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Characters / Last of the Summer Wine

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The Main Trio

    William "Compo" Simmonite 
The uncouth scruffy one – and definitely the most immature. Compo was more or less the main character of the series, often providing the biggest laughs with his inappropriate behavior and physical humor. Played by Bill Owen.
  • Abhorrent Admirer: Was mostly this to Nora Batty, although over time she began to warm to him.
  • Affectionate Nickname: Known to his friends as "Compo" due to the fact that he has lived off of financial compensation for many years rather than working.
  • Amusing Injuries: Through all the various misadventures that were forced on him over the years – although he was usually able to walk away from them.
  • Butt-Monkey: Often found himself the guinea pig for Foggy and Seymour’s crazy schemes.
  • Character Catchphrase: Whenever Seymour needs someone to test his latest prototype: "He's looking at me, Norm! Why's he looking at me, Norm?"
  • Chivalrous Pervert: In one episode, a man tries to have his way with Nora Batty, and an angered Compo challenges him to a duel.
  • Cut a Slice, Take the Rest: Compo does it with sugar and tea. He doesn't so much take sugar with his tea as the inverse.
  • Friend to All Living Things: He was fond of his pet ferrets.
  • The Gambling Addict: Amongst his various vices was gambling, predominantly in the form of betting on horses.
  • Iconic Outfit: His scruffy clothes and wellies.
  • Killed Off for Real: Following actor Bill Owen's death, his character Compo was killed off, off-camera – we hear that he had a heart attack when woken up by Nora Batty, who was dressed as a cabaret dancing girl. She later recounted giving him mouth to mouth and his last words of "Can we try this again when I'm feeling better?".
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He never really meant any harm towards Nora, and he was shown to be very friendly to the people around town, if a bit overbearing.
  • Manchild: As Nora said after his death, "You'd think every minute was playtime!"
  • The McCoy: Definitely the most impulsive and desire-driven of the trio.
  • No Accounting for Taste: No one could ever really explain why Compo was so feverishly attracted to Nora Batty. Even he seemed mildly baffled by it.
  • Sad Clown: He was prone to bouts of depression whenever Nora was particularly nasty to him or he felt his age catching up with him. He would also be depressed when one of the third men left – typically because he loved to rebel against them.
  • Show Stopper: Would at times burst into song during the middle years.
  • The Slacker: Never worked a day in his life.
  • Vitriolic Best Buds: Typically with the third man.
  • Zany Scheme: Only in the interest of impressing Nora Batty.

    Norman Clegg 
Clegg was the often soft-spoken, witty and easygoing fellow who was a retired lino (linoleum) salesman. His wife, Edith, died a year before the series began. While the other two in the trio would be bickering or cooking up some crazy scheme, Clegg would often stand in the middle making some philosophic musing. He was the only character to appear in every episode. Played by Peter Sallis.
  • Affectionate Nickname: Often referred to as "Cleggy" by his friends.
  • Beware the Nice Ones: Usually too timid to do anything truly rotten, but if Howard ever pushes him too far, Clegg will embrace whatever revenge Truly comes up with.
  • Brutal Honesty: While rarely cruel about it, he tends to say whatever he thinks of anything, no matter how insulting it might be. At times, it almost seems involuntary, driving the other characters to great frustration when they're trying to keep a Zany Scheme going.
    Truly: You'll have to forgive Norman Clegg. He has this habit of being truthful.
  • Character Catchphrase:
    • After coming out of Auntie Wainwright's: "I didn't buy an (X), I was sold an (X)!"
    • Philosophically complaining about something: "It's flying in the face of nature!"
  • Cowardly Lion: Eventually became this.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Unfailingly.
  • Demoted to Extra: In the last few seasons due to Peter Sallis' advancing age.
  • Drives Like Crazy: Clegg has a driver's license. Technically. Somehow. But he's so scared of driving that whenever he's behind the wheel he keeps his eyes firmly shut.
  • Flanderization: Clegg went from being the acerbic, logical one to being the lily-livered coward of the trio. It started with him pointing out flaws in Foggy's schemes and snowballed into him desperately seeking any excuse to "give up and go home".
  • The Ghost: His wife, Edith, who died a year before the show began. We hear many things about her over the years, especially that she was as tough as the other women in town, but Clegg still loved her, and even Compo and Blamire had nice things to say about her.
  • Henpecked Husband: Sometimes made himself out to be this when Edith was alive, although there were times he remembered her very fondly.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: Originally with Compo, but following his death, he and Truly became closer.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While he’s mostly snark and pessimism, he is still the only one in the trio other people genuinely like, as he is usually the only one willing to mind his own business.
  • Last-Name Basis: Most of the time, although Compo did address him as "Norm" many times.
  • No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Anytime Howard ropes him into doing something for him, you can expect it to go wrong for Clegg somehow. Something Clegg is always aware of.
  • Only Sane Man: Most of the time, he’s content to just kick back and watch his friends make idiots out of themselves.
  • Seinfeldian Conversation: He was usually the instigator of this.
  • The Stoic: In the early series.
  • Straight Man: When put up against Howard.

