Rose O'Connell

Possibly with Gino Poletti

Rose O'Connell is the former maid of Ash Park. It is widely believed that she is the mother of Georgie Bligh, yet this is incorrect; she is simply another young woman whose baby died (need to check this). Upon Olivia Bligh learning that her baby had died in utero she enlists the help of Andrew Swanson who helps her buy Georgie from an unknown woman.

## Biography

#### Season 3

While the rest of the family are in Sydney looking after George Bligh who has recently been shot accidentally by Regina, Olivia Bligh remains at Ash Park where she is interviewing new maids for the house following the recent departure of Amy. Rose is one of the maids being interviewed by Olivia, however when Olivia has to leave the room to answer the telephone and Georgie begins to cry Rose comforts him to sleep. This is met with a bad reception from Olivia who is at first angered and shocked but then offers a trial period as the maid at the mansion to Rose. Rose then begin to act strangely around Georgie and this makes Olivia feel uneasy, yet when George Bligh wishes to push his political career forward he hosts a party for many important sponsors for his campaign at Ash Park. yet disaster strikes when Georgie goes missing and Olivia desperately searches the house for him in the middle of the night. Regina however discovers the Georgie in bed with Rose holding him. In response to this Olivia begins to worry that Rose is actually Georgie's mother. Rose apologies to Olivia saying she didn't want to scare Olivia, yet this still scares Olivia.where she begins to grow closer toward Regina Bligh. Regina learns of Rose's infatuation with her and uses this for her personal gain. Regina begins to use Rose to get information about the family. Regina gives Rose a scarf and Rose's infatuation for Regina grows more than before. Rose mistakenly assumes she really is the mother of Georgie and in the middle of the night steals baby Georgie from his crib and dresses herself in a blue coat and also the same scarf that Regina gifted to her. Rose clutching her baby leaves Ash Park and begins walking towards the train station where she plans to leave Australia and begin a new life with her child. Whilst walking alongside the road George Bligh drives past in his car which terrifies Rose and she hides behind a telephone pole, When the car drives past Rose continues on her way to the station however she can't make it as the night is so cold, Rose hides in the Poletti barn where Gino discovers her and tries to get Rose to head back to Ash Park but in anger Rose screams to Gino telling him that she is never going back because she is the true mother of Georgie to which she then shows Gino the birth certificate. Weeping and still holding on to he baby Anna Poletti rushes for Ash Park to fetch Olivia. Olivia arrives at the barn in tears to find a distressed Rose crouching within the hay of the barn, Olivia views the birth certificate and realises Rose isn't the mother but that Rose's baby also died or was adopted (need to check this). Feeling sorry for Rose Olivia offers to keep Rose on at Ash Park. Rose returns as the maid to Ash Park, which leads to tension building even more at Ash Park between Olivia, Rose and Anna Poletti who also knowns the truth about Georgie's birth. When Olivia then leaves for a new life with Lloyd she then bids farewell to Rose enhancing her for helping her through all of her trials whilst at Ash Park.

