- List of My Family characters
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This is a list of characters for the British sitcom My Family that has aired on BBC One since 19 September 2000.
My Family centres around the fictional Harper family, who live in Chiswick, west London. The family is led by parents Ben and Susan, played by Robert Lindsay and Zoë Wanamaker. They have three children, Nick (Kris Marshall), Janey (Daniela Denby-Ashe) and Michael (Gabriel Thomson). Nick is a regular character until the 2003 Christmas special, and makes one appearance in 2004's fifth series before making his final My Family appearance in the 2005 Comic Relief short as Marshall wanted to do other projects and avoid being type-cast.[1] Janey is a regular until the 2002 Christmas special and does not appear in Series Four (2003), while the character is at University. Janey returns as a main character in Series Five.
Abi Harper, played by Siobhan Hayes, first appears in Series Three as the daughter of Ben's cousin Richard (Anthony Head).[2] Series Three also sees the first appearance of Roger Bailey, Jnr, played by Keiron Self. Roger, who becomes a main character in the fourth series, is a dentist and the son of Ben's former mentor. In the 2005 Christmas special Alfie Butts (Rhodri Meilir), a friend of Nick's, moves into the Harper household.
Contents
Principal cast durations
Character Series Series 1 Series 2 Series 3 Series 4 Series 5 Series 6 Series 7 Series 8 Series 9 Series 10 Series 11 Ben Harper Robert Lindsay Susan Harper Zoë Wanamaker Michael Harper Gabriel Thomson Janey Harper Daniela Denby-Ashe Daniela Denby-Ashe Kenzo Harper Tayler Marshall Roger Bailey Keiron Self Nick Harper Kris Marshall Abi Harper Siobhan Hayes Alfie Butts Rhodri Meilir Main characters
Ben Harper
Ben Harper My Family character Portrayed by Robert Lindsay Created by Fred Barron Duration 2000—2011 First appearance "Serpent's Tooth" (2000) Last appearance 2011 Profile Date of birth 21 November 1954 Home Chiswick Occupation Dentist Family Wife Susan Riggs (1980—) Sons Nick Harper
Michael HarperDaughters Janey Harper Grandsons Kenzo Harper Cousins Richard Harper Other relatives Abi Harper (first cousin once removed) Ben Harper is a misanthropic dentist who is married to Susan Harper and has three children - Nick, Janey and Michael.
He shows little compassion for his family, his patients or anyone else he encounters. In most episodes he can be found trying to come up with ingenious plans to annoy his wife, get rid of his kids and sit on the sofa with a beer and the paper. He enjoys watching football (shown supporting both Arsenal F.C. and QPR F.C.) and reading Tom Clancy, although it usually takes him the better part of a year to get through a single book. He also enjoys golf, despite the fact he isn't very good. Ben and Susan have been married for thirty years, as of 2010.
His children each have their different problems (with the possible exception of Michael), possibly due to the chronic lack of attention from their dad who doesn't seem to care about anyone. This lack of caring is shown to others outside of his family too, mainly towards his dental practice partner Roger Bailey. Deep down, Ben loves his wife and children very much, just seems reluctant to show it.
He also shows that he is a sensitive and an emotional parent when he fully accepts that his son, Michael, is gay.
Susan Harper
Susan Harper My Family character Portrayed by Zoë Wanamaker Created by Fred Barron Duration 2000—2011 First appearance "Serpent's Tooth" (2000) Last appearance 2011 Profile Date of birth 1956 Home Chiswick Occupation Art Gallery manager, former tour guide Family Husband Troy the Punisher (1973)
Ben Harper (1980—)Mother Grace Riggs Sons Nick Harper
Michael HarperDaughters Janey Harper Grandsons Kenzo Harper Susan Beryl Harper (née Riggs), MBE, is a tour guide, and later works in an art gallery. According to her family she is a bad cook. Susan is married to Ben Harper and has three children, Nick, Janey and Michael. Susan shows love to her children and husband. In the earlier series Michael calls her a control freak, which she still is. She enjoys cooking certain dishes, but uses the wrong ingredients. Ben and Susan have been married for thirty years.
