| Character Profile | List of appearances |
Carol Groves was the friend of Lucy Benson and the ex-girlfriend of Kurt Benson, Finn and Tony Hutchinson.
Biography[]
1996-1997: Seeing Auras and Band Success[]
Carol was the best friend of Lucy Benson, joining her, her brother Kurt and his girlfriend Ruth Osborne at a bowling alley in January 1996. Carol and Lucy ended up forming a band together, calling themselves Crazy Bazz Studs when Kurt's DJ friend Bazz joined the line-up. In November 1996, Carol and Lucy served as alibis as Lucy's boyfriend Rob Hawthorn and his friend Dermot Ashton burgled a drug dealer's lock-up. However, as Dermot and Rob fought over the stolen money during a car chase, Rob ended up crashing the car into the River Dee. Dermot was killed in the accident, whilst Carol began seeing auras and believed that she was psychic. After Rob escaped criminal charges for the crash, Carol helped Lucy, Kurt and Kurt's friend Jambo Bolton deliver Kurt to the drug dealers, who threw him from a car park roof.
After Maddie Parker opened a restaurant - Parker's - in the village, Carol was hired as a waitress. After Kurt and Jambo's friend Tony Hutchinson was jilted at the altar by Julie Matthews, he revealed to Carol that he had feelings for her. On a trip to Newquay, Carol ended up losing her virginity to Tony. Upon her return to the village, Crazy Bazz Studs began seeing success as band manager Matt Fraser took an interest with the band. However, Bazz was caught cheating on Lucy with Matt and left the village, the group disbanding as a result.
1998-2000: Beryl, Meryl and Departure[]
Jambo Bolton left the village in June 1998, and Carol purchased his car Beryl from him. She also met Jambo's friend Finn and fell for him. Whilst visiting Jambo in Anglesey in August, Carol left the handbrake off and Beryl ended up over a cliff. Finn managed to restore the car and gave it back to Carol for Christmas. Afterwards, the pair began a relationship which did not last long. After Lucy began battling a drug addiction (mostly down to her boyfriend Rob Hawthorn), Carol supported her recovery, convinced her to go into rehab, and returned the £10,000 Lucy had stolen from her family. Upon Rob's sudden return to the village in September 1999, he attempted to drown Carol in a path before kidnapping Lucy, Tony, Ruth Osborne and Lewis Richardson, who managed to escape.
After losing a bet with Tony, Finn ended up going on a date with Carol. However, the date went well and Finn took Carol back to his bus, which continued rocking for 48-hours. In December 1999, Carol found and adopted a stray poodle she named Meryl. Carol treasured Meryl, although Meryl did not take a liking to Finn. On Valentine's Day 2000, Finn accidentally ran Meryl over with his van and buried her without telling Carol. He then bought another dog and dyed the fur to look like Meryl, but the dye came off when Carol gave 'Meryl' a bath. She soon discovered the truth and bumped Finn for good.
Carol began becoming self-conscious about her body and decided to have a 'boob-o-meter' to raise money for breast enlargement surgery - even selling Beryl to raise funds. After reading her tarot cards, Carol learned that she was destined to meet a man in white, assuming that it would be her surgeon. Meanwhile, whilst singing at The Loft's open night, Carol was spotted by a talent agent. Preparing for her breast enlargement surgery in October 2000, Carol panicked when the surgeon emerged wearing green and fled. The talent scout approached Carol and she accepted the job offer of a cruise ship singer, meeting a uniformed officer wearing white as she boarded the boat. She encountered Finn on his stag do in Barcelona in December 2000 and shared a passionate moment with Tony, promising to return for him. However, in July 2001, she informed him that she was unable to return.
Appendices[]
Residences[]
Employment History[]
Background information[]
- Actress Natalie Casey decided to quit the role of Carol in August 2000.
Quotes[]