Shirley Wicks
Encyclopedia
Shirley Carter is a fictional character
from the BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
, played by Linda Henry
. She first appeared on 7 December 2006. This is Henry's second role in EastEnders, as she previously played prostitute Lorraine Salter.
(Matt Di Angelo
) and Carly Wicks
(Kellie Shirley
), and the ex-wife of Kevin Wicks
(Phil Daniels
). It is established that she abandoned her family while the children were young, and that her third child, Jimbo, died from cystic fibrosis
in her absence. Kevin raised the surviving children with no contact from Shirley, and when she attempts to reintroduce herself in 2006, he forbids her from seeing them. She successfully makes contact in early 2007, and although Carly is hostile, Deano proves more receptive, so Shirley moves to Albert Square
to be near them. She reveals to Kevin that she had several affairs while they were married, and that Carly and Deano are not his biological children. The pair have sex, but a regretful Kevin later proposes to his girlfriend, Denise Fox
(Diane Parish
). Shirley tells Denise about the one-night-stand, but the wedding goes ahead regardless.
Shirley gets a job as barmaid at The Queen Victoria
public house
. Deano turns to her for support when he is charged with perverting the course of justice, but refutes her suggestion of running away, and is imprisoned for six months. Soon thereafter, Shirley begins a relationship with Vinnie Monks
(Bobby Davro
), at the urging of her best friend Heather Trott (Cheryl Fergison
). The romance sours when Shirley discovers that he has lied to her about his financial, parental and marital status. She learns that Kevin has been selling cut-and-shut
cars, and confronts him. They attempt to dispose of a stolen car together, but are involved in a crash, which kills Kevin. In the aftermath, Carly rejects her mother and leaves Walford. Deano is released from prison, but blames Shirley for all his problems and also moves away.
A friendship develops between Shirley and her boss, Phil Mitchell
(Steve McFadden
). He supports her through a breast-cancer scare, but rebuffs her when she makes romantic advances towards him. Shirley reconciles with Vinnie, but has a one-night-stand with Phil. When he rejects her in the aftermath, Shirley plans to leave Walford with Vinnie. Aware that she is in love with Phil, he leaves her behind. An alcoholic, Phil begins drinking heavily and uses Shirley for sex. She supplies him with a false alibi when he is suspected of murder, and moves in with him to help him gain custody of his daughter, Louise (Brittany Papple), which leads to them beginning a legitimate relationship. Shirley is one of several EastEnders characters to appear in the internet spin-off series EastEnders: E20
. Her niece, Zsa Zsa Carter
(Emer Kenny
)—the daughter of Shirley's sister Tina— is a main character in the first series, and later appears in EastEnders itself, moving in with Shirley and Phil. Believing they have conspired against him to return Louise to her mother, Phil throws them both out. Regardless, Shirley supports him when he develops an addiction to crack cocaine
, even though he has brief relationship with fellow-addict, Rainie Cross
(Tanya Franks
). The ordeal leads to Shirley falling out with Zsa Zsa, however they part on good terms when Zsa Zsa later moves to France.
Reunited, Shirley and Phil buy a house on the Square, and she acts as a mother figure to his son Ben (Joshua Pascoe) and ward Jay
(Jamie Borthwick
). Phil has an affair with his aunt Glenda
(Glynis Barber
), but proposes to Shirley after having a heart attack. Glenda later reveals the affair, which prompts Shirley to call the wedding off. Phil persuades her to go to the registry office with him, but in the middle of her vows, Shirley changes her mind again. She tells Phil that she wants to be with him, but cannot marry him and will leave for good if he has another affair. Phil buys Shirley the local café as a present, but is dismayed when she discovers that Phil is friends again with Rainie. Shirley offers Rainie a job in the café, but uses it as a ploy to convince Phil that Rainie is taking drugs again. After much scheming, Shirley successfully ends the friendship between Phil and Rainie. Phil starts receiving photographs of a boy and silent phone calls, and when Rainie tells Shirley that she knows about them, Shirley accuses Rainie of being behind them. Phil tells Shirley that he has told Rainie about it, and about an incident from his past when he torched the car lot in an insurance scam and killed a homeless boy. Shirley is angry that Phil told Rainie instead of her, saying she would not have been shocked. Shirley then confronts Rainie and threatens her to stop.