    Cyril Blamire 
The first of the long line of third men – he was a former corporal storeman in India, and he was proud of it. That being said, he only boasted of it from time to time, and he was overall content to relax and enjoy his retirement. He only starred in the first two series, departing when Michael Bates fell ill. Played by Michael Bates.
  • Father to His Men: He did fulfill this sort of role, mostly in that he was always making sure Compo behaved. He didn’t seem to enjoy it much, though.
  • Hollywood Tone-Deaf: He took piano lessons as a child and is delighted when the situation calls for him to bust out those skills again, but they haven't survived nearly as well as he thinks they have.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He would tend to grow concerned whenever Compo or Clegg seemed to be running late, although he was reluctant to admit it.
  • No Indoor Voice: Mainly because Michael Bates tended to shout his lines quite a bit.
  • Put on a Bus: It was said that he left to get married. His departure was the first of many.
  • Team Dad: Seemed to think of himself as this as he was constantly admonishing Compo for his childish antics.
  • Vitriolic Best Buds: With Compo.

    Walter "Foggy" Dewhurst 
The second (and fourth) third man in the trio – and he made Blamire look easygoing by comparison. Also a former corporal in the Army (a sign writer), Foggy was constantly boasting about his war stories, and more often than not, he was the only one who believed them. In truth, he was cowardly, clumsy, nosey and bossy, and more often than not, his presence was merely tolerated. Played by Brian Wilde.
  • Accidental Proposal: What ultimately causes him to leave the show for the final time – he accidentally becomes engaged to the post lady, who is actually the only person who loves his war stories.
  • Affectionate Nickname: Referred to as "Foggy" by close friends. This is likely due to his surname Dewhurst and derived from "Foggy Dew", a line from a folk song.
  • The Bore: He would often cross paths with a stranger and then ramble about his supposed military career, typically boring each stranger to death.
  • The Bus Came Back: Literally! – his character returned in 1990, after a five-year absence, on the next actual bus after the one his replacement Seymour had just left on.
  • Contrasting Replacement Character: Like Cyril, he was the bossy, self-appointed leader. Whereas Cyril actually was a military man, Foggy was merely a signwriter who lies about his non-existent exploits.
  • Dirty Coward: He's a big talker – until someone actually calls him on it, and will immediately start backtracking and faking injury to get out of it.
  • Father to His Men: What he thinks he is.
  • Flanderization: He was always pompous and boastful, but in the beginning, there were moments where Foggy would let his guard down and have a laugh with Compo and Clegg. Eventually, he became such an insufferable windbag it was difficult to understand why they were friends with him. Following his return, however, he proceeded to reverse this and was soon moderately more likeable by his second departure.
  • The Friend Nobody Likes: He's pompous, delusional, hypocritical and sometimes seems to have a desire to get Compo killed. In fact, the only reason Compo and Clegg hang out with him is because Blamire asked them to, so their whole "friendship" is a favor to their real friend.
    Compo: (about Foggy) Nice fella. Nobody likes him.
  • Glad I Thought of It: He would insist on taking credit for every good idea someone else had. The others usually pitied him, knowing his ego couldn’t stand for it.
  • Glory Hound: Determined to make a name for himself in civilian life, even at the cost of Compo and Clegg.
  • Honor Before Reason: It gets him into a lot of trouble.
  • Hypochondria: Tended to dramatize even his most minor injuries.
  • I Know Karate: Or so he claimed.
  • I Meant to Do That: Anytime he messes up in some way, he will immediately cover with this excuse.
  • Inferiority Superiority Complex
  • Jerkass: He didn't actually care for the people he was "helping" – he just loved the opportunity to delegate work to Compo and Clegg.
  • Miles Gloriosus: As much as he fancies himself a man of action, he's really quite incompetent and cowardly.
  • Multiple-Choice Past: Although he always had the attribute of 'exaggerating his military experience', in his first run he seemed to have some such experience and exaggerated it a little, whereas in his second run this was Flanderized into apparently never having seen action at all, but claiming to be a master of martial arts, trained silent killer and having been offered the crowns of several native tribes.
  • The Neidermeyer: A retired one.
  • Phony Veteran: Whether his war stories were exaggerated or invented varied over the course of the show. In his first run (1976-85) he seemed to have had some military experience (although he exaggerated it), which was to some extent backed up by his portrayal in the prequel when he was seen to be wearing military uniform. However, in his second run (1990-97) he was Flanderized to the point where it was implied that he had no military experience at all.
  • Put on a Bus: When Brian Wilde left the series in 1985 to star in his own sitcom and to pursue other TV work, it was explained that Foggy had moved to Bridlington to take over his family's egg-painting business.
  • The Scrooge: A running gag is stinginess with his purse.
  • The Spock: Well, he at least tried to be.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To Blamire – from the rank to the mustache
  • Zany Scheme: Could not stop coming up with ridiculous ideas.

