(née '''Butcher''') was a
Fictional Character in the
British Soap Opera ''
EastEnders ''. She was originally played by Rebecca Michael from
1989 to
1993 , then by Alexia Demetriou from
1993 to
1996 , and from
1999 to
2004 she was played by
Charlie Brooks .
Janine had something of a troubled childhood: her mother died of cancer when she was four, and she felt left out and neglected by her father,
Frank . She was very hostile and jealous towards her
Stepmother Pat (presumably because she was
'replacing' her dead mother). As a result, she went to live with her older sister, Clare, for a few years.
When she returned to the square in
1999 , her father had a new wife,
Peggy , and she soon set about coming between the two, turning on the waterworks. She and Peggy made it quite clear that they didn't like each other.
Frank Butcher abandoned his daughter again after the breakdown of his marriage to
Peggy . Terry Raymond had just lost his wife, as well as his daughter
Tiffany , and he took pity on homeless Janine and gave her a place to stay. Terry could see a likeness between her and his deceased daughter, which Janine would often use to manipulate him into giving her demands. She treated him like dirt but turned on the waterworks and Terry would always forgive her. They began a business together as estate agents.
Terry eventually saw straight through Janine, and after deciding to leave
Walford to meet up with his estranged wife Irene, in
Portugal , to give their marriage another try, he kicked Janine out on to the streets.
Janine ended up with a cocaine addiction due to the abandonment of her father, Terry, and now unlikely boyfriend
Billy , after she ran him up in debt. She attempted suicide, but ended up turning to
Prostitution . She spent many nights with
Ian Beale and later blackmailed him, threatening to tell his wife,
Laura . She became more business-like, putting cards entitled 'Blonde Bombshell' in phoneboxes. When Laura Beale discovered her husband's deceit, she threw boiling hot milk in Janine's face (ironically as she was trying to apologise), resulting in her developing
Agoraphobia . She refused to go to the shops to get food, and her brother,
Ricky , returned to
Albert Square to help her.
She then became a heavy drinker, and Billy picked up the pieces and help turn her on the straight and narrow. She eventually started to rely on brother Ricky, who deeply cared for her.
Janine became very friendly with
Barry Evans after his wife,
Natalie , left him for Ricky, and his father,
Roy , died of a
Heart Attack . Barry thought she was a true friend, but she only wanted to appear caring so she would be promoted as manageress in Evans & Son (Barry's car lot). She eventually seduced Barry, which led to both her ultimate triumph and her downfall.
Janine also ruined her brother's happiness. After his affair with
Natalie Evans was revealed, and that he planned to leave
Walford with her, Janine told Natalie that Ricky had bedded
Sam (his ex-wife); needless to say, Natalie was not impressed with this news and she fled into the night, leaving Ricky a broken man. Ricky stuck around and eventually forgave Janine.
She had now moved into fragile-minded Barry's bed, after fooling him that she genuinely cared for him. They worked together at his car lot. Barry was soon head-over-heels in love with Janine
At the same time, she began an affair with
Paul , and they both planned to fleece hapless Barry of his cash. Barry proposed to Janine after declaring his true love to her. She promptly accepted. This reached a climax on New Year's Eve
2003 when she married him in the
Scottish Highlands , despite Paul (who was also the
Best Man ) declaring his love to her on the morning of the wedding, and him pleading with her to forget Barry and his money, and for them to be together. She took no notice of him.
The next day, Barry and Janine took a stroll around the hills and cliffs, and after Barry showed her a carving that he made on a tree which read J&B (the initals of Janine and Barry) surrounded by a
Love Heart , Janine cracked, and confessed everything, including that Barry's fat, greasy body on top of her made her feel sick, and having
Sex with him was worse than with some of the worst punters she slept with as a prostitute. Barry snapped and went to molest Janine, still in disbelief that she didn't love him; she pushed him and he fell down a cliff. However, if you look closly you can see that Jannine holds her hand out to save Barry as he falls. (This is a part that most people miss - slow the scene down to notice!!)
She quietly slipped back into the hotel room, and Paul and another man found Barry's body. Paul soon realised that Janine was behind all this, cut all ties with her, and went on to date Barry's first wife, Natalie.
Janine was saddend by Barry's death and hid it too well, but viewers saw the pressure it was having on her, her guilt mixed with fear of being caught.
Janine admitted the truth to her brother Ricky, who fled
Walford in shock. She also cruelly told Natalie every detail, but confessing to her former
Stepmother ,
Pat , proved her downfall. Janine had an ongoing feud with Pat's good friend,
Laura Beale , ever since Laura threw a pan of boiling milk at Janine's face for sleeping with her husband, Ian. Janine intimidated Laura, who now lived in a horrible, damp bedsit with her son,
Bobby , whereas Janine had a business, a big house, and lots of money. They had many fights and slanging matches in public, and Janine was seen heading over to Laura's, banging on her door. After a fight, Janine left, and Laura tripped down the stairs, dying as a result of her injuries.
During this time, Pat had extracted the truth about Barry's death. However, Janine's hatred of Pat took over, in that she acted cold and said that she had planned to kill Barry. In other words, she sacrficed her last chance of proving innocence in order to upset Pat. This led to her downfall...
Pat left in a state but then found Laura's body, and Janine was arrested for
Murder . Pat had seen Janine leave the house, but kept quiet, despite Janine's begs and pleads, to avenge her for getting away with murdering Barry.
Janine was due to stand trial in
December 2005 for Laura's murder (note that actress Charlie Brooks did not return for any filming). Her father Frank returned, having only just heard the news the day before. He seduced his ex-wife, Pat, and told her he loved her, in a bid to get her to change her mind. She saw through his lies and hit him, but after having a conversation with Laura's mother, who told Pat about how upsetting life was for her not knowing the full truth about her daughter's death, Pat then realised the pain she was causing with her deceit, so she decided not to testify, and the case collapsed. Pat warned Frank of Janine's lies and how she would trample all over him, but he took no notice, understanding that it was the truth. When Frank asked the coroners what time Janine would be released, they informed him that she had been gone for hours.
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/eastenders/eastenders/characters/character_content/character_janine_b.shtml Janine Evans, BBC character profile]
