Trixie: The Sassy One

[Tara Ariano]

She gets the best hair and outfits. I bet Helen George has a lot of fun.

[ApathyMonger]

Are people for or against her new S3 hair?

I like it.

[Tara Ariano]

Into it!

[Marigny]

I like it. 

[JudyObscure]

I'm not too sure.  I really liked her fluffy fifties do. Would flirtatious Trixie really wear something so serious?  I hope that bad experience with the actor didn't damage her boy crazy side.

[BkWurm1]

It reminds me of Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday except blond. I think it was chosen to show the changing era. Kind of a beatnik pixie cut look that came before the long haired hippies of the late sixties.

[Ohwell]

Hate it! 

[feminaformosa]

Definitely for it! She looks great in a pixie.

[Lillybee]

It reminds me of Twiggy's cut.

[skyscapes]

It had to be cut because the constant bleaching and treatments had ruined the actress's hair.  It is based on Roman Holiday

[Ohwell]

She has big eyes, and the blonde color and short cut just emphasize that, but not in a good way.  Her eyes look so big now that it's jarring.

[anna0852]

Did you all know that Helen George is apparently dating Jack Ashton (Tom) in real life? Certainly makes their on-screen break up a bit brain bendy!

[Fireball]

On ‎5‎/‎5‎/‎2014 at 8:11 AM, Ohwell said:

She has big eyes, and the blonde color and short cut just emphasize that, but not in a good way.  Her eyes look so big now that it's jarring.

I was looking at photos of Trixie with short hair and the photos really remind me of paintings in the movie "Big Eyes".

Edited April 3, 2017 by Fireball

[Ohwell]

Now that's scary!

[SignorinaMia]

Trixie is by far my favorite character. I think that Helen George summed her up best by saying she was sensitive but opinionated.

I think one of my favorite moments was when Barbara said she would just wear her sister's white two-piece to her own wedding. The look on Trixie's face!! She was horrified.

[OnceSane]

1 hour ago, Rap541 said:

I know they cut the US episodes, but really, Trixie became an alcoholic, hit rock bottom in some apparently not really rock bottom way, immediately joins AA all in one very special episode? With of course periodic references to her problem when alcohol is served or offered?

Not all in one episode.  We see Trixie turn to alcohol when upset several times over the series and she was often the first to offer or accept a drink after hours.  Nurse Crane realized Trixie had a problem after they were quarantine (S4/E3) and Barbara mentions to Trixie that she and Patsy take bets on when "Trixie's Bar" will open (S4/E4) and that Barbara knows "how much [Trixie] likes a drink."  This episode is the same one where Trixie drinks too much while on duty after the Tom argument and Babs covers for her.  We see her struggle a bit more until episode 8 when she finally joins AA.

[caitmcg]

I brought my reply to @Rap541 over from the S7E03 thread. 

Quote

 

  4 HOURS AGO, RAP541 SAID:

Because alcoholism then and now is often self diagnosed, I try not to judge people in real life who decide they don't like to drink socially and use "a drinking problem" to avoid alcohol. I like alcoholic beverages but I have plenty of friends who don't so if they are in my home, there's always non alcohol options and I do ask if it bothers them for me to drink, and I don't if it does. And one reason I love Uber and Lyft is because I can have a beer or two with friends and have absolutely no risk of driving even slightly impaired.

But... and this is much more a bitch about the writing than anything else, I know they cut the US episodes, but really, Trixie became an alcoholic, hit rock bottom in some apparently not really rock bottom way, immediately joins AA all in one very special episode? With of course periodic references to her problem when alcohol is served or offered?

Why, it's like in one episode, she's obviously pregnant and then disappears and then returns WITHOUT A BABY! :)

More seriously, it feels like a gratuitous add on plot that was tossed in to make the show appear to deal with modern issues.

