A to Z of HMP Larkhall
S
Saunders, Ashanti
David Saunders’ daughter, Julie S’s granddaughter.
Saunders, David
Julie S’s son. He attended a posh boarding school (paid for by the proceeds of his mother’s criminal activities) and went on to marry a girl called Fidelity. Such was his devotion to Julie S and Julie J, that he agreed to have their marriage blessed at Larkhall (s8ep6).
Saunders, Fidelity
David Saunders’ wife. She totally disapproved of Julie S and it was only with great reluctance that she agreed to have her and David’s marriage blessed at Larkhall. Unbeknownst to David, Fidelity planned to cut Julie S out after the blessing. However, Julie J rumbled her plan and a furious David told her that his mum would be coming to live with them after her release, whether she liked it or not (s8ep6).
Saunders, Julie
Mouthy tart with a heart who along with her partner-in-crime Julie J, has become a more or less permanent fixture on G-Wing and together, they are roped into helping with many of the nefarious schemes concocted by their fellow inmates, including Babes Behind Bars (s2ep8) and helping Pat to dispose of Natalie’s body (s8ep8). A battle with breast cancer gave Julie a new renewed vigour to challenge the system, this she intended to do by avenging Yvonne’s death by killing her murderer: Fenner. However, Julie J beat her to it (s7ep10) and then lost her mind as a result (s7ep12). Euphoric when she and Julie J were reunited (s7ep13), Julie S’s happiness was complete when her son David announced that she was about to become a grandmother (s8ep5).
Read Julie’s character profile.
Screw
Prisoner’s nickname for POs. Also stands for real screws – even when banged up on cellular confinement in a bare cell, Snowball was resourceful enough to remove a screw from an air vent and then use it to try to slash her wrists. She would have succeeded if Karen hadn’t intervened (s5ep10).
Sectioning
The English and Welsh Mental Health Act 1983 has a number of sections that provide powers for involuntary detention, hospitalisation or other medical treatment for people affected by mental disorder. The use of these sections of the act is known unofficially as ‘sectioning’. Fenner was sectioned after he attacked Kris and was dragged kicking and screaming off G-Wing and into a waiting ambulance (s6ep4).
Julie J was sectioned after she flipped out and attacked Joy (s7ep12). She underwent a severe mental breakdown after killing Fenner (s7ep10) and as a result was sectioned and transferred to a secure psychiatric hospital where she was diagnosed as suffering from bipolar disorder. See Bipolar Disorder.
Senior Officer
One grade up from Basic Grade officer. Hollamby is a Senior Officer, although she did once lose her precious pips when Karen demoted her after Shaz and Denny stole her keys (s2ep11). She later retained her pips when Stubberfield bribed her into calling off the PO’s strike (s3ep3). Spiers was promoted to Acting Senior Officer by Neil to cover Hollamby’s absence when she left for her honeymoon (s7ep7).
“Shit happens”
During the much-beloved episode of the same name, Helen resigned as Wing Governor, broke the news to Nikki, snogged her and then left her with those parting words (s2ep2).
Shit Parcels
Rubbish and all sorts of other crap (sometimes literally) that the inmates chuck out of their cell windows during the night. The rubbish is collected in the morning by those inmates on yard duty. See Yard Girl.
Shiv
Prison slang for any sharp or pointed implement used as an improvised knife-like weapon, including knives themselves. A shiv can be anything from a glass shard with cloth wrapped around one end to form a handle, to a sharpened spoon, or a razorblade stuck into the end of a toothbrush. During her organised fight with Shaz, Maxi produced a shiv but it was kicked out of her hand before she could make proper use of it (s4ep11).
Pat used the threat of a shiv to force Natalie to swallow a handful of assorted drugs (s8ep2), and Stella Gough made one out of a toothbrush and a shard of glass and used it an attempt to take Joy hostage (s8ep5). Arun found her own novel use for a shiv – a makeshift razor to remove her fast emerging beard (s7ep5).
Shoplifting
Crystal was sent down for persistent shoplifting (s1ep3). Julie J’s daughter Rhiannon was given sixteen days for trying to steal from a clothes shop (s4ep5). Tina tried her hand at shoplifting in her bid to get sent back to Larkhall. After the shop assistant chucked her out, she set fire to her stock instead (s7ep1).
Shrine
Built by Di and kept for the duration of each of her obsessions: Dominic, Josh and Mark. After painting the name of her beloved on a mirror, she would then steal their belongings and add them to the shrine.
Fenner kept a shrine to Karen in a lock-up that he rented. It included photographs and a selection of her underwear (s6ep12). The women of G-Wing built a shrine to Yvonne in the hanging cell on the anniversary of her death. In a poetic twist of justice, Fenner was staring at it when he died (s7ep10).
