(previously '''Holloway''') was a
Fictional Character in the popular
BBC Soap Opera ''
EastEnders ''. She was played by the
Actress Susan Tully .
Although she was one of the brighter people in Walford, that didn't stop Michelle making some huge mistakes during her time in Albert Square. Michelle had a habit of choosing the wrong men and her stubborn nature meant that she rarely took anyone's help or listened to good advice. She was tough, feisty and outspoken and she was never afraid to stick up for herself. Her big mouth got her into trouble on several occasions.
Michelle was one of the original charatcters of the programme, appearing for the first time in the first episode on
19th February 1985 . She was the only daughter of
Arthur and
Pauline Fowler and lived with her parents at 45
Albert Square along with her brother
Mark , her grandmother,
Lou Beale and later her younger brother,
Martin .
Michelle was the brightest member of the Fowler family and she often acted as the voice of reason in her unruly household, particularly where her brother Mark was concerned.
Michelle was best-friends with
Sharon Watts , and although their friendship was severely tested at times, they remained extremely close throughout their time together in the square.
Michelle spent the early part of 1985 fighting with Sharon for the affections of unlikely teenage heart-throb,
Kelvin Carpenter . However, their romance fizzled out almost as quickly as it began and it wasn't long before Michelle became fascinated with the company of older men.
She was seen hanging around and having late night chats with
Tony Carpenter ,
Ali Osman ,
Andy O'Brien and local publican
Den Watts and so when Michelle discovered she was
Pregnant in September of that year, the paternity of her unborn child remained uncertain. Michelle's parents were appauled to discover that their 16 year old daughter was expecting, and even more annoyed when Michelle refused point blank to tell anyone who the father was. Everyone in Michelle's family tried to persuade her to have an
Abortion , however Michelle was adamant that she wanted to keep the baby.
The following months saw continuous speculation from everyone on the square as to who fathered Michelle's child. The 'culprit' was eventually revealed to be Den Watts, the married father of her best-friend. Michelle had turned to Den for sympathy during a difficult time over the summer and their cosy rendezvous had resulted in a seedy affair, played out on the floor of
The Queen Vic . During the following months Michelle would regularly meet with Den at a nearby
Canal , away from the prying eyes of Walford and Den promised to provide financial support for his unborn child and to keep its paternity a secret. They kept the secret for a year until Pauline witnessed Den handing Michelle a wad of money and correctly figured out that he was Vicki's father, sparking a never ending fued between her and Den.
Michelle spent the early part of
1986 struggling to come to terms with the hardships of being a pregnant teenager. Restricted from the youthful pursiuts of her peers she began to get extrememly depressed. In her hour of need she turned to kind-hearted barman
George ('Lofty') Holloway and over the subsequent months the two became extrememly close. Lofty soon fell in love with Michelle, which resulted in him proposing to her and offering to bring her unborn baby up as his own. Although she initially refused him she eventually accepted and in May that year Michelle gave birth to a girl, who she named
Vicki .
As their wedding day drew closer, Michelle started to have second thoughts about a life with Lofty. She had never been able to get over Den and although she liked Lofty she had never really loved him. Moments before Michelle was about to walk down the aisle, she was visited by Den and their subsequent chat was enough for Michelle to call off the wedding and she left a heart-broken Lofty jilted at the
Altar . However, depsite causing maximum pain and embarrassment to everyone involved, it wasn't long before Michelle had a 'change of heart' and pushover Lofty whisked her away from Walford for a secret wedding.
Predictably, however, their marriage did not go smoothly. Michelle started to grow tired of motherhood and she was also growing equally tired of Lofty. Lofty's ill health meant that he couldn't hold down a well paying job and so the pair had to get by on benefits, which displeased Michelle no end. As the months wore on, Lofty became more and more interested in having a child of his own and so he began to pressurise Michelle into having another baby and to allow him to legally adopt Vicki. Michelle was adverse to both ideas, but after an ill-faited attempt to
Elope with Den, she consigned herself to a life of misery with Lofty and ended
1987 with an unwanted pregnancy.
