The Characters of Number 96

Dudley Butterfield (Chard Hayward)

High-camp caterer and lifelong movie buff Dudley was involved in a long-running gay relationship with Don Finlayson before he realised he was actually bisexual and embarked on relationships with women, including Don’s younger sister, Carol, and Rhonda Jackson.

Dudley opened a hairdressing salon and then transformed Norma’s wine bar into a disco (‘Duddles’) and briefly became a television star after winning TV’s “King of Trivia” crown.

His mother, an avid gambler, lived with her sister Brenda at Beecroft.

Dudley was shot to death during the wine bar siege in June 1977.

Maggie Cameron (Bettina Welch)

Arch-bitch redhead fashion editor Maggie Cameron had an adulterous affair with photographer Bruce Taylor and paid for the flat in which Bruce lived with Don Finlayson.

She later opened a Double Bay salon (‘The Tape Measure’) with Vera Collins.

Maggie was attracted to most men and even had an affair with Cliff Stevens, the biker-junkie who introduced Rose Godolfus to marijuana. She also had a fondness for alcohol but battled to control it.

Maggie contributed to the death of Bev Houghton and made life unpleasant for many of No. 96’s residents. When she became part-owner of the block of flats, she tried to usurp Norma Whittaker from the wine bar without success.

While attempting to force a “vacant possession” sale of the building, she planted a time bomb to scare out the tenants. Although she gave ample warning, the bomb detonated in the deli, killing Roma and Aldo Godolfus, and Les Whittaker.

At her trial, Maggie was certified as insane and spent several years behind bars.

Debbie Chester (Dina Mann)

In the space of just eight months, rebellious 16-year-old schoolgirl Debbie Chester became a drug addict, attempted prostitution (unsuccessfully), found out she was illegitimate, saw her mother, Eileen, taken by a man-eating shark, was stricken temporarily mute, was taken hostage by gangsters, found the murdered body of Phillip Chambers (and subsequently survived a murder attempt herself), nearly burned to death and had her sister go insane!

She became Don Finlayson’s legal ward after her parents’ death.

Harry Collins (Norman Yemm)

The estranged car salesman husband of Vera Collins, Harry made several return visits to No. 96 but always reverted to suspicion, jealousy and violence.

Harry was a bigot, a womaniser and an aggressive alcoholic who, for a short time, found religion.

Vera identified his burned body after a car crash, and she believed him dead for a long time. He turned up again, though, involved in an art theft. He was captured, put on trial and sent to prison after the scam was revealed to Vera in a series of dreams.

Vera Collins (Elaine Lee)

Vera moved to Australia from South Africa when she was a teenager, having been raped as a young girl by her stepfather, Neville de Groot.

She found it difficult to get a job, so she became a high-class call girl. That’s when she met Harry Collins and married him (although they split up because he was jealous of the men she had met in her call girl career).

Vera then moved into No. 96 and told fortunes for a living until Harry came back to her. She had several unsuccessful romances, always falling in love with the wrong men, and was repeatedly raped, bashed and blackmailed, suffering unbelievable heartbreak.

She eventually opened The Tape Measure salon with Maggie Cameron and, later, ran The House of Danielle for her lover, handsome businessman Warwick Thompson (Kit Taylor).

She finally married racing car driver Guy Sutton (Peter Whitford) and departed for a new life in Europe despite an attempt by Warwick Thompson to kidnap her when she announced her plans to leave for Europe.

Vera returned to Sydney for Maggie Cameron’s murder trial and finally settled in Kirribilli.

Dorrie Evans (Pat McDonald)

A native of Sydney, Dorrie went to the same school as Flo Patterson. During World War II, she worked in a canteen.

In her job as “concierge” of Number 96, Dorrie antagonised most of the tenants with her insatiable curiosity about their private lives. Several of the tenants – notably Norma Whittaker and Helen Sheridan – actively disliked her, considering her a busybody whose non-stop gossip-mongering turned even the most minor incident into an event of catastrophic proportions.

The other residents came to accept her ways with pained amusement.

Dorrie commenced divorce proceedings against Herb several times but always took him back. After Flo’s marriage, she took in Lord Andrew Whittaker as a boarder for a time, followed by Hope Jackson.

The queen of malapropism, Dorrie dreamed of one day climbing the “socialist” ladder to Point Piper.

