Amber Gates

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Amber Gates
First appearance Welcome Wagon
(episode 3.01)
Last appearance The Last Ever, Ever Footballers' Wives
(episode 5.09)
Cause/reason series finale
Created by Maureen Chadwick
Ann McManus
Portrayed by Laila Rouass
Episode count Footballers' Wives
23
Extra Time
3
Information
Gender Female
Age 35 (last appearance)
Occupation former actress
singer
former model
Spouse(s) Conrad Gates (ex-husband, deceased)
Bruno Milligan (ex-boyfriend)
Children Phoenix Gates (son)

Amber Gates is a fictional character on ITV British drama Footballers' Wives, played by English actress Laila Rouass.

Contents

[edit] Season 3

Amber is a Bollywood actress, in season 3, she is dating Conrad Gates, early in the season they are briefly married, but Conrad soon leaves Amber, for Tanya Turner. But, Amber is pregnant with Conrad's baby, and she does everything in her power to separate the couple, including faking her own kidnapping, and asking for a one-million pound ransom to see if Conrad cared about her, and additionally faking her own suicide to gain attention. Amber fails in separating the couple, and towards the end of the season moves back in with Conrad and Tanya, as both Amber and Tanya are pregnant with Conrad's babies, or so he thinks. Amber also plants a bag of cocaine on Tanya and gets her sent to Larkhall prison.

[edit] Season 4

The fourth season begins with Amber and Tanya living under the same roof, Tanya places a drug in Amber's orange juice one morning so that they will give birth at the same time. Later that day, Amber and Tanya both give birth to their babies, Conrad isn't there for their births as he is in Spain partying with the rest of the football team. Amber is devastated that he didn't come and blames Tanya for not informing him of their impending births. Right after Amber gives birth, Janette Dunkley, under instruction from Tanya takes Amber's baby and swaps it with hers, so that Conrad will not be able to prove that Tanya's baby is not his. Amber names Tanya's baby, Pundaric. Janette becomes Amber's live-in maid, until the death of Pundaric, after which Amber is naturally devastated. She is surprised by Tanya wanting to support her after the death of the baby and immediately suspects it is because Tanya feels guilty.

She then gets paternity tests done on the living baby, to prove if Tanya's baby (which is in fact Amber's) is Conrad's, the tests come out positive, but then Amber makes tests to see who is the mother of the surviving baby and it turns out to be her. On the night of his engagement to Tanya, Conrad is told by Amber that she is the mother of the surviving baby, and Amber throws Tanya out of the house, sending her on the first flight to Rio de Janeiro, all of Tanya's shares become Amber's in exchange for her silence over the issue of the paternity.

After Tanya's departure, Amber informs Hazel Bailey that she is a member of the board now, and has a more active role in Earl's Park because Tanya signed her shares over; Hazel tells Amber that the only reason Tanya would do that would be if she had no other choice. Amber responds by saying, "Well, you know Tanya." Conrad tells Amber that he wants to get back together with her but she tells him that they can't be together until she can stand on her own two feet. Subsequently, she attempts to restart her singing career releasing the single "Bangra Booti." However, when she realises that the only reason that her single got released was that Conrad paid the producer to work with her. She is very annoyed, and Conrad realises that a more drastic gesture is needed. He gets an elaborate tattoo, saying Amber's name and their child, Phoenix's on his back. This proves his love for Amber, and she is ready to progress in a relationship with him. Towards the end of the season, Amber fights to stop Conrad from getting transferred to Madrid, achieving little progress. She also helps Lucy Milligan escape from her husband Bruno Milligan, despite warning her that her new boyfriend is a dangerous character. Amber turns out to be right, as Lucy is almost killed with her new boyfriend. Bruno and Conrad try and go to save Lucy, but Bruno shoots Conrad in error, leaving Amber widowed.

[edit] Extra Time

Amber is in the hospital waiting room anxiously awaiting news on Conrad’s condition. She is then called in to a room, where we hear her scream “no”. She leaves the room and tells the nurse that he was too young to die. When she finds out that there are reporters outside the hospital, she tells the nurse that she can't answer their questions. Not looking how she does, she asks the nurse to make sure her hair and make-up artists get to the hospital. She will try to answer some of their questions as she feels that is what Conrad would have wanted. She is later seen on the news telling the press she is going to focus on her music career. She asks it there are any record producers who want to help her through this difficult time. Amber cremates Conrad in an ancient-Grecian style ceremony. However the fire won't burn and she tells them they won't get a penny from her. They then use petrol bombs. Amber then collects his ashes and has them carbonised to make a diamond ring. She meets Tanya Turner's sister Anika Beevor, at the bar. Bruno Milligan's son, Reece Salter spills champagne over Conrad's ashes. She approaches Gary Ryan at the wake, to ask to give him her new song demo. She has written a song for Conrad. She later calls his office however the message is erased by Anika.

[edit] Season 5

At the beginning of the fifth season months have passed since Conrad's death, but Amber is still unable to come to terms with it. Amber begins to suspect that Bruno murdered Conrad, due to the way he is acting around her, and also the fact that in his house, while Amber was playing hide and seek with Angelica Milligan, she noticed that Bruno's rifle, was missing from his gun cabinet. Amber, is Lucy's maiden of honour, as her and Bruno are getting their "vows renewed", however before the ceremony Lucy discovers Bruno never legally divorced from his first wife. Her and Bruno break up, and Amber surprisingly supports Bruno during this difficult time, as she says that he showed true grief over Conrad's death. She tries to get Lucy to forgive Bruno, but she has a better idea. She goes over to Bruno's and tells him that she supports him and bringing a suitcase full of his luggage from Lucy's, Bruno kisses her but Amber pulls away.

Amber says she'll stay with Bruno and support him, and that night she crawls into his bed and cuddles up to him, they have sex. They begin a strong physical relationship, to Lucy's dismay and Amber looks for evidence proving that Bruno killed Conrad, as she is regressed and meditates, and continues to feel that Conrad's spirit is not at rest and that his death must be avenged. She digs up Bruno's garden looking for the gun, and finds it, planting it in his bed to scare him. She then calls Bruno from Conrad's SIMM Card, several times in order to make him think that Conrad is haunting him. Her psychological torment, is taking its toll, as Bruno almost loses his job, realising that now is her chance, she buys Bruno a shaving knife hoping that he will commit suicide with it. However, Bruno has been informed by Lucy that Amber is on to him, and decides to play along with her game, asking for sleeping pills. Amber is ecstatic and runs out to the pharmacy to buy the pills while she is gone Bruno burns down her meditation room to Conrad and Amber has a nervous breakdown. The next morning Bruno is still alive, and Amber is told by him that he flushed all the pills down the toilet so he wouldn't hurt himself. She is desperate to still succeed in her revenge, and makes a poisoned meal. However, Bruno tries to get Amber to eat some and she continually finds excuses not to eat the food. At this point, both realise that they must confront the situation and stop playing this game with each other. Amber screamed at Bruno that he killed Conrad, and that he must pay, but Bruno tells Amber that she has no proof and to pack her bags and get out of the house before he returns from a housewarming party.

Amber dresses herself in war-like clothing and paint, and gets Bruno's rifle. She goes to the housewarming party and forces Bruno onto his knees, saying that she will kill him, Lucy pushes Amber out of the way just as she is about to shoot Bruno, and Amber is smashed in the head by the butt of the rifle, while at the same time, shooting Roger Webb, and subsequently blinding him. Amber is sectioned with a bleed on the brain, and sent away to a mental institution, where she is unseen for the rest of the series. However she did appear in the non-canonical ending to the series, The Last Ever, Ever Footballers' Wives.