Susan finds it hard to deal with the fact of her children moving out. In the same series, she had to deal with Janey moving to Manchester to go to university, and Nick flying the nest to live in his own flat. She also had to deal with Abi Harper moving into the Harper household in series 3 and Alfie in series 6.
Susan does not have a good relationship with her mother, Grace Riggs, but in the later series their relationship improved by the fact that Grace spent more time with her in the house while Ben was away. When the family appeared on Weakest Link, Grace revealed that Susan had a one-day marriage in 1973, after she married a wrestler called Troy the Punisher in Las Vegas while drunk.
In the Christmas Special 2008 Susan is awarded an MBE for charity work.
Michael Harper
Michael Harper My Family character Portrayed by Gabriel Thomson Created by Fred Barron Duration 2000—2011 First appearance "Serpent's Tooth" (2000) Last appearance 2011 Profile Date of birth 1989 Home Chiswick Occupation Student Family Father Ben Harper Mother Susan Harper Brothers Nick Harper Sisters Janey Harper Grandmothers Grace Riggs Nephews Kenzo Harper Other relatives Richard Harper (first cousin once removed)
Abi Harper (2nd cousin)Romances Scott Marsh
FionaMichael Harper is Ben and Susan's unplanned third and youngest child,[3] the younger brother of Nick and Janey and the uncle of Kenzo.
At the start of the show Michael was a typical 'geek' who was highly intelligent if sometimes naive, and exhibited a strong sense of morality and integrity, attempting to win the election for student president by honest means. However as the show went on and he matured he became very interested in the opposite sex and developed something of a dark, cynical sense of humour. He has displayed Machiavellian tendencies in his dealing with others and has demonstrated excellent skill as a businessman. As a teenager he is usually well-dressed, differing from his more geeky persona at the start of the series. Michael used to have a crush on Abi in series 3. He is something of a black sheep of the Harper family, differing considerably from his relatives.
As the youngest member of the Harper family, he was at secondary school until series 6. When the eighth series began, Michael had been at University for six months.[3] He is also known for being a supporter of the Conservative Party (as opposed to his Labour Party father), Ben also likes to refer to him as "Mikey."
In the second episode of series 10 (The Son'll Come Out) Michael comes out as gay to his parents, first to Ben after coming home drunk then later to Susan. He then tells them that he has been in a relationship with a guy for some time, a 25 year old solicitor called Scott Marsh, who later moves into the Harper residence, though he is later seen in gay clubs picking up guys and giving out his number, suggesting that he and Scott have broken up, but they later get back together.
Janey Harper
Janey Harper My Family character Portrayed by Daniela Denby-Ashe Introduced by Fred Barron (2000)
James Hendrie (2004)Duration 2000–02, 2004—2011 First appearance "Serpent's Tooth" (2000) Last appearance 2011 Profile Date of birth 1984 Home Chiswick Occupation Health Care worker Family Husband Ches Rochester (2004–5)
(divorced)Father Ben Harper Mother Susan Harper Brothers Nick Harper
Michael HarperSons Kenzo Harper (son) Grandmothers Grace Riggs (grandmother) Other relatives Richard Harper (first cousin once removed)
Abi Harper (2nd cousin)Jane Elizabeth Laura Harper (previously Rochester) is the only daughter and of Ben and Susan, the younger sister of Nick and the older sister of Michael and is known to be rather shallow. She is a shopaholic and is very concerned with her clothes and physical appearance. Much to Ben's dismay, she is sexually promiscuous and becomes pregnant at 19, becoming a single parent. She named the baby Kenzo although her original choice of name was "Prada-Handbag" according to Susan. She later married Ches Rochester, a man old enough to be her father, but asked for a divorce on her wedding day. She also develops a bad headache when she goes without Sexual intercourse for more than two weeks at a time: this causes her to become very aroused and to chase after any man she sees.
She temporarily left the cast in series 4 after going to the University of Manchester to study Communications in series 3, from where she drops out during the fifth series and returns to live near the rest of her family. She later becomes a health care worker, and is left a flat for her and Kenzo by a pensioner she cared for who recently died.
