream education at Erinsborough High. Her natural desire to learn now applies to life away from text books as well but sadly these days Rachel tends to give the impression that she already knows it all.

Once they’d persuaded Alex to let them go to a mainstream school, Zeke and Rachel had a crash course in normal teenage life. Ably assisted by pop culture expert Bree, and helpfully guided by principal and step-mother Susan, life was going swimmingly for Rachel… until she found out that her father was dying. She was terrified of being orphaned and heartily sick of being lied to by overprotective adults.

The discovery of their estranged sister Katya helped both kids get through the tough time after Alex’s death but led to an unfortunate battle when Katya challenged Susan for custody of her siblings. Rachel had always stated that she wanted to stay with Susan, but insisted that if Zeke chose Katya, all three siblings would stick together. Unfortunately, Katya’s attempts at guardianship didn’t go very well. She alienated Rachel by being too strict, and then tried to be too cool, allowing the kids to stay up all night so that their schoolwork suffered. Realising that Susan was lonely without the kids, they suggested all three of them move in there instead.

In the meantime Rachel found a kindred spirit in Stingray, who was struggling to come to terms with life after prison. Together they embarked on a series of mischievous adventures which eventually led to a blossoming, if somewhat controversial, relationship. Despite the age gap, they made a good team. Stingray convinced Rachel to go home when she ran away: furious to discover that Karl and Susan had got back together. Meanwhile Rachel was instrumental in getting Stingray to admit to his drinking problem. Unfortunately, the incident also showed Rachel that she was too young to be dealing with such big issues and they split.

They stayed friends and Rachel supported Stingray through the drama over baby Kerry’s paternity, despite the fact that she was already getting closer to newcomer Ringo Brown. When Stingray died, Ringo was a tower of strength and agreed to give her space to grieve. Ringo and Rachel eventually got together but their relationship was never easy. Ringo felt that Rachel was too bossy and controlling and he sought solace in older woman Carmella Cammeniti.

Rachel was heartbroken but has continued to support Ringo. An attempt to revive their relationship floundered when Ringo developed an eating disorder and they realised they weren’t having fun with each other any more. Ringo fell into the arms of Jessica Wallace but Rachel wasn’t too distraught… almost immediately, she bumped into handsome stranger Angus Henderson at the swimming pool.

Angus assumed she was a few years older than her actual age and Rachel was in no hurry to correct him. Unfortunately, things took a turn for the illegal when it transpired that Angus was actually the new substitute teacher at Erinsborough High. Too deep into their relationship to see any way of ending it, Rachel pushed Angus into continuing their affair in secret.

When Dan Fitzgerald discovered what was going on, the fallout was fierce. Angus was charged by the police and Susan’s refusal to intervene drove a wedge between step-mother and daughter that they both feared they’d never overcome. The whole experience has forced Rachel to examine what it really means to be an adult and she’s becoming increasingly mature in her outlook. But will her daddy-issues find her repeating the same old patterns with older men?