    Seymour Utterthwaite 
A Bungling Inventor who stood in for Foggy for five years. Unlike his predecessors, he was not in the Army. He was the headmaster of an all-boys school. While snobbish and desperate to appear superior, he was more willing to let his guard down and indulge in the childish antics of Compo and Clegg. Played by Michael Aldridge.
  • Bungling Inventor: His entire shtick.
  • Characterization Marches On: In his introductory episode, he was introduced as someone Compo and Clegg had never met before, and his Jerkass tendencies were much more prominent, and he apparently hired the other two as his "employees". However, by the time of his second episode, his negative qualities were watered down considerably, and it was retconned so that he was old school chums with Compo and Clegg, and they were hanging out with him of their own free will.
  • Correspondence Course: Seymour ran one of these, known as the Utterthwaite Postal University. Compo read its logo as "Up You!", to Seymour's consternation.
  • First-Name Basis: Of the 'central trio', most were known by nicknames (e.g. Compo, Foggy, Truly) or surname (Clegg), but Seymour is always referred to as such – possibly because 'Utterthwaite' is a little unwieldy.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He was generally very polite to everyone, and he clearly valued Compo and Clegg’s friendship. On one occasion, when he believed Compo was drowning, he was all set to dive into the river to rescue him.
  • Not So Above It All: Often reveled in behavior just as childish as the other two.
  • Put on a Bus: Left after five years after coming out of retirement. Sadly, Aldridge died shortly after, and Seymour was never spoken of again.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: If you could consider him an authority figure, that is.
  • Sadist Teacher: When he is called back to work after years of retirement – "What do you mean, you're not allowed to hit small boys? That's what they're for!"
  • Small Name, Big Ego
  • Team Dad: He admonishes Compo for his childish behavior sometimes.
  • The Smart Guy: Unlike Foggy, who often pretended to know everything, Seymour actually was pretty smart – he just had a difficult time imparting wisdom onto Compo, who was sometimes determined not to learn anything.
  • The Spock: He was slightly better at pulling this off than Foggy, although he wasn’t quite a straight example.

