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Patricia "Pat" Evans (née Harris; previously Beale, Wicks and Butcher) is a fictional character in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders. She has been played by Pam St. Clement since 12 June 1986, just over a year after the show first aired. Pat was also played by Emma Cooke in a soap 'bubble' Pat and Mo: Ashes to Ashes, delving into the her past with sister-in-law Mo Harris, which aired in 2004.
Pat is a tough enemy, a good friend, a straight talker and a woman who won't be messed with.
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Encyclopedia
Patricia "Pat" Evans (née Harris; previously Beale, Wicks and Butcher) is a fictional character in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders. She has been played by Pam St. Clement since 12 June 1986, just over a year after the show first aired. Pat was also played by Emma Cooke in a soap 'bubble' Pat and Mo: Ashes to Ashes, delving into the her past with sister-in-law Mo Harris, which aired in 2004.
Pat is a tough enemy, a good friend, a straight talker and a woman who won't be messed with. She's had a rough life and made many mistakes, but she's a survivor and she refuses to let her past grind her down. Pat has so far been married four times, making her the most-married character in the whole of EastEnders, until 2007 when Ian Beale completed his fourth marriage to Jane Collins.
Pam St. Clement has 125 pairs of earrings from which to choose and fans still send her earrings, which she sometimes wears in the programme.
Character creation
The character of Pat was conceptualised by the creators of EastEnders, Tony Holland and Julia Smith, in 1984. Although not one of the serial's original protagonists, Pat is referred to in the character outline of Pete Beale, who appeared on-screen in EastEnders first episode, as written by Smith and Holland in their book, EastEnders: The Inside Story: "[Pete] married very young to Pat — it turned out to be a total disaster. They were too young, rushing into a difficult life for all the wrong reasons, and truthfully, [Pat] was a vicious shrew...[Pete] divorced [Pat] and married Kathy when he was 24...His two sons by his first marriage are nineteen and twenty and he hardly sees them..."
However, Pat was not seen on-screen until June 1986, over a year after the show first aired. The character's introduction was the result of a deliberate policy "to add an extra edge of toughness to the show." Prior to this point, Holland and Smith had begun to feel that EastEnders was starting to get "a bit soft". During a meeting with scriptwriters, the programme makers decided to try and recapture some of the soap's "original grittiness that seemed to be getting lost in its own success". Thus the character of Pat was introduced to "add a new hardness to the atmosphere."
Pat, played by actress Pam St. Clement, was initially introduced on a three-episode trial basis. She was given an extensive backstory, heavily intertwined with various focal characters within the serial, including all of the Beale and Fowler family who mostly disliked her, particularly her ex-husband Pete Beale (Peter Dean), her son Simon Wicks (Nick Berry), and Pete's mother Lou Beale (Anna Wing). In addition, she was an old friend of Angie Watts (Anita Dobson), a former girlfriend of Angie's husband Den (Leslie Grantham) and, as a supposed former resident of Walford, she was known to most of the other regular characters such as Dot Cotton (June Brown) and Ethel Skinner (Gretchen Franklin).
The character's initial three-episode stint marked the beginning of what has been described as one of the soap's most complicated storylines, the paternity of Simon Wicks. Pat immediately "threw a spanner in the works" by telling Pete that he was not Simon's biological father, as she had previously claimed. After causing havoc Pat then disappeared; however, she was reintroduced later in the year, returning as a regular character, barmaid of The Queen Victoria public house. St. Clement had reservations about returning to the soap. In 1995 she told The Independent, "I couldn't envisage how this character, who creates absolute havoc everywhere she goes and is not at home with herself or with anybody else in the Square, could possibly fit in". However she was persuaded to continue by producer Julia Smith, who said: "'We've only seen one layer of the onion skin—the defensiveness—now we'll start to peel away more and get to the vulnerability that lies behind it'."
Storylines
Backstory
Pat, the youngest of four children, was born in Walford to Lydia Harris. Her elder sister Joan had Down's syndrome, and was sent to a mental institute when Pat was four. Joan married a man named Michael who also had Down's. Ashamed, Lydia disowned Joan and claimed she died at the age of 22, refusing to allow Pat to attend her funeral.
