Characters / The Moodys

T-B, L-R: Kevin, Maree, Gwen, Terry, Hayden, Cora, Roger, Dan, Bridget, Sean

The titular family that appears across A Moody Christmas and The Moodys. Spoilers ahead.

The Moody Family

In General

• Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: Despite avoiding each other outside of special occasions, they've had moments where they've shown genuine love for each other. Most of the family is shown comforting Terry whenever he's upset, they're all devastated when they believe Kevin might die from a heart attack and hold each other close at Gwen's funeral.
• Dysfunctional Family: They have some very conflicting personalities.
• Fool for Love:
  • Dan came back from England for one last Christmas purely because he thought Cora wanted to see him. Instead he winds up embarrassing himself in front of not only her family but his own as well.
  • Sean was planning to propose to Peggy, but her underwhelmed reaction proved to be a kick in the teeth.
  • Terry spent almost a year trying to get a nurse to be his girlfriend, pulling stunts that would get him injured just so he could get time alone with her. He also ran for council in the hopes that it would impress Yvonne, despite having only a single platform that he wasn't fully committed to.
• Jerkass Ball: Aside from Sean's obnoxious attitude, the rest of the family has had these moments.
  • When Dan finds out that Hayden might be getting back with Cora, he gets drunk and hits his cousin in the head with a cricket ball.
  • Bridget pressured Cora into buying an inner-city flat she could barely afford just to save face in front of Matt.
  • Kevin convinced Maree to get breast implants immediately after a mastectomy, when she would have most likely been suffering self-esteem issues.
• Nuclear Family: Kevin and Maree are married and have three kids.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man:
  • Dan is a photographer and a hopeless romantic. Sean is a blue-collar entrepreneur and a hooligan.
  • Terry and Kevin have a similar dynamic.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Dan is the Blue to Sean's Red.

Dan Moody

Ian Meadows

The protagonist. A photographer living in Britain who pines for Cora.

• Alcohol-Induced Idiocy: When Cora gets back with Hayden, Dan drinks an especially potent brew and starts a fight with Hayden.
• Butt-Monkey: Usually whenever he hangs out with Sean.
• Cannot Keep a Secret: Lets slip that Roger is gay to Kevin even after Bridget explicitly told him not to.
• Clashing Cousins: Dan and Hayden have a simmering rivalry over Cora.
• Determinator: When it comes to Cora.
• Dogged Nice Guy: Cora likes him, but he has a habit of shooting himself in the foot when he should be playing it cool.
• Loser Protagonist: His romantic arc with Cora is a long one. Even when they finally get together, he's got to deal with career problems.
• Love Makes You Dumb: If Dan isn't being the Only Sane Man, odds are it's because he's got Cora on the brain.
• Mistaken for Gay: According to the grandmother, they used to think Dan was gay.
• Mistaken for Racist: In the first episode an unfortunate comment about boat people leads many to believe that Dan is racist.
• Money, Dear Boy: Being a photographer and traveling a lot means Dan can't say no often.
  • After going steady with Cora, Dan gets a lucrative job offer back in London, which means he has to dump her. One year later and it turns out that well-paying job was as a paparazzo who skulks around celebrity homes. Cora is rightfully pissed at him.
  • Dan later gets a job as a photographer in a shopping centre, but after dealing with a cheapskate who uses his camera-phone to avoid paying him, Dan walks out in a huff. With no other photography-related jobs on the rise, Dan reluctantly works for Sean's fireworks-funeral business which is liquidated by the end of the year.
• Only Sane Man: Dan Moody is this to the rest of his family. His reactions to some of the things they do are priceless.
• Open Mouth, Insert Foot: In the first episode Dan mistakes Cora for a door-knocking Red Cross volunteer because of her shirt, and donates some money. It turns out she is his cousin's new girlfriend, isn't a volunteer, and designed and hand-made the shirt herself.
• Politically Incorrect Hero: His attitude towards immigrants and the homeless doesn't endear him to many. Not that he's intentionally prejudiced. He's just awkward around certain people.
• Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Sean regularly mentions how pasty Dan is.
• Real Men Wear Pink: Played with dolls up until he was 12.
• The Starscream: Got with Cora almost immediately after she dumped his cousin Hayden. When Dan and Cora use Terry's wedding plans to elope, Terry and Sean call him out on it.

Sean Moody

Patrick Brammall

Dan's brother. A delinquent who is always coming up with get-rich-quick schemes.

