List of Neighbours characters introduced in 1998

Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera created by Reg Watson. It was first broadcast on 18 March 1985. The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the serial in 1998, by order of first appearance. All characters were introduced by the show's executive producer Stanley Walsh. The 14th season of Neighbours began airing from 19 January 1998. Sally Upton was introduced during the following month. March saw the arrivals of Nicholas Atkins and Drew Kirk, while Joel Samuels and Veronica Olenski made their debuts in May. Karen Oldman and Mike Healey began appearing from August. Tad Reeves and Geri Hallett were both introduced during November.

Sally Upton, played by Sally Davis, made her first screen appearance on 23 February 1998. Three weeks prior to playing Sally, Davis made a guest appearance in the show as Alison Nova. Shortly after Sally's introduction, she became a love interest for Joel Samuels (Daniel MacPherson). The couple were initially not "on the same wavelength", but they became closer when Sally confided in Joel about her mother's death. Sally was "opinionated" and "quite pushy". Her green Volkswagen Beetle car was later owned by Libby Kennedy (Kym Valentine), Sally's one time love rival.

Sally works as an assistant at the Erinsborough University radio station UniFM, alongside Toadfish Rebecchi (Ryan Moloney). Toadie introduces Sally to his housemate Joel Samuels and she is instantly attracted to him. Joel initially finds Sally hard to work out, but they soon begin dating. Sally opens up to Joel about the death of her mother and they become closer, but when Sally notices the closeness between Joel and Libby Kennedy, she becomes jealous and suspects Joel has feelings for Libby. Sally and Joel also fall out over Libby and Sarah Beaumont (Nicola Charles), as Sally had made friends with Sarah and did not understand the bad feelings between Sarah and Libby's family. Sally has difficulty dealing with the anniversary of her mother's death and her heightened emotions cause her to reject Joel's attempts at sympathy. She then accuses Joel of cheating on her and ends their relationship.

Weeks later, Sally runs into Drew Kirk (Dan Paris) at the local pub and they decide to go and see a movie together. While Drew goes to change, Sally waits downstairs for him. However, she then bursts into his room and tries to kiss him. Drew rejects her as he is friends with Joel. After Joel ends up in the hospital, things between Sally and Drew become awkward, especially as Joel believes Sally still has feelings for him. Sally plays along, as she is worried that rejecting Joel might affect his recovery. When she begins to struggle with the charade, Sally tells Joel that she cannot see him anymore and leaves.

A writer for the BBC's official Neighbours website said Sally's most notable moment was "rushing in on Drew when he was changing and attempting to kiss him."

Nicholas "Nick" Atkins, played by Jason Crewes, made his first appearance on 12 March 1998. Crewes was appearing on fellow soap opera Breakers at the same time as he was appearing in Neighbours. His character was the third member of the Atkins family to be introduced. Nick immediately causes upset when he "comes down heavy" on his young sister Caitlin Atkins (Emily Milburn), after catching her with her boyfriend. One of Nick's first storylines saw him pretend to be Toadfish Rebecchi (Ryan Moloney). Another notable storyline saw him accused of assault. When the charges were dropped, it left Nick "feeling bitter about the experience" and wondering whether he should accept more work at Erinsborough High.

The character's departure was confirmed in the 23–29 May 1998 issue of TV Week. Nick and Caitlin depart Neighbours at the same time to return to Adelaide. The siblings have "a cheeky farewell" after Caitlin paints a goodbye message on the road to make sure the residents do not forget them in a hurry. Their exit aired on 24 June 1998. Tony Johnston, author of Neighbours: 20 Years of Ramsay Street, branded Nicholas "handsome". Peter Grant of the Liverpool Echo called him a "big bad brother". While Stephen Murphy from Inside Soap thought Nick and his sister "made a big impact in Erinsborough".

Nick arrives in Erinsborough to look after his younger sister, Caitlin. He arrives just as Caitlin tries to run away with her boyfriend, Josh Hughes (Sullivan Stapleton). Nick argues with his brother Ben (Brett Cousins) over Caitlin, as they both feel that they can care for her better than the other. Karen Oldman (Pia Miranda), a fan of Toadie's, comes over and mistakes Nick for Toadie. As Toadie is worried that Karen will be disappointed to see the real him, he convinces Nick to pretend to be him for a while longer. Nick is uncomfortable with the deception, but goes along with it. He is relieved when Toadie later reveals himself to Karen. Nick finds himself in charge of Caitlin when Ben moves away. He gets himself a job teaching at Erinsborough High and settles into the neighbourhood.