Mel Owen
Melanie "Mel" Owen is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Tamzin Outhwaite. Mel was introduced by executive producer Matthew Robinson and made her first appearance on 19 October 1998. Outhwaite made her departure on 12 April 2002. Outhwaite's return to the series was announced in October 2017 and she returned on 9 January 2018. The actress chose to leave the soap again in July 2019 and her final episode aired on 14 November 2019 when Mel was killed-off. Outhwaite proved popular in the role, winning multiple awards and critical acclaim for her portrayal of Mel as the character became prominent in the show.
During her original tenure in the soap, Mel was featured in high-profile storylines, such as a wedding to local businessman Ian Beale to mark the Millennium Eve celebrations on New Year's Eve 1999; a problematic and dangerous marriage to criminal Steve Owen ; a one-night stand with Steve's nemesis Phil Mitchell ; and a close friendship with Phil's estranged girlfriend Lisa Shaw. Writers also placed Mel at the centre of a storyline marking the show's increase to four weekly episodes in 2001, when she is kidnapped by her ex-lover Dan Sullivan after Steve and Phil conspired to frame him for the latter's shooting.
Throughout her time on the show, especially since her 2018 return, when Mel became more of a villain, she has become somewhat more "wicked" and has a harder edge, when compared to her early appearances. In her second stint on the show, Mel was included in storylines such as working for crime boss Ciara Maguire ; colluding with Phil against Ciara's ex-husband Aidan Maguire ; a relationship with Phil's rival Jack Branning ; an engagement and marriage with former policeman Ray Kelly ; covering up Ray's murder after he was shot dead by her son Hunter Owen for attempting to kill her; and trying to stop Hunter from going to prison and later harboring him when he escapes, which culminates with Hunter being shot dead by the police after he held her hostage and nearly shot Phil and Lisa's daughter Louise Mitchell after shooting her brother Ben Mitchell. Following Hunter's death, Mel developed a feud with Phil's wife Sharon and blackmailed her after learning of her affair with Louise's boyfriend Keanu Taylor. This concludes with Mel being involved in a high-speed car chase with Sharon upon attempting to expose her affair with Keanu to Phil, only to end up subjected to a vehicle collision that results in Sharon rescuing Mel, before Mel is then killed after walking into the path of an incoming lorry.
Creation and development
Background and casting
In 1998, EastEnders acquired a new executive producer, Matthew Robinson. Robinson was dubbed "the axeman" in the British press, after a large proportion of the EastEnders cast either quit, or were culled, shortly after Robinson's introduction. It was reported that Robinson hoped the changes would attract more viewers and "spice up Walford".To counteract the large number of departures, Robinson introduced several new characters, among them Melanie Healy played by Tamzin Outhwaite. In an interview with website Walfordweb, Matthew Robinson has stated that Melanie was "dreamt up to supplement the 'totty' contingent – running thin at the time". Robinson stated that Tamzin Outhwaite was "a shoo-in – and not just because of her beautiful blonde hair. Within a minute of her walking into auditions, hundreds already having trooped in and out of the door, I knew we had our star." Outhwaite has stated that she was given the role without having to do a screen-test. Mel was brought into the serial as a member of the already established Healy family, joining her brother Reverend Alex Healy and father Jeff Healy in October 1998. Initially Mel's relationship with Alex and Jeff was not disclosed to viewers, and it was several weeks after her introduction that Mel actually came face-to-face with her brother on-screen; it was revealed that she had been estranged from them for some time.
Characterisation
Author Kate Lock has described Mel as free-spirited, exuberant, a beauty, wild-at-heart, and "a restless soul with a troubled past". In his assessment of the character, author Rupert Smith surmised Mel as "a nice girl with surprisingly bad taste in men."Mel has been dubbed as a chameleon, and Outhwaite has suggested that she liked to bring variation to Mel's characterisation: "When I arrived I liked the idea Mel was feisty and strong. I didn't want her turning into a wimpy character like so many women in soaps. You know, they're either bitches or they're slags or they're victims. I wanted to give Mel a bit of everything. Every woman has all those elements to their character. It's just working out where they come and go, and I don't think that's lack of continuity; I think that's a three-dimensional character."
Outhwaite has suggested that the wardrobe department struggled to come up with a static identity for Melanie at first; however, this she felt turned out to be a good thing: "What I really liked about it was, when we started looking for costumes , the wardrobe department couldn't quite fit where I was going. I'd wear Army pants and trainers some days and then jeans some other days and then I'd be all suited and booted at other times. I said, 'That's what girls do! That's how I am. Some days I'm in scruffs and some days I'm really dressed up. It would be really nice to have a character who's not so predictable.'" Rosalind Powell, head of the EastEnders' wardrobe design team in 2000, said that Mel had "colourful and stylish" wardrobe from retailers such as Kookai and Oasis. Powell added, "Although she's a barmaid, she can still afford to wear nice clothes, she just doesn't have a very big wardrobe."
