Conor Flaherty is a
fictional character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, Play (theatre), play, Radio series, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or b ...
from the
BBC soap opera
A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...
''
EastEnders'', played by actor
Seán Gleeson from 22 September 1997 to 22 February 1999. The character first appeared in a
special week of episodes set in Ireland, the first
broadcast
Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...
in 1997.
Storylines
Flaherty first appeared in 1997 when his aunt
Pauline Fowler
Pauline Fowler is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera '' EastEnders''. She was played by actress Wendy Richard between the first episode on 19 February 1985 and 25 December 2006. Pauline was created by scriptwriter Tony Holland ...
(
Wendy Richard
Wendy Richard (born Wendy Emerton; 20 July 1943 – 26 February 2009) was an English actress, known for her television roles as Miss Shirley Brahms on the BBC sitcom '' Are You Being Served?'' from 1972 to 1985, and Pauline Fowler on the so ...
) tracks him and his mother
Maggie Flaherty (Olivia Shanley) down in Ireland after she discovers Maggie is the sister she had never known about. Conor also has a daughter,
Mary Flaherty Mary Flaherty may refer to:
*Mary Flaherty (baseball) (1926–2000), All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player
*Mary Flaherty (politician) (born 1953), former Irish Fine Gael Party politician, TD 1981–1997
* May O'Flaherty (1904� ...
(
Melanie Clark Pullen
Melanie Clark Pullen (2 July 1975 – 29 March 2022) was an Irish actress, film producer and writer.
Career
Born and raised in Ireland, Clark Pullen attended Newpark Comprehensive School and then studied drama at Trinity College, Dublin. Shortl ...
), from his first marriage but he did not get along with her. When Mary decided she wants to move to
Walford
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. It is the primary setting for the soap. ''EastEnders'' is filmed at Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, towards the north-west of London. Much of the location wo ...
with Pauline, Conor also follows her. In Walford, he works as a
mechanic
A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars.
Duties
Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning and ...
for
Phil Mitchell
Phil Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Steve McFadden. He was introduced to the soap opera on 20 February 1990 and was followed by his brother Grant (Ross Kemp), sister Sam (Danniella Westbro ...
(
Steve McFadden
Steve Robert McFadden (né Reid; born 20 March 1959) is an English actor. He is known for his role as Phil Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera '' EastEnders'', which he has played since 1990. He was also the presenter of the game show, '' Britai ...
) and as a loan shark 'heavy' for
Annie Palmer (
Nadia Sawalha
Nadia Sawalha (; born 18 November 1964) is a British actress, television personality and YouTuber. She played the role of Annie Palmer on the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'' from 1997 to 1999 and Gina in ITV comedy Second Thoughts from 1992 ...
). He tries to compete for Annie's affection along with Phil, but Annie isn't interested. He then falls for
Ruth (
Caroline Paterson), the wife of Pauline's son,
Mark Fowler
Mark Fowler is a fictional character in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders''. Mark, an original regular character when the series started in February 1985, became a semi-regular after his original portrayer David Scarboro was written out of the ...
(
Todd Carty
Todd Carty also known as Todd John Jennings (born Todd Robert Carty; 31 August 1963) is an English actor and director who has grown up on television screens in a variety of roles. His stage appearances have ranged from pantomime to serious dram ...
), after her marriage to Mark has fallen apart. Eventually, Conor has a secret affair with Ruth, but after they have unprotected sex, he becomes fearful that Ruth will become pregnant and insists that she takes the morning-after pill. Ruth protests and eventually lies that she has taken it. The affair ends, but she does indeed become pregnant. When she discovers this, she decides to keep the child. When Conor's daughter Mary accidentally reveals this to Mark, he is furious and hurt and goes after Conor, beating him up and informing him of the pregnancy. Consequently, Connor decides to move to Scotland for a new life, and he leaves Walford with Mary.
Casting
Colm O Maonlai
Colm is a male given name of Irish origin. Colm can be pronounced "Collum" or "Kullum". It is not an Irish version of Colin, but like Callum and Malcolm derives from a Gaelic variation on ''columba'', the Latin word for 'dove'.
People
*Colm Bro ...
had auditioned for the part of Conor, but ultimately lost out to Gleeson and was later cast as
Tom Banks.
Reception
Merle Brown from the Scottish newspaper the ''
Daily Record'' commented that Conor and Mary were "two of the most irritating characters" in the soap and she was not happy that they were moving to
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...
.
References
EastEnders characters
Fictional mechanics
Fictional Irish people
Television characters introduced in 1997
Male characters in television
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