Rita Freeman
Rita Freeman is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Casualty, played by Chloe Howman. She first appears in the twenty-eighth series episode "Once There Was a Way Home – Part One", first broadcast on 10 August 2013. Howman's casting was announced four days before her debut. She attended multiple auditions against other actresses for the role. Rita is introduced as a new staff nurse at Holby City Hospital's emergency department. She is characterised as fun, feisty, blunt and excellent at her job, which means patients are at ease around her. Howman compared the character to a Jack Russell Terrier. Despite being a popular member of staff, Rita struggles to make personal relationships. Rita's first episode features an incident at her flat when her ceiling caves in; Howman liked the introduction and found it dramatic. Throughout her tenure on the show, Rita has been promoted twice: on first instance to senior staff nurse and on second instance to clinical nurse manager.
The character's stories have mainly revolved around the exploration of her backstory. Joel Beckett was cast as Rita's estranged husband Mark Richie, who is a convicted child abuser. He is introduced a year after Rita's arrival when she files for divorce and he is admitted to the ED. Mark's appearance has a detrimental effect on Rita's mental wellbeing and she begins heavily drinking, sometimes during shifts. Producers reintroduced the character on two further occasions to challenge Rita and develop her other stories. On one occasion, Mark's appearance coincides with the disappearance of a child and on another occasion, he is admitted to the ED with the girl he abused, bringing a conclusion to the exploration of Rita's backstory.
Producers also establish a feud between Rita and lead ED consultant Connie Beauchamp following Mark's first return. Connie blames Rita for her daughter leaving and when Connie is arrested, Rita hides evidence proving her not guilty. The story ends when the truth emerges. Show bosses then romantically paired Rita with paramedic Iain Dean for lighter stories. Writers intertwined Mark's second return with the story to make it darker and Rita lies about being attacked by Mark. The story marks the character's exit in the thirtieth series episode "The Fear", first broadcast on 16 July 2016. Rita has been generally well received by critics who liked her strong and feisty personality. However, Radio Times critic Alison Graham branded the character "Mother Teresa in trainers" and "a frowning, joyless nun" following her darker stories.
Casting
On 30 July 2013, it was announced that actress Chloe Howman had been cast as nurse Rita Freeman and would debut in series 28. Rita's introduction was then previewed in a trailer released on the official Casualty website on 3 August 2013. Howman did not struggle to settle into the cast as they were "warm and welcoming" towards her. Howman attended multiple auditions for the role and producers saw several actresses for the role. In one audition, Howman performed a screen test with Casualty cast members Patrick Robinson and Jane Hazlegrove, before being told she had won the role of Rita. For the role of Rita, Howman dyed her hair from brown to blonde, which encouraged the actress to change her wardrobe.Development
Characterisation and career
Rita is introduced as a staff nurse in Holby City Hospital's emergency department. Howman described the character as sympathetic, good with patients, fiery, candid and fun to be around. The actress added, "Rita is good at her job as she's efficient in the workplace and doesn't suffer fools gladly!" Rita is sociable, flirtatious, a good listener and good at giving advice, which means that patients do not struggle when confiding in her. A BBC Online reporter said that Rita is "exactly the person you would want next to you in a crisis". However, Rita also lacks in self confidence and does not make personal relationships with others at risk of being hurt. She is a strong character and holds the opinion that "what doesn't kill us makes us stronger".Howman explained that while Rita is direct, she is not horrible and manipulative and is still popular amongst her colleagues. She said that Rita is good at communicating, commenting, "She's very good at voicing what needs to be voiced!" Howman later described Rita as a "humanitarian". The actress thought that she shared similar personality traits to her character, explaining that Rita is "feisty and tactile with a passion for truth", a trait they share. She compared the character to a Jack Russell Terrier due to her "terrier-like" status, explaining that she is resilient and courageous. Howman told Tricia Welch of the Daily Express that Rita is a true-hearted and caring person. The costume department style Rita in a leather jacket and jeans, which Howman thought the character is suited to as she is "boyish".