After leaving school, Pat unsuccessfully tried to become a model. Later she entered a beauty contest in Clacton at the age of 16, winning the title of 'Miss Butlins'. There she met Frank Butcher, who was holidaying with his girlfriend, June. Frank was besotted with Pat, and they slept together. Frank was the first of what would be many lovers in Pat's life, and so began a love affair; however, June became pregnant with Frank's child, so Frank married her, breaking Pat's heart. Pat and Frank would meet up from time to time, and on each occasion the affair would be rekindled, but Frank wouldn't leave June.
Pat began working for the shady club owner, Tony Cattani, who got her involved in prostitution. This shamed her family, particularly her brother Jimmy and their relationship suffered. When Pat discovered that Jimmy's wife and her best friend, Mo Harris, had slept with Tony, she informed her brother; Mo denied it, and Jimmy subsequently disowned Pat. Whilst working as a prostitute, Pat was offered more money to work for up-and-coming gangster Johnny Allen. Pat then worked as a well known woman of the underworld for many years.
Pat embarked on numerous relationships. She had flings with Den Watts and Kenny Beale — both restless men, unwilling to settle down with her. Kenny's younger brother Pete proved more reliable; he married Pat in the early 1960s, when he thought she was pregnant with his child — a false alarm, which Pete's mother Lou believed was Pat's ploy to trap her son. While they were together, Pat had two sons, David and Simon, who Pete believed to be his. Yet Pat couldn't settle down and embarked on an affair with Brian Wicks. Pete eventually left her and they divorced in 1966. Soon after, Pat married Brian and he took on responsibility of her two sons. Pat stayed with Brian until 1986, when he started abusing her.
1986-1994
Pat came back to Walford in June 1986, to inform Pete that Simon was not his son. Many arguments erupted, but Lou was quick to step in and she managed to convince a devastated Pete that Simon was his. Later in the year however, when Pat returned to work as barmaid in The Queen Vic, it was divulged that Lou thought Simon was the product of a secret affair Pat had with Kenny. Lou was adamant that Pat should keep this secret and not upset her close-knit family. However, Pete's sister Pauline overheard and told him everything.
Pat lived up to her promiscuous reputation and, with encouragement from Mehmet Osman, ended the year prostituting herself. Animosity between Pat and Pete continued. When Pat was assaulted in February 1987 — left unconscious and close to death in the middle of the Square — Pete became prime suspect in the police investigation. He was later cleared when the real culprit, the Walford attacker, was caught.
The arrival of Kenny Beale in 1988 brought the question of Simon's parentage to the fore once again. Pat informed Simon and the Beale brothers that she was unsure which of them was the real father, adding further confusion. She also said that Den Watts was a possibility. Pat later ruled Den out, but demanded that he sleep with her, or she would spread around that he was the father. In July that year, a dying Lou pleaded with Pat to finally come clean to Simon. Pat revealed that Brian Wicks, the man that Simon had believed to be his stepfather, was actually his biological father.. Following Lou's death, Pat formed a close friendship with her former foe, Kathy Beale, Pete's second wife. Both found they had a common bond, with the dominance of Lou and Pete in their lives.
Frank came back into Pat's life in 1987. June had died and he and Pat reunited, taking over tenancy of The Queen Vic public house. Pat struggled being a stepmother to Frank's children, particularly Janine, who hated Pat. On 22 June 1989, Pat and Frank married in cockney style, driving out of Albert Square in a horse drawn cart. By the end of the year the Butchers had moved out of The Vic and bought the B&B across the Square, which Pat ran whilst Frank opened a used car-lot. Despite family and marital problems, Frank and Pat remained happy until 1992, when they began to struggle financially, forcing them to sell the B&B. Pat tried to turn their fortunes around by starting her own cab firm, PatCabs. However, disaster struck on Christmas eve that year, when Pat — whilst doing a short run for a regular customer — hit a teenage girl with her car. When breathalysed, she was found to be just over the limit.