• Backhanded Apology: When Kevin forces him to apologise to a teenage boy he'd punked. What follows is a series of "sorrys" that contain absolutely no sincerity.
• Berserk Button: His uncle Rhys always manages to agitate him.
• The Bogan: Sean is the most uncouth member of his family by a long shot. He proudly wears the Australian flag as a cape during Australia Day, which Dan points out makes him look like a white supremacist.
• Child Hater: Any time he interacts with kids, he comes across as even more unpleasant.
• Get-Rich-Quick Scheme: Most of Sean's businesses can be whittled down to this.
• Give the Baby a Father: Proposes to Peggy so their love child can have a stable family. That's not his kid.
• Heroic Comedic Sociopath: Provides a lot of the humour with his immaturity.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Scotty.
• Hidden Depths: Can play Toccata and Fuge in D Minor on guitar.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He acts like a prick to just about everyone. The sole exception being Dan, whom he just gently teases and even encourages to go after Cora. He's also tried cheering up Terry when he's feeling blue and shows genuine remorse over both his father's heart attack and a penguin he'd injured.
• Manchild: Any time he interacts with kids, he proves to be as immature as them. He was jealous of his adoptive nephew because he got a Nintendo DS.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: He got Dan in trouble with the police in the very first episode and sabotages Terry's plans on two occasions.
• Small Name, Big Ego: Tries to become an overnight success with some ill-informed business schemes.

Bridget Quail

Rachel Gordon

Dan's sister. A real estate agent who is trying to have kids with limited success.

• Babies Make Everything Better: Averted. Once Bridget has a baby, her situation is left ambiguous.
• Beta Couple: With Roger in the Christmas series.
• Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: She adopted a child in the final Christmas episode, but he doesn't appear in The Moodys due to some red tape forcing Bridget and Roger to surrender him.
• Horrible Judge of Character: Goes from Roger to a womaniser that had his tubes tied.
• Law of Inverse Fertility: Struggles to get pregnant with Roger in the Christmas series, with the most obvious factor being his homosexuality. Justified in The Moodys as she slept with her boss after seemingly giving up.
• Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy: Much more assertive than Roger.
• Wacky Cravings: When Bridget is pregnant she says that she sometimes craves salt-and-vinegar chips and ice cream.

Kevin Moody

Danny Adcock

The Moody patriarch.

• Family Business: Keeps telling Sean to swallow his pride and work for him. It backfires horribly.
• Running Gag: He's been trying to install a pool in the backyard since the first Christmas episode. It's not until the series finale (set 6 years later) that it's completed. One year later, Kevin sells the house, which is demolished along with the pool.
• Wangst: After recovering from a heart attack, Kevin mentions it at every opportunity for sympathy points. By the next Christmas, it's well and truly become annoying.

Maree Moody

Tina Bursill

The Moody matriarch.

• D-Cup Distress: After having to undergo a mastectomy, Kevin convinces her to get breast implants. She regrets it due to how heavy they are.
• Hidden Depths: She wants to travel to Italy. Failing that, she decides to take classes in psychology.
• Not So Above It All: Actually likes the negligee that Scotty got her.
• Stacy's Mom: Scotty has a crush on her. He got her a sexy negligee one Christmas.

Terry Moody

Darren Gilshenan

Dan's uncle. A socially awkward man looking for love.

• Beta Couple: Is this with Yvonne in The Moodys.
• Butt-Monkey: A lot of the series' comedy comes from Terry embarrassing himself.
• Dogged Nice Guy:
  • Terry's second girlfriend Irene only started dating him because he wouldn't stop begging her.
  • He genuinely loves Yvonne, but she's unimpressed with his bumbling antics.
• Drowning Our Romantic Sorrows: His reaction to getting dumped always involves getting smashed and making a foll of himself.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: Ends up happily married to Yvonne, after months of struggling to convince her they're meant to be.
• Epic Fail: Ran for council, won the election, then got kicked out on his first day.
• Gibberish of Love: His love confession to Yvonne in the penultimate episode sounds more like he wants to beat her up.
• Happily Married: With Yvonne.
• Inelegant Blubbering: After his first relationship fails. Happens again when Yvonne dumps him.
• In Love with Love: Pines after several women before he starts dating Yvonne.
• Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places: He goes after younger women with foreign accents. One of whom turns out to be an escort.
• May–December Romance: Goes after women noticeably younger than himself.
• Mistaken for Racist: During an Australia Day barbecue, he unintentionally insults an Aboriginal family by accidentally setting fire to a tea towel with the indigenous flag printed on it.
• The Navigator: He's always asking people what route they took to get to wherever they currently are, then tells them that there's at least one shortcut they could have taken. Naturally, a lot of people avoid him because of this quirk.
• Porn Stache: Yvonne mentions that he knows how to use it.
• Shadow Archetype: He's essentially how Dan might turn out in 20 years time. He does dramatic things to impress the women he fancies and has made ill-informed career choices.
• Socially Awkward Hero: He's actually the protagonist of The Moodys, given that he's got to go through the most and the finale revolves around his wedding day.
• Supporting Protagonist: Gets the most expansive arc in The Moodys, with several episodes revolving around his decisions.
• Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: All of his girlfriends and wives are young and attractive, while Terry's look is a few decades behind.