Relationships
Millennium Eve episodes
An unlikely romance was scripted into Mel's narrative when she began dating her boss Ian Beale. The pairing has been described as one of "the most unbelievable soap couples", but Outwaite defended it in 1999, saying "I know I've fancied some not particularly attractive men in my time, but I don't think Ian is actually ugly. He has a vulnerable side and that's what is attractive. When he is being all hot-headed and gets above himself then I personally don't like Ian. But when he is being vulnerable I can see the attraction. People talk to me about it all the time. I have taxi drivers telling me I could do much better than Ian. The other day someone shouted that I should go back with Steve Owen. It's incredible, they'd rather went out with a murderer than with a hard-working father raising three children." Their relationship was the focus of the storyline that aired to mark the Millennium celebrations, when Ian emotionally blackmailed Mel into marrying him by claiming that his daughter was dying of cancer; storylines in the latter part of 1999 focused on the build-up to a joint Millennium wedding on New Year's Eve 1999 with Barry Evans and Natalie Evans. The wedding went as planned; however, Mel and Ian's marriage ended hours later as the clock struck midnight to signify the beginning of the New Year after Mel discovered Ian's lie. The Millennium Eve episodes drew in 20.89 million viewers – the biggest soap audience since the character Tiffany Mitchell was killed off in EastEnders precisely one year earlier. An EastEnders spokeswoman commented: "This is a remarkable endorsement of the power of EastEnders that over 20 million viewers chose to see the Millennium celebrations in Albert Square." The episodes were also broadcast on screens in London's Trafalgar Square, a typical "haunt for New Year's Eve revelers".Relationship with Steve Owen
A more long-running pairing was featured between Mel and the character Steve Owen, who was portrayed as a villain. It was an on/off romance beginning shortly after both characters' introduction in 1998. In an interview in June 2000, Kemp discussed the relationship between Steve and Mel: "Steve's convinced Mel will make his life complete. She kept him going during all the bad times and now he's determined to have her. It's true of a lot of guys who get into trouble, they hang their hat on one idea and that keeps them sane there's a driving force that kept them going while they were . And often that's a woman. You know from those tender moments when Mel came to visit Steve that she was the thing that kept him going, and he won't stop til he gets her back." Eventually the couple were shown to marry in the soap in March 2001, despite a revelation that Mel had strayed with Steve's nemesis Phil Mitchell. Tamzin Outhwaite explained, "With Ian, Mel was the one who didn't want to go through with it. This time around Mel is the one who is apprehensive, hoping Steve will be there for her. If he isn't, she has no reason to stay in Walford. This really is make or break time for her." The wedding night was a precursor to one of the soap's most publicised storylines, "Who Shot Phil?", where Phil was gunned down by an unknown assailant and, due to Mel's infidelity, Steve became one of the prime suspects for the murder attempt, though he transpired to be a red herring. Discussing Mel and Steve's wedding, Outhwaite said, "Even though this wedding with Steve has got as much controversy as Mel's last one , it feels more true. The characters seem more suited and it's not a big, white wedding, it's a low-key register office thing." 17 million viewers watched the wedding.In August 2001, EastEnders began airing a 4th weekly episode. The storyline to mark the occasion centred around Mel, her husband Steve, and her former lovers Phil and Dan Sullivan. After Phil and Steve wrongfully framed Dan for Phil's shooting, Dan sought revenge by kidnapping Mel and demanding a ransom. An EastEnders insider reportedly told The Mirror, "This has be [sic] one of the most dramatic storylines we have ever filmed. Dan has vowed to get even with Phil and Steve for framing him over the shooting. Kidnapping Mel kills two birds with one stone. Although Mel and Phil have had their differences, he still harbours feelings for her." As part of the storyline, Outhwaite, as Mel, was tied up to a radiator in a council flat. Outhwaite commented, "They offered to untie my wrists between scenes, but I said no so I could feel what it was really like. My wrists were raw by the end of it and I was exhausted, but that was the challenge I wanted."
Although Mel was rescued, the events on the storyline had ramifications for Mel and Steve's marriage after Dan told Mel that Steve had been unfaithful. This led to the temporary screen exit of Outhwaite who had been permitted time off from filming to make another TV series. This was part of a lucrative deal that Outhwaite made with the BBC, where Outhwaite reportedly agreed to remain on EastEnders for a further year if she was allowed to film other TV shows. In the storyline, Mel ended her marriage with Steve and departed after torching his club, ignoring his sobbing and begging. According to Outhwaite, "Steve was a rat and fully deserved it." Mel returned after two months away and began negotiating divorce, however the divorcing was brief as Steve was killed off in the serial in March 2002 after Kemp decided to leave. His death storyline centred upon his on-going feud with Phil.