Mickey Johnstone – The Doomed Everyman

Mickey grows up in a chaotic, working-class home, full of love but lacking in opportunity. He’s energetic and funny as a child, but adulthood brings hardship, redundancy, and eventual depression.
"Leave me alone, will y’? I can’t cope with this”
Mickey is deeply affected by unemployment and social inequality, eventually turning to crime and addiction. His descent is heartbreaking, making him one of the play’s most tragic figures. He represents how society fails working-class men.
"I could have been him!"

Edward (Eddie) Lyons – The Privileged Twin

Eddie is raised in comfort and wealth, surrounded by politeness and opportunity. He is kind-hearted and loyal, especially to Mickey, whom he idolises.
"I thought we always stuck together. I thought we were… blood brothers."
Though he genuinely cares for his friend, he never fully understands Mickey’s struggles. Eddie benefits from a system designed to support people like him. His tragic flaw is his unawareness of his own privilege.
"Why… why is a job so important?"

Mrs. Johnstone – The Struggling Mother

Mrs. Johnstone is a working-class mother in Liverpool, worn down by poverty, responsibility, and the pressures of raising a large family alone. She’s introduced as romantic and kind-hearted but is driven by desperation when she agrees to give away one of her newborn twins.
"With one more baby we could have managed. But not with two."
Her deep love for her children is clear, but so is her powerlessness in a class-divided society. Though her decision is made out of love, it ultimately leads to tragedy. Mrs. Johnstone represents maternal sacrifice and the crushing weight of poverty.
"An’ did y’ never hear how the Johnstones died, never knowing that they shared one name?"

Mrs. Lyons – The Desperate Upper-Class Woman

Mrs. Lyons is wealthy, elegant, and childless—a stark contrast to Mrs. Johnstone. She manipulates the working-class mother into giving away a baby, then descends into paranoia and madness, haunted by the secret she swore to protect.
"Actually, Mrs J, we bought such a large house for the – for the children – we thought children would come along."
Despite her wealth, she becomes increasingly unstable, consumed by guilt and superstition. Her fear of the truth being revealed turns her into a cruel figure. Mrs. Lyons represents the corrosive effects of class anxiety and emotional repression.
(Mrs. Johnstone, referring to Mrs. Lyons) "You’re mad… mad!"

Linda – The Unseen Victim

Linda begins as the spirited girl both twins fall for. She’s assertive, fun-loving, and protective of Mickey, eventually marrying him. However, she is gradually sidelined by the pressures of adult life, economic hardship, and Mickey’s emotional breakdown.
"Mickey you don’t need your tablets!"
Though she tries to hold everything together, she becomes trapped between the two brothers. Linda represents the quiet suffering of women caught in the crossfire of male pride, social struggle, and doomed fate.

The Narrator – The Voice of Fate

The Narrator acts as a Greek chorus figure, watching events unfold and reminding the audience of the tragedy to come. He’s ominous and poetic, often invoking superstition and fate.
"The devil’s got your number. He’s gonna find y’."
His frequent appearances remind us that the story’s ending is inevitable. He represents conscience, judgment, and perhaps society itself — always watching, but never intervening.
"And do we blame superstition for what came to pass? Or could it be what we, the English, have come to know as class?"