Herb Evans (Ron Shand)

Pensioner Herbert Evans worked as the caretaker of Number 96. He married Dorrie in the 1930s after meeting her at a ballroom dance. When World War II broke out, he joined the Catering Corps and was stationed in Sydney.

Herb and Dorrie owned a house on the site of Number 96, and when a real estate company drew up plans to redevelop the site, the couple sold their house to the firm for under the market price in return for a rent-free flat for life in the new block.

Despite Dorrie’s dominance and nagging, henpecked Herb was very fond of her and tolerated her irritating ways.

Herb inherited a grown son (Herbert “Junior” Winthrop) in the will of a former girlfriend, though it was later proven that his real father was Herb’s mate, Shagger Stevens.

Herb was frequently – often unwittingly – involved in the dubious money-making schemes of Alf Sutcliffe and Les Whittaker. He also enjoyed gambling, and he and Opal Wilkinson eventually shared a large lottery win.

Arnold Feather (Jeff Kevin)

Orphaned Arnold Feather originally came to No. 96 as the original chef at Norma’s Bar but was poached to work as the manager of Aldo’s delicatessen by Roma Lubinski.

A long-time boarder of the Sutcliffes, one of Arnold’s legs was amputated after a terrorist’s parcel bomb exploded.

He married his nurse, Patti Olsen (Pamela Garrick), but she met an untimely end at the hand of the pantyhose strangler before the year was out.

Arnold inherited the deli after the death of Aldo Godolfus (Aldo always treated Arnold like a son) and married again, this time to Liz Chalmers (Margaret Lawrence).

Liz then conducted a torrid affair with Gary Whittaker and set about poisoning Arnold with strychnine. She was eventually revealed to be a bigamist whose real name was Beckie Wilson.

Arnold then went into business with Dudley Butterfield and eventually married Vicki Dawson (Kay Powell).

Patti Feather/Olsen (Pamela Garrick)

Nurse Patti Olsen cared for Arnold Feather when he required an amputation. They fell for each other and eventually married.

Tragically, Patti fell victim to the pantyhose strangler before the year was out.

Don Finlayson (Joe Hasham)

Lawyer Don Finlayson had a suburban Sydney upbringing. He had a much older brother, Ralph – who had a chip on his shoulder about having to go out to work to help his parents pay for Don’s legal training – and a sister named Carol (played by Paula Duncan).

The nephew of Sir Arnold Ashton and Baroness Amanda Von Pappenburg, Don was homosexual and used to live with photographer Bruce Taylor – the only man he actually ever loved.

He entered into a marriage of convenience with Sally Fielding, who was expecting Sir Arnold Ashton’s baby. Unable to cope with her predicament, Don’s homosexuality and the return of his former partner, Paul Mathews, Sally took an overdose of sleeping pills.

Don was prevented from rescuing her in time, and Sally died before she could receive medical attention.

After working as a solicitor for Mr Willoughby, Don entered a number of business partnerships, first with Maggie Cameron and Jack Sellars and later with Laura Trent.

Dudley Butterfield was his live-in lover for several years, but Don became frustrated by his partner’s bisexual urges. Don becomes the legal guardian of Debbie Chester after the death of her parents.

Jaja Gibson (Anya Saleky)

Sweet, naive country girl Jaja was “sort of” a cousin of Dudley Butterfield. She wasn’t terribly well educated and was prone to fits of jealousy.

She was also very impulsive, and the combination of these traits often led her into trouble.

Jaja was a talented hairdresser in Dudley’s Continental Salon and also had jobs in Norma’s Bar, the deli and the laundrette.

Her relationship with David Palmer led to them being kidnapped by mobsters. When a dead body was found on a beach, Dudley identified it as Jaja.

She had, in fact, escaped her captors, and she returned with temporary amnesia.

Aldo Godolfus (Johnny Lockwood)

This kind-hearted and generous Hungarian Jew ran the delicatessen on the ground floor of No. 96 and lived in a flat behind the shop with his wayward daughter Rose.

His dream was to open a restaurant, but he was swindled by a crooked estate agent who took his life savings of $5,000. He overcame his sorrows and married the widowed Roma Lubinski.

Aldo was killed in the explosion, which ripped through the block of flats and destroyed his shop.

