Radio star Kate Ritchie was left in tears after her Nova co-hosts surprised her with a special guest from her past.

On Friday, hosts Michael “Wippa” Wipfli and Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald reunited Ritchie with her former on-screen mum, actress Debra Lawrence.

Lawrence played Ritchie’s mum, Pippa, on Home and Away, where the radio host starred as Sally Fletcher for two decades.

Appearing on Nova’s Fitzy, Wippa & Kate show, Lawrence spoke about their special bond and what it was like watching her former co-star growing up.

Wipfli opened the segment by asking Ritchie to guess her surprise guest.

“I know exactly who it is and I was thinking about them this morning because I need to buy tickets to their show. Is it Debra Lawrence?” Ritchie said on-air.

Lawrence and Ritchie then shared an emotional reunion, before the former on-screen mother and daughter shared some happy tears.

“Sorry I didn’t mean to cry!” Lawrence said.

“Come up next to the microphone. Even hearing your voice brings so much comfort to so many Australians, because it’s so familiar,” Wippa said.

“We grew up loving it.”

“That’s funny, because you know, I’ve got white hair now and look completely different,” Lawrence joked.

Wippa then asked what it was like to see Ritchie, and other past cast members.

“Well, Kate’s really the only one we see, because we have got a very close bond,” Lawrence said.

The surprises and tears kept coming as Lawrence then brought in her husband, actor Dennis Coard, who played Ritchie’s on-screen foster father on Home and Away.

The trio reminisced about their time together in Summer Bay and the many memories they have shared since.

Fitzy asked Coard what it was like helping Ritchie navigate her career during those early years.

“Did you feel like you did have to sort of nurture Kate a little bit through this and help her through this period?” Fitzy asked.

“Far from it. She was, even at that age, much more experienced than I was as an actor,” Coard replied.

“But as she grew, what she shared with me a lot was sarcasm and I get that from my kids as well, my real kids.”

Ritchie starred on Home And Away as Sally Fletcher for two decades, from 1988 to 2008, and won two Gold Logie awards for her performance.

She briefly reprised the role in 2013 for the show’s anniversary.