List of Heartbeat Characters - Aidensfield Arms Staff

Aidensfield Arms Staff

The Aidensfield Arms, the village pub, was originally owned by Lord Ashfordly and run by George Ward. In the second series, George was assisted by his niece Gina Ward who became the pub licensee after his death between the sixth and the seventh series. Former Sergeant Oscar Blaketon later became the pub's owner, and he and Gina have subsequently run the pub jointly, assisted from time to time by members of Gina's family.

• Stuart Golland as George Ward, publican (1992–1996). Landlord and original publican of the Aidensfield Arms and uncle of Gina Ward. The easy-going, warm-hearted but sometimes hot-tempered and stubborn George was popular in Aidensfield, and he had a highly regarded status in the community. In the very first episode, he had problems accepting the newly arrived police constable Nick Rowan, but his opinion changed when Nick arrested some mods that were trying to ruin the pub, and the two went on to become good friends. At the end of the first series, George was involved in a car crash which was the result of his bad heart condition, and Dr Kate Rowan advised him to rest and slow down. George was worried that he would have to give up working, but was relieved when his niece Gina Ward arrived in the second series to assist him in the pub. George had an up-and-down friendship with Claude Jeremiah Greengrass; the two were sometimes very near friends but often became enemies in Greengrass' money-making schemes. George had a huge crush for Nick Rowan's mother Ruby when she arrived, and also for Kate Rowan's aunt Eileen Reynolds. George was implicated in Greengrass's poaching, often buying pheasants and fish which Claude had poached from Lord Ashfordly's estate. George departed Aidensfield, and the show, at the end of series six, leaving Gina to run the pub by herself. It was reported that, unable to continue working due to illness, he had moved to Sidmouth to be cared for by Gina's aunt Mary. Some time later, his off-screen death was reported. Gina returned home from his funeral in the opening episode of the eighth series.

• Tricia Penrose as Georgina ("Gina") Ward (1993–2010). Spirited Liverpudlian, landlady of the Aidensfield Arms. The tearaway niece of publican George Ward, Gina was sent to live in Aidensfield with her uncle as a condition of her probation after having been convicted of receiving stolen goods. She quickly fitted in to local life, assisting her uncle with running the pub and dropping her previous rebellious ways. She became the licensee of the pub after the death of her uncle. Gina has been unlucky in love, and has had a string of failed romances. The great love of her life was the now-deceased policeman PC Phil Bellamy, but she had a warm relationship with village bobby PC Mike Bradley in the seventh series, and she also dated the much younger tearaway lad Steve Adams in the same series. She had a passionate love affair with Irishman Andy Ryan, but when she found out that he was married, she broke off their relationship. Gina also dated the much younger PC Tom Nicholson in the eleventh series. After an on-off relationship with Bellamy, including a failed engagement in series 10, Gina fell pregnant to him in series 13. She gave birth to a premature baby boy named Daniel who died within two days, and their engagement was then again broken off. Phil and Gina remained on good terms, even if sometimes a little awkward in each other's company; Bellamy went on to marry Debbie Black, and Gina found a steady boyfriend in Jack Hollins. However, neither of these relationships lasted, and Gina and Phil's romance was rekindled in Series 16. They were finally married in the Series 16 episode "The Dreams That You Dream" (broadcast June 2007). Due to police regulations she was obliged on her marriage to officially give up the licenceeship of the Aidensfield Arms to Oscar Blaketon, but in practice her role there remains unchanged. In series 17 her husband Bellamy was shot dead while on duty. Now a widow, Gina was contemplating leaving Aidensfield and its painful memories and returning to Liverpool, but she decided to stay, as shown at the end of episode 17.7 ("Burying The Past"). She later found out she was again pregnant with Phil's child, and doubts about whether to terminate the pregnancy caused her great anguish. However, she eventually gave birth to their son, Philip Oscar Bellamy, in the 17th series finale ("Oscar's Birthday"). Gina then became tentatively romantically linked with new Ashfordly PC Don Wetherby, but curtailed the relationship after deciding that it was too soon after Bellamy's death.

• Derek Fowlds as Oscar Blaketon — see under Ashfordly police sergeants, above.

• Arbel Jones (1998–1999) as Gina Ward's aunt, and sister of George Ward, often named in cast lists as Mary Ward but referred to as Mary Clarke in at least one episode ("Echoes of the Past") and credited on-screen simply as "Aunty Mary". She arrived in Aidensfield to help Gina run the Aidensfield Arms after George Ward's death. She left the series to take up a job as a hotel manager in Sidmouth, where she had previously run a guest house.

• Christine Bottomley as Susie Ward (2003; five episodes). The niece of Gina Ward, Susie was dispatched from Manchester to stay with Gina in order to get her away from the influences of a bad crowd of people.

• Nikki Sanderson as Dawn Bellamy (2008–2010). Niece of the now deceased Phil Bellamy, her father sent her to stay with Gina Ward at the Aidensfield Arms in order to get her away from the influence of a bad crowd of people in her native Manchester. Her first screen appearance was in episode "Missing Persons", broadcast on 3 August 2008. A lively and somewhat ditzy character, she has become the object of muted attentions from PC Geoff Younger. She occasionally becomes a business enemy to Peggy Armstrong.