Extended Family

Roger Quail

Phil Lloyd

Bridget's husband (they eventually divorce). A closet homosexual.

• Armored Closet Gay: Any possibility that he may just be a bisexual with a preference for men is nixed when Bridget points out his pained reactions whenever they had sex.
• Last Het Romance: With Bridget. He still looks out for her even after they divorce.
• Nice Guy: A well-meaning bloke.
• Straight Gay: Even after coming out he doesn't embrace the stereotype.
• Wine Is Classy: The grape is his first and foremost love.

Hayden Roberts

Guy Edmonds

Dan's cousin. Has an on-and-off relationship with Cora.

• The Ace: He's handsome, successful and popular. Even after Cora settles with Dan, Hayden manages to one-up him without even realising it.
• Bourgeois Bohemian: During the time gap he travels around on a boat, lets his hair grow long and acts more spiritual.
• Clashing Cousins: Hayden and Dan's interest in Cora leads to an increasing level of hostility. Even when Hayden has well and truly made peace with Cora leaving him, Dan can't help but feel suspicious.
• Disposable Fiancée: His engagement to Cora is implied to have lasted only a few days before she leaves him for Dan.
• Look-Alike Lovers: When he grows his hair long, the resemblance between him and Cora is downright uncanny, though in this case it was after she'd left him for good.
• Nice to the Waiter: Averted. When the nurse to his grandmother loses her, he gets noticeably agitated. By the end of the episode he's ready to sue.
• Noodle Incident: After breaking up with Cora, Hayden and Terry had a tryst with a sex worker that ended in the most awkward way.
• Put on a Bus: Appears briefly in the first episode of The Moodys and is never seen again after that.
• Real Men Wear Pink: Though he'll say it's "salmon".
• Romantic False Lead: To Cora.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: His rivalry with Dan over Cora makes him turn incredibly smug by the end of the series, though he takes a level in kindness a year after Cora dumps him for good.
• Villainy-Free Villain: The worst he's ever done is when he brushes off Cora for the sake of a job promotion, then gloated at Dan after Cora accepted his marriage proposal.

Gwen Dawes

Robina Beard

Grandmother to the Moodys on Maree's side.

• A Death in the Limelight: Subverted. Her death goes by unnoticed until Sean accidentally lets her fall into the new pool.
• Racist Grandma: Calls Roger a fag.
• Running Gag: Every Christmas is treated as if it will be her last...only for her to live for at least another year. She eventually dies in the Christmas finale.

Rhys Dawes

David Field

Maree's brother. Very sketchy.

• The Alcoholic: Implied in the first Christmas episode. He hoards a lot of wine during the Christmas meal, then fights Roger for the rest of the bottle later on in the day.
• The Atoner: One Christmas he tried to apologise for all the wrongs he'd done to the family. Turns out they'd long forgotten about most of what he'd done and all it did was open old wounds. Averted with Sean, who keeps bringing up the time Rhys shot him in the leg, yet Rhys never apologises for it.
• Black Sheep: Has a history of antagonising the rest of the family, which he tried to apologise for after getting sent to prison. When he gets out, he begs Maree to let him have a bit of her share of their mother's inheritance.
• Gratuitous Nazis: In his painting detailing all the things he regrets doing, a red flag with a swastika can be seen.
• May–December Romance: Starts dating Peggy after she dumps Sean.

Other Characters

Cora Benson

Jane Harber

A fashion designer. Caught in a love triangle between Hayden and Dan.

