Michael Ross, played by Dennis Coard, made his first appearance on 22 October 1990. The character was introduced along with his son
Haydn Ross (
Andrew Hill). He quickly became a love interest for
Pippa Fletcher (
Debra Lawrance). Michael and Pippa strike up a friendship, but her family "are a bit wary of the man in their mother's life." After five and a half years in the role, Coard believed it was the right time for him to leave, saying "the finality of it doesn't worry me because, if he hadn't been killed off, in a year's time they might have lured me back. But once I'd made the break, I'd much rather get on and do other things." On-screen, heavy rains cause a flood and mudslide, which
Sam Marshall (
Ryan Clark) gets caught up in. Michael saves Sam, but is swept away and drowned. Coard was pleased that Michael received a heroic "grand finale". He added that Michael would not be returning as a ghost to Pippa, commenting "I heard a rumour about it but I said no!" Michael arrives in Summer Bay as the new owner of the local boat shed and begins staying in the caravan park.
Ben Lucini (
Julian McMahon) takes an instant dislike to Michael because he had intended to purchase the business himself. Michael is soon joined by his teenage son, Haydn Ross who is unhappy at having had to leave his private boarding school and move into a caravan. Michael is attracted to Pippa Fletcher, but she is unsure of her feelings because her husband Tom had died only six months before. In time, he and Pippa start dating. Pippa's adoptive daughter,
Sally (
Kate Ritchie) and Michael's son Haydn resent the new relationship at first but later come to terms with it. Michael and Pippa's fledging relationship meets a bump in the road when his ex-wife
Cynthia (
Belinda Giblin) arrives in the Bay hoping to give their marriage another go. She manages to manipulate Pippa into breaking up with Michael but her plan is ultimately unsuccessful. Michael and Pippa resume their relationship. When Michael nearly drowns in an accident at the boat shed, he is spurred into asking Pippa to marry him. Although the two of them have admitted that they love each other, Pippa turns him down because she is scared of getting hurt again. Michael is devastated but when he finally gets through to her a few days afterwards, she says yes. After their wedding, Michael adopts Pippa's son,
Christopher (Shaun Wood) as well as taking responsibility for various foster children. Some months later, Haydn falls out with Michael and moves away to live with his mother. The following year, Michael and Pippa learn they are expecting their first child and Pippa gives birth to their son, Dale. Within a few weeks, Dale dies of
SIDS, leaving them devastated. Dale's death puts a severe strain on their marriage but they overcome that. A year later, Haydn returns to Summer Bay out of the blue. Although he convinces Michael that he wants to settle in the area and to set up a surf shop, it is all an elaborate ruse. He is a gambling addict with large debts that need paying. He steals the money Michael has borrowed from the bank to help him get started. He leaves his father in debt, something that has repercussions further down the line. Although Michael tries to help Haydn deal with his addiction, it does not work. Haydn is not ready to stop gambling and he leaves the Bay again. Left heavily in debt because of Haydn's stunt, Michael puts the boat shed up for auction. It does not sell but
Alf Stewart (
Ray Meagher) later offers to step in as a silent business partner. Michael continues to run the business. Still, the stress of paying off Haydn's debt, trying to run the boat shed, the caravan park, a kiosk in the surf club and raising 6 kids takes its toll on him. He starts to feel he is being taken for granted by the kids and comes under a lot of stress. Worse still, it causes cracks to appear in his marriage to Pippa. Just before Christmas, Michael decides that the only way to save their marriage is for him to move out. He goes to live in the storeroom over his boat shed. On Christmas Day, the troubles at home drive a distraught Sally to run away from home for a while.
Irene Roberts (
Lynne McGranger) suggests to Michael that he and Pippa should try marriage counselling. He takes her advice and books a counsellor. It takes a little time but the counselling works and he gets back together with Pippa. Michael and Alf fall out over a new time-share development, but they put their quarrel to one side and resume their friendship. When a small seaplane crashes in the outback Michael,
Joseph "Joe" Lynch (
Justin Rosniak),
Jack Wilson (
Daniel Amalm),
Shane Parrish (
Dieter Brummer) go out to find the six missing occupants. They find
Angel Parrish (
Melissa George),
Dylan Parrish (Corey Glaister) and
Teresa Lynch (
Diane Craig) alive, but the pilot did not survive. They soon realise that two other passengers are missing and Michael sets out to find them. He discovers a handmade bag with shells in it before he finds the body of the Yugoslavian man but finds his daughter
Maya Krakajcek (Xenia Natalenko) and takes her to hospital. With both her parents deceased and there being no other relatives, Maya comes to live at the Ross's.
Jan Connolly (Pat Pitney) takes her back to Yugoslavia after some relatives of Maya's are found there. Michael is devastated because he had really bonded with the girl and she was the first foster child he had brought into his home. When a large flood devastates Summer Bay as a result of a storm, Michael and Jack go out into the night to pick up Sam Marshall. Sam falls into the flooded stream and Michael jumps in to save him. Sam makes it safely to land but Michael finds himself in difficulty. Jack tries to hold on to him but the current is too strong and Michael is swept downstream. The next day, Michael's body is found and
Steven Matheson (
Adam Willits) breaks the news to Pippa that Michael has died. ==Haydn Ross==