Growing up on Ramsay Street is fraught with anxiety, but Caitlin Stasey has her real life sorted

You've been on Neighbours for a while now, haven't you?
About two years. Just over. I was 14 turning 15 when I started. It feels like a very long time ago now!

Are you still at school?
Yeah, I'm in Year 11 at the moment. I was originally still attending school, but after Year 10 it all became too much. Now I do it via correspondence.

You weren't tempted to do what a lot of young actors do and quit school altogether?
I was considering it because it wa so difficult. But I won't be here forever, and postponing my education felt a bit stupid. I didn't want to jeopardise other career options for a three-, four- or five-year stint on Neighbours.

Is acting what you want to do in the future?
I would love to. But realistically, you have to keep all your options open. Ideally, acting's what I really want to do.

Your character, Rachel, has grown up a lot. Now she's having quite serious relationships.
It's funny because they changed my character quite a lot. She went from being a very sheltered girl, but she's still growing and learning. She has a lot more commonsense and I don't think she's as brash and headstrong as she used to be.

Rachel has fairly adult ideas about relationships. How old is she supposed to be?
She's just 16. I think it's because she's used to dating older people. And she feels as though she's so much more grown up than her age.

Speaking of dating, do you have a boyfriend right now?
Yeah, I do, but it's all brand new. It's only been a few weeks, but we've known each other for a few months. He's really lovely.

How did you meet?
He's a friend of a friend, but we hadn't really talked much. Then we got in contact again via my MySpace page.

Ah, the MySpace relationship!
I know! But he's my age and he lives near where I work so I can see him on the way home from work.

When you were at the TV WEEK Logie Awards this year, there were lots of photos of you with Home And Away actor Rhys Wakefield...
Oh, Rhys!

Were you guys dating?
We had a big laugh about that because it couldn't be further from the truth. We're definitely not a couple - we were just having fun. In the same issue of TV WEEK I was also rumoured to be dating Sam Clark (who plays Ringo)! I think everyone thought I was going out with him, too, which certainly isn't true. The one with Rhys was funny, but I think we kind of set that up... it might have been our own fault!

How did you meet Rhys?
I met him at last year's Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. I met him and a bunch of Home And Away people, and we've been friends ever since.

Away from the show, do you have any hobbies that you get up to?
I love to surf. I haven't done it for a while because it's been cold. But I have an awesome wetsuit that's really thick and no water gets in. I also play guitar - badly. And I paint a lot with my little sister. She's into design, so she designs and I paint.

Do you get recognized a lot?
Sometimes. A lot of the time people will whisper behind your back and look at you. Sometimes you get people who can act like real idiots, but other times there are people who are genuinely pleased to meet you.

It must be awful when people are rude to you!
Yeah, it is awful but you soon get over it. It used to really upset me, though. I found an "I hate Caitlin Stasey" forum on the Internet one day. It was pretty sad. You have to laugh at them, because people are dedicating so much time to something like that - you just have to feel sorry for them. Maybe for the first 10 minutes I cared, but then you go on MySpace, and people are, like, "I love the show".

So people have found your page on MySpace?
Oh yeah. And I've added everyone! I have, like, 4000 friends now!