Dennis Rickman is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Nigel Harman. He made his first appearance on 14 April 2003 at the funeral of his late mother, Paula, before going on to become one of the show's central protagonists from 1 May 2003 up until his last appearance in the episode broadcast on 30 December 2005, when the character was fatally stabbed at the start of the New Year Fireworks.
He originally came to Walford - a fictional borough in East London - in 2003 as a new member of the Watts family who had a difficult past and rough childhood, though his identity was unknown for almost thirty years. Dennis soon became a regular presence in Walford's market town Albert Square, and in the summer of that year he murdered his former gangland boss Jack Dalton (Hywel Bennett) after discovering that the latter was responsible for the apparent death of Dennis's illegitimate father Den Watts (Leslie Grantham) in February 1989. Before he killed Dalton, however, Dennis discovered that Den had actually survived the shooting and - thanks to the help of his father's old mistress Jan Hammond (Jane How) - partly contributed to Den's eventual return in September 2003. The follow-up of Den's comeback saw him and Dennis compete against each other in a longstanding conflict that eventually came to an end in 2005 when Den was ultimately killed off on the show's twentieth anniversary episode dated 18 February 2005; Dennis later discovered his father's fate on 29 August 2005, the same day he finally married his adopted sister Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean) after the couple managed to repair their once-forbidden romance.
During his time on the show, Dennis established an intense feud with his alpha-male rival and the square's undisputed top-dog kingpin Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) - also Sharon's on-off boyfriend. He also bonded with his and Sharon's half-sister Vicki Fowler (Scarlett Alice Johnson); formed a mutual friendship with Dalton's right-hand mobsman Andy Hunter (Michael Higgs); embarked on an initial relationship with his brief girlfriend Zoe Slater (Michelle Ryan); developed a warm companionship with local gossip Dot Cotton (June Brown); slept with his acquaintance Kate Morton (Jill Halfpenny) during her marriage prospects with Phil; instituted major interactions with Sharon's family friend Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard) along with fellow neighbour Pat Harris (Pam St Clement) and Zoe's surrogate father Charlie (Derek Martin); temporarily clashed with Phil's brother Grant (Ross Kemp) over the latter's previous marriage with Sharon; and later teamed up with the Mitchell Brothers, along with their mother Peggy (Barbara Windsor) and cousin Billy (Perry Fenwick), to help their family bring Sharon's stepmother Chrissie (Tracy-Ann Oberman) to justice for killing Den and framing Peggy's daughter Sam (Kim Medcalf) for his murder.
In his exit storyline towards the climax of 2005, Dennis became emboriled in a conflict with the square's reigning crime lord Johnny Allen (Billy Murray). This came to an unfortunate end when Dennis brutally attacked Johnny for threatening him and throttling Sharon into leaving Walford, as well as killing Andy on the night Den died earlier on. Subsequently, Johnny survived the attack and arranged for his henchman Danny Moon (Jake Maskall) to kill Dennis in retribution; Dennis was later stabbed on that night amid the New Year fireworks celebrating 2006 and he ultimately died in Sharon's arms.
Nearly three months after the character's death, Dennis became the posthumous catalyst for the Get Johnny Week storyline in which Phil and Grant sought to help Sharon avenge his death by bringing Johnny to justice; in the end, Dennis's death was avenged when his killer Danny was shot dead by his brother Jake (Joel Beckett), while Johnny was forced by his daughter Ruby (Louisa Lytton) to surrender himself to the police after she discovered that her father was responsible for Dennis's murder. Later on, Dennis's death ends up getting avenged by Ruby's boyfriend Sean Slater (Robert Kazinsky), when he causes Johnny to die of a heart attack, following the latter's sentencing to life imprisonment for Dennis's murder. Sharon later gave birth to her and Dennis's son, Denny. In early January 2014, Sharon finally learned the truth about Dennis's death from Phil, and the subject is raised again after Denny dies in February 2020 following a quarrel with her closest friend Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) in the programme's 35th anniversary special.
The character of Dennis Rickman quickly became established as the show's leading man and a "soap sex-symbol", with Harman noted for his "dark good looks" and "fantastic" physique. In 2003, Harman won the "Best Newcomer" award at the National Television Awards, and for two years straight (in 2004 and 2005) won both "Best Actor" and "Sexiest Male" categories at the British Soap Awards and Inside Soap Awards.
Contents
Creation and development
Introduction
Dennis Rickman was created by the show's producers as the hardman successor to the character of Steve Owen, who had bowed out during the previous year. It was also part of a move to bring the Watts family back to the forefront of EastEnders, with the re-introduction of Vicki Fowler occurring at the beginning of 2003, and the highly anticipated return of Den Watts in September. Executive producer Louise Berridge was also keen to rectify what she felt was a gender imbalance in the cast, commenting after his arrival that Dennis had "provided a surge of testosterone in a show that was rather female-heavy since the arrival of the Slaters."
