Gavin Sullivan
Gavin Sullivan is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Paul Nicholas. He first appeared on 21 August 2015. Gavin is the third husband of Kathy Beale and is also revealed as the biological father of Sharon Watts. He is first mentioned as Sharon's father in 1990 and as Kathy's husband in 2001, but does not appear on screen until 2015 and it is not known that Sharon's father and Kathy's husband are the same Gavin until October 2015. Viewers are informed in a 2006 episode that Kathy and Gavin are dead, but Kathy returns in February 2015, revealing that Gavin is also alive. Billed as "an EastEnders villain like no other", Gavin has been described as "dangerous", "sinister", "nasty" and "evil". His storylines include his "abusive", "controlling" and "manipulative" relationship with Kathy, kidnapping recovering alcoholic Phil Mitchell and getting him drinking again, and blackmailing Claudette Hubbard. His departure involves kidnapping Kathy, causing the death of his sister Margaret Midhurst and being arrested after threatening to kill himself and Sharon. He appeared in 30 episodes, and his final appearance is on 8 July 2016. In January 2021, Gavin was killed-off off-screen.
Development
Introduction
After it was confirmed that Taylforth was returning to EastEnders, executive producer, Dominic Treadwell-Collins teased about Gavin in May 2015 when he said of Kathy's return: "It's a big, big story with lots of twists and turns. We know that there was a man named Gavin, who Kathy went off with to South Africa. So there's Gavin, Kathy—and lots of Phil involved." Then, on 17 June, Treadwell-Collins posted on Twitter a photo of part of a script, featuring Gavin, and the caption "He's on his way...". The following day, 18 June, Paul Nicholas's casting in the role was announced, and it was confirmed that the character would play a major part in Kathy's return storyline. Nicholas said of his role: "I am delighted to be joining the wonderful cast of EastEnders for what is going to be an exciting time ahead. I can't wait to get started and seeing what's in store for my character." Executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins said: "We are all thrilled that Paul has agreed to join our cast to play Gavin. So many British television viewers have grown up with Paul Nicholas so it's brilliant to have him back on our screens, playing a major part in Kathy's explosive return to the Square, while also holding the key to many more of the Square's secrets." Nicholas later said it was "great" for him to join a "brilliantly produced and very well acted" show, but said it was "quite daunting" as he had not acted in a soap opera before. He said that when he joined the cast, he met the writers who explained the character to him and gave him a "really good insight into where they wanted it to go" and added, "It is nice to be involved in something so successful and that people actually watch." Two days after Nicholas's casting was announced, Nicholas and Taylforth were seen filming on location at King's Cross station, for Gavin's introduction scene that aired on 21 August 2015, and on 30 June, on-location photos emerged of Nicholas, Taylforth, Steve McFadden and Samantha Womack, filming at an airfield in Essex, for Gavin's third episode, broadcast on 11 September 2015.Villainy
During an EastEnders press event, Treadwell-Collins stated that it was hoped Gavin would be "an EastEnders villain like no other", and described him as "modern, complex and he will have a little foot in the past and a foot in the present." Treadwell-Collins later said, "Paul Nicholas has created the most manipulative and dangerous EastEnders villain we've ever had. He makes Archie Mitchell look like a Care Bear." Discussing this comparison, Rachel McGrath of The Huffington Post UK said, "He makes the murderous, abusive, rapist Archie look like a child's cuddly toy. We're genuinely terrified." Vicky Prior from the Metro called Treadwell-Collins' claim "bold for a show that has produced some of TV's most iconic villains", and included in her list Nick Cotton, Archie, Lucas Johnson, Trevor Morgan, Phil Mitchell, Grant Mitchell, Vincent Hubbard, Janine Butcher, Chrissie Watts, Ronnie Mitchell, Michael Moon, Yusef Khan and Babe Smith, saying that "I don't think Gavin will find it easy to earn a place in Walford's Rogues Gallery. I expect EastEnders to have some extra dramatic plots coming up to help Gavin out though." Digital Spy's Daniel Kilkelly said that the script snippet posted online by Treadwell-Collins "hinted that the character will be a formidable force".Nicholas said about Gavin: "I wouldn't say he was the most charming man I've ever played." However, Taylforth said that he is a "charming character, who can turn menacing, dark and deep", and called him "horrible". Taylforth also said that Gavin is "very cunning" and "knows everyone's weakness and uses it", and called him a "tyrant". Harry Reid, who plays Kathy and Phil's son Ben Mitchell, called Gavin "a nasty bloke with an edge to him." Additionally, Danny Walker from the Daily Mirror called him "moody", James Leyfield from the Daily Mirror called him an "east end bad boy", Nigel Pauley from the Daily Mirror called him a "psycho gangster", and Inside Soap called Gavin "wicked" and "Walford's new baddy", with Kate White from the magazine calling him "sinister". Amy Duncan from the Metro called him "calculated", Duncan Lindsay from the Metro called him "scheming", and Soaplife called him "mysterious", "slippery", "grim", and a "ruthless operator". What's on TV described him as a "vicious gangster", "threatening" and "dodgy", and All About Soap called him "evil". A show insider told Inside Soap that Gavin is "a nasty piece of work". Nicholas later said that the fact that Gavin comes in and out of the show "makes him more unpredictable, I think. Unpredictable villains are the best."
