Chris Smith (EastEnders)

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For other persons named Chris Smith, see Chris Smith (disambiguation).
EastEnders character
Chris Smith
Portrayed by Allan O'Keefe
Duration 1985-1988
First appearance 7 May 1985
Last appearance 2 August 1988
Profile
Status Married
Occupation Lorry driver

Chris Smith was a fictional character in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. He was played by Allan O'Keefe.

Northerner Chris tried hard to make his daughter act more responsibly, but all his attempts failed. He was known to like a drink or two and he even opened a haulage company on Albert Square, but left when the business went bankrupt.

[edit] History

Chris the haulage driver was from Stockport. He was first seen in Walford in May 1985 when he came to visit his wayward daughter, Mary Smith. Mary (or Theresa as she was known to Chris) had left Stockport to escape her family, so she was none too pleased when Chris arrived and tried to persuade her to return with him so he could help bring up her young daughter. After several ill-fated attempts, Mary sent him packing.

In 1987 Mary began to prostitute herself. She would leave her young baby, Annie, at home alone while she went to work the streets. On one occasion Annie threw a blanket out of her cot straight onto an electric fan heater, causing a fire. Annie was rescued before she could get harmed, but Mary's neighbour, Dot Cotton, phoned Chris who returned to Walford and took Annie home to live with him and his wife, Edie, in Stockport.

As the year went on, Mary's boyfriend, Rod Norman, tried to straighten Mary out so she could get her daughter back. Even though Mary seemed to have sorted herself out, Edie had grown so attached to Annie that she was unwilling to give her back. By December of that year, Chris finally decided that Annie should be reunited with her mother, so he returned her to an overjoyed Mary. Unfortunately, this move did not sit well with Edie, and she refused to allow Chris home unless he returned with Annie. On Christmas Eve 1987, after desperately trying to convince Mary to return to Stockport, a very drunk Chris abducted Annie and tried to drive her home, only to crash into a wall at the local bed and breakfast on Bridge Street.

Mary was forced to spend Christmas Day in hospital so they could monitor Annie. Chris desperately tried to make amends with Mary for his foolish mistake, but Mary was initially unable to forgive his reckless actions. Later that day Annie was given the all clear, so a jubilant Mary eventually accepted her father's apology.

In early 1988 Chris made plans to open up a haulage company at a disused tyre shop in Albert Square, but was later given the bad news that his driving licence was to be suspended for 18 months following his drink driving accident. Nevertheless, he contacted his friend Harry Jameson to go into partnership and even managed to persuade Ali Osman to front up some capital. Just when it seemed things were going his way, Ali pulled out of the deal, and Chris started to turn to alcohol, regularly drinking himself into a stupor to drown his sorrows. A concerned Mary then decided to contact her mother, who returned to Walford to straighten her husband out.

By May 1988 Chris finally succeeded in getting the haulage company open by borrowing money from Walford Investments — the money lending organisation of The Firm — but the antics of his daughter, who started to use drugs again and neglect Annie, were causing him yet more grief. In a bid to help her out he offered her a job at the haulage company, but Mary had grown annoyed with her parent's interference, and after sabotaging her father's office with red paint, she took Annie and left Walford.

Chris remained in Walford to run his business. Rod Norman worked for the company as a bookkeeper and Charlie Cotton took on the job of lorry driver, although he was extremely unreliable. However, Chris was still short of drivers, so he made the foolish decision to do the haulage deliveries himself, despite having a suspended licence. Darren Roberts (who had had several run-ins with Chris regarding the theft of his JCB earlier that year) then informed the police that he was driving illegally and Chris was fined £1000. This severely crippled his business and he was then unable to repay his loan. Gregory Mantel, a member of The Firm, then arrived on the Square in search of Chris. Mantel forced Chris to sign over his business to The Firm, after which Chris had no choice but to return to Stockport. His last appearance was in August 1988. The premises of the haulage company were eventually bought by Frank Butcher, who converted it into the car lot.

[edit] Trivia

In the book EastEnders: Book Eight - Growing Wild by Hugh Miller, Chris is known as Reg Smith.