Roma Godolfus/Lubinski (Phillipa Baker)

Roma Lubinski was born in a Russian provincial town and saw the Nazis take her parents away to the gas chamber before she was put in a concentration camp.

After the war, she met and married Yuri. When he died, Yuri had been running a successful restaurant in Sydney, but Roma couldn’t cope with running the business, so advertised it for sale.

Aldo Godolfus saw the advert and went to see her. He didn’t acquire the restaurant, but he did take Roma as his second wife.

Bev Houghton (Abigail/Vicki Raymond)

The daughter of a Sydney society family, Bev was embarrassing her mother, Claire (Thelma Scott), by posing – mostly in the nude – as a photographic model. Bev wasn’t very worldly (leading her to be raped at one stage by an American film producer with whom she had been flirting).

Bev shared a flat with Janie Somers and moved on to work as a tour hostess on a Sydney Harbour cruise. She also fell deeply in love with Don Finlayson, who was unable to return her love.

For a time, Janie and Bev both dated Jack Sellars and Bev finally lost her virginity to him after he rescued her from being sacrificed in a Black Mass.

She eventually married Earl Goodman, but his infidelity (with her own mother) and her deep depression combined to destroy her.

Bev died of a bullet wound to the stomach.

Rhonda Jackson (Justine Saunders)

Part-aboriginal country girl Rhonda was a trained hairdresser. A nice girl with a disturbed background, she had to overcome the unthinking prejudice of otherwise nice people such as Jaja.

She enjoyed a relationship with Dudley Butterfield but was attacked by the Hooded Rapist.

Carlo Lenzi (Joseph Furst)

This sophisticated, worldly Italian had an aura of mystery which women found fascinating, and his son Giovanni found infuriating.

Wealthy Carlo was, in fact, a retired, highly successful international jewel thief whose past was starting to catch up with him. He romanced wine bar proprietor Norma Whittaker for a time and then turned his attentions to Claire Houghton (to get at her money).

Giovanni Lenzi (Harry Michaels)

Impulsive and enthusiastic, this young Italian was Arnold’s eager-to-please assistant in the delicatessen. He tried hard to please everyone and usually ended up in bother because of it. He and Chook Feather were almost killed by a gang of bikies they had angered.

Giovanni didn’t think very deeply about anything and believed himself a suave devil with the ladies – despite being constantly knocked back by them (and often thwarted by his aunt, Maria Panucci).

His father, Carlo Lenzi, was a sophisticate.

Edie “Mummy” MacDonald (Wendy Blacklock)

Scatterbrained Edith “Edie” MacDonald hailed from Blacktown in Sydney’s west and had a fondness for gin, daytime television soap operas and analgesics.

Her regimented husband Reg (a Town Clerk at the local Town Hall) referred to her as “Mother”, and her grown (adopted) daughter Marilyn called her “Mummy”.

Following Marilyn’s departure to Spain, Edie took in a string of boarders, including Trixie O’Toole, Nigel Morgan, Liz Chalmers, Christina Vettare and Weppo Smith.

Alderman Mrs April Bullock helped her to defeat Clem Benson to a position on the local council and later, Edie achieved unlikely success as a novelist.

Marilyn MacDonald (Frances Hargreaves)

Rebellious Marilyn was the adopted daughter of Edie and Reg MacDonald, who she always called “Mummy” and “Daddy”.

A hopelessly naive romantic, she suffered through numerous infatuations and failed love affairs, including liaisons with Dean, Gary Whittaker, Arnold Feather, Andy Marshall, Dudley Butterfield, Miles Cooper and even a lesbian bikie named Heather Potts.

On an extended holiday in Spain, she married an ill-fated bullfighter, Pepe Bordello.

A seedy character named Manuel followed her back to Sydney, tied her to a bed and assaulted her.

She was subsequently romanced by both Chook Feather and Giovanni Lenzi, then turned briefly to a life of chastity as a postulant nun before meeting Sergio Lenzi.

It was Marilyn who discovered the identity of the infamous No. 96 pantyhose strangler.

Reg “Daddy” MacDonald (Mike Dorsey)

Officious Reg MacDonald – who was referred to by his wife, Edie, and adopted adult daughter, Marilyn, as “Daddy” – lived a regimented life and liked to speak in acronyms as a sort of verbal shorthand.

He worked in LG (local government) as DTC (Deputy Town Clerk) at the TH (Town Hall).

