Dieter Brummer, star of HOME and AWAY, was allegedly shattered by Sydney’s tight Covid lockdown before he died, according to friends.
Last Saturday, the TV actor, who co-starred with Melissa George in the Australian drama Shane Parrish, was discovered dead at his home in Glenhaven, near Sydney.
Friends and coworkers have provided insight into the terrible circumstances surrounding his death, as his mother Dawn prepares to publish a book on her son’s mental fight.
An old acquaintance gave the Home and Away star job cleaning the windows of an apartment block in downtown Sydney only days before his demise.
Brummer’s last image depicts him with a beard tucked in the city’s skyscrapers, with the caption “looking forwards to a future working high above Covid which is ‘supposedly’ ‘ravaging’ Sydney.”
Two days later, the authorities halted all development activity in the two-week-old metropolis as further limits were imposed in an attempt to halt the Delta variation.
“He was extremely thrilled and genuinely appreciative about the position,” his boss, who had known him for 20 years, recalled.
“The lockdown snuffed out the wind in his sails.”
The tight lockdown restrictions, which were triggered by rising case counts across Australia, rendered tens of thousands of people unable to work.
The government has chosen a “Zero Covid” policy, with some of the toughest controls in the world after 221 cases were discovered yesterday.
One friend, irritated by the lockout and difficulty obtaining government assistance, claimed it was the “final straw.”
Meanwhile, Dieter’s mother Dawn shared a devastating story of her son’s fight with depression, expressing her hope that he can leave a legacy for those who are also dealing with mental health issues.
The 84-year-old intends to help others by writing a biography about her son.
She stated, ” “I’m now working on a biography of his life, which will contain all of the specifics of his mental state.
“I’m getting assistance from his buddies. And I’m hoping that the book will be beneficial to those who are depressed.
“Right now, that’s how I’m spending my time; I’m just writing, writing, writing.”
Dieter was discovered dead last Saturday after officers were called to check on him.
Rob, a close friend of Brummer, said: “I don’t know what more to say except that he was the most amazing person I’d ever met. Intelligent, vibrant, and simply wonderful.”
In all, he featured in 557 episodes of Home and Away, receiving the Logie Award for Most Popular Actor in 1995 and 1996.
When his character died of blood poisoning, he was written off of Home and Away.
He went on to make guest appearances on shows including Neighbours, Underbelly, and Medevac before quitting to establish his own window cleaning business.
In 2009, he remarked, “The wonderful part about it is I don’t have to interact with people too much.”
Dieter, on the other hand, was said to have been introspective in recent years about what could have occurred if his career had taken a different course.
Despite becoming renowned as a heartthrob, he is claimed to have been constrained by his position in Home and Away, and to have often wondered what would have occurred if he had never portrayed Shane.
When the actor, who was born in 1976, was cast in the part of bad boy soap star, he was just a teenager.
“You’re stereotyped. It’s difficult for producers or casting agencies to forget. I’m still ‘that guy from Home And Away’ after 20 years “Once upon a time, Brummer remarked.
“Every now and again, you think to yourself, ‘I wonder what it would’ve been like if I hadn’t gotten that job at 15?’”
On Monday, his family issued a statement saying goodbye to “handsome, brilliant, witty, complex, and adored Dieter.”
“He has left a huge void in our lives, and we will never be the same again.
‘We send our condolences to those of you who knew, loved, or worked with him throughout the years.’”