 

That is really not how the show portrayed it, IMO (and I am watching in the US, so I do not see cut scenes). Trixie's drinking problem wasn't introduced out of the blue as a full-blown issue, it was built up subtly over a period of time that made you see where it was going. Yes, Trixie enjoyed drinking socially with her fellow midwives, but she also turned to drinking more and more for emotional succor, on her own, and she was somewhat self-aware about it, before the blackout episode. We were shown that, without being walloped over the head about it. Whatever your personal definition of alcoholism, I agree with anna0582 that addiction doesn't necessarily fit stereotypes, and is more about the extent to which drinking (in this case) becomes a necessity to the person, something they cannot do without to the extent it has an impact on everyday life, rather than a simple pleasure. I also disagree that it is gratuitous, plot-wise. Trixie has been on since the beginning, and is one of the best-developed characters. We know more of her backstory than we have of anyone else's, and we know that she had a difficult early life and why; this seems a reasonable character progression to me, five years in, in show time, as does the difficulty she's had in confiding the truth even to her closest friends and colleagues, with whom she lives (it was quite a while before she confessed to anyone but Sister Julienne, whom she had to tell in order to take the time off to go to AA). That reluctance and shame seems entirely authentic to the period; it would be anachronistic for her to readily share it the way many in recovery do today.

[Rap541]

Well, I certainly agree that Trixie is one of the well developed characters. And I adore Helen George and really hope we see her in bigger and better things. 

I suppose by gratuitous, I mean that her problem was seemingly resolved almost instantly (not helped that as near as I can tell, her meeting scenes are the first to go when PBS is clipping) with little but "I don't drink anymore" and veiled references to her problem. 

And I am just cynical enough to note her drinking problem probably wouldn't have reappeared if they didn't have to hide the fact that in real life she's HAVING THE VICAR'S BABY!!! And needs to be hidden lest the show have to deal with a pregnant unwed midwife - which would be the more daring story. From a writing standpoint, my concern is that her drinking problem is so on the down low for the most part that I know I watched all of season four (it was the first season of the show I watched) and it totally whooshed over me that she was an alcoholic. 

[Emily Thrace]

3 hours ago, Rap541 said:

Well, I certainly agree that Trixie is one of the well developed characters. And I adore Helen George and really hope we see her in bigger and better things. 

I suppose by gratuitous, I mean that her problem was seemingly resolved almost instantly (not helped that as near as I can tell, her meeting scenes are the first to go when PBS is clipping) with little but "I don't drink anymore" and veiled references to her problem. 

And I am just cynical enough to note her drinking problem probably wouldn't have reappeared if they didn't have to hide the fact that in real life she's HAVING THE VICAR'S BABY!!! And needs to be hidden lest the show have to deal with a pregnant unwed midwife - which would be the more daring story. From a writing standpoint, my concern is that her drinking problem is so on the down low for the most part that I know I watched all of season four (it was the first season of the show I watched) and it totally whooshed over me that she was an alcoholic. 

It might be daring but its probably a more permanent exit than the show would be looking for. Realistically for that time period if Trixie got pregnant out of wedlock she would just end up marrying the Dentist.  It would be the "decent" thing to do. The other options of her giving the child away would be another trauma for an already heavily written character and there is no way she could keep the baby and keep working as Nonnatus. Even if (and it would be a big If IMO) Sister Julianne wanted to keep an unwed mother on on the mother house would never allow it.   Trixie likes things picture perfect which in that era would mean staying home and taking care of her family. Sheila and Chummy were one thing they were both trailblazers in their own way I can't see Trixie working after she has kids of her own. If only because her own childhood was so scarred she would want to to everything she could to give her own kids the best start. So I can see why TPTB have chosen not to write in the actresses pregnancy that way we get to keep Trixie on our screens without inflicting too much on the character. The relapse story is realistic without creating a permanent exit for the character.

[Fireball]

Soo Trixie's drinking. I've always felt that we only got Trixie is an alcoholic storyline because Jenny left. Let me explain after Jenny left Trixie became the protagonist (all the promotional images had Trixie front an center) and it seems writers always want their protagonist to have something they need to over come. Jenny had to over come being in love with a married man and she had to over come her issues with the dirtiness and everything else regarding the East End. Trixie didn't have any issues with the East End per-say so what does she need to over come? Her alcohol problem!

Now Trixie being an alcoholic wasn't totally out of the blue, but I never got the impression watching the first 2/3 seasons that Trixie was anything else then someone who enjoyed a drink or two after a stressful day.  Also I've always thought that during that time having a cocktail or two was normal.  

