Home and Away is an Australian television soap opera. It was first broadcast on the Seven Network on 17 January 1988. The following is a list of characters that first appeared in 2011, by order of first appearance. All characters were introduced by the shows series producer Cameron Welsh. The 24th season of Home and Away began airing on 24 January 2011. The following month, the Braxton brothers; Darryl, Heath and Casey were introduced. Miranda Jacobs and Kieran Monroe made their debuts in April. Marty Jones made his debut in June and Tegan Callahan arrived the following month. Fletcher Humphrys joined the cast in July as Gang Member Jake Pirovic. August saw the introductions of Harvey Ryan, Hammer, Stu Henderson and Sasha Bezmel. Shane Emmett made his debut as Mark Gilmour in September and lawyer Hayley O'Connor began appearing from October.
Darryl Braxton
Darryl "Brax" Braxton, played by Steve Peacocke, made his first screen appearance on 16 February 2011. The character and casting was announced on 9 January 2011. Peacocke heard about the role from his agent and he called the audition process "a lot of fun". Brax is the oldest of three brothers known as The River Boys, a "bad-boy surf gang with dodgy reputations." A writer for Channel Seven's Home and Away website stated that Brax has a "dodgy reputation and a chip on his shoulder." He is a surfing legend and commands a respect from his fellow surfies, which he finds useful. Peacocke commented that Brax just wants to escape his upbringing and have a successful family life. Brax tries to keep his younger brothers Heath (Dan Ewing) and Casey (Lincoln Younes) out of trouble. Shortly after his arrival, Darryl began a relationship with Charlie Buckton (Esther Anderson). For his portrayal of Darryl, Peacocke won the Logie Award for Most Popular New Male Talent in 2012.
Heath Braxton
Heath Braxton, played by Daniel Ewing, made his first on-screen appearance on 16 February 2011, originally departed on 29 July 2014 and made a one-off appearance on 23 September 2014. Heath is the second oldest of the Braxton brothers and was initially described as being "feared by cops and the residents of his home town of Mangrove River" and having a short fuse. Heath was the first of The River Boys to be announced, with Ewing's casting revealed on 24 September 2010. Heath is Ewing's second role with Home and Away, having appeared as Reuben Humphries in 2007. For his role, Ewing had to get fit and he joked "I don't think they would cast overweight guys to play surfers, so yeah, I'm sure it was a factor for the producers." He added that he cannot surf well and was relieved that the producers did not test his surfing skills at his audition.
Casey Braxton
Casey Braxton, played by Lincoln Younes, made his first on-screen appearance on 17 February 2011 and departed on 16 September 2014. Casey is the youngest of the Braxton brothers. The Daily Telegraph said that Casey is trying to break out of the River Boys mould and that he was kicked out of his last high school. Younes was planning to go to London to travel and to find himself, but after a successful audition for Home and Away, he decided to cancel his plans to play the part of Casey. He relocated to Sydney for the role. Casey is described as being a "modern day Rebel Without a Cause." He has never quite fitted in and he does not know what he wants from life. He has been overshadowed by both of his brothers and he has struggled at school. Casey later begins a relationship with Ruby Buckton (Rebecca Breeds), following her fling with Romeo Smith (Luke Mitchell).
Miranda Jacobs
Miranda Jacobs, played by Ashley Cheadle, made her first on-screen appearance on 6 April 2011. Miranda comes to Summer Bay to compete in the Surf Carnival and she begins dating Xavier Austin.
It was revealed in January 2011 that Cheadle had joined the cast of Home and Away as a love interest for one of the characters. Cheadle is a professional surfer and Tania Seager of Yahoo!7 said she is "not the standard beach blond surfer that typifies our Summer Bay culture." Cheadle's character, Miranda, competes against Ruby Buckton (Rebecca Breeds) in the Surf Carnival and Cheadle revealed that she and Breeds did their own stunts, which she said was "fun." Seager said "Miranda also sorts out the boys from the men and gives Xavier a lot to think about." Miranda briefly dates Xavier Austin (David Jones-Roberts) and she is "annoyed" when she discovers that he lied to her about being in university. Miranda gives him a second chance, but Xavier manages to "mess things up" again. Holy Soap said that it had not been confirmed how long Miranda would be in the show.