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Barry Evans (EastEnders)
Encyclopedia
Barry Evans is a fictional character
played by Shaun Williamson
. He appeared in the BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
between 1994 and 2004. The character was portrayed as a "buffoon." Williamson controversially left the serial after ten years in 2003 after executive producer Louise Berridge
refused to allow him time off to star in a seasonal pantomime
. Barry was killed off
in an episode that aired early in January 2004.
in 1994 as an acquaintance to David Wicks
, and his initial role was to provide a trysting spot for David's adulterous affair with Cindy Beale
. Barry later aided Cindy's escape from Walford
, after she was wanted by the police for the attempted murder of her husband Ian Beale
.
Barry was son to car dealer Roy Evans
. He moved to Albert Square when Roy and his new romantic interest, Pat
, moved in together. Barry initially managed Roy's car business, Manor Wood, which was situated outside Walford. Roy later went into partnership with David Wicks when he bought into the car lot in Albert Square. Problems arose in 1996 when Pat's ex-husband, Frank Butcher
, returned to the Square and attempted to reclaim his wife, his house and his business from Roy. Barry tried to get rid of Frank by hiring a man to torch the car-lot, with the hope that Frank would be frightened off. However, Frank had already cut his losses and departed and it was Phil Mitchell
who was unwittingly trapped inside when the lot went up in flames. Phil survived, the arsonist was soon traced by the police and it wasn't long before he'd implicated Barry. Barry was arrested trying to flee the country and was subsequently imprisoned, although he was released a few months later.
Upon his release, Barry was given a chance to prove his capabilities by running the car-lot on Albert Square while Roy enjoyed retirement. Following David's departure the business was renamed 'Evans & Son', much to Barry's glee. Barry was forever searching for the respect and pride of his father, but however hard he tried he always messed things up and ended up trying his father's patience instead. Barry's management of the car lot was no exception. Barry risked the business and his family's savings by handing his monetary assets over to con-woman Vanessa Carlton. Barry was fooled into believing that Vanessa loved him, and after persuading him to invest the money in a fabricated business venture in 1997, she disappeared and left Barry to face up to a furious Roy. Barry's blunder forced Roy out of retirement and Barry was never able to regain Roy's full trust again.
Losing his job at the car lot, Barry was forced to seek employment elsewhere. He soon replaced Robbie Jackson
(through back-stabbing) as manager of the local video shop. It was around this time that Barry began to desire the love of a woman and he sought the help of a local dating agency to get it. This led to his first encounter with Walford
returnee Natalie Price
. Years earlier Natalie was driven out of Walford by Bianca Jackson
when her affair with Ricky Butcher
was uncovered. Unaware of Natalie's history, the two grew closer while Natalie attempted to set him up on many disastrous dates. After much bumbling from Barry, he eventually realised his true feelings for Natalie and a romance began. Natalie soon moved in with Barry, Roy and Pat and they married in a millennium
double wedding with Ian Beale
and Melanie Healy
.
Barry and Natalie remained happy for a while, until Natalie discovered she was pregnant with Barry's baby. Barry was over the moon about the news but Natalie wasn't so pleased and almost aborted
the baby. However, Barry promised to help out with the baby duties so Natalie could continue with her career and in 2002 Jack was born.
Barry had a turbulent time when his half brother Nathan Williams came onto the scene. Nathan, born out of an adulterous affair between Barry's father and Nathan's mother Jane, was resentful towards Barry for having his father's unconditional love, though Nathan had never even known his father. Meanwhile Barry was extremely angry with his father for being unfaithful to his mother, and their relationship was severely tested. Despite attempts by both Barry and Roy to accept Nathan into the fold, Nathan did his best to exclude and diminish Barry. Things reached a head when Barry discovered that Nathan had kissed his wife Natalie, and realising Nathan's agenda Roy disowned him. Barry eventually came to forgive Natalie for her brief fling, but he never really trusted her fully again.