Relationship with Kathy
Speaking of Gavin and Kathy's relationship, Taylforth said that he is so manipulative towards her that "She can't function without " and she has "been brainwashed". She said that Gavin has "a hold on her" and has "knocked her down so much" and explained that he has convinced her she is a bad mother, adding "she's really frightened of him". She claimed that Kathy loves Gavin and "he convinces her that he loves her, too" and makes her believe that everything is her fault. She also said that Gavin has reasons for controlling everything Kathy does and has "little ways of getting round her." Kate White from Inside Soap said, "Kathy is fighting for survival and knows how twisted Gavin is." Inside Soap said the script snippet "seems to indicate that Gavin is one step ahead of his wife", saying that the reason Kathy always seems to look nervous is because of Gavin. Inside Soap also said that Kathy is scared because of "her marriage to the dangerous Gavin Sullivan". David Brown from Radio Times said Gavin and Kathy have a "poisonous marriage", and a show insider told Inside Soap that Gavin and Kathy's marriage was "built on mind games and his twisted ability to control her." Soaplife said that "Kathy will testify he's not the sort of to take rejection lying down."Phil Mitchell
In relation to Gavin's first scenes with Kathy's former husband Phil, it was said that Gavin "will not be taking no for an answer" and he "doesn't take things quietly", with Treadwell-Collins calling the storyline "a really exciting thriller". Further scenes between Phil and Gavin prompted Daniel Kilkelly from Digital Spy to think that Phil "may have met his match". A show insider told Inside Soap, "He's not afraid to get his hands dirty, even it means butting heads with the notorious Mitchell family. Phil should watch out—this one's a real handful!" On the storyline where Gavin has Phil kidnapped and demands money to spare his life, an EastEnders insider told Inside Soap, "Gavin knows which buttons to push to frighten Kathy into doing exactly what he wants. He wants that money, he wants her by his side, and if things don't go as he wants, Phil is going to pay a high price." Treadwell-Collins said of the kidnap storyline: "What Gavin does to Phil while he's off screen will take Phil in a whole new direction that will run into next year ." Taylforth confirmed that what Gavin does to Phil is the reason Phil starts drinking again, saying "Gavin knows that drinking is Phil's weakness". This has an ongoing impact on Phil and the Mitchells, with Treadwell-Collins calling Phil "a broken man" and confirming it was the start of a storyline that would continue until Easter 2016.Ben Mitchell
Ben actor Reid spoke of his character's relationship with Gavin, saying that Gavin was a father figure to Ben for several years, adding, "He grew up with him and there will be a lot of love there. Ben came back a happy child, so you think Gavin is a perfect dad as he helped create that kid. There's a real connection there between them, having spent time together and loved each other." Reid also said that Gavin "clearly didn't do a bad job" of raising Ben, Ben does not blame Gavin for being lied to about Kathy and Gavin's fake deaths, and Ben finds Gavin more understanding than his own father. However, he said that Ben knows Gavin has a "nasty edge". Treadwell-Collins promised "an interesting dynamic" between Ben and Gavin, saying that Gavin would "manipulate Ben as well as Kathy".Paternity of Sharon Watts
Several news outlets reported speculation that Gavin could be the birth father of Sharon Watts. Treadwell-Collins' comment that the character would "have a little foot in the past and a foot in the present" and is "holding the key to many more of the Square's secrets" caused David Brown, writer for Radio Times, to wonder what Gavin's connection to the past would be, saying "it's surely no coincidence that Sharon has recently been searching for her birth dad—a man who we know to also be called Gavin." Brown said it would "make for some intriguing family dynamics." Inside Soap said that they had a hunch that Kathy's husband Gavin and Sharon's father Gavin could be the same person, making Sharon Kathy's stepdaughter. All About Soap said it "cannot be a coincidence" that Sharon's real father has the same name.Speculation increased when on-location photos emerged, showing Kathy with police outside a house, which looks similar to scenes already shown of Sharon visiting the street where her father lives, and both scenes took place in Notting Hill. Carl Greenwood from the Daily Mirror said that "Two huge EastEnders storylines could be set to converge" if Gavin is Sharon's father. An EastEnders source said: "Eagle-eyed viewers will spot police are in the same area as Sharon was looking for her dad". Brown later said that it would "be a treat" to see Gavin revealed as Sharon's father, as it would also make him the grandfather of Dennis "Denny" Rickman Jnr, Sharon's son with Dennis Rickman, and said "Something tells me that Gavin wouldn't be cheery grandpa offering up the Werther's Originals to Denny while they watch the Antiques Roadshow together. More likely, he'd be getting him down Basher Jim's for a bit of boxing training before introducing him into his criminal empire." However, All About Soap wondered if Phil had actually sent Sharon to a fake address. Amy Duncan from the Metro said, "perhaps there are just two Gavins with links to Albert Square living in Notting Hill." Duncan Lindsay from the Metro wondered if Phil might know that Gavin is Sharon's father, which is why he did not want Sharon to track down her real father and also speculated that Gavin could be related to the character Dan Sullivan, who was played by Craig Fairbrass between 1999 and 2001 and was one of Phil's enemies.
Gavin was confirmed to be Sharon's birth father in the episode broadcast on 30 October 2015, in which he repeated Sharon's adopted father Den Watts's iconic line "Hello, princess". Digital Spy Daniel Kilkelly said EastEnders had "delivered the daddy of all cliffhangers". Taylforth confirmed that her character Kathy is unaware of the connection between Sharon and Gavin, and said, always said that she would walk into a room and know straight away , and especially when he said those words: 'Hello princess'. We had the full scripts for the episode, but the other cast members didn't know what was going on. Paul was just fantastic delivering that line." Nicholas said that the "hello, princess" line was used because it was a definite way of linking Gavin and Den. Inside Soap said that Sharon discovering Gavin is her father "has to be the biggest of all" for Sharon, but added that viewers had already guessed before the episode was broadcast. Soaplife thought it was the "most shocking reveal" of 2015 in all British soap operas, saying they were "stunned". They also opined that Gavin seemingly genuinely wants to reconnect with Sharon and be a father to her and seems very fond of Dennis, and that if Sharon were to reject him, he would probably try to kidnap Dennis.