. Henry, who had appeared in the serial during the early 1990s as prostitute Lorraine Salter, said: "I'm thrilled to be joining EastEnders. I'm both nervous and excited as I've watched it for many years". Created as an extension of the established Wicks family, Shirley's arrival was welcomed by her son, Deano. Di Angelo deemed his character "very fond" of his mother, keen to forge a relationship with her, and attributed Deano's childish characterisation to her absence during his formative years. Other relatives were less enthused by her arrival: Shirley developed a rivalry with Wicks matriarch Pat (Pam St. Clement
), which culminated in a physical fight and their arrest in April 2007. Digital Spy Dek Hogan highlighted a similarity between the two, and commented prior to their fight that Shirley was "so like Pat was when she first arrived it's frightening."
A friendship developed between Shirley and local businessman Phil Mitchell in 2008, as she underwent a breast-cancer scare. Reluctant to seek medical help, Shirley admitted to Phil that she was afraid, and he responded with "genuine kindness". Their friendship developed into romance, and Shirley was later able to save him from an addiction to crack cocaine, which Henry felt reflected the strength of their relationship. Although Shirley was wounded to discover he had been unfaithful to her, Henry explained that, regardless of the tough façade her character projected, she still loved him. She characterised Shirley as "a strong, proud woman [who] wouldn't stay with someone for [the wrong] reasons", and suggested they could survive the affair: "It will need effort to make it work and they'll never have the perfect relationship, but neither Phil nor Shirley would want a completely quiet life."
, and Digital Spy Soap Awards
, and for Best Double Act at the 2009 TV Times
Awards. Henry was shortlisted in the Best Soap Actress category at the 2009 TV Quick
and TV Choice awards. At the 2009 Inside Soap Awards
, Shirley was nominated in the Best Bitch category.
Tess Lamacraft from The Sun Buzz magazine questioned Shirley's motivations in accepting Phil's infidelities. She could not decide whether Shirley was "stupid, desperate or just madly in love" with him.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
, played by Linda Henry
Linda Henry
Linda Henry is an English actress, best known for her roles as Yvonne Atkins in the ITV television drama Bad Girls and Shirley Carter in the BBC's soap opera EastEnders.- Early life :...
. She first appeared on 7 December 2006. This is Henry's second role in EastEnders, as she previously played prostitute Lorraine Salter.
Storylines
Shirley is introduced as the estranged mother of DeanoDeano Wicks
Dean "Deano" Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders played by Matt Di Angelo. He made his first appearance on 2 January 2006. It was announced on 18 August 2007 that the characters of Deano and his sister Carly were being axed by executive producer Diederick Santer...
(Matt Di Angelo
Matt Di Angelo
Matt Di Angelo in London, England is an English actor and singer.He is mostly known for playing fictional character Deano Wicks in the popular British soap EastEnders, and for his current role of Sean Kennedy in the BBC series Hustle.-Education:He attended Southgate School, and started studying...
) and Carly Wicks
Carly Wicks
Carly Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Kellie Shirley, and by Michaela Stephen in a home movie the Wickses watched on 23 April 2007. She made her first appearance on 17 February 2006. Carly was axed from the serial after Phil Daniels quit. Carly is...
(Kellie Shirley
Kellie Shirley
Kellie Shirley is a British actress. She is mostly known the role of Carly Wicks in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders up until 2008...
), and the ex-wife of Kevin Wicks
Kevin Wicks
Kevin Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Phil Daniels. He made his first appearance on 17 February 2006...
(Phil Daniels
Phil Daniels
Philip W. "Phil" Daniels is an English actor, most noted for film and television roles as "cockneys" such as Jimmy in Quadrophenia, Richards in Scum, Stewart in The Class of Miss MacMichael, Mark in Meantime, Kevin Wicks in EastEnders, DCS Frank Patterson in New Tricks and Edward Kitchener "Ted"...