Although Barry tried to make his marriage work, Natalie had fallen out of love with him and it wasn't long before she strayed again with old flame Ricky
. Unbeknownst to Barry, Natalie and Ricky planned to leave Walford with their sons Jack and Liam
. However Barry discovered them just before they planned to leave, and although Natalie called off the affair with Ricky, she also left Barry. In a cruel twist of fate, Barry's night got worse, when his father was rushed to hospital after suffering a heart attack, and died not long after. Devastated, Barry blamed his father's death on his stepmother Pat, whom he had never forgiven after she cheated on his father with prior husband Frank Butcher
. As Barry was the sole beneficiary to his father's house and business, he threw Pat out onto the street and left the grieving widow with nothing.
Barry spent a long time after this feeling sorry for himself and became a bit of a recluse
. It was around this time that Barry's employee Janine
, sensing an opportunity to manipulate some money out of her boss, started worming her way into Barry's affections. With the help of her secret boyfriend Paul Trueman
, she concocted a plan to make Barry fall in love with her, so she could get her hands on Barry's wealth. Feeling vulnerable since his split with Natalie, Barry fell for Janine's lies and the two got engaged. Meanwhile a mix-up with Barry's doctor had foolishly led Barry to believe that he was not long for this world. Thinking that he would soon be dead and believing that Janine really loved him Barry whisked her away to Scotland
for his second New Year's Eve wedding in 2003. However, feeling a sudden twang of guilt, Janine's accomplice, Paul, called off his affair with her after the wedding. To make matters worse, Barry had discovered that he was not dying after all, leaving Janine with the realisation that she was stuck married to Barry and couldn't get her hands on his money for the foreseeable future. The very next day on January 1, 2004, a blissfully unaware Barry forced Janine to go for a romantic walk with him on the Scottish moors. However, while at the edge of a steep hill, Janine, unable to stand Barry any longer, hurled venomous abuse at him and confessed that their entire relationship was fake and that she had been sleeping with Paul behind his back. Barry still wanted to be with her, however, and said that he could forgive her for sleeping with Paul if she would only stay with him. He begged Janine not to leave him and went toward her to hug her. Janine pushed him away and this caused him to stumble back, falling straight over the cliff edge, where he hit his head on rocks at the bottom. Janine left him to die, and inherited his business and wealth.
, the character was originally conceived as a tall, blond haired man. Williamson was neither particularly tall nor blond, and after being called for an audition to read for the part, he thought about dropping out as he was not a physical match. However, the Director stated that "nothing is laid in cement" with regard to the character, so Williamson went ahead with the audition. Williamson has said that Barry was meant to be a vehicle to bring his father Roy Evans
(Tony Caunter
) into the show, as Roy was being scripted as a new love interest for the regular character Pat Butcher
(Pam St Clement); in Barry's first appearance he meets Pat to apologise for a dodgy car he had sold her, paving the way for Roy to be introduced to her. For the next year and a half, Barry made sporadic appearances, in Williamson's own words "popping in and out". When a storyline in 1996 saw Barry imprisoned for arson, Williamson has said that he was uncertain whether his character would appear again; however the character was brought back on a more permanent basis later in the year.
In 1999, executive-producer Matthew Robinson decided to introduce a new love-interest for Barry. He decided to bring back a former character, unrelated to Barry but who had connections with several other characters in the serial. The character was Natalie Price
, played by Lucy Speed
, who had appeared from 1994-1995. The biggest storyline involving Barry and Natalie in 1999 was their joint double wedding with the characters Ian Beale
and Melanie Healy
(Adam Woodyatt
and Tamzin Outhwaite
) - the lead up to which included a hen/stag night celebration episode, which was filmed on-location in Amsterdam
, Holland. The episode evoked criticism by the Broadcasting Standards Commission for its inclusion of “almost relentless drunken and promiscuous behaviour, sexual innuendo and drug-taking, before the watershed”, which included Natalie having to acquire three love bites from strangers. The BBC defended the episode, claiming that its content would have “come as no surprise to viewers” and adding that the depiction of this behaviour conformed to an EastEnders tradition - that questionable conduct "only leads to further trouble…One character's quest for drugs led to embarrassment and nausea and a drinking binge led to the calling off of [Barry and Natalie’s] wedding while the prospects for another became bleaker."
