Thomas David Watkins is a fictional character in the ITV

ITV

ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

 drama

Drama

Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...

 Upstairs, Downstairs

Upstairs, Downstairs

Upstairs, Downstairs is a British drama television series originally produced by London Weekend Television and revived by the BBC. It ran on ITV in 68 episodes divided into five series from 1971 to 1975, and a sixth series shown on the BBC on three consecutive nights, 26–28 December 2010.Set in a...

and its spin-off Thomas & Sarah

Thomas & Sarah

Thomas & Sarah is a British drama series that aired on ITV in 1979. The only spin-off from the BAFTA Award-winning series Upstairs, Downstairs, it stars John Alderton and Pauline Collins reprising their Upstairs, Downstairs roles.-Background:...

. He was portrayed by John Alderton

John Alderton

John Alderton is an English actor who is best known for his roles in Upstairs, Downstairs, Thomas & Sarah and Please Sir!. Alderton has often starred alongside his wife, Pauline Collins.-Early life:...

.

Greenwich

Thomas Watkins was born in about 1876, the fifth of seven children, and grew up in Wales

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

. In June 1909 he responded to an advert for the position of manservant

Valet

Valet and varlet are terms for male servants who serve as personal attendants to their employer.- Word origins :In the Middle Ages, the valet de chambre to a ruler was a prestigious appointment for young men...

 to Lawrence Kirbridge. When newly-married Elizabeth

Elizabeth Bellamy

Elizabeth Kirbridge is a fictional character in the ITV period drama Upstairs, Downstairs, that was originally broadcast for five series from 1971 to 1975. She was portrayed by Nicola Pagett....

 arrived with Rose at her new home in Greenwich

Greenwich

Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...

, Thomas was waiting outside her new house. He soon struck up a friendship with Rose, and the two witnessed the collapsing marriage of Lawrence and Elizabeth. When the two separated six months later, Lawrence was given an allowance and sent to travel the world and he wanted to take Watkins with him. However, Thomas decided to stay and became chauffeur

Chauffeur

A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.Originally such drivers were always personal servants of the vehicle owner, but now in many cases specialist chauffeur service companies, or individual drivers provide...

 to the Bellamys at Eaton Place.

Sarah

From the moment Thomas Watkins came to Eaton Place, he and Sarah

Sarah Moffat

Sarah Moffat , also known as Sarah Delice and Clémence Dumas, is a fictional character in the ITV drama Upstairs, Downstairs and its spin-off Thomas & Sarah...

 quickly became close. They joined forces to defeat an Irishman

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 who was trying to blackmail the Bellamys, and their closeness resulted in her becoming pregnant. Sarah told everyone that this was the result of an encounter with a gentleman while she sheltered from the rain. Thomas then offered marriage to solve the problem, and went to Richard Bellamy to ask permission to do so. He liked the idea, as it would solve many problems, and gave Thomas £500 to start his own garage. Thomas always had ambitions above domestic service, and he and Sarah left service when they received the £500. They returned to visit the servants and to give Lady Marjorie

Lady Marjorie Bellamy

The Lady Marjorie Helen Sybil Bellamy was a fictional character in the ITV drama Upstairs, Downstairs...

 a birthday present, on 6 May 1910. The subsequent celebration downstairs ended when the news of Edward VII's

Edward VII of the United Kingdom

Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...

 death broke.

Life away from service

When they left service, Thomas and Sarah went their separate ways. Sarah gave birth at an aunt's house in the East End

East End of London

The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...

to a girl, who died at about an hour old. Soon after this, Thomas and Sarah got back together, although they never married. They began by trying at the garage business, but when this failed they tried many different schemes to make money, and even had servants of their own for a short time after Thomas won on a gamble. Thomas and Sarah were later forced back into service in the employ of Richard de Brassey, an eccentric man. Sarah and Richard had an affair, but when Thomas became trapped in a burning stable Richard attempted to save him and the stable collapsed. Richard died in the fire, while Thomas survived.