Matilda Bishop

**Matilda Bishop** is one of the secondary protagonist in *Headless: A Sleepy Hollow Story*. She is known as the spooky town witch. She is played by Sinéad Persaud.

## Personality

Matilda usually appears cold and closed off, but she is very loyal to and fond of those close to her. She is very crafty and cares deeply. She also enjoys teasing those around her. This means that she always takes advantage of the chance to make a sarcastic comment.

## Background

Matilda grew up in Sleepy Hollow and attended the local schools. As a young child, she grew to be close friends with Kat Van Tassel. They've been incredibly close ever since. More recently, she has been working at Colonial Drugs 'N' Stuff and helped Kat get a job there.

## Events of *Headless: A Sleepy Hollow Story*

Matilda Bishop is first seen while working a shift at Colonial Drugs 'N' Stuff. She coarsely advises Ichabod Crane, a new resident, on what to buy. He goes to ask her if he can hang flyers up in the store window, but Kat Van Tassel, Matilda's best friend and coworker, enters the room and distracts them. When Kat finally reaches the pair, Matilda takes the opportunity to say that she hates Ichabod and exits.

The following evening, Matilda looks at her phone during the mayor's annual Autumn Gala. Eventually, she manages to sneak away onto the porch and talk with Kat. The two are having a very intense discussion. Then, Ichabod walks onto the porch and interrupts them. Matilda tries to ignore him, but he wants to say hi to Kat and calls Matilda a "mean girl." At this comment, Kat mentions how Matilda is a real witch and should not be crossed. Matilda smirks. She magically turns his white wine red. However, due to fear of being poisoned, Ichabod dumps it out. Matilda is satisfied with herself and walks away from the conversation.

At the start of the next week, she recieves another visit at the drugstore. Ichabod walks in with Brom Bones and The Headless Horseman; they seek her help to find a head for the Horseman. She is not suprised by the request, and, with a little work, is able to try to help them. She also explains to them that she is only working at the drugstore in order to save up for her own shop. Her dream is to run a business where she can offer various occult related goods and services. At this point, Verla Wolfson, a mysterious coworker and friend, appears next to her. Matilda asks Verla to go get her "boyfriend." While waiting for Verla, Lucretia Lazenby, the owner of Storms Inn, walks in. To disguise the Horseman, Matilda puts a beret on him, hands him a drink, and says that he is drunk. She is much happier once Lucretia's unnecessary visit is over. From the backroom, Verla emerges with a skull that has "HENRI" written on it. Matilda struggles to get the skull from her, but with a side eye and tug, she wins. She uses the skull to perform a spell. With this spell, the Horseman momentarily comes to life and takes on the form of Henri. Sadly, he quickly "poofs" away as the spell is undone; Matilda has her work cut out. They also need more skulls for future spells, so Matilda, Brom, the Headless Horseman, and Ichabod all head to the graveyard. She uses an app called "DEADFINDR" to try to locate the skull of a Revolutionary War soldier. However, their plans are thwarted by the police.

By the next evening, Matilda has used mugwort to enhance the spell to last a full day. However, she has not had time to get a new skull. She and Ichabod decide to take the risk of trying out a skull that has been in the store for forever. Luckily, she has also taken the percaution of obtaining Baphomet's eyelashes which will dissolve the head right off- in case of emergency. She quickly performs the spell behind a counter, and the Horseman takes on the life of the pirate Captain Gravy Davy Crowbones. The captain makes a grand flourish and steps on the counter. Matilda does not want any part of it, so she leaves the shop with the mission of trying again to find the Revoluntionary War soldier head.

During a slow day at the shop, Matilda performs some sort of tarot reading. During this reading, Ichabod and the Horseman enter. Since their last visit, she has had time to find the skull they were looking for. She has to be quick with the spell because she needs to leave to film the Trouser's newest play. When the Horseman takes on its new identity, they find that it is actually Max Lee, a Revolutionary War Reenactor. Matilda is annoyed by Max's gravestone, want for snacks, and scouring the store. While looking around, Max finds Matilda, Brom, and Kat's old high school yearbook. Despite her annoyance, Max and Ichabod tag along to go to the play. After the play, Matilda quickly leaves to check on Verla and the shop.

The next day, before Ichabod's court appearance for graveyard trespassing, she helps him attach a skull of a supposed great lawyer to Headless. Headless takes on the life of Devlyn Versace, a YouTube prankster (not a lawyer). Matilda is not having it, so she dismisses herself to go meet Judy Gardenier for files that might be of help. Before Judy arrives, Kat and Brom come to the store and talk to her and Verla. Matilda takes the opportunity to chastise Brom about being mean to Ichabod. When Judy drops off the files, Matilda devises a plan; to make it up to Ichabod, Brom can help her and the others sort through the files. They manage to find one helpful lead; the Headless Horseman could be Cotton Van Tassel. The group later reveals this to Ichabod, and they help change the head to Anne Tarry, the mayor's former assistant.

The next night, Ichabod is invited to dinner at the Van Tassels', so Matilda and Brom use the time to scour the upstiars for possible evidence on Anne and the Horseman's behalf. As they begin to find clues, they realise they are not alone; Judy is working upstiars. She interupts their not-so-stealthy-session, and, as an allabie, they say that they are looking to get married. However, when Judy agrees to marry them on the spot, the pair, especially Matilda, are less than thrilled. Matilda wears a paper veil and evades a kiss from Brom. They also sign an old and tattered marrige certificate. Eventually, Judy lets them go and they escape with their evidence.

The pair work with Icahbod to continue to go over various clues. In the meantime, another bad head, a comedian: Bruce McConnell, comes to life. He does not live long. After a few bumps, the trio put together some clues (diaries, manuscripts, maps) and realise that the horseman's head is in the basement of Storms Inn. Matilda instructs the Babes to find her a head that will help them get into the basement of Storms Inn. They bring her none other than heist extraordinaire Paulie Tahoe.

Throughout the rest of the series, she continues to help the Horseman take on different lives and discover who they truly are. In the end, Matilda helps the Horseman and herself move on from their pasts.

## Other Tidbits

* For "Episode Three: The Briny Booty," Matilda opens the episode with, "Previously on Headless."
* Each of Matilda's rings represent a different famous witch.
* Matilda's phone case is Sinéad's real phone case.