Natalie and Barry’s screen wedding was featured as part of the Millennium
Eve episodes, which drew in 20.89 million viewers – the biggest soap audience since the character Tiffany Mitchell
(Martine McCutcheon
) was killed off in EastEnders precisely one year earlier (New Year's Eve 1998). An EastEnders spokeswoman commented: "This is a remarkable endorsement of the power of EastEnders that over 20 million viewers chose to see the Millennium celebrations in Albert Square." The episodes were also broadcast on screens in London
's Trafalgar Square
, a typical “haunt for New Year's Eve revelers”.
In 2001, a pregnancy was written into the Evanses' narrative. Natalie was shown to be distressed by the prospect of being a mother and planned to have an abortion. Viewers saw a “devastated Barry” react badly to the news in a special extended four-hander episode (written by Christopher Reason and directed by Clive Arnold) – the episode had a maternal theme with the action flitting between Barry and Natalie’s saga and scenes between Steve Owen and his dying mother, which included revelations of child abuse and incest. An EastEnders spokesman said: "We are very proud of the programme. The storylines involving Steve and his mother and Barry and Natalie are the stuff of intense drama. All four actors give incredible performances." The following episode Barry was seen to chase Natalie to the abortion clinic, where he persuaded her to go through with the pregnancy. The scenes between Natalie and Barry have been described as some of “the most powerful moments in soap, with the couple battling to decide the fate of their unborn baby”.
Viewers saw Natalie and Barry’s marriage sour towards the end of 2002 when, in the New Year’s Eve episode, Natalie rekindled a secret affair with her former lover Ricky Butcher
(Sid Owen
), which continued into 2003. Speed commented “Natalie's always had strong feelings for Ricky. And now she's grown tired of being a mother to baby Jack and Barry." The storyline reached its climax in March 2003. On-screen Natalie's plan to abscond with Ricky were thwarted by Barry’s discovery of the affair, leading to a public confrontation between the three protagonists. Shaun Williamson has commented “Barry is absolutely devastated as his whole life is ripped apart. He can’t believe Nat has betrayed him. He loves his life with Natalie and Jack, and would do anything to make it work as a family again. Losing Natalie is going to be really difficult for Barry, but I think the hardest thing will be losing his son.” The storyline signified the end of the characters’ three year marriage.
hit video, Thriller
, which was made as part of the annual fund-raising event, Children in Need
. Shaun Williamson as Barry played the Michael Jackson role, while Lucy Speed as Natalie took on Ola Ray
’s role as his date. Unlike the original video - where Jackson was seen to turn into a zombie
- the spoof saw Natalie transformed into the walking dead. A dozen cast-members took part in the spoof where they recreated the dance routine made famous in the original video.
Following his stint on EastEnders, Shaun Williamson
— the actor who depicted Barry — had a regular role as a comically unemployable version of himself in the Ricky Gervais
/ Stephen Merchant
BBC
-HBO comedy series Extras
, in which his career has bogged down partially as a result of the incompetence of his agent Darren Lamb (played by Merchant). A frequent running gag
is that even Lamb is unable to remember his client's real name, instead referring to him as "Barry from EastEnders", in reference to Williamson's EastEnders character. The character of Barry Evans has also been spoofed
in the cartoon
sketch show 2DTV
.
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...
played by Shaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson is an English actor, singer, media personality and occasional presenter, best known for his former role as Barry Evans in soap opera EastEnders and as a version of himself in BBC sitcom Extras.- Career :...
