Characters / Skins Generation Three

Protagonists

Franky Fitzgerald

Francesca "Franky" Fitzgerald

Played by: Dakota Blue Richards

Centric episodes: "Franky" (series 5), "Franky" (series 6), "Mini and Franky" (series 6)

• Aborted Arc: The reasons behind her Freak Out in the Season 5 finale when Matty tries to have sex with her. As of the Season 6 premiere, Matty and Franky are an Official Couple and Franky tells her friends she's "been losing her virginity lots of times."
• Actor Allusion: Franky coming from Oxford is a possible allusion to The Golden Compass.
  • It goes further than that: She's an orphan from Oxford whose (male) best friend disappeared.
• Ambiguously Gay: She is referred to as a lesbian by some character early in the season, but Grace, Mini, and Liv eventually question her about her sexuality, and she's says she's "into people", something many fans took to mean she was pansexual, though considering her only romances were with men, this may not apply.
• Beautiful All Along: In her first episode after her makeover.
• Bifauxnen: She has a very butch/androgynous way of dressing.
• Broken Bird: Implied specifically by her Freak Out in the finale. Then amped up a couple levels in s6 due to Grace's death and the role she played in it.
• Damsel in Distress: Combined with Literal Cliff Hanger in the Season 5 finale.
• The Dandy: Has the appearance of one but lacks the obvious vanity and she apparently makes some of her own clothes.
• Expository Hairstyle Change: In the novel she cuts her hair short like in the series
• Friendship Moment: "You got a lighter?"
• Girliness Upgrade: Steadily throughout series 5, until series 6 where she fully embraced her femininity (at least physically)
• The Heart: In series 5, where she frequently appeared in other character's episodes when they needed some form of guidance. In series 6, this aspect of her personality diminished due to her turmoil regarding Grace's death
• Hidden Depths: She's a skilled animator, DJ, photographer and tailor.
  • And as of season 6, fluent in French.
• In-Series Nickname: She seems to be called "Headfuck" by the other characters quite a lot...
• I Just Want to Be Normal: Lampshaded almost word-for-word after her Freak Out and subsequent free fall in 5x08.
• No Social Skills: Most apparent during her first couple appearances because of her shyness. Her impulsive verbal bursts never fade though.
• The Rival: How Mini sees her, until they become friends.
  • And then she forms a similar relationship with Liv due to her and Matty's feelings for each other.
• Shrinking Violet: At first, but this goes away completely by series 6
• Suppressed Mammaries: Many were surprised to see that Dakota Blue Richards has actually got not inconsiderable breasts, when she's not dressed as Franky. This is also supposedly the reason for Franky's Girliness Upgrade in Season 6; Dakota had had to bind her breasts to play the androgynous Franky, and it became too uncomfortable for her.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Due to Grace's death, though there were shades of this beforehand.
• Trauma Conga Line: Happens in the novel, when we see the extent of the bullying at her previous school. Then again in series 6
• Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Mini and Nick, though this trope stops applying to the latter after his s6 episode.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: A LOT of the problems that occur in series 6 are initiated by her.

Alo Creevey

Aloysius "Alo" Creevey

Played by: Will Merrick

Centric episodes: "Alo" (series 5), "Alo" (series 6)

• Aerith and Bob: His full name is Aloysius
• Antiquated Linguistics: Prone to speaking in incredibly outdated parlance.
• Calling the Old Man Out: Tries to do this, only it doesn't go well.
• Canine Companion: His dog Rags. It's pretty much his breaking point when his mother threatens to take his dog away.
• Friends with Benefits: With Mini, starting in the first episode of season six.
• Friendship Moment: He has this with Mini in his season 5 episode, as she comforts him after his father ends up in the hospital.
• Growing Up Sucks: The theme of his season 5 episode, combined with All Work vs. All Play.
  • This is revisited again in his series 6 episode.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Rich. And then near the end of season 5 he forms a similar friendship with Nick.
• Odd Friendship: With Mini until they become an Odd Couple
  • His friendships with both Rich and Nick also definitely count.
• Scarily Competent Tracker: Well sortof. Particularly when it comes to parties.
• Slobs Versus Snobs: As a slob, he has this dynamic with Rich and Mini.
• Snap Back: He was pulled out of college in his season 5 episode and in the next episode he is seen performing in the School Play like nothing happened. Though his mom and dad probably just reinstated after he finally took some responsibility.
• Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: How he ends up with Mini in all but actual marriage status. Better if the baby takes after it's mum.