At one time, his stern-faced colleague Alderman Mrs April Bullock (Judi Farr) became hopelessly enamoured of him and plotted to separate him from Edie by keeping her busy with social engagements.

Sue Marshall (Anne Lambert)

17-year-old Sue collapsed one lunch hour in Norma’s wine bar, and Vera took her in. Sue fooled everyone at No. 96 with her sweet, wide-eyed innocence and later moved in with Helen and Jill and started working for Alf Sutcliffe as his secretary.

She eventually revealed her criminal past and her true character. She was involved in the underworld and had been in reform school three times, once for selling drugs. She stole from Alf and organised his two drivers to take part in a big robbery.

Trixie O’Toole (Jan Adele)

15-stone Trixie was a warm and funny stage and nightclub entertainer who had been treading the boards for years. The former showgirl tried to offer comfort to Alf Sutcliffe when his wife briefly left him.

Trixie made several visits to No. 96 and befriended Edie MacDonald, twice becoming her long-term boarder and confidante.

When Trixie impersonated Edie to dupe Mrs Buchanan, it set a precedent for future meetings.

Trixie also became known as “the Goldibix Girl” after making an embarrassing TV commercial.

Flo Patterson (Bunney Brooke)

Initially a frequent visitor to the flat of her old friend Dorrie Evans and her husband Herb, Flo moved permanently into Dorrie and Herb’s flat at No. 96 with her budgerigar ‘Mr Perky’ when her own apartment in a neighbouring suburb burnt down.

For a while, Flo was married to the late Sir William Mainwaring, but she foundit difficult to play the role of a Point Piper society matron.

Jack Sellars (Tom Oliver)

Back-slapping, rough diamond playboy entrepreneur and sometimes SP bookkeeper, Jack was nicknamed “Jolly Jack Sellars”. As a part-owner of No. 96, he was responsible for the establishment of Norma’s Bar.

He romanced both Janie Somers and Bev Houghton and had a long relationship with the latter. Later, he was involved with staunch feminist Helen Sheridan (who aborted his unborn child), Diana Moore and Vera Collins.

Reunited with Helen, they started a new life together in Paris.

Don Finlayson and Maggie Cameron remained active partners in his company, and he returned briefly to unmask Maggie Cameron as the Mad Bomber.

Helen Sheridan (Carmen Duncan)

28-year-old Helen worked in the Cosmopolitan Hotel. She was the eldest of three girls raised in country NSW, and moved to Sydney at 20 to learn catering.

She despised the fact that it was a man’s world and was an ardent supporter of Women’s Lib (she had divorced her husband because he wanted a house-bound wife, and she wanted a career).

Though she loved Jack Sellars, she refused to marry him, fearing another failure. Helen felt reluctantly responsible for her younger sister, Jill, and her actions.

Jill Sheridan (Candy Raymond)

Helen’s younger sister came to the city to find a rich husband. She worked in a bank in Wilcannia to save money for her trip, and her father agreed to her moving to Sydney only if she stayed with Helen.

There was friction between the sisters as Jill went out of her way to irritate Helen.

She was very feminine but inexperienced and unable to cope with city life. In her search for experienced, fun-loving, wealthy admirers, she tended to sleep with anyone and was on her way to becoming a tart.

Arnold Feather had a crush on her, but she spurned him because he was so “correct”.

Frank “Weppo” Smith (Roger Ward)

Simple, kind, and loud, “Weppo” was a Shakespeare-spouting, rock ‘n’ roll-loving council garbage collector.

Under the guidance of his mate, Gary Whittaker, Weppo tried to be a professional wrestler (‘ The Masked Bard’) and also worked as a short-order cook in Norma’s Bar. For a brief time, he was also Norma’s fiancé.

Alf Sutcliffe (James Elliot)

The Alf Garnett of No. 96, Alf was a disgruntled English migrant – born and bred in Salford, near Manchester.

Fiercely working class, Alf hated Australia and everything Australian, and his greatest wish was to return home to England.

Boisterous and bigoted in his thoughts and actions, his wife, Lucy, patiently suffered his moods. He depended on her a great deal for emotional support.

Alf had various jobs – including truck and taxi driving – before he eventually moved his family to Perth.