    Herbert "Truly of the Yard" Truelove 
The final third man of the original trio. He was a retired policeman who referred to himself as "Truly of the Yard". He divorced his wife after thirty-seven miserable years as marriage, although he spoke of the "former Mrs. Truelove" frequently. He was originally intended to only appear once to fill in for Foggy, but he became a main character. Played by Frank Thornton.
  • Character Catchphrase: "Of course, I could be lying..."
  • Characterization Marches On: Some of his early episodes were clearly written with Foggy in mind, with him showing some strange incompetence. By his second year, Truly had become his own man – wily and sneaky while also much more proficient.
  • Deadpan Snarker: With friends like his, it only came naturally. Especially where Billy and Alvin were concerned.
  • Demoted to Extra: In the last few seasons due to the actor's advancing age.
  • The Ghost: The former Mrs. Truelove
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: Became this with Clegg after Compo died.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his cynicism and grumpy outlook on life, he was always ready to help a friend out of trouble with a Zany Scheme. He also showed compassion to Clegg when Compo died.
  • Not So Above It All: Definitely enjoys joking around with his friends, and he's much handier with a drink.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: To Foggy, at first, but it didn’t take long for his own personality to break through.
  • Smith of the Yard: Not that he was ever recognized for any great detective skills, but retired policeman Herbert Truelove liked to give himself the epithet "Truly of the Yard".
  • Vitriolic Best Buds: With Compo, Billy and Alvin
  • Zany Scheme: Not as much as his predecessors, but if a friend were in trouble, he was always quick to think of a plan to get them out of it. Also unlike his predecessors, his plans actually work.

    Billy Hardcastle 
Introduced late in the show's run, Billy proved popular enough to fill Compo's spot after his death, and he filled the role of the comical relief figure for six years before strangely disappearing without mention. He believed himself to be a direct descendant of Robin Hood, and as such, many of his early appearances saw him in tights before he updated the look. Played by Keith Clifford.

    Alvin Smedley 
Like Billy, Alvin was introduced as a one-shot character in the Series 24 premiere, but proved popular enough that, by the end of the year, he'd moved into Compo's old house and became Nora Batty's new tormentor. He provided her with the same level of stress as his predecessor, but he claimed he hated her, but felt she needed some laughter in her life. He soon filled the "first man" role in the series before becoming part of the new trio in Series 30. Played by Brian Murphy.
  • Amusing Injuries: Suffered his fair share, as was customary for the "first men".
  • Deadpan Snarker: Became more of one in the later years, especially when paired with Hobbo.
  • She's Not My Girlfriend: Had this relationship with Nora Batty. He would often wind her up just to get a rise out of her. Played straighter with her sister, Stella, who would often flirt back at him.
  • Vitriolic Best Buds: With Truly, Billy and Hobbo

    'Electrical' Entwistle 

Initially introduced as a replacement for Wesley Pegden and his landrover, Entwistle evolved from being simply a new character to ferry the characters about to filling Clegg's role in the trio in the final series. Played by Burt Kwouk.

  • Cloudcuckoolander: May or may not have faked this occasionally. He claimed that he and a bloke named Jackson once invented Christmas, except they called it "Entwistle & Jackson Day". When Clegg suggests trying again in warmer weather, Entwistle cheerily responds, "Worth a shot! I'll tell Jackson!"
  • Deadpan Snarker: Usually with a cheerful smile, particularly aimed at Hobbo.
  • Funny Foreigner: Played with. He enjoys playing with people's conceptions of his nationality, but not a lot is really made of it.

    Luther 'Hobbo' Hobdyke 

The final in a long line of 'third men', Hobbo was a former milkman utterly convinced he had connections with MI5, but that his memories had been wiped. Played by Russ Abbot.

  • In Touch with His Feminine Side: Despite his claims of being "a killer", he takes equal pride in retaining his sensitive side, such as his needlework, and openly does things considered feminine, like sleeping with cucumber slices over his eyes.
  • Master of Disguise: Thought he was, anyway.
  • Nice Guy: Perfectly amiable and easy to get along with - if you can handle his delusions.
  • Not So Above It All: Occasionally, he enjoys a good joke. When tasked with burying a friend's dead ferret in the churchyard, he tricked PCs Cooper and Walsh into doing it, convincing them it was a voodoo ceremony and they would be cursed if they didn't. He, Alvin and Entwistle giggled mischievously under a tree as they did so.
  • Small Name, Big Ego: Played with in that he never expects anyone to know about him, but he still believes himself to be a fighting machine.