On New Year's Eve, Pat was devastated when the girl died and found it hard to cope with the guilt, particularly when she was confronted by the girl's grieving mother. When Pat appeared in court, she was given a prison sentence and forced to serve 6 months inside. In the Autumn Pat returned, but by then the Butchers were in financial ruin. In desperation, Frank arranged for Phil Mitchell to torch the car-lot in an insurance scam. When this went wrong and a homeless boy died, Frank had a breakdown, and in April 1994, he left the Square, abandoning both Pat and his children without warning, leaving Pat destitute and heartbroken. Eventually, Frank's daughter Diane brought news that Frank was alive and had merely run away, so Pat began getting on with her life.
1995-2006
Car-dealer Roy Evans was attracted to Pat, but early attempts to woo her got him nothing but refusals. Pat later softened and went on a cruise with him, although she made it quite clear that sex was not on offer. Her carnal abstinence turned out to be blessing for Roy, as he later admitted he was impotent and could offer nothing more than platonic love. Pat was relieved to discover that, for once, a man wanted something from her other than sex. In November 1995, Roy moved in with Pat, but in December Frank returned to reclaim his wife. Pat found it hard to contain her rage and emotion upon seeing her estranged husband, but despite him stirring up old feelings, she opted to remain with Roy. Roy and Pat married in 1996. Pat and Roy weathered money problems, Roy's ill-health and depression, brought on by jealousy of Pat and Frank's shared past, which almost made him commit suicide in 1999. Pat finally convinced Roy that it was him she wanted, although she found it hard to let go of Frank completely. Frank went on to marry Peggy Mitchell, but he began to have second thoughts in 2000 after realising that he still loved Pat. Whilst the Butchers and the Evanses were holidaying in Spain, Frank seduced Pat and they slept together. Pat tried to end the affair upon their return, but when Frank turned up on her doorstep naked (apart from a comedy bow-tie), she realised that she had never stopped loving him either. Their affair continued and they eventually decided to elope to Manchester.
They were due to depart on Guy Fawkes Night in November 2000, but Pat started to have second thoughts. It was too late however, as Peggy had already discovered Frank's dear John letter. Peggy shamed the cheating duo by reading the letter to the entire pub, and then slapped both Frank and Pat in full view of everyone. Peggy threw Frank out and he left Walford without Pat. Roy evicted Pat, leaving her penniless and homeless. Roy later asked Pat for a divorce, but when she decided to emigrate to New Zealand, he relented and took her back, despite objections from his son Barry. Grateful that Roy gave her a second chance, Pat was adamant that she would not mess things up a second time. However, in 2003, Roy discovered that Pat had been covering an affair between Barry's wife, Natalie, and Frank's son, Ricky. Roy believed that Pat had again chosen Frank over him, because she decided to help Frank's offspring over his own. The stress led to Roy's second and fatal heart attack. Roy died intestate, leaving Pat bereft and homeless, as Barry — beneficiary of Roy's estate — evicted her.
Pat moved into a bedsit. Frank's daughter, Janine, married Barry and planned to con him out of all of his money and possessions. The day after the wedding, Janine confessed everything to her new husband, and pushed Barry down a cliff to his death. She later bragged about it to a disgusted Pat, whilst in control of the Evanses' former house and business. Janine started to bully Pat's friend Laura Beale, and when Laura accidentally fell down the stairs and died, Janine was arrested on suspicion of murder. Pat, Janine's only alibi, lied to the police, implicating Janine as revenge for Barry's killing. Pat was given a job at the bookies by gangster Andy Hunter in 2004. They developed a rapport with each other, and when Andy was murdered in 2005, Pat was stunned to discover that he had left her his house in his will. Pat was summoned to be a witness for the prosecution at Janine's trial in December 2005, where she once again met Frank who had returned after almost five years. Once again, Pat slept with Frank, but she soon realised that his primary motive was to convince her to alter her testimony at Janine's trial. Pat refused, but after a subsequent talk with Laura's mother, Edwina, Pat realised that Janine being wrongly imprisoned for Laura's death would be an injustice, so she changed her testimony and Janine went free.