Rich Hardbeck

Richard "Rich" Hardbeck

Played by: Alexander Arnold

Centric episodes: "Rich" (series 5), "Rich" (series 6)

• Drunken Song: Not played for laughs though, considering it caused the first real rift between him and Grace.
• Important Haircut: At the end of series 5, he gets most of his locks cut at Alo's insistence - the short haired look similarly comes with a vastly matured mentality, especially after Grace's death.
• Opposites Attract: Grace even name-drops the trope.
• Pretty Boy: Unlike his more hunky friends, Rich is svelte and has boyish good looks to boot, especially after getting his Important Haircut at the end of series 5. He remains the only non-hunky guy of the cast until Alex joins the gang in series 6.
• Prince Charming: He becomes one in Grace's season 5 episode.
• Put on a Bus: From episode 3 to about halfway through episode 5, he's off somewhere, dealing with Grace's death.
• Relationship Upgrade: With Grace after a very brief and awkward First Kiss.
• Shirtless Scene: Complete with body moisturiser.
• Jerkass: His musical snobbery towards anything that isn't metal is extremely grating.
  • Particularly in his Season 5 episode to Grace, who is only trying to help hook him up with a crush.
    • He does get a little better though after a few Break the Haughty moments.
  • He's gotten more likeable since then due to his relationship with Grace.
• Sensory Abuse: Temporarily loses his hearing after listening to the "heaviest" record ever made.
• Wacky Marriage Proposal: To Grace while quoting Romeo and Juliet referencing Fourth-Date Marriage, She accepts while quoting The Tempest. They don't go through with though.

Mini McGuinness

Minerva "Mini" McGuinness

Played by: Freya Mavor

Centric episodes: "Mini" (series 5), "Mini" (series 6), "Mini and Franky" (series 6)

• All Love Is Unrequited: First there is her one-sided love for Nick, and then her unrequited "girl crush" on Franky. Subverted with her and Alo though, where this time she is the one rejecting his love (at first).
• Alpha Bitch: Possibly a deconstruction of the trope.
• Bad "Bad Acting": She goes into a Narmy Large Ham mode during the rehearsal of the production of Twelfth Night.
• Clingy Jealous Girl: She takes this to Determinator levels at times, first to Nick until they break up, and then to Franky.
• Compensated Dating: In the novel, a guy she's with turns out to be a registered sex offender.
• Control Freak: To the point where she'd have a panic attack if things stop going her way.
• Dark Secret: She's actually a virgin, and she invents an Urban Legend Love Life to cover this fact up.
• Disappeared Dad: At first. Then in her series 6 episode he does it again
• Easily Forgiven: By Franky, considering the bullying she put her through.
• Fan Disservice: Any of her sex scenes with Nick, due to how downright-painful it looks for her.
• Forgets to Eat: She possibly has an eating disorder.
• Friends with Benefits: With Alo, starting in the first episode of season six.
  • And she doesn't want anybody finding out about it.
• Girl Posse: Well, to start with anyway.
• Good Girls Avoid Abortion: Played with; it's less that she specifically decides against it and more that she puts off doing anything about the pregnancy until she's way too far along for an abortion.
• If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: Says this to Matty, about Franky.
• Kick the Dog: Making Liv down an 'entire' bottle of vodka as payback for her fucking Nick, after she'd just recovered from doing the same thing the night before.
• Lets Wait Awhile: Atypical for a show where Everybody Has Lots of Sex.
• The Matchmaker: Suggests Franky go after Matty while she's still angry at Liv.
• Pet the Dog: Her interactions with Alo in his series 5 episode.
• Rich Bitch: Not exactly rich, but she does throw pretty extravagant parties for someone her age.
  • Actually, she and her mother live in a low-income neighborhood, so she is far from being actually rich. Nick tells Liv in Mini's Season 5 episode that he hasn't been to Mini's home even if they've been going out for over a month, so it's possible that Mini tries to maintain a Rich Bitch image.
• Teen Pregnancy: And Alo's the papa.
• Tsundere: Although some see her as more of a Yandere.
• Uptown Girl: A bit of an inversion with her "farm boy," Alo. She's a beautiful, chic, haughty Alpha Bitch with a taste for opulence, but much of her image is an affectation and her living situation is humbler than his.
• Well, Excuse Me, Princess!: Especially to Alo, but really, she behaves in that manner toward the entire group. Averted in her early relationship with Nick, when she was a Love Martyr.
• What the Hell Is That Accent?: To many, it seems to be a mix of an English accent, the actress's natural Scottish Accent and possibly something else (apparently the actress lived in France a lot, although it could be mistaken for Irish).
• When She Smiles: You gotta admit, whenever she smiles it's an instantly adorable moment.

