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'''PC / DC Michael "Mike" Dunstan Bradley''' (later '''Detective Constable'''), was played by [[Jason Durr]] and appeared in 128 episodes from 1997 - 2003.
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'''PC / DC Michael "Mike" Dunstan Bradley''' (later '''Detective Constable'''), was played by [[Jason Durr]] and appeared in 128 episodes from 1997 - 2003. Affectionately known as "Iron Mike" he once landed a cracking knockout punch on a villain at the railway.
 
===Biography===
 
===Biography===
   

Revision as of 21:46, 28 July 2021

C H A R A C T E R

PC / DC Mike Bradley

PC Mike Bradley
Jason Durr as PC Mike Bradley

Episodes

128

First Episode

Peace and Quiet

Last Episode

Moving Target

Relationships

Gina Bellamy (girlfriend, seperated)

Jackie Bradley (wife, divorced)

Dr Tricia Summerbee (girlfriend, deceased)

  PC / DC Michael "Mike" Dunstan Bradley (later Detective Constable), was played by Jason Durr and appeared in 128 episodes from 1997 - 2003. Affectionately known as "Iron Mike" he once landed a cracking knockout punch on a villain at the railway.

Biography

PC Mike Bradley first appeared in the episode Peace and Quiet while Nick and Jo were on honeymoon and his last appearance was in Moving Target which saw him now transferred to CID . When first introduced, he'd arrived from the Metropolitan Police in London on his motorbike and also was shown to have long hair and an arrogant attitude and seemed to be unwilling to fit in, although all of these were dispensed with. Mike Bradley was certainly not what Sgt Oscar Blaketon was expecting and he assumed that he wouldn't stay very long. In the episode "Bad Penny", an old girlfriend arrived - Penny along with her baby who also claimed Mike to be the father. It was also revealed that the reason he'd transferred from London was because his life was at risk after an operation called Operation Gunsmoke had gone wrong and the villains involved were after him. The real reason that Penny was back in town was because she'd been in alliance with the villains and that she wanted money from him - £500 to be exact otherwise she'd threaten to tell Martin and Linden - the villains involved in the whole affair - where he was. Mike even went as far to sell his bike to raise the cash only to end up putting his life in more danger as he went to meet up with Penny. Once the whole thing was solved, his new boss, Nick Rowan who'd been promoted to Sergeant, offered Mike the chance to either stay in Aidensfield or go back to London. Mike decided to stay and shortly afterwards, Nick departed for Canada to take up a job with the Royal Canadian Police. Mike even took a shine to Nurse Maggie Bolton, but she was still in love with her estranged husband, Dr Neil Bolton, whom she got back together with at the end of Love Me Do. She invited Neil to come and have a drink with Mike and her, but then when she told him how she felt, things got complicated. Maggie rushed out of the Aidensfield Arms after Neil, leaving Mike at the table. Then he too got up from the table and left. "Maggie and Mike did you say?" Phil asked Gina, who ended up holding two empty glasses. When Mike went out of the pub he saw that Neil and Maggie were kissing passionately; he smiled happily to himself before walking off into the night, marking the end of the seventh series. Mike was devastated when Neil died in a fire halfway through series eight - in the episode Fire and Ashes. He had a brief relationship with Gina Ward before going on to marry solictor Jackie Lambert - who made her first appearance in the episode Where There's a Will and she was more than a match for him. Jackie and Mike's future together was very much uncertain after Jackie's uncle Henry Tomkinson ended up becoming a suspect in a hit-and-run accident in Testament. They later kissed and made up and both agreed to stay in Aidensfield. In that same episode, Mike was offered a job that would take him back to London and his old friend Rodney Marshall came up to try and persuade him to join the Met but he later realised that it wasn't what he wanted. Mike proposed to Jackie in the episode Honor Among Thieves, to which she said yes. In the episode Shotgun Wedding while saying his wedding vows at his and Jackie's wedding, it was revealed that his middle name was Dunstan - to which Phil (who he asked to be his best Man and were sun h great mates) found amusing and said that he kept that quiet. Jackie's aunt, Joyce Tomkinson wasn't pleased however, at the thought of her niece marrying a humble village bobby but she later attended anyway. Jackie's uncle was ill and couldn't attend himself but offered to pay for the whole thing. In The Son-In-Law, Jackie's parents came up to visit after unexpectedly arriving from South Africa and Mike was shocked that she hadn't told them that they were now married as he was looking forward to meeting his parents-in-law. But Jackie knew that they would not be so pleased at the thought and when they met, both Lionel and Edwina Lambert made it clear that they thought their daughter could've done better for herself. They even tried to go so far as offering her a job in Cape Town. Even before they married, him and Jackie were often in conflict over cases - whether it was burglaries or other serious crimes such as murder - and this often affected their relationship and later marriage. Jackie would often be brought in to defend her clients that were arrested by Mike. But the pair later ended up divorcing after it was revealed in the episode Still Water, she'd been having an affair with one of her clients, Adrian Miller - a wealthy businessman and that she wanted to be with him. Mike tried to convince Jackie to think again about what she was doing but it appeared that the damage was already done. Jackie then ran off with Adrian to London, leaving poor Mike to come back to an emtpy police house with only a note on the coffee table explaining her actions. He later struggled to cope after his wife's departure. Shortly afterwards, Mike then fell in love with Dr Tricia Summerbee. Because of his failed marriage to Jackie, he was afraid to commit to another relationship and didn't want the same thing to happen again. In the episode Love's Sweet Dream she and Mike finally declared their love for each other but Tricia's life ended up hanging in the balance after she collapsed. Mike only had his heart broken again when she died in a horse riding accident while assisting him and the police on horseback in the episode Horses for Courses. She fell off the horse and died from her injuries in series twelve. In the following episode, Sins of the Fathers Phil told Gina that he was like a zombie at work. Tricia's death also hit him very hard and afterwards mainly concentrated on his work. Later on, Mike was then promoted to Acting DC and left the area after being transferred to CID, by The chief supertendent agreeing with DI Shiner that Mike should be promoted after he almost single handedly solving the shootings in Aidensfield in the episode Moving Target . No longer in uniform, Mike would often be seen wearing plain clothes. His posistion as Aidensfield bobby was then taken over by PC Steve Crane. Mike is mentioned later on by PC Phil Bellamy where it is revealed that he couldn't come up for his and Gina's wedding - which didn't happen - and that he was in the middle of carrying out a CID operation. He was to be Phil's best man.

