Mick McFarlane
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| EastEnders character | ||||||||||
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| Mick McFarlane | ||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Sylvester Williams | |||||||||
| Duration | 1996–2002 | |||||||||
| First appearance | 24 June 1996 | |||||||||
| Last appearance | 22 January 2002 | |||||||||
| Profile | ||||||||||
| Date of birth | 4 April 1968 | |||||||||
| Status | Single | |||||||||
| Occupation | Musician | |||||||||
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Mick McFarlane was a fictional character in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. He was played by Sylvester Williams.
Mick was an easy-going guy, who hoped to make it big as a musician. However his music career failed and he ended up selling CDs on a market stall in Albert Square. After several ill-fated attempts at a career change, he finally got his life's wish and left Walford in 2002 to tour with a band.
[edit] History
Mick was a musician and he arrived in Albert Square in June 1996, when his jazz band (including singer Frankie Pierre) came to audition for a gig to play in the Bridge Street café's night Bistro. Alan Jackson, who was managing the night café, heard them play and instantly hired them.
However, after Frankie (who was also Mick's ex) maliciously ruined several relationships on the Square, she quit the band leaving Mick in the lurch. With no band to bring in funds, Mick was forced to seek work elsewhere, so he began working at the café in May 1997.
In 1998 Mick decided to reform his band and held auditions for another singer. After turning down many useless hopefuls, he finally found a singer with some talent, a young female soloist named Lola Christie. Mick was immediately attracted to Lola and eventually the two embarked on a relationship. However, later in the year Lola was offered a contract as a professional singer, so she dumped both Mick and the band.
Later that year Mick was visited by his mother, Josie McFarlane, who had come over for a holiday from Jamaica. Mick was nervous about his mother's visit as he had led her to believe that he was a successful musician, and she was most put out to discover that Mick was working in a café. However, unbeknownst to Mick, Josie had a few secrets of her own too. She had brought a young girl named Kim along and although Josie initially pretended that she was a distant relative of theirs, it soon became apparent that she was holding something back. Eventually Josie admitted that Kim was actually Mick's half sister - the result of an adulterous affair that his deceased father had had many years previously. Kim's mother had also died and Josie had kindly taken her in instead of seeing her go into care. After this revelation, Josie then confessed that she had been conned in a Jamaican property scam and was now penniless. Mick was extremely shocked to discover that both his parents had been deceiving him for so long, but he had no choice but to welcome his mother and his new sister into his life and home. Mick soon warmed to the idea of having a little sister, although he did find Kim's tagging around after him a little irksome at first. Later that year Ian Beale fired Mick from his job in the café, after several residents went down with a bout of food poisoning.
In January 1999 Mick became good friends with the new doctor, Fred Fonseca, and later moved in with him. Fred later financed a loan to Mick, when he decided to take over Matthew Rose's CD stall. Later in the year Mick, Fred and a few other Walford residents went on a trip to Brighton, where Fred attended a medical convention. Whilst on the trip it became apparent to everyone, bar Mick, that Fred had something he wanted to get off his chest. Fred was gay and he had previously been too afraid to admit his sexuality to Mick, so he decided to take him to a gay club in the hope that Mick might 'cotton on'. Mick remained blithely ignorant to all Fred's hints however, and was extremely shocked when Fred finally confessed his sexual orientation. Mick was more hurt that Fred had felt unable to confide in him and was just as perturbed to discover that Fred didn't fancy him! The friendship managed to stay intact, although Mick's mother (who was also Fred's receptionist) was not so understanding and denounced Fred's lifestyle as immoral.
Mick later started a relationship with barmaid and ex-prostitute, Nina Harris. However, Mick's judgmental mother caused problems in this relationship too, when she discovered Nina's sordid past. Mick and Josie's relationship was sorely tested at this time, which culminated in Mick branding his mother a 'lonely, bitter, old woman'. Soon after Josie was forced to leave England after a mix-up with her visa, and so Mick was entrusted with the care of his younger sister. Mick and Nina's relationship ended soon after when Nina had to leave Walford to tend for her dying father.
With the financial responsibility of caring for his young sister, Mick found it difficult to 'make ends meet', so he later got himself a part time job as a limousine driver for Phil Mitchell. However, he was sacked soon after when Phil discovered dog hair in the car. This sparked a feud between the pair, with Phil doing everything he could to undermine Mick. However, despite his dislike for Phil, Mick's continual money problems forced him to swallow his pride and ask for his job at the café back later in the year. He also had a spell as the radio controller for Barry Evans cab firm.
In January 2001 Mick witnessed Mark Fowler push Nick Cotton off the viaduct railway bridge for selling his young brother Martin ecstasy. Mick was severely torn over what to do, but eventually he decided to protect Mark by saying that Nick fell and that Mark was nowhere near him at the time.
Early in 2002 Mick was offered a gig as a touring saxophone player in a band, but was forced to turn it down due to his obligations towards Kim. Soon after he became desperate for money to fund a school trip for his sister and he pleaded with Phil to give him an advance on his wages. Phil refused and Mick was forced to sell his precious saxophone to raise the money instead. However, that same day Mick left the till in the café un-manned while he chased a non-paying customer, only to return to find the entire days takings had been stolen. Phil found this extremely suspicious and he accused Mick of stealing the takings, fired him, and then told him that it was his responsibility to repay all the stolen money. The police eventually caught the thieves and Phil begrudgingly offered Mick his job back, however Mick made him grovel before he accepted.
When Kim discovered what her brother had been through, she took her school-trip money, bought his saxophone back, contacted Mick's musician contact and accepted the gig on his behalf. Kim was adamant that Mick should go and follow his dream, and so Mick left Kim in the custody of another relative who lived away from the Square and left Walford in January 2002.