Liv Malone

Olivia "Liv" Malone

Played by: Laya Lewis

Centric episodes: "Liv" (series 5), "Liv" (series 6)

• Beta Bitch: Downplayed, as she and Grace both object to Mini's crueller behavior, but unlike Grace she has it in her to dip into this.
• Break the Cutie: Occurs throughout most of series 6 and culminates in her lashing out at Matty and Mini for how they both treated her (abandoning her after the accident that simultaneously killed Grace and just generally treating her like shit, respectively).
• Closer to Earth: She's generally pretty easygoing, but when she loses her cool, it is fucking gone.
• Informed Ability: All the stuff on her E4 profile picture about her being obsessed with dancing.
• Parental Abandonment: Has a Disappeared Dad and a distant mother who goes away on New Age retreats and leaves her in charge.
• Ruptured Appendix: Liv spends her S6 episode thinking she has a lump on her uterus and is scared to have it medically looked at, but she later finds out that it was all in her head, and a psychological manifestation of her grief over Grace's death.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: In Grace's Season 5 episode, due to her frustration about Matty's obvious feelings towards Franky.
• Toxic Friend Influence: To an extent, but considering this is Skins...
• With Friends Like These...: Her and Mini's friendship definitely counts, though more during series 6.
  Alex: You're way too cool to be her friend.
  Liv: It's a tough job, but somebody's gotta do it.

Grace Violet Blood

Grace Violet Blood

Played by: Jessica Sula

Centric episodes: "Grace" (series 5)

• Break the Cutie: The novel seems to be an exercise in seeing how often Grace can cry.
  • It gets to a point where Mini considers her The Eeyore.
• Daddy's Girl: Lampshaded by Rich, after he gets annoyed by how different she acts when around her parents.
• Dark Secret: She's actually Professor David Blood's daughter.
• The Ditz: Appears that way in Franky's episode, with several Shutting Up Now moments.
• Double Agent: Something of this during the first few episodes, being a member of both Mini's gang (with Liv and Nick) and Franky's (with Alo and Rich). As of Mini's episode though, she and Mini are no longer friends, at least until the next episode when the two groups stop being separate and mesh together over a massive bag of weed, at Mini's suggestion.
• Extreme Doormat: Deconstructed. When Rich accuses her of being one of these in order to please the people around her, she freely admits he's right, but then tells him that she only does it because it's more comfortable for her, and doesn't mean she's incapable of standing up for herself.
• Foreshadowing: In her Season 5 episode.
  Rich: Where are you going?
  Grace: To a fucking castle in the clouds.
• Opposites Attract: Grace mentions the trope by name, as it appears to be the case between her and Rich.
• Preppy Name: Also counts as a Names to Trust Immediately
• Princess Classic: She's not actually a princess, but this trope gets referenced and deconstructed with regard to her character.
• Team Mom: She has gone out of her way to maintain the friendships and relationships formed within the group.

Nick Levan

Nicholas "Nick" Levan

Played by: Sean Teale

Centric episodes: "Nick" (series 5), "Nick" (series 6)

• All of the Other Reindeer: For most of series 5, this is how he sees himself within the group.
• Always Someone Better: How he sees his brother.
• Ambiguously Brown: Nick and Matty's Father is White. But it is not clear what ethnicity their mother is since Nick's actor Sean Teale is half Venezuelan and Matty's actor Sebastien De Souza is half Indian of Goan descent.
• Analogy Backfire
  Nick: "Isn’t this wicked. The Bloods and Cripples together at last. You get me?"
  Grace: "What’s he talking about?"
  Rich: "Nick’s suggesting that were a bunch of cripples and that he and Mini, are similar to a black violent LA street gang... obviously"
• Broken Ace: At least that's how David Blood and presumably his father see him after his series 5 episode.
• How the Mighty Have Fallen: How David Blood sees him in the series 5 finale.
• In-Universe Catharsis: Smashing his father's kitchen with a golf club. Also something of an Ironic Echo considering it's implied to be the exact same thing Matty did to get kicked out of the house.
• I Want to Be a Real Man: Due to the influence of his father.
• Friendship Moment: First with Franky, when they talk to each other on the swingset, then with Alo when he helps Nick out of a bear trap, and finally with the entire group at Rich and Grace's weddding.
• Jerk Jock: Before the onset of Character Development, which showed the reason for him being a jerk and a jock was all to impress his utter dickhead of a dad.
• The Masochism Tango: With Mini, they first appear to be Birds of a Feather but when it becomes painfully obvious that they don't work as a couple, they still stay together, at least until his series 5 episode.

