Debbie Wilkins

**Debbie Wilkins** was a bossy, middle-class, outsider bank clerk who moved to Albert Square with her boyfriend, Andy O'Brien, in March 1985. Debbie's relationship with Andy was often rocky, due to the couple's opposing views on how they wanted to spend their lives, and while Andy was eager to start a family with Debbie, she was not so keen, wanting to keep her options open. Debbie and Andy were set to marry in November 1986, but their wedding did not go ahead when Andy was killed in August saving a child.

Debbie proved to be popular with the local detectives of Walford, having relationships with both Roy Quick and Terry Rich. Her relationship with Roy sparked when she was mugged in December 1985 by youths, although it soon broke down when he asked her to marry him, while on the contrary, her relationship with Terry proved to be a success, with the pair eventually marrying in 1987 following her departure from Albert Square to live with him in Crawley.

## Biography

### Early years

Debbie and her mother both decided at an early age they would beat the East-end at its own game and get Debbie into a different working environment. She always wanted to work in a bank and when she moved out of the area she lived in to work, she met Andy O'Brien and a relationship blossomed. The pair then moved to Albert Square to settle down and live successful lives.

### 1985-1986: Relationships with Andy O'Brien and Roy Quick

Debbie and Andy moved to Albert Square and into Number 43 in March 1985. The pair's middle-class status among a working-class community would often worry Andy, who feared they would not fit in with the locals, whereas Debbie did not mind so much about how she was perceived, instead being more interested in making a success of her career as a bank clerk. Debbie began revising for exams which she had signed up for in order to progress in her career. However, her determination to make a success of her life created tension between her and Andy, as Andy felt she no longer had time for him. Andy planned a romantic evening for Debbie but she turned it down in favour of revision, upsetting Andy. After learning she had passed her exams, she then made a healthy meal for the both of them to celebrate, but by this point Andy felt she was being controlling in the relationship which led to several arguments.

It was not long before the pair reconciled and all was forgotten until later on in the year, when local Foodstore owner Saeed Jeffery announced his plans to sell the shop. Debbie was interested in buying the Foodstore off of Saeed, but she failed to consult Andy over her plans, leading to another argument. Debbie then quit her job as a bank clerk, wanting more control over her own life, but this put both her and Andy in financial difficulty as the mortgage was under Debbie's name and Andy could not pay it off on his own. This did not damage their relationship though, as the pair were quick to reconcile once more when they had sex whilst arguing over money.

In December 1985, Debbie was the victim of a mugging. Andy was nowhere to be found at the time Debbie was assaulted, but the Square's local detective sergeant, Roy Quick, was present. Roy took a shaken Debbie back to her home and ensured she was safe and unharmed. Debbie was grateful for Roy's concerns and Roy then bought Debbie flowers. He then suggested that Debbie took up self-defence classes, even giving her a free lesson in The Queen Victoria pub. Andy got increasingly jealous over Debbie and Roy's relationship and when Debbie invited Roy round to their house for a meal, an argument erupted between her and Andy. Andy foiled Debbie's plans for a perfect meal by spoiling the dessert; a disgusted Debbie then told Andy to leave and began to focus on her relationship with Roy instead.

However, Debbie was soon taken aback when Roy asked her to marry him as he loved her and it would look good on a job promotion he applied for. After much consideration, Debbie decided she wanted to remain independent and turned down Roy's proposal. Debbie then restarted her relationship with Andy again, which caused a great deal of jealousy for Roy. Roy begged Debbie to get back with him, but she was not having any of it and told him to leave. She was then left thrilled with Andy when he asked her to marry him.

### 1986-1987: Andy's death and a relationship with Terry Rich

With Andy and Debbie engaged, it was not long before a date was arranged: 30th November 1986 - St. Andrew's Day. However, Andy and Debbie's turbulent relationship hit another rough time in August 1986 when Andy offered Simon Wicks a £100 loan, something Debbie disagreed with. Debbie had a furious row with Andy just before he was due in work and told him to "drop dead". On his way to work, Andy was killed saving a boy from being hit by a lorry. Debbie learnt of his death the following day and struggled to cope at the reality of his loss. She soon realised that with Andy dead, she would no longer be able to continue living at Number 43 due to her mortgage. Debbie was supported by the local residents following Andy's death, although grief got the better of her when she attempted to kiss Colin Russell after he provided her with some much needed support.

After accepting the fact that Andy was not coming back, Debbie realised she needed to move on with her life and continued to work alongside close friend Naima Jeffery in their newly renovated shop. Debbie moved out of Number 43 after selling it to James Willmott-Brown and moved into a flat with Naima outside Albert Square. After a successful move-in, Willmott-Brown invited Debbie for a meal at his house to get to know her better. Debbie was flattered by Willmott-Brown and the pair spent the evening together, although nothing serious ever came of their friendship.

In 1987, an anonymous man known as the Walford Attacker was on the prowl, randomly attacking women in the streets. Pat Wicks, Sue Osman and Sharon Watts had all had encounters with the Walford Attacker, and in April, Debbie was also attacked by the man whilst in the launderette. Debbie used her self-defence techniques to restrain the attacker. He was then arrested and confessed to attacking women. Detective sergeant Terry Rich, who had been investigating the series of attacks, checked up on Debbie in the aftermath of her ordeal to make sure she was okay. From there, Debbie and Terry began to get closer and eventually Terry asked Debbie to move away from Walford with him so they could start a new life together. Debbie agreed to leave with Terry and the pair then got engaged. Debbie had an engagement party at The Vic where she said her goodbyes to the local residents and then left with Terry to start a new life in Crawley.

## Other information

* Two months after leaving Albert Square, Debbie wrote to Naima Jeffery to inform her that she was pregnant.
* Debbie and Terry married off-screen.

## Background information

* Debbie was one of the original set of twenty-three characters in *EastEnders*.

## First and last lines

"Ah, that's not very nice, I was just kissing my Prince Charming." (First line, to Andy O'Brien after waking him up)

"You can all laugh, quite frankly I don't give a damn!" (Final line, at her engagement party as she kisses detective sergeant Terry Rich)