. He appeared in 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...
between 1994 and 2004. The character was portrayed as a "buffoon." Williamson controversially left the serial after ten years in 2003 after executive producer Louise Berridge
Louise Berridge
Louise Berridge is a British writer of historical fiction. Before she became a novelist, she was best known as a television producer and script editor. The most famous post being the executive producer of BBC's EastEnders between 2002 and 2004...
refused to allow him time off to star in a seasonal pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
. Barry was killed off
Kill off
The killing off of a character is a device in fiction, whereby a major character dies but the story continues. The term, frequently applied to television, film and chronological series, often denotes an untimely or unexpected death motivated by factors beyond the storyline...
in an episode that aired early in January 2004.
Storylines
Barry arrived in Albert SquareAlbert 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...
in 1994 as an acquaintance to David Wicks
David Wicks
David Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Michael French. He originally appeared between 1993 to 1996...
, and his initial role was to provide a trysting spot for David's adulterous affair with Cindy Beale
Cindy Beale
Cindy Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Michelle Collins.Cindy always had an eye for the lotharios of Walford and despite trying to settle down repeatedly with the more reliable Ian Beale, she was unable to remain faithful to him. She had a selfish...
. Barry later aided Cindy's escape from Walford
Walford
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where one of the series' creators, Tony Holland, lived and a blend of Walthamstow, where Holland was born, and Stratford. The suffix 'ford' is also found throughout East...
, after she was wanted by the police for the attempted murder of her husband Ian Beale
Ian Beale
Ian Albert Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the longest-serving character and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985...
.
Barry was son to car dealer Roy Evans
Roy Evans (EastEnders)
Roy Edmund Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tony Caunter. Introduced by Series Producer Barbara Emile in 1994, Roy was scripted as a love interest for Pat Butcher...
. He moved to Albert Square when Roy and his new romantic interest, Pat
Pat Evans
Patricia Louise "Pat" Evans is a fictional character from the 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...
, moved in together. Barry initially managed Roy's car business, Manor Wood, which was situated outside Walford. Roy later went into partnership with David Wicks when he bought into the car lot in Albert Square. Problems arose in 1996 when Pat's ex-husband, Frank Butcher
Frank Butcher
Francis Aloysius "Frank" Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by the late Mike Reid. Frank made his first appearance on-screen as a guest character in 1987 but, due to a positive viewer reception, he was reintroduced in 1988 as a regular. Reid took a long...
, returned to the Square and attempted to reclaim his wife, his house and his business from Roy. Barry tried to get rid of Frank by hiring a man to torch the car-lot, with the hope that Frank would be frightened off. However, Frank had already cut his losses and departed and it was 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...
who was unwittingly trapped inside when the lot went up in flames. Phil survived, the arsonist was soon traced by the police and it wasn't long before he'd implicated Barry. Barry was arrested trying to flee the country and was subsequently imprisoned, although he was released a few months later.
Upon his release, Barry was given a chance to prove his capabilities by running the car-lot on Albert Square while Roy enjoyed retirement. Following David's departure the business was renamed 'Evans & Son', much to Barry's glee. Barry was forever searching for the respect and pride of his father, but however hard he tried he always messed things up and ended up trying his father's patience instead. Barry's management of the car lot was no exception. Barry risked the business and his family's savings by handing his monetary assets over to con-woman Vanessa Carlton. Barry was fooled into believing that Vanessa loved him, and after persuading him to invest the money in a fabricated business venture in 1997, she disappeared and left Barry to face up to a furious Roy. Barry's blunder forced Roy out of retirement and Barry was never able to regain Roy's full trust again.
Losing his job at the car lot, Barry was forced to seek employment elsewhere. He soon replaced Robbie Jackson
Robbie Jackson
Robert "Robbie" Jackson is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Dean Gaffney from 1993 to 2003. The character was axed in 2003 by executive producer Louise Berridge. He made brief returns in 2004 and 2010 for two family weddings.-Backstory:Robbie was the product of a...
(through back-stabbing) as manager of the local video shop. It was around this time that Barry began to desire the love of a woman and he sought the help of a local dating agency to get it. This led to his first encounter with Walford
Walford
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where one of the series' creators, Tony Holland, lived and a blend of Walthamstow, where Holland was born, and Stratford. The suffix 'ford' is also found throughout East...
returnee Natalie Price
Natalie Evans
Natalie Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lucy Speed between 1994 and 2004. Natalie first appeared in January 1994, depicted initially as an unhappy, insecure teenager; she was among various regular characters brought in to increase the cast following the...
