Character Analysis — Supporting Characters

While Mickey and Eddie are the central figures, the supporting characters in Blood Brothers are essential to understanding Russell's themes. Each one reveals something about class, power, superstition, or the forces that shape the twins' fates.

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Mrs Johnstone

Overview

Aspect	Detail
Class	Working class
Role	Biological mother of both Mickey and Eddie
Key traits	Warm, loving, superstitious, self-sacrificing, powerless
Arc	Hopeful young woman → overburdened mother → grief-stricken

Character Analysis

Mrs Johnstone is the emotional heart of the play. She is warm, generous, and loves all her children deeply — but she is trapped by poverty.

"We went dancing... he said I was sexier than Marilyn Monroe"

The Marilyn Monroe motif establishes Mrs Johnstone as a dreamer whose hopes have been crushed by circumstance. Like Marilyn, she is a woman whose glamour and vitality are destroyed by the harsh realities of her world.

Her powerlessness

Mrs Johnstone's defining characteristic is her lack of power. She cannot resist Mrs Lyons because:

• She is economically dependent on her job as Mrs Lyons's cleaner.
• She already has too many children to feed.
• She is superstitious and genuinely believes the twins will die if they discover the truth.
• She lacks the education and social status to challenge a middle-class woman.

Examiner's tip: Mrs Johnstone's decision to give up Eddie is not a sign of bad mothering — it is a sign of class powerlessness. Russell makes it clear that she has no real choice. A strong essay will link her decision to the structural inequalities that leave working-class people with impossible options.

Her love

Despite giving Eddie away, Mrs Johnstone never stops loving him. She gives him a locket with a picture inside — a symbol of the bond that cannot be broken even by class separation.

She is also a devoted mother to Mickey and her other children, despite having almost nothing to give them materially.

Her superstition

Mrs Johnstone's superstition makes her vulnerable to manipulation. She genuinely believes that "shoes on the table" bring bad luck and that the twins will die if they learn the truth. Russell uses her superstition to raise the question: does belief in fate become a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Mrs Johnstone: Key Quotes

Quote	Analysis
"We went dancing"	Nostalgia for a lost youth; the Marilyn Monroe motif
"Already got seven kids"	Her poverty is the root cause of the separation
"If either twin was to learn... they shall both immediately die"	The superstition that traps her
"Mickey... don't shoot... He's your brother"	Her final, desperate attempt to prevent tragedy

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Mrs Lyons

Overview

Aspect	Detail
Class	Middle class
Role	Adoptive mother of Eddie; employer of Mrs Johnstone
Key traits	Manipulative, paranoid, possessive, increasingly unstable
Arc	Composed, calculating woman → paranoid, violent

Character Analysis

Mrs Lyons is the antagonist of the play — though Russell ensures she is not simply a villain. She is a complex character whose actions are driven by desperation and fear.

Her manipulation

Mrs Lyons manipulates Mrs Johnstone by:

• Exploiting her superstitious nature (inventing the "twins will die" curse).
• Using her economic power (Mrs Johnstone depends on her for employment).
• Playing on her guilt and fear.

"You gave your baby away. Don't forget... you sold your baby"

This line reveals Mrs Lyons's cruelty — she uses shame as a weapon to keep Mrs Johnstone silent.

Her paranoia

As Eddie grows up, Mrs Lyons becomes increasingly paranoid that Mrs Johnstone will reclaim him. She:

• Fires Mrs Johnstone.
• Moves house to get away from the Johnstone family.
• Becomes possessive and controlling of Eddie.
• Ultimately attempts to attack Mrs Johnstone with a knife.

Russell uses Mrs Lyons's descent into paranoia to show that wealth does not bring security or happiness. Her fear of losing Eddie consumes her entirely.

Her role in the class critique

Mrs Lyons represents the exploitative power of the middle class. She takes what she wants from Mrs Johnstone (a baby), uses her economic power to enforce silence, and ultimately cannot cope with the consequences of her actions.

Examiner's tip: Compare Mrs Lyons and Mrs Johnstone as contrasting mothers. Mrs Johnstone, despite poverty, maintains her warmth and love. Mrs Lyons, despite wealth, descends into paranoia and violence. Russell suggests that the middle class's obsessive protection of its privileges is itself a form of madness.

Mrs Lyons: Key Quotes

Quote	Analysis
"If either twin was to learn... they shall both immediately die"	She invents the superstition to control Mrs Johnstone
"You sold your baby"	Uses shame and guilt as weapons
"He's mine. He's mine. I made him"	Possessive, delusional — she claims ownership of a child she did not bear

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The Narrator

Overview

Aspect	Detail
Role	Commentator, judge, voice of fate
Dramatic function	Greek chorus figure
Key traits	Omniscient, ominous, morally ambiguous

Character Analysis

The Narrator stands outside the action, observing and commenting. He speaks directly to the audience and to the characters, but he does not intervene to change events.

Functions of the Narrator

Function	Example
Creates dramatic irony	Tells the audience the twins will die (prologue)
Builds tension and foreboding	"The devil's got your number"
Represents fate/conscience	His warnings suggest an inescapable destiny
Questions the audience	"Do we blame superstition... or class?"
Links scenes together	Bridges time gaps with commentary and songs

Is the Narrator "fate"?

The Narrator can be interpreted in several ways:

• As fate itself — his knowledge of the ending and his ominous tone suggest that the tragedy is predetermined.
• As society's judgment — he represents the social forces (class, prejudice) that condemn the twins.
• As the audience's conscience — his final question forces us to reflect on our own role in perpetuating inequality.

Examiner's tip: The Narrator's final question — "Do we blame superstition for what came to pass? Or could it be what we, the English, have come to know as class?" — is the key to the whole play. Russell uses the Narrator to ensure the audience does not simply feel sad but thinks critically about the causes of inequality.

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Linda

Overview

Aspect	Detail
Class	Working class
Role	Childhood friend of Mickey and Eddie; later Mickey's wife
Key traits	Bold, loyal, caring, frustrated, pragmatic
Arc	Feisty child → devoted wife → desperate woman

Character Analysis

Linda is a strong, independent character who plays a crucial role in the love triangle that drives the final tragedy.

As a child

Linda is bold and tomboyish. She stands up for Mickey, participates in the street games, and is unafraid to speak her mind.

As a teenager

Linda is attracted to both Mickey and Eddie. She ultimately chooses Mickey — but the play suggests this choice is partly about class loyalty rather than purely romantic preference.

As an adult

Linda becomes increasingly frustrated by Mickey's depression and emotional withdrawal. She needs support that Mickey, consumed by his own suffering, cannot provide. She turns to Eddie — who has the resources, confidence, and emotional availability that Mickey lacks.

Russell presents Linda sympathetically. She is not a villain for turning to Eddie — she is a woman trapped in impossible circumstances, seeking help where she can find it.

Examiner's tip: Avoid judging Linda in your essays. Russell presents her as another victim of the class system. Her frustration with Mickey is not a lack of love — it is the result of the pressures that poverty, unemployment, and depression place on relationships.

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Sammy

Overview

Aspect	Detail
Class	Working class
Role	Mickey's older brother
Key traits	Rebellious, criminal, reckless, a product of his environment

Character Analysis

Sammy is a minor but significant character. He represents the worst-case outcome of working-class deprivation:

• As a child, he is destructive and aggressive — cutting up bus seats, playing with air guns.
• As an adult, he turns to crime — the armed robbery that leads to Mickey's imprisonment.

Russell does not present Sammy as inherently evil. Instead, he is the product of an environment that offers no legitimate opportunities. Sammy's criminality is the extreme end of the same spectrum that Mickey is on.