Kenzo Harper
Kenzo Harper My Family character Portrayed by Tayler Marshall Created by Fred Barron Duration 2003—2011 First appearance "Deliverance" (2003) Last appearance 2011 Profile Date of birth 25 April 2003 Home Chiswick Occupation Student Family Father Mark Jameson Mother Janey Harper Grandfathers Ben Harper Grandmothers Susan Harper Uncles Nick Harper
Michael HarperOther relatives Abi Harper (2nd cousin once removed)
Grace Riggs (great-grandmother)Kenzo Harper is the son of Janey Harper and Mark Jameson, the grandson of Ben and Susan, the nephew of Nick and Michael and the apple of Susan's eye. He is shown to be very intelligent in later series, and can even outwit most members of the family. Kenzo is sometimes embarrassed by his mother and consequently denies that Janey is his mother and even once said that he didn´t like her. He also likes to play jokes on his family and tries to outsmart them any way he can.
Roger Bailey
Roger Bailey, Jnr. My Family character Portrayed by Keiron Self Created by Fred Barron Duration 2002—2011 First appearance "The Second Greatest Story Ever Told" (2002) Last appearance 2011 Profile Date of birth 1981 Home London Occupation Dentist Family Wife Abi Harper (2007–08) Father Roger Bailey, Snr. Mother Nerys Bailey Dr. Roger Bailey, Jr. (born 1981) is the husband of Abi Harper. Roger, a dentist, first appears in "The Second Greatest Story Every Told" (2002), as the son of Ben's dental mentor, Roger Bailey, Snr. Roger's next appearance is in "Fitting Punishment" (2003), when much to Ben's annoyance, he buys the surgery below Ben's. Soon after he falls in love with Abi Harper, the daughter of Ben's cousin, and she eventually falls in love with him and he proposes in "The Art of Being Susan" (2006). They marry in "Abi Ever After" (2007), with Ben as best man and Janey as bridesmaid. By the start of Series Eight (2008), Roger has become a Special Constable.[3] Roger is sometimes shown to be child like and simple minded. He is shown in some episodes to be a fan of Lord Of The Rings.
Former Main characters
Nick Harper
Nick Harper My Family character Portrayed by Kris Marshall Created by Fred Barron Duration 2000–2003, 2004, 2005 First appearance "Serpent's Tooth" (2000) Last appearance "Comic Relief Special" (2005) Profile Date of birth 15 June 1980 Family Father Ben Harper Mother Susan Harper Brothers Michael Harper Sisters Janey Harper Grandmothers Grace Riggs Nephews Kenzo Harper Other relatives Richard Harper (first cousin once removed)
Abi Harper (2nd cousin)Nicolas "Nick" Harper (born 15 June 1980) is the oldest child of Ben and Susan, the older brother of Janey and Michael and the uncle of Kenzo. It was after finding out that Susan was pregnant with him that his parents married. His silly behaviour makes him irritating to his family, yet his laid back personality makes him fairly popular with women. Nick seems to get himself in awkward situations with other people, often getting confused as to what he is actually doing. Nick has attempted many jobs, such as a female impersonator, stunt-man, Stripper, magician and landlord. but was hopelessly unsuccessful at all of them. Kris Marshall left at the end of series 4 to pursue other projects, although he has appeared in two episodes of series 5 and a Comic Relief Special since.
Abi Bailey
Abi Bailey My Family character Portrayed by Siobhan Hayes Created by Fred Barron Duration 2002–2008 First appearance "Desperately Squeaking Susan" (2002) Last appearance "The Abi Habit" (2008) Profile Date of birth 1982 Family Husband Roger Bailey (2007–08) Father Richard Harper Mother Shelley Harper Other relatives Nick Harper (second cousin)
Janey Harper (second cousin)
Michael Harper (second cousin)
Kenzo Harper (second cousin once removed)
Ben Harper (first cousin once removed)
#Susan Harper(Cousin-In-Law)Abigail Therese Bernarde Bailey (née Harper; born 1982) is Ben's first cousin once removed.
