EastEnders (Mark Thrippleton); wheeler-dealer Vince Johnson (Hepburn Graham) and Laurie Bates (Gary Powell), who became Pete Beale's (Peter Dean) sparring partner. The majority of "EastEnders" characters are working-class. Middle-class characters do occasionally become regulars, but have been less successful and rarely become long-term characters. In the main, middle-class characters exist as villains, such as James Wilmott-Brown, May Wright, Stella Crawford and Yusef Khan, or are used to promote positive liberal influences, such as Colin Russell or Rachel Kominski. "EastEnders" has always featured a culturally diverse cast which has included black, Asian, Turkish, Polish and Latvian characters. "The expansion of minority representation
Mary Flaherty (EastEnders) Mary Flaherty (EastEnders) Mary Flaherty is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera "EastEnders", played by Melanie Clark Pullen from 22 September 1997 to 23 February 1999. The character first appeared in a special week of episodes set in Ireland, first broadcast in 1997. Mary is the granddaughter of Maggie Flaherty (Olivia Shanley), Pauline Fowler's (Wendy Richard) long-lost sister. Her father is Conor (Seán Gleeson), but she doesn't get on with him. When the Fowlers go to Ireland to meet their relatives, Mary is a teenager in trouble. Although she has a level head on her shoulders, she is