Skelton, Rob
Ex-police detective turned private investigator who was hired by Neil to find proof that Fenner had framed Karen for a fatal hit-and-run (s6ep10). It was actually Karen herself who spotted Fenner running away from her car after the incident on a CCTV tape (s6ep11).
Smack
Street term for heroin. See Heroin.
Snape, Nellie ‘Smelly’
Aristocratic bag lady who was remanded to Larkhall for shoplifting. To say that Nellie had a problem with her personal hygiene would be an understatement. Hollamby was hugely put out when Helen ordered her to scrub Nellie down before she was allowed anywhere near G-Wing, but her reaction was nothing to that of the Julies when they discovered that Nellie would be sharing their cell. Desperate to get rid of Nellie and her unhygienic habits as soon as possible, the Julies stole the dress that Shell was planning to wear during the upcoming fashion show and gave it to Nellie, figuring that if she looked presentable in court, there was more chance of her being let off with a caution. The plan worked. All the Julies then had to do was avoid Shell's wrath (s1ep1).
Snow Black
A spin on the popular pantomime ‘Snow White’. It was renamed and re-written when Darlene was cast in the leading role (s7ep13).
Soap
Over the years, the humble bar of soap has been employed in a number of unsavoury ways on G-Wing. Fenner used a bar to make impressions of his cell keys and then gave the copies to Shell so that she could escape (s3ep7). A bar of soap stuffed into a sock can also make an effective instrument of pain, as demonstrated on Tina by Maxi and Al (s3ep16) and Arun by Natalie and Janine (s7ep3).
Sophie’s World
Helen smuggled a copy of this book in to Larkhall to give to Nikki (s1ep6). The book was destroyed in the fire that Shell set in Nikki’s cell. Helen later gave Nikki a replacement copy, complete with an inscription: ‘Until we meet on the outside – H x’ (s3ep6).
South Central Memorial
The hospital closest to Larkhall and where Fenner convalesced after Shell’s “poke in the pudding” (s3ep2), and where Julie S underwent a mastectomy during her battle with breast cancer (s5ep9).
Spain
Shell and Denny made a beeline for Spain after their escape from Larkhall (s3ep8) but were later forced to jump into the Mediterranean to avoid capture by the police (s3ep16). Although Denny was pulled out and returned to Larkhall (s4ep5), Shell managed to flee to Amsterdam.
Hollamby and Dr Nicholson stopped for a sojourn in Marbella after honeymooning on a cruise ship. The honeymoon suite in the Hotel Americanas was right next door to the suite occupied by escapees Phyl and Bev (s7ep9).
Spall, Tessa ‘Mad’
HIV positive, psychotic inmate with a major grudge against Karen after a previous encounter at HMP Newby. She was transferred to Larkhall on laydown where she was unfortunately mistaken for Barbara and allowed on to G-Wing. She later took Karen hostage by threatening her with a syringe full of HIV infected blood (s2ep5). Tessa was then moved to the Muppet Wing where she made Shell’s life a complete misery during her short stay there (s3ep2).
Spiers, Kevin
PO who was transferred from D-Wing to help with short-staffing on G-Wing after Colin’s suspension (s7ep7). On the fact of it, he was a compassionate listener with bags of charm, but underneath he was really a manipulative and compulsive liar whose only concern was himself. Natalie thought that she would be able to twist Spiers around her little finger, but soon discovered that he was more than a match for her.
Read Spiers’ character profile.
Stairs
Hollamby gave the phrase “I’ll go to the foot of our stairs” a completely new spin when a pack of vengeful inmates pushed her down them (s2ep3).
Standard
The regime that comes behind basic and enhanced. Inmates on standard are allowed access to more spending money than those on basic and are generally housed in cells on G2.
Statement of Sexual Assault
Helen gave a written account of the incident in which Fenner sexually assaulted her (s3ep6) and then gave the statement to Karen shortly after her forced resignation (s3ep16). Karen tore the statement up during an argument with Fenner (s4ep1). The statement surfaced again when Neil found a copy of it in a box of floppy disks that Helen had left behind. He used it to force Fenner to drop the allegations of sexual harassment he had recently made against him (s4ep8).
Stewart, Helen
Idealistic and fiery Wing Governor who although beloved by Nikki, was despised by Fenner. After resigning (s2ep2), she returned to Larkhall as Lifers’ Liaison Officer (s2ep6) before being promoted to Governing Governor (s3ep9). Helen’s vendetta against Fenner eventually led to her downfall when he found evidence of her relationship with Nikki and used it to force her resignation (s3ep15).
Read Helen’s character profile.