Lucy Sutcliffe (Elisabeth Kirby)

A hard-working and kind-hearted universal mother figure, Lucy Sutcliffe was born and raised in Lancashire, England, where she met and married Alf Sutcliffe during World War II.

Lucy moved to Australia with Alf and their two children, Jim and Ethel (Jenny Lee). She managed the laundrette down the street from No. 96 for Mr Thorburn.

Lucy endured numerous tragedies, including suspected breast cancer and a bout of temporary blindness (brought on after she was assaulted in the laundrette). She almost left Alf for Tom Bartlett but was stunned to discover that she was pregnant.

Her change-of-life baby, Emma, was born on the evening of the fatal bomb blast in the delicatessen. Emma was later briefly kidnapped by a woman with a mental condition, but was safely returned with her parents.

Laura Trent (Mary Ann Severne)

Laura was Jack Sellars’ solicitor and later went into partnership with Don Finlayson. She also became his flatmate at No. 96.

Intelligent, cool and sophisticated, Laura was resourceful but didn’t make friends easily, finding it hard to call anyone by their Christian names.

She eventually entered a relationship with Gary Whittaker and moved to England with him when he inherited a House of Lords peerage.

Gordon Vansard (Joe James)

Gordon owned the pharmacy on the ground floor of the block of flats at No. 96 (which eventually became Norma Whittaker’s wine bar). He lived there with Sonia Freeman (Lynn Rainbow), who posed as his sister but was actually his lover. His wife, Sylvia (Shirley Cameron), killed herself in the flats using drugs she took from Gordon and Sonia’s pharmacy to implicate them in her death.

Gordon had been a doctor but was struck off the register for conducting illegal abortions. He was now trying to make amends and ran the pharmacy with Sonia, a qualified pharmacist.

Gordon was eventually killed in a tragic car accident, resulting in Sonia being committed to a mental hospital. Once cured, she briefly returned with a new husband, Duncan Hunter, but soon discovered that he and Diana Moore were trying to send her mad again to get their hands on the Vansard fortune.

Amanda Von Pappenburg (Carol Raye)

The Baroness Amanda Von Pappenburg was the zany, jet-setting, oft-married aunt of Don Finlayson, who moved into Flat four and encouraged his relationship with Dudley Butterfield.

All of Amanada’s husbands except one had met with grisly deaths, and most left her large sums of money.

Amanda befriended Flo Patterson and took her on a disastrous trip to Hawaii.

She eventually settled in Heidelberg and was visited by Don when he believed he only had a few months to live.

Gary Whittaker (Michael Ferguson)

The only son of Les and Norma, the chauvinistic, aggressive and irrational Garry suffered from terminal “foot-in-mouth disease”. His bull-in-a-china-shop approach to life inevitably led to trouble, even when he was trying to do the right thing.

He fancied himself a womaniser, but sexual impotence was a recurring problem. The only person he really loved was his mother, Norma.

Gary attempted to assassinate Maggie Cameron for causing the death of his father, but was prevented from doing so by Don Finlayson.

Inheriting his father’s title of the Earl MacCraddonow, Lord Gary attracted the attention of Laura Trent, who agreed to marry him and immigrate to England so he could take up his post in the House of Lords.

Les Whittaker (Gordon McDougall)

Bumbling but well-meaning Les Whittaker migrated with his parents from Scotland to Australia in the 1920s.

He had several different jobs – including hospital orderly – and fancied himself an inventor, although his inventions – such as the Wine-o-Matic – were never successful.

Les took correspondence courses and collected teach-yourself books on just about every topic (including “Be Your Own Solicitor”).

He was killed in the deli bomb blast and was pronounced a hero for his efforts to warn the other residents of the imminent explosion, which cost him his own life.

Norma Whittaker (Sheila Kennelly)

Norma was the barmaid wife of Les and later the manager of Norma’s Bar.

Frustrated by her husband’s constant stream of inventions and crazy schemes, she was almost tempted to have an affair with Gilbert Barton during a wine-tasting tour of the Hunter Valley.

After her husband’s death, she was briefly engaged to Weppo Smith but eventually departed for Texas with Les’s brother Andrew Whittaker.

Norma – who called everyone “ducky” – eventually returned to No. 96 and took over the management of the renamed wine bar, Duddles, after the sudden departure of Lee Chandler.

Tracy Wilson (Chantal Contouri)