Michelle confided in Pauline and told her she was uncertain whether she would keep the baby. However, Pauline sensed that the marriage was on the rocks, and in a desperate bid to keep her away from Den, she broke Michelle's confidence and told Lofty that Michelle was pregnant. Lofty was overjoyed, but Michelle was furious with her mother for telling him and after Lofty went behind Michelle's back and told the whole of Walford about his imminent fatherhood, Michelle retaliated by sneaking away for a private abortion (paid for by Den, who had become hell-bent on splitting Michelle and Lofty up, after discovering that Lofty wanted to adopt his child).
Lofty was devestated when he discovered the truth and many subsequent fights ensued, resulting in Lofty physically attacking Michelle infront of her family. The marriage dissolved and Lofty left Walford later that year for a job as a handyman in a children's home.
After the breakdown of her marriage Michelle got a job as a receptionist at
Dr Legg's surgery and eventually moved into a flat at No 43 Albert Square, with Vicki and her best-friend, Sharon (paid for by Den).
Den had got involved with local gangsters known as 'The Firm', and his shady dealings had led to a spell in prison in 1988. After it became clear that the firm had no use for Den anymore and wanted him dead, he made an escape from custody, but before he fled the country he set up a secret meeting with Michelle at their usual spot by the canal. This would prove to be a fatal mistake for Den, however, as Michelle was under surveilance by 'The Firm' and she was untittingly followed to their trysting spot. At the canal, Michelle poured her heart out to Den, told him that she would wait for him to return, and that one day they would be together with Vicki as a family. They bid eachother an emotional farewell, after which Den (supposedly) met his untimely demise, after being shot by a man concealing a gun in a bunch of
Daffodils (Den was presumed dead for 14 years, before he turned up alive in
2003 to reunite with Vicki and Sharon).
With Den presumed dead, both Michelle and Sharon were distraught and after a witness identified that Den had been seen with a mystery woman the day of his death, Sharon began to ponder who the girl might be. Upon hearing this Michelle decided to confess to Sharon that it was her at the canal and that Den was the father of her daughter. Michelle had mistakingly thought that Sharon would be comforted to know that she was, in a sense, Vicki's sister (although they weren't blood related), and that a part of Den lived on in Vicki. However, Sharon was furious to learn that her best-friend had been sleeping with her father behind her mother's back, and after slapping her in the face, she stormed over to the Fowler's and informed Arthur about Vicki's parantage. Arthur was furious and Michelle and Sharon remained at logger-heads for months, however, when Vicki contracted
Meningitis later in the year, their shared worry brought them closer and they managed to patch up their friendship.
In
1989 Michelle got a job as a
Receptionist at
Julie Cooper's hair salon. She also got involved with yet another married man, the computer salesman,
Danny Whiting . Danny moved in with Michelle under the pretence that his marriage was over, whilst all the time trying to get back with his wife. He even managed to persuade Michelle to move away from Walford with him, but only after his wife had rejected the same offer. After discovering his dirty tricks Michelle sent him packing.
In
1991 Michelle got a job selling time-share flats and she later moved to 55 Victoria Road to live with
Rachel Kominski . Rachel was a lecturer and she persuaded Michelle to resume her studies and helped her enroll at the local
University . Michelle and Rachel became inseperable , and rumours about their sexuality prompted Michelle to embark on a relationship with new Walford arrival
Clyde Tavernier (a fellow single parent). Their interracial relationship was viewed with disdain by many of the residents on Albert Square, including her own father. However, Michelle had never been one to care what anyone thought of her, and it only made her more determined to stay in the relationship. Problems arose later that year, however, when Clyde was falsely accused of the
Murder of publican,
Eddie Royle . With the police closing in, Clyde decided to take hs son
Kofi and flee the country and Michelle gallantly decided to take Vicki and go with him. Their get-away failed dismally, however, and Clyde was imprisoned. He was released three months later, but their relationship abruptly ended when Clyde caught Michelle in bed with one of her student friends.
