Age: 60ish.
Occupation: Barmaid, knitter, chef-patron at “Kathy’s”.
Appearance: Remarkably well preserved, considering.
Considering what? Considering the life she has had.
Any chance of a quick precis? Sure. She grew up with an alcoholic and abusive father. She was raped when she was 14, became pregnant and gave the baby up for adoption. At 15, she began an affair with a married man who later left his wife for her, and had a son with her ...
Wow, that’s quite a ... Meanwhile, the child, by then a young woman, tracked Kathy down, was rejected, and died from taking heroin. Kathy was raped again, this time by her boss, which ended her marriage. She took up with a vicar, a career criminal and a man who tried to turn her into his dead wife ...
How awful. I can see why ... She had another son with the criminal, who became an abusive alcoholic father, too, and the son got meningitis. Kathy had an affair with the criminal’s brother, another criminal, and the two men nearly killed each other. Her first son became mentally ill and the second went to prison twice, for GBH and then manslaughter. Then she faked her own death in South Africa.
That’s enough! This is all made up, isn’t it? How can you tell?
It’s just a little bit, you know, eventful. Well, this is EastEnders we’re talking about. And Kathy was in the very first episode in 1985, so she’s seen a lot, and now she’s back for good!
I’m not sure that’s worth celebrating, given her record. Well, it’s good news for fans, who at last have her back permanently after a 15-year absence, plus a couple of one-off appearances. It’s good news for Gillian Taylforth, the actor who plays her.
Ker-ching! Don’t be so cynical. Taylforth never wanted Kathy to die, and soap actors develop a very close bond with their characters. Adam Woodyatt, for instance, who plays Kathy’s son Ian, actually used to call her “Mum”.
Is that true? It actually is.
Do say: “You just don’t get it, do you, Phil?”
Don’t say: Anything. Just stare pensively at the spot where somebody was standing for six seconds after they leave the room.