The Ladies' Tea Circle

    Nora Batty 

Played by Kathy Staff.

  • Apron Matron: The undisputed queen of this trope, and the trope image. It's worth noting that, while this trope applies to almost all the ladies on this page, Nora is regarded as the definitive Apron Matron.
  • Control Freak: Wants everything done her way, whether anyone agrees with her or not. Once forced nearly the entire cast to "do a kindness" for an older couple she'd deemed in need of a day out, even though they had no interest in it.
    Pearl: When Nora Batty wants to do you a kindness, you'll get a kindness done whether you like it or not.
  • The Dreaded: All the men of Holmfirth are dead terrified of her, except for Compo.
  • Gossipy Hens: Nora had an excellent memory of who married whom and where they ended up. Whenever the trio got curious about the ultimate fate of someone they used to know, they'd go to Nora.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She really did love Wally underneath it all, and she liked Compo more than she let on.
  • Neat Freak: She can't stand a filthy front step, frequently sweeping it.
  • What Does He See in Her?: A frequent question directed at Compo. Even he couldn't always come up with an answer.

    Ivy 
Ivy co-ran the Cafe, a favorite haunt of the Trio, with her husband Sid, with whom she would have legendary rows with in the kitchen. After Sid's death, Ivy soldiered on alone, becoming the only character besides Clegg to last the entire series run, appearing in 291 of its 295 episodes. Played by Jane Freeman.

    Pearl Sibshaw 

Played by Juliette Kaplan.

  • Hell-Bent for Leather: In the later series, she enjoys riding a motorbike with Nelly. Howard mistook her for a Hell's Angel.
  • She Cleans Up Nicely: Whenever she got done up to enjoy herself, everyone was surprised at how attractive she looked. Of course, Howard, being the misogynist that he is, felt she had no right looking attractive as a married woman. It never stopped her.
  • The Determinator: She's determined to catch Howard in his affair. It seems to be the only reason she stays with him — she enjoys the challenge of catching him.
  • The Dreaded: Is very good at provoking terror in the hearts of the menfolk, particularly her husband Howard. She may even be this trope more than Nora, since she scares Compo too.
  • Took a Level in Kindness: Following Compo's death, she eased up a little, especially on Clegg, to the point that she would buy his milk for him, and he had no qualms with her entering his home. Subverted with Howard.

    Edie Pegden 

Played by Thora Hird.

  • Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Despite her constant frustration at his filthiness, she once wept openly when she thought he'd blown himself up.
  • Character Development: While she never lost her snobby tendencies, she did soften over time. She'd rather have Wesley greasy and working on cars than not have him at all.
  • Drives Like Crazy: The designated driver for the ladies' occasional outings to the countryside, but it's a mystery why they'd ever get in the car with her. She would blame her own driving failings on Wesley's tinkering, but it was almost certainly her own fault. The only driver in Holmfirth more feared than Edie is Clegg, who is so scared of driving that when he's forced to he drives with his eyes closed.
  • Neat Freak: Ironic, considering she's married to Wesley.
  • Never My Fault: Unable to take responsibility for her mistakes, especially her bad driving. It's always the car's fault.
  • Upper-Class Twit: Seems to be part of the Utterthwaite upbringing. At times, she was even worse than Seymour, who often had to convince her to let Compo and Clegg into her house.

    Glenda Wilkinson 

Played by Sarah Thomas.

    Ros Utterthwaite 

Played by Dora Bryan.

    Stella 

Played by Barbara Young.

    Nelly 

Played by June Whitfield.

  • Hell-Bent for Leather: In the later series, enjoyed motorbiking with Pearl.
  • The Ghost: Nelly's husband Travis, whom she was constantly fussing over on her mobile phone.