Matty Levan

Matthew "Matty" Levan

Played by: Sebastian de Souza

Centric episodes: None

• Abusive Parents: Emotionally, Matty's dad is definitely this.
• Ambiguously Brown: Matty's actor Sebastien De Souza is half Indian Goan on his Dads side. But Matty's father is white and his onscreen brother Nick is played by half Venezuelan Sean Teale. We dont get to see what their mum looks like.
• Ambiguously Gay: Mainly due to Word of God indicating the character the character was originally supposed to be bisexual, that and his character profile lists Shortbus and My Own Private Idaho as his favourite movies.
• Dull Surprise: His default expression.
• Genius Book Club: He can be seen reading Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time in Grace's Season 5 episode.
  • Plus his profile on the E4 website.
• Hidden Depths: According to something he says in Nick's season 5 episode, Matty's a bit of a musician.
  • Once again, if you go to his character profile, you can actually listen to some tracks "made" by him.
• In-Series Nickname: Franky calling him a headfuck, with both good and bad connotations
  Matty: Don't know what I am.
  Franky: You're a glorious fucking headfuck thing. Own it.
• Manic Pixie Dream Girl: The Spear Counterpart to Liv in her season 5 episode; although, were the episode named "Matty" instead, she'd be the one to qualify. The outcome of Liv ignoring her responsibilities to plot an unrealistic escape with what turns out to be a less-than-perfect stranger deconstructs the trope somewhat.
• Master of the Mixed Message: Let's just say he didn't have to work hard to get people to start calling him Mindfuck
• Mysterious Past: Until it's revealed he's Nick's older, renegade brother
• Put on a Bus: After Grace's death and his resulting run from the police (due to Luke's cocaine being stashed in the flipped truck), Matty isn't seen onscreen again until Liv's episode, which is the eighth in the 10 episode series. He is mentioned multiple times though and has a phone conversation with Franky in her episode and is seen on Skype in Nick's.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The sensitive one in contrast to his Jerk Jock brother Nick. Ironically enough, Nick's series 5 episode shows that he's actually better at rugby than his bulkier younger brother, aka the Roundview's rugby team's captain.
• Sibling Rivalry: With Nick, though Matty wants nothing more than for them to be friends.
  • Then series 6 rolls in and Nick and Franky start fucking.
  • This actually becomes a fairly big part of his and Nick's character arcs at the end of series 6, with the two resolving their relationship with one another after the mess they'd made of it over Franky being something both of them have to confront by the end.
• Stalker with a Crush: Toward Franky in the end of S6. The [1] comparison from her was clearly not flattering.
• The Stoic: Typically, but he does have surprisingly frequent moments of Not So Stoic whenever he's with the group.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: His actions play a part in Grace's death.

Alex Henley

Alex Henley

Played by: Sam Jackson

Centric episodes: "Alex" (series 6)

• The Gambling Addict: With his life, rather than the more obvious options. He even admits during his episode that he has no idea how to play cards.
  • To be more specific, his episode illustrates a "game" he plays, where he lists out six options on a note card and then rolls a dice, with the number the dice lands on deciding which of the six choices he must perform. It is implied this style of living is based off of his late grandfather's own. By the end of his episode though, he abandons the devil-may-care method due to his newfound friendship with Liv and the others.
• I Just Want to Have Friends: He tells Liv the reason he hid the fact that he was gay from her was because he didn't want to mess up the first friendship he'd ever had.
• Parental Neglect: His father makes it pretty clear that he doesn't give a shit what Alex wants. In fact his rigid way of living may have inspired Alex's "game" that emphasizes the chaos of life.
• Satellite Character: In-universe, he originally only associated with Liv, though he gradually became a full-blown member of the group, to Mini's chagrin.
• Sixth Ranger: His involvement with the group allowed them to start to come to terms with Grace's death.

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Families

Cumber-Woodburn

Geoff Cumber & Jeff Woodburn

Geoff Cumber and Jeff Woodburn

Played by: John Sessions and Gareth Farr

Franky's foster dads.

• Good Parents: At least initially, they appear to be a rare case of caring parents on the show.
• Home Guard: Both former members of the Territorial Army.
• One-Steve Limit: Subverted in that they both have the same name, albeit spelt differently.

Hardbeck Family

Kevin Hardbeck

Kevin Hardbeck

Played by: Daniel Ryan

• First-Name Basis: Rich always refers to his dad by his first name (barring the end of the episode when Rich calls him "dad" as a Pet the Dog moment).

