Harrington made his first appearance as David in 1988. He was introduced as the son of established regular Harold Bishop (Ian Smith). David comes to Erinsborough for his father's wedding to Madge Bishop (Anne Charleston). Jason Herbison of Inside Soap observed that there was no sign of the character during Harold's notable storylines, including the time he was missing and presumed dead, when he returned with amnesia, and when Madge died from cancer. Harrington joked that even he was not sure what when on with David during those years. He said, "God knows what happened during that period where Harold disappeared and came back from grave! I assume Harold just phoned David all those years ago to say 'you thought I was dead, but I'm not'. David's been in Perth this whole time, and Perth is a long way away from Ramsay Street, so perhaps the simple answer is that he just couldn't afford the air fare!"