Personality and appearance

An upstanding if somewhat wooden character, sometimes transforming into a square-jawed action hero, to be found grappling with armed villains, dragging survivors from collapsing quarry workings, jumping onto the roofs of moving trains etc. Like Nick Rowan he had previously worked for the Metropolitan Police in London; he arrived with a pony-tail and supercilious attitude, both of which were quickly dispensed with. Mike is often seen in uniform most of the time although towards the end of his time on the show he is showing to be wearing plain clothes, now having transferred to CID. By the end of his time in Aidensfield, he had transformed into a likeable, good natured person.

Relationships

Aidensfield village bobbies

PC Steve Crane

Ashfordly Police sergeants

PC/Sgt. Nick Rowan

Nick Rowan became Mike's new Sergeant after Oscar Blaketon ended up having a heart attack and Nick came back from his and Jo's honeymoon. It was Nick who offered him the option to either stay in Aidensfield or go back to London. Mike decided to stay in Aidensfield when it got out that a couple of villains were after him - Martin and Linden - after an operation called Operation Gunsmoke went wrong. Nick wasn't very happy with his new job so decided to apply for a job with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and by the time he left, he and Mike were almost certainly friends. Nick wished Mike luck because he was going to be the new village bobby for Aidensfield. So Mike then moved into the Police House after it became available again.

Sgt Dennis Ian Merton

Sgt Jennifer Noakes

Other Ashfordly Police

PC Alfred "Alf" Ventress

PC Phil Bellamy

Mike became friends with PC Phil Bellamy after he managed to settle in and dispense his ponytail and arrogant attitude. Phil spent some time with Mike in the Police House after he bcame homeless although he eventually moved out once having managed to find somewhere to live. In the series eight opener Snake in the Grass Mike helped Phil to move back to his gran's, and they also investigated over why people were getting food poisoning. Mike also asked Phil to be his best man for his wedding to Jackie Lambert (who he later divorced because of her affair with Adrian Miller) in Shotgun Wedding. Phil found it amusing that Mike's middle name was Dunstan and said he kept it quiet when he and Jackie exchanged their wedding vows. Mike confided in him and Alf over the fact that he and Jackie had split up and Mike thought that they were as good as it gets in the series ten finale Still Water. In the opening episode of series eleven, Sweet Sixteen Phil felt as though he had to keep apologising when he was feeling nostalgic when he saw two teenagers when he and Mike were in the police house. He helped Mike to get the Police House ready for an inspection and to clear away the last remains of Jackie. He was there for Mike when Dr Tricia Summerbee died in a horse riding accident - which also left Mike heartbroken - and said to Gina that his colleague was like a zombie at work. This happened in Horses for Courses and Sins of the Fathers. They were still good friends when mike moved to CID and was sad when Mike eventually left permently for CID. Phil also asked Mike to be his best man series 13 but could not make because of a CID operation.