McGuinness Family

Shelley McGuinness

Shelley McGuinness

Played by: Clare Grogan

• Hypocrite: That heartwarming story about how she felt love for her unborn child and refused to give it up despite bad circumstances? Shelley doesn't seem to notice the parallel once Mini gets pregnant and wants to keep the baby.
• Like Mother, Like Daughter:
  • She seems to mistakenly think so about herself and Mini, at one point even stating, they're like mirror reflections of each others (her daughter in response harshly tells her not to flatter herself). In a cruel twist, they really do look like that in the final scene of Mini's Season Three episode when they meet during a "walk of shame" after Mini sleeps with Nick. Shelley looks smug. Mini looks heartbroken.
  • Played straight in Season Four when Mini gets pregnant and refuses to give up her daughter despite the pressure, mirroring the story of Shelley's own unwanted pregnancy with Mini.
• My Girl Is a Slut: Or 'My Daughter Is A Slut'. And it makes mommy so damn proud. She isn't.
• Parents as People: Extremely so. The good thing about her is that she sincerely loves Mini and tries to warn her about her father being untrustworthy. But otherwise, she is a terrible role model, creates a really uncomfortable home environment for her adolescent daughter and feeds her Family Unfriendly Aesops about relationships (which contributes to Mini being ashamed of being a virgin, feeling pressured to have sex with Nick, fearing he'd leave her if she doesn't, finally giving in and feeling horrible about it afterwards), and being a huge Hypocrite.
• Really Gets Around: In sharp contrast to her daughter who is a virgin.

Gregory

Gregory

Played by: Alastair Mackenzie

Eric

Eric

Played By: Justin Edwards

• Actor Allusion: Clare Grogan's ex-partner is called Gregory.
• Parental Substitute: Eric is probably a better father figure to Mini than her biological one, especially since he tracks down a heavily-pregnant Mini before she runs away with Franky.
• You're Not My Father: Mini's initial attitude towards him.

Malone Family

Maude Malone

Maude Malone

• Genius Book Club: Is shown reading Infinite Jest.
• Mouthy Kid: She's rather opinionated about her older sister's behavior and doesn't hesitate to give the latter a piece of her mind.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Gives a good one to Liv in the latter's episode in the third season.

Bella Malone

Bella Malone

Levan Family

Leon Levan

Leon Levan

Played by: Dorian Lough

• Catchphrase: 'Man Up' and bizarrely 'Peace Out'
• Hapless Self-Help: Leon Levan is a life coach and motivational speaker. One of his sons, Matty, has been thrown out of the house and now lives the life of an aimless drifter, and the other one, Nick, feels as though he is imperfect, the inferior son, and finally ends up destroying their kitchen.
• The Shrink: A life coach and motivational speaker but still counts as an unintentional type 1
• Waxing Lyrical: "Every breath you take" by The Police

Creevey Family

Catherine Creevey

Catherine Creevey

Played by Ingrid Lacey

• All Take and No Give: Her relationship with Alo is pretty much defined by the fact that neither side wishes to compromise, making them both "takers."
• Family Business: Her main goal is to have Alo work full time on the Crevvey family farm, something that doesn't sit well with Alo.
• In-Series Nickname: Mumgabe

Blood Family

David Blood

David Blood

Played by: Chris Addison

• Being Personal Isn't Professional:Why he insists on keeping his relationship with his daughter Grace a secret so it doesn't compromise his position.
• The B Grade: Invokes this trope by threatening to send Grace to Mayberry's College for Young Ladies against her will if she gets less than A on her drama exam, She succeeds despite his attempts at blackmailing Rich into throwing it only for him to try and send her anyway
• Death Glare: Gives quite a formidable one to Rich while they are having dinner
• Education Papa: Considering he's the principal of a school this is hardly suprising.]]
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Adores his wife and daughter, and is broken by the latter's death.
• Happily Married: not so much in the Season 5 finale
  • To the point of Sickeningly Sweethearts with the dancing and the pea song.
• Kick the Dog: On a regular basis But expelling all of Grace's friends from college stands out.
• Knight Templar Parent: putting a tracking device on his daughter pushes him firmly into this category.
• Luke, I Am Your Father: Reveal to audience only.
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: Is based on David Cameron, there's even a photo of him with David Cameron in one episode which he vomits his sandwich onto.
• Older Than They Look: The actor is nearly 40 but he doesn't look older than thirty and the character has to be older than that because he has a seventeen year old daughter.
• Real Men Wear Pink: Seems to favour feminine colours with his shirts.
• Sadist Teacher: As he put it Education is war against inefficiency, ignorance, idleness, and chewing gum.

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