). It is established that she abandoned her family while the children were young, and that her third child, Jimbo, died from cystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis is a recessive genetic disease affecting most critically the lungs, and also the pancreas, liver, and intestine...
in her absence. Kevin raised the surviving children with no contact from Shirley, and when she attempts to reintroduce herself in 2006, he forbids her from seeing them. She successfully makes contact in early 2007, and although Carly is hostile, Deano proves more receptive, so Shirley moves to Albert Square
Albert Square
Albert Square is the fictional location of the BBC soap opera EastEnders. It is ostensibly located in the equally fictional London borough of Walford in London's East End. The square's design was based on the real life Fassett Square in Hackney, and was given the name Albert Square after the real...
to be near them. She reveals to Kevin that she had several affairs while they were married, and that Carly and Deano are not his biological children. The pair have sex, but a regretful Kevin later proposes to his girlfriend, Denise Fox
Denise Fox
Denise Celeste Fox is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Diane Parish. She made her first appearance on 11 May 2006. Parish temporarily left EastEnders in early 2008 to give birth to her second child...
(Diane Parish
Diane Parish
Diane Parish is a British actress best known for her role as Denise Johnson in the BBC Soap EastEnders and DC Eva Sharpe in The Bill.-Career:...
). Shirley tells Denise about the one-night-stand, but the wedding goes ahead regardless.
Shirley gets a job as barmaid at The Queen Victoria
The Queen Victoria
The Queen Victoria is a fictional Victorian public house in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders. It has the fictional address of 46 Albert Square, Walford, London E20.-Appearance and development:...
public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
. Deano turns to her for support when he is charged with perverting the course of justice, but refutes her suggestion of running away, and is imprisoned for six months. Soon thereafter, Shirley begins a relationship with Vinnie Monks
Vinnie Monks
Vince "Vinnie" Monks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by comedian Bobby Davro. He made his first appearance on 8 October 2007. It was announced on 19 July 2008 that Davro quit the show to do other projects...
(Bobby Davro
Bobby Davro
Bobby Davro is a British actor and comedian. He is mainly known for his work as an impressionist...
), at the urging of her best friend Heather Trott (Cheryl Fergison
Cheryl Fergison
Cheryl Fergison is a British actress most notable for playing Heather Trott in the long running BBC soap opera EastEnders.-Career:...
). The romance sours when Shirley discovers that he has lied to her about his financial, parental and marital status. She learns that Kevin has been selling cut-and-shut
Lemon (automobile)
A lemon is a car, often new, that is found to be defective only after it has been bought. Any vehicle with numerous, severe issues can be termed a "lemon", and, by extension, any product with flaws too great or severe to serve its purpose can be described as a "lemon".-Origin:The use of the word...
cars, and confronts him. They attempt to dispose of a stolen car together, but are involved in a crash, which kills Kevin. In the aftermath, Carly rejects her mother and leaves Walford. Deano is released from prison, but blames Shirley for all his problems and also moves away.
A friendship develops between Shirley and her boss, Phil Mitchell
Phil Mitchell
Philip James "Phil" Mitchell is a long-running fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Steve McFadden.Phil first arrived in Albert Square on 20 February 1990, and was soon joined by his brother, Grant, sister Sam and mother Peggy...
(Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden is an English actor, known for his role as Phil Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, which he has played since1990.-Early life:...
). He supports her through a breast-cancer scare, but rebuffs her when she makes romantic advances towards him. Shirley reconciles with Vinnie, but has a one-night-stand with Phil. When he rejects her in the aftermath, Shirley plans to leave Walford with Vinnie. Aware that she is in love with Phil, he leaves her behind. An alcoholic, Phil begins drinking heavily and uses Shirley for sex. She supplies him with a false alibi when he is suspected of murder, and moves in with him to help him gain custody of his daughter, Louise (Brittany Papple), which leads to them beginning a legitimate relationship. Shirley is one of several EastEnders characters to appear in the internet spin-off series EastEnders: E20
EastEnders: E20
EastEnders: E20 is a British Internet soap opera, which began airing on 8 January 2010. A spin-off from the established BBC soap EastEnders, it is set in EastEnders regular setting of Albert Square, a Victorian square in the fictional borough of Walford, in the East End of London...