Stoke, Lou
Brought in to Larkhall as Joy’s deputy and then placed in charge of G-Wing after the sudden death of Neil (s8ep1). Although she was an immediate hit with the inmates, Lou’s progressive policies and unconventional approach quickly saw her fall foul of Joy and the two clashed on regular intervals. Lou found an ally in new SMO Rowan Dunlop and it wasn’t long before their friendship took a romantic turn. Lou had no idea that happily married Rowan was using her and also supplying her younger sister Vicky with drugs. When she eventually found out, she flipped violently, giving Joy the excuse she needed to fire her (s8ep9).
Read Lou’s character profile.
Stoke, Vicky
Lou’s younger sister, a drug addicted lap-dancer. It took a while but eventually Lou tracked Vicky down and enrolled her in rehab (s8ep5). Vicky quickly saw through Rowan and, after she discovered that his marriage wasn’t as unhappy as he’d made out to Lou, he bought her silence with drugs (s8ep8).
Strike
Hollamby was disgusted when Shell was allowed back on to G-Wing after stabbing Fenner and took her grievance to the POA. They refused to authorise an official strike and so Hollamby persuaded her fellow POs to call in sick. Simon, Karen and Helen were left to run G-Wing on their own (s3ep3).
Strip-search
Performed on every inmate upon their arrival at Larkhall to check if they’re secreting weapons, drugs or other contraband about their person. A determined inmate can smuggle items through the strip-search: both Renee Willams (s2ep10) and Shell (s5ep1) brought razor blades on to G-Wing. Zandra (s1ep2) and Darlene (s6ep2) both crutched significant amounts of drugs, and Miranda Miles managed to crutch a full set of Russian Matryoshka dolls (s7ep13).
When they took the Hollambys hostage, Shell and Denny decided to get their own back on Bodybag by performing a strip-search of their own. Hollamby was then forced to dress in a French Maid’s outfit and serve up lines of cocaine on a silver platter (s3ep8).
Stubberfield, Simon
Larkhall’s one-time Governing Governor, a buffoon who was only concerned with positive PR. He was also deluded enough to believe that Fenner could do no wrong... and Helen nothing right. After years of inept management, Simon was finally forced to fall on his sword by Area Management after Shell and Denny escaped (s3ep8).
Read Simon’s character profile.
Suicide
Rachel committed suicide by hanging herself with her bed sheets (s1ep4), Snowball also employed the hanging method, although she did it by throwing herself off the G-Wing landing with the belt of her dressing-gown around her neck (s5ep10). Snowball’s boyfriend – Yvonne’s son Ritchie – had already committed suicide by swallowing sleeping pills in the Larkhall visiting room (s5ep7).
Maxi’s attempt to choke herself to death by swallowing a roll of toilet paper was assisted by Al (s4ep11). Bobby Hollamby committed suicide by lying down in one of his own coffins and then gassing himself on the exhaust fumes from his hearse (s5ep2). Laura Canning took her own life by jumping from a balcony in the derelict building in which she had imprisoned her sister (s7ep4).
Suicide Attempt
Monica washed a stash of sleeping pills down with vodka, but was discovered by Nikki and the Julies who succeeded in making her throw them up (s1ep10). Charlotte Myddleton tried to commit suicide by tying a plastic bag over her head. Luckily for Charlotte, Yvonne realised what she was up to and rushed in to save her (s3ep9).
Unable to endure the campaign of humiliation meted out by Shaz and Denny, Buki slashed her wrists and was later discovered bleeding heavily in her bunk (s4ep8). Tina was plagued with guilt after her bungled building society hold-up resulted in the death of a man and tried to make amends by ending it all (s8ep8).
Suicide Note
Depressed and desperate after Ritchie Atkins’ suicide, Snowball struck a deal with Yvonne. In return for writing a suicide note that accused Fenner of driving her to her death, Yvonne would distract Colin for long enough for her to hang herself (s5ep10). After Snowball’s death, the police discovered a second note in her cell. In it, Snowball retracted her allegations against Fenner and instead, lay the blame at Karen’s door (s5ep11).
Swinger
Usually made of the inmates’ sheets, a swinger is something that is dangled out of a cell window and then swung from inmate to inmate to pass notes and contraband. Occasionally swingers are also set alight, most notably during the G-Wing riot (s3ep11-ep12).
Syringe
Mad Tessa Spall used a syringe to draw a quantity of her own HIV infected blood and used it to take Karen hostage (s2ep5). Before he cleaned up his act, Colin was caught with a syringe by Fenner. Forced into a corner, he claimed that he was a diabetic and that the syringe was used for injecting insulin. Not believing a word of it, Fenner ordered him to take a drugs test. By then, Colin had gone cold turkey and passed the test without a problem (s5ep9).
Dr Nicholson decided to kill Hollamby after she revealed that she’d lost her inheritance, and planned to do it by using a syringe to inject her with air. The resulting air embolism would have proved deadly if Phyl and Bev hadn’t intervened (s7ep9).