When the vacany arises, Rita secures a job as a senior staff nurse. In January 2015, Rita is appointed the ED's clinical nurse manager. Howman said that Rita's managerial style with the nursing staff would be different from how clinical lead Connie Beauchamp manages the doctors. She explained that Rita does not follow the idea of "hierarchy" and prefers to work as a team rather than giving orders. The actress added that Rita's new position makes her understand the pressure of Connie's job. Rita has a different uniform for her new job, which Howman found exciting. She liked the dark blue colour and described it as "complimentary".
Introduction
Rita is introduced in the series 28 episode "Once There Was a Way Home – Part One", first broadcast on 10 August 2013. As Rita prepares to leave for her first shift, the ceiling of her apartment collapses. She goes to find out what happened and learns that her neighbour Jane's hoarding has caused the collapse. Rita notices that Jane is trapped and assists the paramedics in helping her out. Jane begs with the hospital staff not to inform her father of the accident, creating a clash between Rita and the senior staff nurse, Adrian "Fletch" Fletcher, who disagrees with Rita's view. Howman billed the introduction as "very dramatic" and "very exciting". On the introduction, the actress commented, "I couldn't have asked for a better way to join the show." She revealed that she watched her first episode with her family as she felt that it was vital that she watched Rita's journey.Rita later works a shift with the paramedic team, Dixie and Jeff Collier, to experience their view of life. She struggles with the experience and cannot detach herself from a patient who refuses treatment after taking a heroin overdose. The trio later attend to a man stuck in machinery at a junkyard, who Rita connects with and chats to as they wait for the fire crew. However, in a "heartbreaking" twist, Rita is told that the man will die when he is released.
Exploration of backstory
Mark's introduction
At the time of Rita's introduction, Howman confirmed that the character has a backstory, which would be explored. She teased, "life hasn't been particularly easy for Rita". When asked by colleagues about her personal life, Rita claims that she is a widow. However, Rita is actually estranged from her husband, Mark Richie, who is alive. Howman clarified that her character did not mean to lie about her marriage, but once she said it, she felt that she could not change her story. The actress likened Rita to "a rabbit in the headlights" when she is asked about her husband, and pointed out that Rita is in "a cornered moment" when she says Mark is dead.Mark is a former teacher who was convicted of child abuse after having a relationship with a thirteen-year-old girl. Mark denied the allegations and Rita believed him, defending him at his trial. Howman explained that Rita believed Mark because she "loved him, trusted him and genuinely believed him". Rita realised the truth when Mark was found guilty. She felt ashamed by her actions and changed jobs as she did not want anyone to find out about her past. Rita lies about Mark because they have not spoken since his imprisonment. Howman carried out research for the storyline and spoke to somebody who went through a similar experience to Rita. She also expressed her compassion for anyone in a similar situation with the character.
Mark is introduced to the series in August 2014 shortly after Rita files for divorce. Mark orders an attack on himself in prison so he can be admitted to the ED to see Rita. Howman told Elaine Reilly of What's on TV that Rita wanted to start afresh, but Mark's arrival has disrupted that. Mark then refuses any treatment until he can speak with Rita, although she refuses to speak to him. Howman thought the situation is "horrible" because Mark is bleeding and won't let anyone treat him. Rita wants to have Mark treated fast and leaving soon, so she decides to speak with him. Howman wanted it to be clear that Rita still loves Mark, which she called "the fundamental flaw in the situation". She explained that Mark can still "manipulate" Rita and added, "Rita's life unravels before her! It's a devastating story. Rita's shame is intense."
Rita and Mark have an emotional discussion, which Howman enjoyed acting out with Beckett. The actress liked exploring the character of Rita as Casualty usually follows the stories of its guest characters. Rita hopes to stop her colleagues from discovering Mark's identity so steals his patient files, an act which could end Rita's career. Howman called it "a big slur on her". When her colleagues discover that Mark is alive, they are upset with Rita. Howman told Sarah Ellis of Inside Soap that some of Rita's colleagues feel "hurt" by the revelation because everything that Rita had told them has become "this massive lie". The actress described the day as "the worst possible day" for Rita.