As well as the endless problems in her own life, Michelle had many family troubles to contend with in the following years, including the tragic news that her brother was
HIV Positive , as well as her father's extra-marrital persuits with
Christine Hewitt .
In
1992 Michelle had a one-night-stand with another student,
Jack Woodman . However, early in
1993 Michelle's dalliance with Jack came back to haunt her when he turned up on the square with the claim that they were meant to be together. His continuous advances were rejected by Michelle, after which his behaviour became more and more erratic. He convinced Pauline that he was going out with Michelle and then stole her unwashed
Knickers , made threatening phonecalls and even injured himself to gain her sympathy. Michelle turned to
Phil Mitchell to ward him off, and after confronting his parents and finding out that he was mentally unstable, Jack disappeared. However, in March that year Michelle was shocked and devstated to learn that Vicki had been abducted from her play-group and Jack became prime suspect for her
Kidnapping . A national police operation eventually found Vicki in the clutches of a mad old woman named Audrey Whittingham and to everyone's relief Michelle was reunited with her daughter. After Rachel departed Walford in 1993, Michelle lived with
Shelley Lewis , a student friend of hers from University.
Michelle had one clear enemy on the square, and that was
Grant Mitchell , the husband of her best-friend. Michelle had always despised Grant for his bullying treatment of Sharon and the two were often at loggerheads. In
1994 Michelle was shot by
Dougie Briggs , a former army pal of Grant's, who had become psychotic, attempted to assualt Sharon and then held the workers of The Vic at gunpoint. Michelle survived the blast, but she began to rethink her life in Walford. In
1995 she began to make plans to move to
Scotland with her middle-aged boyfriend, and former University lecturer,
Geoff Barnes . The pair decided to marry, but for a second time Michelle had second thoughts and called off the relationship.
In a shock turn of events later that year, after Sharon fled in the wake of the break up of her marriage to Michelle's arch enemy Grant, a steamy argument between the two (about Grant's poor treatment of Sharon), resulted in them sleeping together in
The Vic . It was soon regretted, particularly when Michelle discovered that she was pregnant as a result of the one-night stand. She only told her brother
Mark the true father of the baby (hence her son being named Mark Junior), and she moved to
Alabama ,
United States when a job was offered to her there.
Michelle has since married (her current surname is unknown), and is living happily in
Florida with her husband and children Vicki and Mark Junior (who has never been seen on screen).
''
EastEnders '' has been criticised for being unrealistic with regards to many subsequent storylines involving the Fowler family (such as Arthur's and Mark's deaths, Martin's and Pauline's marriages), which have taken place without the inclusion of Michelle. However actress, Susan Tully, has given up acting to become a television
Director and doesn't wish to return and because Susan is so synonymous with Michelle, the scriptwriters don't think recasting the role to another actress would work.
- Parents: '' Arthur Fowler '' (deceased), '' Pauline Fowler ''
- Grandparents: ''Albert Beale'' (deceased), '' Lou Beale '' (deceased)
- Brothers: '' Mark Fowler '' (deceased), '' Martin Fowler ''
- Children: '' Vicki Fowler '', '' Mark Fowler Junior ''.
- Uncles: '' Kenny Beale '', '' Pete Beale '' (deceased), Ronnie Beale (deceased)
- Aunts: ''Maggie Flaherty'', ''Maureen Beale'' (deceased)
- Niece: '' Rebecca Miller ''
- Cousins: '' Ian Beale '', '' David Wicks '', '' Simon Wicks '', '' Conor Flaherty ''
- First cousins once removed: '' Peter Beale '', '' Lucy Beale '', '' Bobby Beale '', ''Mary Flaherty''
- Stepfather: '' Joe Macer ''
- Stepsisters: '' Megan Macer '', ''Shelly Macer''