#### Season 4

Rose becomes more and more obsessed with Regina as she continues to trick Rose in to thinking that she will always be there for her an that she is a kind and warm person. Rose becomes part of Regina's scheme once more when she wants to tear Gino and Anna Poletti's marriage apart, in order to do this Regina returns to Ash Park and gifts to Rose a new lipstick she has bought. She then prompts Rose to go to Gino's farm house and then tells her to ask for Italian lessons. Regina then does this to make it look at though Rose ls having an a affair with Gino, Rose then heads to Gino's farmhouse where she learns few words before then returning to Ash Park. The following day, Gino comes to house where he confronts Regina in front of Rose having worked out that Rose has only been sent for lessons due to the fact that she wanted rumours to arise that Gino was having an affair with Rose. Rose when Gino questions Regina about who would say such gossip to which Regina shouts to her "Well how should I know! before marching out of the room in our anger. When Prime Minister Robert Menzies is invited to Ash Park in order to promote George Bligh's political career Regina tells Rose to gather the staff in preparation for his arrival, on the night of the dinner party Rose serves drinks to the guests and overhears Pattie Menzies talking to Olivia Bligh, Deirdre Bennent and Anna Poletti. When Elizabeth Bligh then arrives Regina barks at Rose to get another place setting for the table. As time goes on Regina and Rose become closer and closer, with the rest of the family beginning to notice as Rose begins to pick up Regina's evil and cruel traits specifically when Rose begins to listen in on the conversations taking place in the house; yet alongside this growing relationship Rose also begin to get rather close toward Gino and even Anna thus completely destroying Regina's plot. However, Rose's friendship with Anna is truly a charge due to the fact that Anna simply wants for Rose to be close with her so she can get information of Regina's plots against the family although Anna's reasons are for less eve reasons than Regina's as Anna needs for Regina and Rose to be close really because she wants to destroy regina by learning her secrets. When Olivia Bligh is forced to deal with Harry's return to Inverness Rose listens at the door and then tries to hide from Olivia when she storms out of the room she has just been in, to this Olivia shouts at Rose saying that she will become monster if she continues. To this Rose at first looks shaken but she then sticks her tongue out at Olivia, despite Olivia's warning when Regina asks about what has bene happening in the house since her departure to Sydney Rose happily helps her and informs her about where everyone in the family and also what dramas are ensuing at present. A little later on with the wedding of Carolyn Bligh and Jack Duncan fast approaches Rose is one of the waitresses at the ceremony; she then tells Anna how pretty the house and wedding was. When the announcement of George being elected as the Inverness parliament member under the Country Party, George and Regina move to Sydney where they take up residence at the parliament suites. Regina decides to take along Rose as their maid much to Rose's delight, at the Sydney apartment Rose becomes more and more obsessed with Regina. When Regina leaves the apartment to meet with Brian Taylor, she tells Rose to pack all of her clothes. Yet when Regina then leaves the apartment Rose is left alone and due to her growing infatuation with her mistress, Rose goes in to Regina's bedroom where she dresses herself in Regina's Red Dinner dress along with her pearl necklace. Upon dressing in Regina's clothes she then looks wishfully into the mirror of the dress table and then caresses her face admiring who glamorous she looks in Regina's dress. Regina and George then return to Ash Park along with Rose and upon return Regina questions Rose about what is wrong with the rest of the family, as she has become suspicious at how kind the rest of the Blighs are being to her. Rose then learns from Elizabeth that she may learn of Regina's true nature if she reads the book that is on Regina's bed, Rose is tempted to read th book only to read the first few pages when Regina walks in on her. The screaming at asking how much she has read Rose promises he that she has only read the first few words, Regina then realising she still needs an ally pretends to apologise to he maid and then two embrace. When George arrives with a whole load of doctors who plan to take Regina away to a mental hospital Rose sees this and rushes upstairs to warn Regina, Regina sends Rose back downstairs to distract George for long enough whilst Regina can escape. When George then finds Rose on the stairs and he questions her where she is Rose tells him she doesn't know thus proving he loyalty to Regina, when Regina escapes Ash Park George and the rest of the family along with the doctors question Rose as to where Regina may have gone. Rose continues he loyalty to her mistress and tells them again and again that she has on idea where Regina has gone, yet when Jack Duncan then shows Rose the empty bottle of morphine he tells her what Regina really is and informs he row her mistress's addition tot he drug. Rose is still reluctant to tell the truth of where Regina may have gone but when Jack tells Gino to get Rose to tell the truth she decides to inform Jack of where Regina has gone, although she insists that she still doesn't believe Regina is mad and that she is only saying this because Gino has told her to. Rose reveals that Regina has gone to kill Sarah Adams meaning that Regina is heading for Roy Briggs's House. Whilst George and the doctors set off to stop Regina Jack tries to convince Rose that she has done the correct thing i telling them the truth about where Regina has gone, yet it is only when Gino arrives at Ash Park is hen she really breaks down having learnt of rRgina's true colours. Rose then runs up to Regina's room where she desperately drags most of Regina's clothes out of the wardrobe, with Rose then resigning from her occupation at Ash Park she laves to live with Gino at his farm house after he comes to take her away. When Jack later visits the farm house to bid farewell to Gino Rose is seen to be helping with the laundry the being the wife that Gino had always wanted despite what he has always told Anna, Jack then asks Rose to look after Gino to which she nods and says goodbye to him as well. Rose then leaves with Gino back to Italy leaving the farm house and her woes concerning Regina behind.

## Relationships

### Regina Bligh

Upon arrival at Ash park Rose is almost instantly bewitched by Regina's charms and on the surface personality, she also tells Regina thats he loves how she dresses. As the relationship goes on Rose's friendship with regina becomes more and more toxic, as Regina's true nature is poisonous to such a vulnerable mind. Regina then uses Rose for information about the family, and then also begins to make Rose feel safe and to make her feel like they are friends. Yet truly Regina only wants out of Rose is a spy within the house. Rose's growing obsession with Regina also makes the young maid mentally unstable as Rose also secretly dresses up in Regina's Red Dinner dress and also her pearls before then looking into her mistress's own dress table mirror. When Rose learns of Regina's true colours due to Jack Duncan she breaks down in tears and weeps before the screaming out at the loss of whats he beloved to be one of her closest friends.

### Gino Poletti

Gino is actually Rose's only true friend, as when she goes to Italian lessons due to Regina's plotting they begin to grow close and very fond of one another. The extent of their friendship can be seen when Gino even openly disagrees with Anna Poletti's plan to get Rose and Regina close to each other. Rose also feel betrayed when Gino hasn't told her about the plan but the two reconcile when Gino comes to Ash Park and takes Rose back with him to his farm house where she the live with him. Out of everyone Gino is Rose's only true friend and the only person that actually cares about Rose's feelings.

### The Blighs

Rose at first is very close with he rest of the Bligh family and Elizabeth Bligh seems to like her at first or a least fair with her. Along with James Bligh, Carolyn Bligh and George Bligh seem to tend toward liking her even if they don't like her as much as her predecessor Amy; however as Rose becomes more like Regina the family begins to dislike Rose increasingly. Elizabeth then begins to hate Rose as she is run etc the rest of the family and also begins to test the patience of Elizabeth in regards to Regina.