The Husbands

    Wally Batty 

Played by Joe Gladwin.

  • Caged Bird Metaphor: A rare male example. Wally kept pigeons, and a common plot was the trio coming up with a scheme to break Wally out from under Nora's thumb long enough to get a few drinks down the pub.
  • Cool Bike: Actually looked pretty cool driving his motorbike, even when Nora rode in the sidecar.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Surprisingly so, but he could get in a few zingers even aimed at Nora.
  • Henpecked Husband: Often browbeaten by Nora, to the point Wally welcomes the idea of Compo running off with her.
  • Heroes Love Dogs: During his last series, he adopted a whippet that followed him home.
  • Killed Off for Real: After his actor Joe Gladwin died in 1987, Wally died offscreen.
  • Shipper on Deck: Wally was honestly fine with the idea of Nora running off with Compo.

    Sid 
The bluff tea-shop owner, who featured frequently in the first ten years before his actor's death in 1984. Sid was one of the few characters who genuinely enjoyed the Trio's antics, and frequently joined in the shenanigans as an excuse to get out of the cafe for a few hours. He was best friends with Wally Batty, and a frequent plot device would be the Trio helping them sneak out from under their wives' thumbs for a few hours at the pub. Played by John Comer.

    Howard Sibshaw 

Played by Robert Fyfe.

  • Bad Liar: Convinced that no one knows about his affair with Marina. Even after all the times that he's flat out begged Clegg to run messages to her, he will still pretend he's never even heard of her.
  • Believing Their Own Lies: When anyone brings up Howard's affair with Marina, he manages to summon up genuine indignation at the idea he'd ever cheat on Pearl.
  • Blatant Lies: No one ever falls for his excuses.
  • Dirty Coward: Despite claiming to be in love with Marina, he was too cowardly to divorce Pearl for her, and he couldn't even bring himself to do more than hold hands with her.
  • Henpecked Husband: Probably the worst case on the show, although his affair with Marina probably made it worse for himeslf. Sid and Wally never had it as bad as him.
  • It's All About Me: What it all boils down to is that Howard is a selfish coward who's more concerned with keeping his life "exciting" than either of the women in his life or his friends. Once had the gall to ask Clegg, "When have I ever asked for a favor?" Clegg whacked him with his cap.
  • The Friend Nobody Likes: The ultimate. He annoyed Clegg so much that the trio were only too happy to drop him in it when his demands became too unwieldy.
  • The Load: He created more problems for the main trio than anyone.

    Wesley Pegden 

Played by Gordon Wharmby.

  • Ascended Extra: Initially appeared as a one-off character in a few early episodes, Wesley's role was greatly expanded (and his family introduced) in the 1986 special "Uncle of the Bride", in which his daughter Glenda married Barry, and his brother-in-law Seymour joined the main trio.
  • Henpecked Husband
  • Mr. Fixit: The go-to for whenever a scheme requires practical technical work.
  • The Pig-Pen: Perpetually covered in motor oil. On the very rare occasions that Edie got him cleaned up, the other guys would often joke that they didn't recognize him.
  • Sixth Ranger: It wasn't uncommon for Wesley to get roped into the Trio's shenanigans.

    Barry Wilkinson 

Played by Mike Grady.

  • The Dandy: Typically wore a suit. Struggled to keep clean when working with Wesley. Once wore overalls and pondered the idea of a pinstripe kind.
  • Happily Married: One of the few happily married couples in town. The very thought of him or Glenda being unfaithful to each other genuinely shocked everyone else, making it one of the few times adultery was ever taken seriously.
  • Henpecked Husband: Glenda may not have been the most demanding of the wives, compared to her mother and their friends, but this was offset by Barry being the biggest pushover.
  • Put on a Bus: After 1990, he disappeared as his actor left for another show. Glenda mentioned him frequently to assure the audience he hadn't run off.
    • The Bus Came Back: Came back in 1996 once the other show ended, and he remained until the show's end.
  • Quest for Identity: After his return, Barry constantly explored various identities through golf, camping and exercise, trying to better himself.