On ‎4‎/‎2‎/‎2018 at 3:46 PM, OnceSane said:

 Nurse Crane realized Trixie had a problem after they were quarantine (S4/E3) and Barbara mentions to Trixie that she and Patsy take bets on when "Trixie's Bar" will open (S4/E4) and that Barbara knows "how much [Trixie] likes a drink."  This episode is the same one where Trixie drinks too much while on duty after the Tom argument and Babs covers for her.  We see her struggle a bit more until episode 8 when she finally joins AA.

Those scenes kind of annoyed me. I felt the writers were "telling me" Trixie had a problem instead of actually "showing me" she had a problem. Like I said watching the first 3 seasons I never got the impression that Trixie was an alcoholic. I got the impression that Trixie liked to drink, liked that she was out on her own and could drink, liked to make cocktails for her friends, liked to drink in the Nonnatus house (which I got the impression they weren't supposed to), liked to party/ have a good time. But I never thought oh Trixie is totally an alcoholic. 

On ‎4‎/‎2‎/‎2018 at 7:26 PM, Rap541 said:

And I am just cynical enough to note her drinking problem probably wouldn't have reappeared if they didn't have to hide the fact that in real life she's HAVING THE VICAR'S BABY!!! And needs to be hidden lest the show have to deal with a pregnant unwed midwife - which would be the more daring story. From a writing standpoint, my concern is that her drinking problem is so on the down low for the most part that I know I watched all of season four (it was the first season of the show I watched) and it totally whooshed over me that she was an alcoholic. 

I completely agree that we are only getting Trixie drinking problem reappears, so the show can write Helen out when she gets too big to hid her pregnancy.

[JudyObscure]

If I hadn't been following this message board and simply watched the show on TV, I would think that, since Trixie the character was obviously pregnant, and Sister Julienne was sending her away for six months to have the baby -- just pretending it was to deal with her drinking to let her save face.

[Kohola3]

Well, that was a predictable send off for Trixie.  We all called it after last week's episode.

[Rap541]

Quote

If I hadn't been following this message board and simply watched the show on TV, I would think that, since Trixie the character was obviously pregnant, and Sister Julienne was sending her away for six months to have the baby -- just pretending it was to deal with her drinking to let her save face.

Honestly, the whole episode, every time Trixie had a drink I was like "TRIXIE THATS BAD FOR BABY!!!"

I get not wanting to fire an actress over a baby but they could have made a better effort because it was pretty damn clear Trixie was knocked up.

[SunnyBeBe]

Is the actress returning for another season?  Please answer in spoiler tags. 

[Rap541]

Quote

Is the actress returning for another season?  Please answer in spoiler tags. 

Spoiler

Yes. , Helen George is reportedly returning for season eight and has a brief appearance in the final episode of the season. I am not posting the article I found this in because it has massive spoilers for the later episodes of this season. 

[Bostongirl]

On 4/2/2018 at 5:46 PM, OnceSane said:

Not all in one episode.  We see Trixie turn to alcohol when upset several times over the series and she was often the first to offer or accept a drink after hours.  Nurse Crane realized Trixie had a problem after they were quarantine (S4/E3) and Barbara mentions to Trixie that she and Patsy take bets on when "Trixie's Bar" will open (S4/E4) and that Barbara knows "how much [Trixie] likes a drink."  This episode is the same one where Trixie drinks too much while on duty after the Tom argument and Babs covers for her.  We see her struggle a bit more until episode 8 when she finally joins AA.

Wasn't there also an episode where Trixie calls a suicide hotline during a drinking episode? 

[Ceindreadh]

1 hour ago, Bostongirl said:

Wasn't there also an episode where Trixie calls a suicide hotline during a drinking episode? 

Yes, I think that was the episode when she ended up going to an AA meeting for the first time.  IIRC, Sister Mary Cynthia overheard her and was able to reassure the person on the other end of the line that Trixie was in a safe place. 

[RedheadZombie]

I've marathoned this show and I'm just in the second episode of season 6.  I never disliked Trixie, but she's usually my least favorite midwife.  It took me a while to get used to Trixie's affected mannerisms, particularly the way she smokes and holds her drinks.  I quickly warmed up to her kindness and open affection for her co-workers.

One thing that seems very unrealistic and has always irritated me is the fact that Trixie is still a virgin.  This is not judgment, but Trixie has always been a sophisticated flirt, and she doesn't seem the moralistic type who stays a virgin no matter how old she is when she gets married.  It doesn't fit the character for me.  Even Chummy has sex prior to marriage!