. Years earlier Natalie was driven out of Walford by Bianca Jackson
Bianca Jackson
Bianca Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Patsy Palmer. The character was introduced by executive producer Leonard Lewis and appeared initially from 1993 to 1999, when Palmer opted to leave. In 2002 executive producer John Yorke brought the character...
when her affair with Ricky Butcher
Ricky Butcher
Richard Francis "Ricky" Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sid Owen. Introduced as a school boy in 1988, Ricky is one of the longest-running, male protagonists to feature in EastEnders. Owen originally left the role in 2000 to pursue a music career...
was uncovered. Unaware of Natalie's history, the two grew closer while Natalie attempted to set him up on many disastrous dates. After much bumbling from Barry, he eventually realised his true feelings for Natalie and a romance began. Natalie soon moved in with Barry, Roy and Pat and they married in a millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
double wedding with Ian Beale
Ian Beale
Ian Albert Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the longest-serving character and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985...
and Melanie Healy
Melanie Owen
Melanie Jane "Mel" Owen is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tamzin Outhwaite. She appeared from October 1998 to April 2002 when Outhwaite opted to leave the role...
.
Barry and Natalie remained happy for a while, until Natalie discovered she was pregnant with Barry's baby. Barry was over the moon about the news but Natalie wasn't so pleased and almost aborted
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
the baby. However, Barry promised to help out with the baby duties so Natalie could continue with her career and in 2002 Jack was born.
Barry had a turbulent time when his half brother Nathan Williams came onto the scene. Nathan, born out of an adulterous affair between Barry's father and Nathan's mother Jane, was resentful towards Barry for having his father's unconditional love, though Nathan had never even known his father. Meanwhile Barry was extremely angry with his father for being unfaithful to his mother, and their relationship was severely tested. Despite attempts by both Barry and Roy to accept Nathan into the fold, Nathan did his best to exclude and diminish Barry. Things reached a head when Barry discovered that Nathan had kissed his wife Natalie, and realising Nathan's agenda Roy disowned him. Barry eventually came to forgive Natalie for her brief fling, but he never really trusted her fully again.
Although Barry tried to make his marriage work, Natalie had fallen out of love with him and it wasn't long before she strayed again with old flame Ricky
Ricky Butcher
Richard Francis "Ricky" Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sid Owen. Introduced as a school boy in 1988, Ricky is one of the longest-running, male protagonists to feature in EastEnders. Owen originally left the role in 2000 to pursue a music career...
. Unbeknownst to Barry, Natalie and Ricky planned to leave Walford with their sons Jack and Liam
Liam Butcher
Liam Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by twins Jack and Tom Godolphin in 1998 and 1999, Gavin and Mitchell Vaughan in 2002, and by Nathaniel Gleed from 2002 to 2004...
. However Barry discovered them just before they planned to leave, and although Natalie called off the affair with Ricky, she also left Barry. In a cruel twist of fate, Barry's night got worse, when his father was rushed to hospital after suffering a heart attack, and died not long after. Devastated, Barry blamed his father's death on his stepmother Pat, whom he had never forgiven after she cheated on his father with prior husband Frank Butcher
Frank Butcher
Francis Aloysius "Frank" Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by the late Mike Reid. Frank made his first appearance on-screen as a guest character in 1987 but, due to a positive viewer reception, he was reintroduced in 1988 as a regular. Reid took a long...
. As Barry was the sole beneficiary to his father's house and business, he threw Pat out onto the street and left the grieving widow with nothing.
Barry spent a long time after this feeling sorry for himself and became a bit of a recluse
Recluse
A recluse is a person who lives in voluntary seclusion from the public and society, often close to nature. The word is from the Latin recludere, which means "shut up" or "sequester." There are many potential reasons for becoming a recluse: a personal philosophy that rejects consumer society; a...