Other Recurring Characters

    Marina 

Howard's mistress, in the loosest sense of the word, as they never get past hand holding. Played by Jean Fergusson.

  • Abhorrent Admirer: To most men in town, especially Clegg. He doesn't necessarily dislike her, but he's far too shy for her forward nature. Subverted with Howard, naturally, and also Compo.
  • Blatant Lies: Frequently insists she's much younger.
  • Lovable Sex Maniac: Always looking for a man, be it Howard, Clegg or just someone male. Hardly unpleasant, though.
  • Single Woman Seeks Good Man: At the end of the day, that's really what she wants. Seems aware that Howard won't provide this, hence why she's open to alternatives — particularly Clegg.

    Auntie Wainwright 

Played by Jean Alexander.

  • The Scrooge: Auntie Wainwright is practically obsessed with money and pull any scheme to get her hands on it from any passing bystander and sell anything they don’t want, even a doorknob. Barely willing to practically buy a slice of cake from the cafe or buy a new cart. One time a burglar broke in to steal something, on,y to have been made to sold it by her. She can even remember a customer by their wallet or give up her pursuit to make a sail from a consumer who refuses to buy from her.

    Smiler 

Played by Stephen Lewis.

  • Butt-Monkey: Puts up with a lot of crap at the hands of Tom and Auntie Wainwright.
  • Ironic Nickname: He's known as "Smiler" because he's always miserable.
  • Put on a Bus: When Stephen Lewis' declining health forced his departure from the series, Smiler's absence was explained in the most minimal possible way: exactly once, Tom casually mentioned that Smiler "disappeared".

    Tom Simmonite 

Played by Tom Owen.

  • The Artifact: His presence on the show sort of felt like this after Roy Clarke abandoned him as a replacement for his father Compo, but ultimately it was somewhat subverted as Tom found his own niche working for Auntie Wainwright and stayed on until the end of the show's run.
  • Characterization Marches On: Was initially more of a lazy Jerkass who took advantage of Mrs. Avery and her niece, Babs, in attempts to make money. Once they were gone, though, he softened into a much more likeable character, forming a friendship with Smiler and assistant to Auntie Wainwright.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Ultimately averted. When he was first introduced, everyone would say how he was "just like his father", more to convince the audience to accept him as a replacement for his father than anything. However, beyond a few superficial similarities, Tom was a fairly different character who didn't have the same chemistry with Clegg and Truly, and there was a noticeable age difference, so Compo's role in the trio ended up filled by Billy, and later Alvin, instead.

    Lucinda Davenport 

Played by Josephine Tewson.

  • Abhorrent Admirer: Downplayed in that none of the male characters dislike her, but she sometimes displayed great admiration for Truly.
  • Anguished Outburst: Does these frequently whenever speaking of her love life.
  • Breakout Character: A one-off character who eventually went to work at the library.
  • Broken Bird: She claims to have been hurt romantically many times.
  • Drama Queen: Possibly down to her theatrics club. She tended to speak with great emotion over the simplest things.
  • Love Hungry: A bit desperate sometimes for affection.
  • Nice Girl: One of the few genuinely friendly women in town.
  • Odd Friendship: Developed one with Marina, with whom she'd commiserate over their lackluster love lives.
  • Thinks Like a Romance Novel: If only because her life has been such a disappointment.

    Crusher 
Ivy's nephew, who comes to help run the Cafe after Sid passes away. He means well, but he's not very bright, and leaves after a few seasons. Played by Jonathan Linsley.

    Eli Duckett 
A citizen of Holmfirth with no particular connection to any of the main cast, Eli is essentially a live-action Mr. Magoo, wandering into a scene and commenting on what little he can see of it before wandering off again. Played by Danny O'Dea.
  • Blind Mistake: His whole schtick.
  • Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Following Danny O'Dea's death, Eli disappeared from the show with no one commenting on it. Probably justified as he was a bit character who wasn't really close to the main cast.

    Captain Toby Mulberry Smith 

Coming soon. Played by Trevor Bannister.

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