[anna0852]

For a lot of women it wasn't morals that kept them from sex, it was fear of pregnancy and the resulting social ostracism. At best, a shotgun marriage that might or might not last. At worst, a trip to the unwed mothers home. And both to the background chorus of community gossip and judgement. I'm betting that's Trixie's deal.

[JudyObscure]

I agree, Trixie and all the women of her generation had good reasons to remain virgins until marriage. At the time, sex before marriage was looked on as something, "nice girls," just didn't do. Trixie grew up very poor, unable to keep clean, even getting head lice at some point.  I think that explains the way she dresses and the slightly prissy looking affectations she's acquired.  Being thought of as a tramp is one of the very worst fears related to Trixie's self-esteem as we saw in the episode where the visiting actor tried to get her to have sex in his hotel suite.

Trixie may have a stricter moral code than we think, the show just hasn't depicted the young women talking about things like free love yet (maybe it's coming?) but just from a practical standpoint Trixie is too smart to have sex before marriage at a time when lots of men still believed in the,  "Why buy the cow," thing.  She wouldn't be the first woman of that time to give in to seduction only to watch her boyfriend change afterwards and marry someone else whom he considered better wife material. Even these days, I sometimes wonder if the average man has changed all that much. Today's young men who are so reluctant to commit, the higher than average number of divorces when couples marry after living together, all make me think some men don't really value their girlfriends as much after they begin to have sex. 

The average age of marriage for young women in Trixie's time was 20.  I expect many of them went to the altar as virgins. I'm reminded of Elizabeth Taylor being asked about all her marriages in an interview.  She said that she lived in a time where you fell in love but didn't have sex until after marriage -- then she said something like imagine the number of marriages some young actresses would have today if they  married every man they had had sex with. 

[doodlebug]

42 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

I agree, Trixie and all the women of her generation had good reasons to remain virgins until marriage. At the time, sex before marriage was looked on as something, "nice girls," just didn't do. Trixie grew up very poor, unable to keep clean, even getting head lice at some point.  I think that explains the way she dresses and the slightly prissy looking affectations she's acquired.  Being thought of as a tramp is one of the very worst fears related to Trixie's self-esteem as we saw in the episode where the visiting actor tried to get her to have sex in his hotel suite.

Trixie may have a stricter moral code than we think, the show just hasn't depicted the young women talking about things like free love yet (maybe it's coming?) but just from a practical standpoint Trixie is too smart to have sex before marriage at a time when lots of men still believed in the,  "Why buy the cow," thing.  She wouldn't be the first woman of that time to give in to seduction only to watch her boyfriend change afterwards and marry someone else whom he considered better wife material. Even these days, I sometimes wonder if the average man has changed all that much. Today's young men who are so reluctant to commit, the higher than average number of divorces when couples marry after living together, all make me think some men don't really value their girlfriends as much after they begin to have sex. 

The average age of marriage for young women in Trixie's time was 20.  I expect many of them went to the altar as virgins. I'm reminded of Elizabeth Taylor being asked about all her marriages in an interview.  She said that she lived in a time where you fell in love but didn't have sex until after marriage -- then she said something like imagine the number of marriages some young actresses would have today if they  married every man they had had sex with. 

I had a family member who was about the same age as Trixie.  She had a brief teen marriage.  When telling me about it, she said, " I wanted to have sex with him and nice girls didn't have sex until they were married, so we got married."  I think this sort of thinking was very common back in the day.

[caitmcg]

5 hours ago, doodlebug said:

I had a family member who was about the same age as Trixie.  She had a brief teen marriage.  When telling me about it, she said, " I wanted to have sex with him and nice girls didn't have sex until they were married, so we got married."  I think this sort of thinking was very common back in the day.

My mother said the same thing about my aunt (her older sister), who got married in the late 1950s at 19, which marriage lasted about a year — that they wanted to sleep together, but figured they had to get married to do so. 

[AZChristian]

In real life news, "Trixie" and "Reverend Hereward" are expecting their second baby in December.

[anna0852]

They'd better get a jump on filming the Christmas Special or Trixie will have to go to rehab again!

[Good Queen Jane]

Helen George and Jack Ashton have split up.

[Badger]

Olly Rix and his long-term girlfriend have also split up