. Her niece, Zsa Zsa Carter
Zsa Zsa Carter
Zsa Zsa Carter is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders and its Internet spin-off EastEnders: E20, played by Emer Kenny. She made her first appearance in EastEnders on 5 January 2010 and appears in all twelve episodes of the first series of EastEnders: E20...
(Emer Kenny
Emer Kenny
Emer Gwynne Morganna Kenny is an English actress from Haringey, London, best known for her role in the BBC soap opera EastEnders and its online spin-off EastEnders: E20, as Zsa Zsa Carter.-Career:...
)—the daughter of Shirley's sister Tina— is a main character in the first series, and later appears in EastEnders itself, moving in with Shirley and Phil. Believing they have conspired against him to return Louise to her mother, Phil throws them both out. Regardless, Shirley supports him when he develops an addiction to crack cocaine
Crack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
, even though he has brief relationship with fellow-addict, Rainie Cross
Rainie Cross
Lorraine "Rainie" Cross is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, played by Tanya Franks. Rainie was introduced as the drug-addicted sister of Tanya Branning . After having three separate guest stints in 2007 , 2008 and 2010 , she returned on 12 April 2011 as a...
(Tanya Franks
Tanya Franks
Tanya Christine Franks is an English-based actress, writer and producer, who is most known for starring roles on television in Family Affairs, The Bill, Pulling and the role of Rainie Cross in EastEnders. Franks is also the founder of Stock-pot Productions, a theatre and media production company...
). The ordeal leads to Shirley falling out with Zsa Zsa, however they part on good terms when Zsa Zsa later moves to France.
Reunited, Shirley and Phil buy a house on the Square, and she acts as a mother figure to his son Ben (Joshua Pascoe) and ward Jay
Jay Brown
James "Jay" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Jamie Borthwick. He made his first appearance during the episode broadcast on 14 December 2006.-Backstory:...
(Jamie Borthwick
Jamie Borthwick
Jamie Simon Borthwick is a British actor.-Career:Borthwick portrays Jay Brown in EastEnders, though his first appearance on mainstream television was as an orphan in the Celebrate 'Oliver!' musical alongside Shane Richie and Joseph McManners...
). Phil has an affair with his aunt Glenda
Glenda Mitchell
The following is a list of characters who first appeared or are due to appear in the BBC soap opera EastEnders in 2010, by order of first appearance...
(Glynis Barber
Glynis Barber
Glynis Barber is a South African actress of Afrikaner descent, born and brought up in South Africa. She was born Glynis van der Riet. When she was five years old, her parents divorced, and she and her mother moved to Johannesburg. She is best known for her portrayal as Sgt...
), but proposes to Shirley after having a heart attack. Glenda later reveals the affair, which prompts Shirley to call the wedding off. Phil persuades her to go to the registry office with him, but in the middle of her vows, Shirley changes her mind again. She tells Phil that she wants to be with him, but cannot marry him and will leave for good if he has another affair. Phil buys Shirley the local café as a present, but is dismayed when she discovers that Phil is friends again with Rainie. Shirley offers Rainie a job in the café, but uses it as a ploy to convince Phil that Rainie is taking drugs again. After much scheming, Shirley successfully ends the friendship between Phil and Rainie. Phil starts receiving photographs of a boy and silent phone calls, and when Rainie tells Shirley that she knows about them, Shirley accuses Rainie of being behind them. Phil tells Shirley that he has told Rainie about it, and about an incident from his past when he torched the car lot in an insurance scam and killed a homeless boy. Shirley is angry that Phil told Rainie instead of her, saying she would not have been shocked. Shirley then confronts Rainie and threatens her to stop.