Her father, Richard Harper, is Ben's cousin and he has been married and divorced five times. Her mother, Shelley, has been married and divorced many times, too. Abi came into the Harper household in the third episode of the third series to stay with them while she was at college. Susan invited her to stay following Janey's departure to University. Although good natured, Abi is very accident-prone, especially in the earlier series, where she puts her hand through a window, and hits Ben around the head with a cricket bat, thinking he was an intruder.
She has tried a variety of different jobs such as a salesperson, a car mechanic and a Victorian Hussy at the London Dungeon, which led her to dismantling Ben's car and leaving it in pieces on the kitchen table. Abi had a few boyfriends, before finally falling in love with Roger Bailey and agreeing to marry him. They married in the seventh series, with Janey as bridesmaid and Ben as best man. She is a Catholic, and, in the final episode of series eight, she becomes a nun, and opts to stay with her order rather than to return home with Roger.
Alfie Butts
Alfie Butts My Family character Portrayed by Rhodri Meilir Created by Fred Barron Duration 2005–2009 First appearance "... And I'll Cry If I Want To" (2005) Last appearance "Kenzo's Project" (2009) Profile Date of birth 1981 Alfie Butts (born 1981) is a friend of Nick's who turns up at the house in the 2005 Christmas Special and moves in with the family. He is always slow when he moves or speaks. A Welsh starting musician, he is not very successful in the industry.He collapsed in a live music webcast, in an attempt for popularity In series 7, he was 26 years old. Alfie did not return to the Series 9 Christmas Special or Series 10.
While he claims to be a friend of Nick's, a postcard is discovered in series 9 that says, "If a bloke called Alfie Butts turns up claiming to be a mate and says he can stay, do not under any circumstances let him stay", suggesting that he really shouldn't be there.
Recurring characters
My Family features several recurring characters, some of the more notable ones are listed below.
Character Actor Duration Role Appearances Brigitte Daisy Donovan 2000 Dental Assistant 7 "Stupid" Brian Kevin Bishop 2001 Janey's Boyfriend 3 Hotel Receptionist Andy Taylor 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007 Hotel Receptionist 5 Mr. Alexander Casey Nickolas Grace 2001, 2008, 2010 Neighbour 3 Grace Riggs Avril Elgar
Rosemary Leach2001
2003, 2005, 2006, 2007Susan's Mother 1
6Fiona Rachel Hyde-Harvey 2003 Michael's Girlfriend 3 Hubert Alex Dawson 2003, 2004, 2006 Michael's Friend 7 Vicar Mike Walling 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011 A Parish Vicar 6 James Garret Robert Bathurst 2006, 2007, 2009 Art collector 3 Mark Theo Fraser Steele
Alastair Southey2007
2011Kenzo's Father 2 Scott Marsh Nathan Brine 2010 - 2011 Michael's Boyfriend 4 Craig Willoughby Ben Uttley 2010 - 2011 Janey's Boyfriend 3 Grace Riggs
Grace Riggs My Family character Portrayed by Avril Elgar
Rosemary LeachCreated by Fred Barron Duration 2001–2007 First appearance "’Tis A Pity She’s A Whore" (2001) Last appearance "Susan of Troy" (2007) Profile Date of death 2011 Grace Riggs is Susan's mother, and is often the subject of many arguments between Ben and Susan. She also has an open alcohol problem and is regularly seen dating men. Her last on screen appearance was in 'Susan of Troy', when she revealed that Susan was once married to a wrestler, much to the surprise of Ben. In the series eleven episode, 'A Decent Proposal', Grace's funeral is held.
References
- ^ "My Family - Characters". British Comedy Guide. 2007. http://www.comedy.org.uk/guide/tv/my_family/characters/. Retrieved 2007-11-07.
- ^ "My Family Episodes - Series 3". British Comedy Guide. 2007. http://www.comedy.org.uk/guide/tv/my_family/episodes/3/3/. Retrieved 2007-11-07.
- ^ a b c "The Parent Trap". My Family. BBC. BBC One. 2008-04-11.
External links
- My Family: Character Guide at the British Comedy Guide
- My Family Series 10 Episode 4
- Character Guide
Episodes Characters Categories:- Sitcom characters by series
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