Jimmy bows to pressure from Joe
AS JIMMY BOWS TO MORE PRESSURE FROM JOE, NICK MILES REMINDS US THAT HIS ALTER EGO HASN’T ALWAYS BEEN A PUSHOVER…
The name Tate is ringing loudly through the Dales again thanks to Joe – but after his clan was dethroned back in 2005, it was the King family who took over as Home Farm’s filthy-rich force to be reckoned with.
So as Joe continues to throw his money and his weight around this week, using sole surviving ‘Kingsman’ Jimmy to do his dirty work, we feel he should be reminded that his minion knows a thing or two about fighting dirty! Has Joe underestimated the bumbling fool we’ve come to adore – or has Jimmy really gone soft in his old age?
“It depends what you call soft,” grins star Nick Miles, as he joins Inside Soap for a natter in between scenes. “Jimmy had a major change in direction some years back, when he was nearly wiped out by the show home collapse [in 2006]. He saw the way the King family was going and realised that it would end in disaster, and he was right! So what Jimmy has done is try to make better and more ethical choices – which you can call ‘soft’ if you like, but for my money that can sometimes be the more difficult way to go through life.”
You can’t fault Jimmy for undergoing a complete character transplant after living through the deaths of his father Tom and all three of his brothers! And as Joe’s ruthless approach provides Jimmy with a stark reminder of his old life, the shine of working as Home Farm’s so-called estate manager is rapidly wearing off…
“He’s not enjoying it very much,” sighs Nick. “Zak persuades Jimmy that Joe is a very bad man, and he thinks he’s probably right – so he’s feeling a little uncomfortable. The trouble is, Nicola is making it worse by planning various holidays while Jimmy is trying to back out of the whole thing. Jimmy’s main aim in life is to make Nicola happy – he doesn’t want to disappoint her.”
What neither Jimmy nor Nicola realise, however, is that Joe is using him as a pawn in his dirty dealings, and plans to make Jimmy the fall guy. It’s times like these when we wonder whether Jimmy could do with the support of his late family around him – though Nick begs to differ.
“I don’t think he misses the old days at all!” laughs the star. “Jimmy feels the loss of his brothers, but I don’t think he misses the hell of the times they shared. Let’s be honest, they were a nightmare!
“As for me, I’ve been down to see Tom [Lister, who played Carl King] strutting his stuff in 42nd Street in the West End – twice in fact,” continues Nick. “I miss my onscreen brothers. We were tight. Once that gets taken away from you, you feel a bit at sea. But then suddenly you’re surrounded by children on set, and it changes things!”
Of course, the sheer beauty of the Yorkshire countryside has also played its part in keeping Nick hooked after 14 years of playing Jimmy.
“We’re usually standing around on set going, ‘This isn’t bad, is it?’, while shivering and helping to keep each other warm,” he chuckles. “But since I’ve been here I’ve developed a love of birds and raptors, just from watching the red kites above our village. I never really thought of birds before I started working on this show, but driving in early and seeing hares boxing gives you a love for nature.” However, with Jimmy seemingly destined to become a casualty of Joe’s wicked scam – and the Grim Reaper no friend of the King family – we have to wonder if a big dramatic plot, as opposed to the smaller comedy stories Nick has come to enjoy over the years, might herald a tragic end for Jimmy?
“A good example was
John Middleton’s exit,” says Nick, referring to the death of Ashley Thomas. “John loved this place, but he had to embrace a story he knew would take him out, which is a hell of a thing to do when you live and breathe a show. So while there’s always a worry that day will come, it comes to us all in the end!
“As far as dramatic plots go, I embrace them. Anyway, I think it’s a mistake to underestimate Jimmy. He has a tendency to come out of these things on top…”
Idon’t think Jimmy misses the hell he shared with his brothers!