. It was around this time that Barry's employee Janine
Janine Evans
Janine Butcher is a fictional character from the British soap opera EastEnders, currently portrayed by Charlie Brooks. Rebecca Michael originally portrayed the character from 1989 until 1993, when the role was given to Alexia Demetriou for three years. Brooks took on the role in 1999...
, sensing an opportunity to manipulate some money out of her boss, started worming her way into Barry's affections. With the help of her secret boyfriend Paul Trueman
Paul Trueman
Paul Trueman is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gary Beadle between 2001 and 2004. Gary was introduced as part of the already established Trueman family. He was portrayed as a bad boy. Beadle left the role in 2004, following a suspension, reportedly for failing...
, she concocted a plan to make Barry fall in love with her, so she could get her hands on Barry's wealth. Feeling vulnerable since his split with Natalie, Barry fell for Janine's lies and the two got engaged. Meanwhile a mix-up with Barry's doctor had foolishly led Barry to believe that he was not long for this world. Thinking that he would soon be dead and believing that Janine really loved him Barry whisked her away to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
for his second New Year's Eve wedding in 2003. However, feeling a sudden twang of guilt, Janine's accomplice, Paul, called off his affair with her after the wedding. To make matters worse, Barry had discovered that he was not dying after all, leaving Janine with the realisation that she was stuck married to Barry and couldn't get her hands on his money for the foreseeable future. The very next day on January 1, 2004, a blissfully unaware Barry forced Janine to go for a romantic walk with him on the Scottish moors. However, while at the edge of a steep hill, Janine, unable to stand Barry any longer, hurled venomous abuse at him and confessed that their entire relationship was fake and that she had been sleeping with Paul behind his back. Barry still wanted to be with her, however, and said that he could forgive her for sleeping with Paul if she would only stay with him. He begged Janine not to leave him and went toward her to hug her. Janine pushed him away and this caused him to stumble back, falling straight over the cliff edge, where he hit his head on rocks at the bottom. Janine left him to die, and inherited his business and wealth.
Creation and development
The character was originally intended to appear in four episodes, debuting in December 1994. According to Barry's actor Shaun WilliamsonShaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson is an English actor, singer, media personality and occasional presenter, best known for his former role as Barry Evans in soap opera EastEnders and as a version of himself in BBC sitcom Extras.- Career :...
, the character was originally conceived as a tall, blond haired man. Williamson was neither particularly tall nor blond, and after being called for an audition to read for the part, he thought about dropping out as he was not a physical match. However, the Director stated that "nothing is laid in cement" with regard to the character, so Williamson went ahead with the audition. Williamson has said that Barry was meant to be a vehicle to bring his father Roy Evans
Roy Evans (EastEnders)
Roy Edmund Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tony Caunter. Introduced by Series Producer Barbara Emile in 1994, Roy was scripted as a love interest for Pat Butcher...
(Tony Caunter
Tony Caunter
Anthony Peter "Tony" Caunter is a British actor best known for his role as Jack Shepherd in the Yorkshire TV sitcom Queenie's Castle and also his portrayal of Roy Evans in EastEnders from 1994-2003....
) into the show, as Roy was being scripted as a new love interest for the regular character Pat Butcher
Pat Evans
Patricia Louise "Pat" Evans is a fictional character from the 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...
(Pam St Clement); in Barry's first appearance he meets Pat to apologise for a dodgy car he had sold her, paving the way for Roy to be introduced to her. For the next year and a half, Barry made sporadic appearances, in Williamson's own words "popping in and out". When a storyline in 1996 saw Barry imprisoned for arson, Williamson has said that he was uncertain whether his character would appear again; however the character was brought back on a more permanent basis later in the year.
In 1999, executive-producer Matthew Robinson decided to introduce a new love-interest for Barry. He decided to bring back a former character, unrelated to Barry but who had connections with several other characters in the serial. The character was Natalie Price
Natalie Evans
Natalie Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lucy Speed between 1994 and 2004. Natalie first appeared in January 1994, depicted initially as an unhappy, insecure teenager; she was among various regular characters brought in to increase the cast following the...