Casting
Harman was working as a lorry driver for supermarket chain Sainsbury's when he was cast in the role of Dennis Rickman: "They said: 'You've got the job.' I was sitting there in my Sainsbury's fleece, with Mrs Bloggs's groceries in the back, and I just laughed my arse off." However, Harman revealed in a 2003 interview that he actually auditioned for a character called "Tim", and had no idea that he was set to join the Watts family as the unknown son of the soap's most "iconic" figure, Den Watts. Part of Harman's appeal lay in his dark good looks and appealing physicality. EastEnders executive producer Louise Berridge noted: "We cast Nigel for his tremendous acting ability and his screen presence, but there's no question he's also a very sexy young man." In an interview with The Independent in 2003 he commented on his character's status as a sex symbol: "It's Dennis, not me... I am a bit embarrassed... I don't get off on it. I walk into the living-room in the morning in my jogging pants, with my hair all over the place, and my flatmates say: 'So, you're supposed to be one of the sexiest men in the country?' And I go: 'I know. I don't get it either.'"
Characterisation
Dennis is characterized by his roguish manner, a "bad boy" cast in the mould of a "young Dirty Den". Harman described his character as "a bit of a rough diamond" but with "a sensitive side". During his time on the show, Dennis often butted heads with various alpha-males such as hardman Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden) and crime boss Johnny Allen (Billy Murray) but developed a friendship with mobsman Andy Hunter (Michael Higgs) and also established a warm relationship with local gossip, Dot Cotton (June Brown).
The representation of Dennis as "smouldering thug" was apparent from his first appearance in Walford, when he hit resident top dog Phil Mitchell. In an interview with the Daily Mirror Harman declared, "He is a total bastard and if I met him in real life, I'd be bloody scared. [But] that's why he's such a brilliant part." According to the official EastEnders website, "Dennis may well be able to turn on the charm with the ladies, but he has a certain sinister edge."
Storylines
Dennis Rickman makes his first appearance in handcuffs in April 2003, as he is on day release from prison to attend his mother's funeral. It soon transpires that he was the product of a fling between his teenaged mother Paula and her adult ex-lover Den Watts (Leslie Grantham). The discovery of his existence comes after Sharon discovers that she has a brother through her adoptive father Den Watts and another woman during the 1970s. Sharon was aware that her brother was called Dennis Rickman and that he grew up in Walford as well. She later finds out that there was a Mr. Rickman who lived locally and worked as a taxi driver, but he and his wife had both died and their daughter was living alone in their house. Sharon soon locates the house but learns from a neighbour that Paula has just died.
It is gradually revealed that he was neglected as a child by his mother and abused by a succession of her boyfriends, ultimately spending some time living in a children's home. Den was unaware that he had a son, and by the time Dennis meets Sharon and Vicki, 14 years have passed since Den disappeared and supposedly died as a result of a shooting on a canal towpath.
In May 2003, Dennis arrives in Walford and is looking for his sisters. He encounters Sharon's former boyfriend Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden), also the square's local hardman, and they exchange words in The Queen Victoria public house that results with Dennis punching Phil in the end. This launches a feud between Dennis and Phil that escalates when the pair embark on a love triangle with Kate Morton (Jill Halfpenny), an ex-policewoman and Phil's wife-to-be who formerly dated Dennis in the past. Dennis further infuriates Phil by seducing the latter's sister Sam (Kim Medcalf) and his daughter's nanny Joanne Ryan (Tara Lynne O'Neill) on separate occasions. The two later arrange to have a fight in a garage, but Phil instead has Dennis beaten up in the end.
At one point, however, Dennis and Phil are forced to put their differences aside due to their mutual acquaintanceship with gangland boss Jack Dalton (Hywel Bennett). It soon turns out that Dennis had worked for Dalton since the age of 16, collecting debts amongst other things, and his prison stint is due to an act of GBH which was committed during his work for Dalton in the past; Dennis since then viewed Dalton as a father figure. After Dennis's release, Dalton orders Phil to kill Dennis after he becomes independent of him. However, Dennis ends up killing Dalton in a shooting next to a railway line, but not before Dalton reveals that Den survived the 1989 shooting, and that the body found in the canal a year later was in fact that of another local gangster who had been murdered on Dalton's orders for failing to kill Den. Dennis later tracks down Den's former mistress Jan Hammond (Jane How) and finds out that Den fled to Spain. He flies out to Spain and finds the address where Den is now believed to be living, but lacks the courage to knock on the door and find out. He later reveals all to Sharon, but she refuses to believe that her adoptive father is still alive.
Reception
Dennis Rickman was described in a 2004 article as the show's "bad boy pin-up character". The character of Dennis Rickman quickly became established as the show's leading man and a "soap sex-symbol", with Harman noted for his "dark good looks" and "fantastic" physique. In 2003, Harman won the "Best Newcomer" award at the National Television Awards, and for two years straight (in 2004 and 2005) won both "Best Actor" and "Sexiest Male" categories at the British Soap Awards and Inside Soap Awards.
In 2020, Sara Wallis and Ian Hyland from The Daily Mirror placed Dennis 58th on their ranked list of the best EastEnders characters of all time, calling him a "bed-hopping criminal" who was "a chip off the old block" from his father.