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Character Profiles > Beth Brennan Natalie Imbruglia

Beth Willis (née Brennan) 1992-1993, 1994
Lived: 24, 26, 28, 30, 32 Ramsay Street
Born: c. 1975
Parents: Bunny Lawson Brennan
Marital Status: Brad Willis (1993-)
Siblings: David
Children: Ned
Family Tree: Brennan
Occupation: Chambermaid, Builder's Apprentice

Sweet natured and caring, Beth Brennan was born in the countryside and she and her elder brother, David, were raised by their mum Phyllis - or Bunny as she was known - following the death of her father. When Beth was 16, Bunny fell in love again and moved her new boyfriend into the family home. But when he began to sexually abuse Beth, she and David fled and ended up in Surfers Paradise.

It was while they were in Surfers Paradise that they met Lucy Robinson, Josh Anderson and Brad Willis who were on holiday from Erinsborough. While Lucy and David ended up falling for each other, Beth had to fight off the advances of both Brad and Josh. She wasn’t interested in anything other than friendship, however - especially after the abuse she had suffered and had to let the guys down gently. When Bunny finally caught up with the kids, she explained to Beth and David that she had ditched her sleazy boyfriend and they agreed to go back home with her.

A few months later, however, Beth decided to visit Lucy in Ramsay Street and when she realised she was in love with Brad, decided to stick around. Lucy arranged for Beth to move in with the Robinsons at No.26 and they happily shared a room together until tension developed between the pair. Lucy had decided that she, too, fancied Brad and both her and Beth embarked on a campaign to win his affections. Beth lost out to Lucy, and was forced to put on a brave face when they started dating.

Beth worked in the Coffee Shop before becoming an apprentice builder with Brad’s dad Doug Willis. But she found it hard at first to work in such a male dominated environment and considered quitting, especially when she was picked on by fellow labourer Buzz Wade. However, Beth was determined to rise above the sexist comments and proved herself to be a good builder.

When Bunny wrote to Beth telling her she was getting married again to Ken Lawson, her latest boyfriend, Beth went home for the wedding. On her return to Ramsay Street, Beth shocked her friends by introducing them to Rod Baker - her fiancé! On top of becoming engaged in such a short space of time, everyone was stunned by the fact that Rod was well into his forties and thus, twice Beth’s age. Beth refused to listen to any of her friends’ concerns but when Rod began to pressure her into having sex, Beth realised she wasn’t ready for physical contact with a man yet after the abuse she had suffered in the past. Unable to handle this, Rod called off the engagement and left town.

Shortly afterwards, Lucy left Erinsborough to embark on an international modelling career and left the coast clear for Beth to pursue her feelings for Brad. Brad, however, was still in love with Lucy and only wanted to be friends with Beth. The friendship was tested one night though, when Beth and Brad did Doug a favour and stayed in a caravan on one his building sites. Beth had already asked Brad to have sex with her a few weeks beforehand, since she wanted her first time to be with someone she knew and trusted. But Brad had balked at the idea at the last minute and turned Beth down. But whilst spending the night together on the site and bonding with each other, Beth and Brad ended up sleeping together. They started going out and became engaged.

Following Lucy’s departure and the return of Lucy’s older sister Julie and her family to Ramsay Street, Beth opted to move out of the Robinsons and share No.32 with Brad’s lawyer cousin Cameron Hudson. When they were forced to leave No.32, Beth and Cameron moved across the street to lodge with Lou Carpenter at No.24. Lou’s daughter, Lauren, moved in soon after and became good friends with Beth. But little did Beth know that Lauren was also becoming close to Brad - and they were having an affair.

As the wedding day fast approached, Bunny arrived down to meet her future son-in-law and was less than pleased with him after he spilt beer over her by accident during their first meeting. But Bunny accepted that Beth was happy with Brad and gave the couple her blessing. The wedding day arrived but as the couple were taking their vows, Beth detected something was going on between her groom and bridesmaid. She fled the altar just as the vows were being exchanged and when she confronted Brad, he admitted he had been seeing Lauren behind her back. Devastated, Beth fled Erinsborough to stay with her mum on the farm.

Upon her return, Beth was still in love with Brad but knew she could never trust him. She moved into No.30 with Mark Gottlieb and found romance, unexpectedly, with Lucy’s brother-in-law Philip Martin who had recently separated from Julie. But Phil’s daughters Debbie and Hannah found the age-gap between their father and Beth too hard to handle, and coupled with the fact that Phil was still in love with Julie, the relationship didn’t last for long.

When Lucy returned to Erinsborough with Brad, who she had bumped into in Fiji where he had been working on a cruise ship, she immediately set about playing cupid with her two friends. Lucy was now married to her agent David Kazalian and she and Brad were just good mates. But as much as Beth appreciated Lucy’s efforts, neither she nor Brad were yet prepared to admit they wanted to get back together.

(to be continued)

Tenure
1586-1612, 1661-2068, 2224-2227

Magic Moments
Episode 1586: Beth's Arrival
Episode 2068: Brad and Beth's Wedding

Biography by Moe

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