, played by Lucy Speed
Lucy Speed
Lucy Renee Speed is an English actress known for her television roles as Natalie Evans in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, and DS Stevie Moss in the ITV1 police drama series The Bill.-Early life:...
, who had appeared from 1994-1995. The biggest storyline involving Barry and Natalie in 1999 was their joint double wedding with the characters Ian Beale
Ian Beale
Ian Albert Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Adam Woodyatt. He is the longest-serving character and the only remaining original character to have appeared continuously since the first episode on 19 February 1985...
and Melanie Healy
Melanie Owen
Melanie Jane "Mel" Owen is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tamzin Outhwaite. She appeared from October 1998 to April 2002 when Outhwaite opted to leave the role...
(Adam Woodyatt
Adam Woodyatt
Adam Brinley Woodyatt is an English actor and media personality, best known for his role as Ian Beale in the long-running BBC soap opera EastEnders...
and Tamzin Outhwaite
Tamzin Outhwaite
Tamzin Maria Outhwaite is an award-winning English actress. She became known for her role as Melanie Owen in the British soap opera EastEnders, whom she portrayed from 1998 until 2002.-Early career:...
) - the lead up to which included a hen/stag night celebration episode, which was filmed on-location in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Holland. The episode evoked criticism by the Broadcasting Standards Commission for its inclusion of “almost relentless drunken and promiscuous behaviour, sexual innuendo and drug-taking, before the watershed”, which included Natalie having to acquire three love bites from strangers. The BBC defended the episode, claiming that its content would have “come as no surprise to viewers” and adding that the depiction of this behaviour conformed to an EastEnders tradition - that questionable conduct "only leads to further trouble…One character's quest for drugs led to embarrassment and nausea and a drinking binge led to the calling off of [Barry and Natalie’s] wedding while the prospects for another became bleaker."
Natalie and Barry’s screen wedding was featured as part of the Millennium
Millennium
A millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years —from the Latin phrase , thousand, and , year—often but not necessarily related numerically to a particular dating system....
Eve episodes, which drew in 20.89 million viewers – the biggest soap audience since the character Tiffany Mitchell
Tiffany Mitchell
Tiffany Dawn Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Martine McCutcheon from 1995 until 1998. The character was created by the writer, Tony Jordan...
(Martine McCutcheon
Martine McCutcheon
Martine McCutcheon is an English singer, television personality and Laurence Olivier Award-winning actress. McCutcheon had minor success as one third of the pop group Milan in the early 1990s; however, it was her role as Tiffany Mitchell in BBC's EastEnders that made her a household name in the UK...
) was killed off in EastEnders precisely one year earlier (New Year's Eve 1998). An EastEnders spokeswoman commented: "This is a remarkable endorsement of the power of EastEnders that over 20 million viewers chose to see the Millennium celebrations in Albert Square." The episodes were also broadcast on screens in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
, a typical “haunt for New Year's Eve revelers”.
In 2001, a pregnancy was written into the Evanses' narrative. Natalie was shown to be distressed by the prospect of being a mother and planned to have an abortion. Viewers saw a “devastated Barry” react badly to the news in a special extended four-hander episode (written by Christopher Reason and directed by Clive Arnold) – the episode had a maternal theme with the action flitting between Barry and Natalie’s saga and scenes between Steve Owen and his dying mother, which included revelations of child abuse and incest. An EastEnders spokesman said: "We are very proud of the programme. The storylines involving Steve and his mother and Barry and Natalie are the stuff of intense drama. All four actors give incredible performances." The following episode Barry was seen to chase Natalie to the abortion clinic, where he persuaded her to go through with the pregnancy. The scenes between Natalie and Barry have been described as some of “the most powerful moments in soap, with the couple battling to decide the fate of their unborn baby”.