In January 2006 Deano Wicks turned up in Walford, and after doubting his identity, Pat took in her distant relative in. Kevin Wicks and Carly Wicks soon followed, and moved into Pat's. In February 2006, Pat, who was missing the company of a man in her life, began flirting with Patrick Trueman. Despite being married, Patrick couldn't resist the opportunity of a casual fling with Pat. However, they were seen together by Stacey Slater who informed Patrick's wife Yolande, which ended the affair and ignited a feud between Pat and Yolande. A few months later, Kevin's new partner Denise Fox moved into Pats, along with her daughters Chelsea and Libby.
2007—
In August 2007, Pat was contacted by the mental institute where her Down's sister, Joan, had lived. With the help of a stranger, Len Harker, Pat retrieved Joan's belongings from the institute after security refused to let her in. Pat discovered that her mother had been lying about the date of Joan's death, she had merely been transferred to another home. Pat was told that Joan died some years earlier, but had lived a happy life and married another Down's patient, which was why she was disowned by Pat's mother. Pat was touched to discover that Joan had often spoken of Pat and how much she loved and missed her.
Kevin Wicks died in car crash on New Year's Day 2008. With Deano already in prison, Carly and Denise went abroad to scatter Kevin's ashes. Chelsea and Libby also moved out, leaving Pat on her own again.
In March 2008, Pat announced that she was leaving Walford for Spain. However, Pat then received news that Frank had died of cancer. She was devastated, and despite initial feuding, she and Peggy managed to support each other through Frank's funeral. Pat opted to remain in Walford when her granddaughter Bianca Jackson turned to her for help soon after, moving her four children in. Having reconciled with one grandchild, Pat severed her bond with another, when she discovered Steven Beale was purposefully hiding the whereabouts of his runaway sister, Lucy. Pat threatened to tell Lucy's father Ian the truth and was hit by Roxy Mitchell's car whilst trying to apprehend Steven. She spent time in hospital, where Steven attempted to smother her to death before she could tell Ian the truth. His plan failed, and Lucy was returned to Ian. Steven, rejected by everyone, left Walford.
After the revelation of Tony King abusing step daughter Whitney in December 2008, Pat immediately began to try and get Whitney to give evidence against Tony. After Whitney did and Tony was charged, Ricky showed her a Jewish newspaper, which showed Janine pretending to be a Jewish orphan called Judith Bernstein. Pat was furious and vowed to stop Janine conning another man for money. When she got to the church and stopped the service, she was removed and had to return home and await Billy and Ricky's return, when they returned she went to talk to Peggy about her problems and heard a noise outside. When she investigated she found Janine smashing up cars and her business.
At one night when Whitney went into the search for her birth mother Debra, Pat had discovered that Janine was lying about her true colours stating that she hasn't changed as she also discovered that Janine had given Whitney her mother's address. Pat berated Janine and she stated that she is going to stop acting good and start acting very bad. She proved that she was serious when she snatched her dog Terrence away from Whitney's half sister Tiffany. This had caused Tiffany to cry and Pat had to console to her.
On January 19 2009, Pat left Walford temporarily to be with Diane. She was supposedly to leave with Janine, but she was caught having stolen Peggy's purse at the last minute. Pat was ashamed and left without her. In revenge, Janine has blackmailed Jack Branning and bought Pat Cars, without her consent. When Pat returned, she discovered this and was disgusted that Janine had done this without her consent.
Pat stormed round to the carlot whilst Janine was out and demanded Darren give her the keys which he did, she then waited for Janine much to her surprise pat stood up and argued with janine, she then looked around the car lot and said it wasnt for frank that she did it it was for her own greedy self, pat then grabbed the canvas of frank from the wall, janine fought her for it , pat grabbed it back and then whacked it over janine!
In popular culture
The character of Pat Evans has been spoofed in the cartoon sketch show 2DTV. The impressionist who provides the voice is Jan Ravens.
Ravens has not only provided the voice of Pat, she has also acted the part on-screen in several episodes of BBC's Big Impression, which devoted a regular sketch to various EastEnders characters and she also played Pat in the other impressionist show Dead Ringers.
She is also the frequent target of jokes in Harry Hill's TV Burp, usually alluding to her former prostitution and alleged sexual promiscuity.
Comedian Lee Evans had once used Pat as one of his jokes in his latest tour Live at the O2 Arena.
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