• Betty and Veronica: Awkward-yet-earnest Dan is the Betty and near-perfect Hayden is the Veronica.
• Brother–Sister Incest: Zigzagged. Cora and her brother are very physically affectionate with each other. While it's played off as innocent, his interest in a woman who looks just like Cora concerns Dan.
• Deadpan Snarker: She can think up some sweet comebacks when she wants to, though she's still fairly good-natured in her delivery.
• Dude Magnet: Aside from Dan and Hayden, Sean has tried to steal a kiss from her, her own brother is uncomfortably affectionate with her and some rich guy bought her and Bridget champagne.
• Everyone Can See It: Right from the first episode, everyone keeps mistaking her for Dan's girlfriend instead of Hayden's, due to Dan's last-minute breakup.
• Happily Married: Elopes with Dan minutes before Terry and Yvonne's wedding.
• Love Epiphany: After getting engaged to Hayden, Cora goes to the grandmother's funeral and can't help glancing over at Dan. Upon realising that she still cares about him, Cora ends her engagement to Hayden.
• Nice Girl: In her earliest appearance it's mentioned that she volunteers for the Red Cross. She's fairly open to the fact that the Moodys can be a bit eccentric. Even after splitting with both Dan and Hayden she stays on good terms with them. She also gives her brother a shoulder to cry on after breaking up with his girlfriend.
• Only Sane Woman: Though unlike Dan, she's fairly laid back about the weirdness.
• Relationship Revolving Door: Alternates between Dan and Hayden at least twice.
• Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Why she ultimately picks Dan over Hayden in the end.
• Two Guys and a Girl: The central drama during A Moody Christmas.
• Will They or Won't They?: She has this with both Dan and Hayden, as both manage to screw things up whenever she goes steady with one of them.

Peggy

Helen Dallimore

A single mother that Sean starts dating.

• The Bus Came Back: Is revealed to be dating Rhys.
• Gold Digger: Goes out with men so they'll buy her and her kids nice things.
• Jerkass: When she refuses to say "I love you" to Sean even after he proposes to her, it's clear she's not right for him.
• Karma Houdini: Dan points out to Sean that she's taking advantage of him. We never see her get any comeuppance.

Scotty

Dave Eastgate

Sean's right-hand man. Neither smart nor competent.

• Bumbling Sidekick: The crowning moment being when he locked himself inside someone else's house, when the room didn't even have a lock.
• Gonk: He's short, chubby and has bad hair.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: He has a habit of taking his shirt off at inappropriate moments.

Chris

Chum Ehelepola

Roger's boyfriend.

• Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Doesn't appear in The Moodys. Justified, as Roger mentioned not wanting to remarry the last time he appeared.
• Downtime Downgrade: He wants to get married some day, but Roger doesn't. Eventually, this causes an offscreen rift and they split up.
• Twofer Token Minority: A homosexual of South-Asian heritage.

Irene

Annie Maynard

A Russian nurse and Terry's brief Love Interest.

• Downtime Downgrade: She only briefly dated Terry in her second appearance and isn't seen at any future Christmas gatherings. Terry doesn't even seem to be torn up about it.
• Head-Turning Beauty: She gets the attention of both Terry and Bridget's new boyfriend.
• Sensual Slav: Terry takes an interest in her as soon as he hears her accent.

Oksana

Natasha Beaumont

A Russian escort that Terry briefly dates.

• The Bus Came Back: Tries to get with Terry in The Moodys. He rebuffs her as he was trying to propose to Yvonne.
• My Girl Is Not a Slut: Terry tries in vain to convince everyone that she's not dating him for money.
• Sensual Slav: It's only a given she'd be attractive given her profession.

Yvonne Tisdale

Sacha Horler

Terry's on and off girlfriend.

• Happily Married: With Terry.
• Lovable Sex Maniac: Terry is initially freaked out by it, given that she flirts with him at work. He grows to like it soon enough.
• Relationship Revolving Door: Starts dating Terry, who is reluctant at first. She dumps him just as he grows attached to her. There's a period where Yvonne is willing to give Terry another chance. Finally, they're married.
• Remember the New Guy?: Debuts in the second episode of The Moodys and Terry has apparently worked with her for some time. Given that this is a year after the finale to A Moody Christmas, it's understandable that she would have simply been out of focus.
• Satellite Love Interest: Exists solely to be Terry's love interest.
• Will They or Won't They?: Terry really puts himself on thin ice for awhile before she comes back around.

Howard Benson

Marshall Napier

Cora's father.

• Berserk Button: Don't disrespect the flag. He almost died defending it.
• Death Glare: Seemingly his default look.
• Retired Badass: Fought in Vietnam.

Matt Capello

Jonny Pasvolsky

Bridget's boss (and lover).

• Jerkass: Doesn't show any concern for Bridget's pregnancy until the last minute. It's even implied that he was sleeping with other women the whole time.
• Mistaken for Gay: Roger takes an interest in him and holds out some hope that Matt's into men. He isn't.
• Satellite Love Interest: He's out of focus for the most part. All we know about him is that Bridget works for him and they slept together.
• Will They or Won't They?: The series ends with the implication that he might get with Bridget, though he may also just be offering to provide child support.