Development
Shirley's creation was announced in September 2006, at which time she was described as being "brassy, rough, tarty and tough-as-old-boots" by media entertainment website Digital SpyDigital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
. Henry, who had appeared in the serial during the early 1990s as prostitute Lorraine Salter, said: "I'm thrilled to be joining EastEnders. I'm both nervous and excited as I've watched it for many years". Created as an extension of the established Wicks family, Shirley's arrival was welcomed by her son, Deano. Di Angelo deemed his character "very fond" of his mother, keen to forge a relationship with her, and attributed Deano's childish characterisation to her absence during his formative years. Other relatives were less enthused by her arrival: Shirley developed a rivalry with Wicks matriarch Pat (Pam St. Clement
Pam St. Clement
Pamela Ann Clement , known by the stage name Pam St. Clement, is an English actress. She has played Pat Evans in the BBC soap opera EastEnders since 1986, and is now one of the programme's longest-serving cast members. St. Clement announced her intention to leave EastEnders on 8 July 2011 and will...
), which culminated in a physical fight and their arrest in April 2007. Digital Spy Dek Hogan highlighted a similarity between the two, and commented prior to their fight that Shirley was "so like Pat was when she first arrived it's frightening."
A friendship developed between Shirley and local businessman Phil Mitchell in 2008, as she underwent a breast-cancer scare. Reluctant to seek medical help, Shirley admitted to Phil that she was afraid, and he responded with "genuine kindness". Their friendship developed into romance, and Shirley was later able to save him from an addiction to crack cocaine, which Henry felt reflected the strength of their relationship. Although Shirley was wounded to discover he had been unfaithful to her, Henry explained that, regardless of the tough façade her character projected, she still loved him. She characterised Shirley as "a strong, proud woman [who] wouldn't stay with someone for [the wrong] reasons", and suggested they could survive the affair: "It will need effort to make it work and they'll never have the perfect relationship, but neither Phil nor Shirley would want a completely quiet life."
Accolades
Henry has been nominated for several television awards for her portrayal of Shirley. She and Fergison were nominated in the Best On-Screen Partnership category at the 2008 British Soap AwardsBritish Soap Awards
The British Soap Awards is an annual awards ceremony to honour the best of British soap operas.The first event took place in 1999 and takes place in May each year. Although it is an ITV production, the events were held at the BBC Television Centre, in London until 2010. The 2011 awards relocated to...
, and Digital Spy Soap Awards
Digital Spy Soap Awards
The Digital Spy Soap Awards was an event that honoured the successes in British soap operas in 2007-8. It was hosted by the entertainment website Digital Spy....
, and for Best Double Act at the 2009 TV Times
TV Times
TVTimes is a television listings magazine published in the United Kingdom by IPC Media, a subsidiary of Time Warner. It is known for its access to television actors and their programmes. In 2006 it was refreshed for a more modern look, increasing its emphasis on big star interviews and soaps...
Awards. Henry was shortlisted in the Best Soap Actress category at the 2009 TV Quick
TV Quick
TV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...
and TV Choice awards. At the 2009 Inside Soap Awards
Inside Soap Awards
The Inside Soap Awards is a yearly award ceremony run by Inside Soap magazine since 1996. The awards celebrate the British and Australian soap operas and their actors. Until 2007, EastEnders had won the award for "Best Soap" on every occasion...
, Shirley was nominated in the Best Bitch category.
Critical response
Early in Shirley's tenure, Hogan advised viewers to "rejoice in [her] wonderful nastiness". He found her an "unpleasant" addition to the series, and though he commended Henry's portrayal, he hoped to see more possibility of redemption for Shirley, as "It's difficult to buy into a character that comes across as unremittingly unpleasant." Hogan called her "the most convincing drunk" in the programme for twenty years, but noted, "that really doesn't make her any less annoying and her scenes are a pain in the neck to sit through."Tess Lamacraft from The Sun Buzz magazine questioned Shirley's motivations in accepting Phil's infidelities. She could not decide whether Shirley was "stupid, desperate or just madly in love" with him.
External links
- Shirley Carter at What's on TVWhat's On TVWhat's on TV is a weekly television listings magazine published by IPC Media, a Time Warner subsidiary.-Overview:What's on TV is a weekly UK television magazine. It publishes features, TV listings, news and gossip from soap operas, as well as puzzles and competitions...