Viewers saw Natalie and Barry’s marriage sour towards the end of 2002 when, in the New Year’s Eve episode, Natalie rekindled a secret affair with her former lover Ricky Butcher
Ricky Butcher
Richard Francis "Ricky" Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Sid Owen. Introduced as a school boy in 1988, Ricky is one of the longest-running, male protagonists to feature in EastEnders. Owen originally left the role in 2000 to pursue a music career...
(Sid Owen
Sid Owen
Sid Owen is an English actor, television presenter and former singer, most famous for playing the role of Ricky Butcher in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, which he appeared in from 1988 until 2000, 2002 until 2004 and then again from March 2008.-Career:Prior to his role in EastEnders he had a...
), which continued into 2003. Speed commented “Natalie's always had strong feelings for Ricky. And now she's grown tired of being a mother to baby Jack and Barry." The storyline reached its climax in March 2003. On-screen Natalie's plan to abscond with Ricky were thwarted by Barry’s discovery of the affair, leading to a public confrontation between the three protagonists. Shaun Williamson has commented “Barry is absolutely devastated as his whole life is ripped apart. He can’t believe Nat has betrayed him. He loves his life with Natalie and Jack, and would do anything to make it work as a family again. Losing Natalie is going to be really difficult for Barry, but I think the hardest thing will be losing his son.” The storyline signified the end of the characters’ three year marriage.
In popular culture
In 2002 the character was featured in a spoof of the Michael JacksonMichael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
hit video, Thriller
Thriller (music video)
Michael Jackson's Thriller is a 14-minute music video for the song of the same name released on December 2, 1983 and directed by John Landis, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Jackson....
, which was made as part of the annual fund-raising event, Children in Need
Children in Need
Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
. Shaun Williamson as Barry played the Michael Jackson role, while Lucy Speed as Natalie took on Ola Ray
Ola Ray
Ola Ray is an American model and actress most notable for co-starring alongside Michael Jackson in his short film for "Thriller" in 1983.She modeled for Playboy and was the Playmate of the Month for the June 1980 issue....
’s role as his date. Unlike the original video - where Jackson was seen to turn into a zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
- the spoof saw Natalie transformed into the walking dead. A dozen cast-members took part in the spoof where they recreated the dance routine made famous in the original video.
Following his stint on EastEnders, Shaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson
Shaun Williamson is an English actor, singer, media personality and occasional presenter, best known for his former role as Barry Evans in soap opera EastEnders and as a version of himself in BBC sitcom Extras.- Career :...
— the actor who depicted Barry — had a regular role as a comically unemployable version of himself in the Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais
Ricky Dene Gervais is an English comedian, actor, director, radio presenter, producer, musician, and writer.Gervais achieved mainstream fame with his television series The Office and the subsequent series Extras, both of which he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and frequent collaborator...
/ Stephen Merchant
Stephen Merchant
Stephen James Merchant is an English writer, director, radio presenter, comedian, and actor. He is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais, as the co-writer and co-director of the popular British sitcom The Office, as the co-writer, co-director and a co-star of Extras, and as 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...
-HBO comedy series Extras
Extras (TV series)
Extras is a British sitcom about extras working on TV and film sets and in theatre. The series was co-produced by the BBC and HBO, and is created, written, and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, both of whom also star in it...
, in which his career has bogged down partially as a result of the incompetence of his agent Darren Lamb (played by Merchant). A frequent running gag
Running gag
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
is that even Lamb is unable to remember his client's real name, instead referring to him as "Barry from EastEnders", in reference to Williamson's EastEnders character. The character of Barry Evans has also been spoofed
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
in the cartoon
Cartoon
A cartoon is a form of two-dimensional illustrated visual art. While the specific definition has changed over time, modern usage refers to a typically non-realistic or semi-realistic drawing or painting intended for satire, caricature, or humor, or to the artistic style of such works...
sketch show 2DTV
2DTV
2DTV is a British satirical animated television show that was broadcast on ITV in the United Kingdom, directed by Tim Searle.2DTV employs the same satirical style as Spitting Image, but using animation rather than puppets. The animation was produced on computer, frequently with animators working up...
.