PC Thomas "Tom" Nicholson

Medical staff

Aidensfield doctors

Dr Neil Bolton

In the episode Fire and Ashes, Mike had to tell Maggie that her husband was dead.

Dr Tricia Summerbee

Before the break-up of his marriage, Mike met Dr Tricia Summerbee at Ashfordly General Hospital in the episode "Safe House", where he and Jackie had to house dangerous criminal Barry Ross. It was Tricia, who offered him a shoulder to cry on when he and Jackie divorced over her affair with Adrian Miller. In the episode Sweet Sixteen Tricia asked him about his divorce from Jackie and he replied that he couldn't believe she'd left. Tricia was having a hard time too due to the fact she'd prescribed the pill to a young girl and it had many parents in uproar over, so they both found comfort in one another. In She's Leaving Home Tricia and Mike found that the surgery was broken into. In Russian Roulette, Tricia had to deal with a manic depressive who dealt with problems by walking onto railway lines. In Home Sweet Home, Tricia confided in her feelings for Mike to Gina. The policemen came under fire from Tricia when a pregnant girl and her boyfriend were hospitalised due to a group of hippies occupying a row of derelict cottages and PC Tom Nicholson interfering. Tricia and Mike dealt with a salmonella epidemic that gripped Aidensfield in the episode Uninvited Guests. They also helped to look for a blind lady's dog in No Hiding Place. In Love's Sweet Dream Mike looked set to loose her too when she succumbed to her heart condition. Again this relationship didn't last as Mike was left devastated when Tricia fell off a racehorse and died in his arms after helping him in a police investigation in "Horses for Courses". They'd had an argument as Keiran Doyle was involved in the theft of a racehorse, yet she was smitten by his charms and went out riding him, and even had dinner with him. Mike told her to stay away from Doyle when he arrived at the surgery but they argued and she told him to get out. When Tricia finally realised of the danger she was in it was just too late and she died from her injuries.

Dr Liz Merrick

Other medical staff

Nurse Maggie Bolton

Mike was always friends with Maggie but it seemed that Mike wanted them to be more than just that. They had only a very brief liasion before Dr Neil Bolton, her estranged husband appeared out of nowhere. To his disappointment it was apparent that Maggie was still in love with Neil and wanted to get back together with him - which actually happened at the end of the series seven finale, Love Me Do.

Jenny Merton

Aidensfield Arms staff

Georgina "Gina" Ward

Mary Ward

"Loveable rogue" lineage

Claude Jeremiah Greengrass

Vernon Scripps

Aidensfield Garage staff

Bernard "Bernie" Scripps 

David Stockwell

Other regular characters

Lord Ashfordly

Katie Rowan

Eileen Reynolds

Andy Ryan

Jo Rowan

Mike first met Jo after she first came back from honeymoon with husband PC Nick Rowan, who had been promoted to the role of Sergeant at Ashfordly Police Station. Nick, however, wasn't happy about his new job and applied for a job with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and so they moved to Canada with Katie. Mike later came along to see Nick, Jo and Katie on the train to Canada with Oscar, Maggie, Gina, Phil and Alf - which meant that Mike was now Aidensfield's new village bobby. They didn't have much time together on the show before they left.

Jackie Bradley

PC Mike Bradley and Jackie Lambert in Friends Like You

PC Mike Bradley and Jackie Lambert kiss in Friends Like You

Mike first met Jackie Lambert in the episode Where's There's a Will when Peggy Tatton sought legal advice from her. Needless to say, the pair didn't hit it off at first. Jackie was tough, fiesty and more than a match for him in court. In The Angry Brigade, Mike and Jackie ended up on different sides again when she acted on behalf of Ron and Doreen Tidy who'd discovered that Lord Charles Ashfordly had closed a particular footpath that ran through his land. When Gina was suspected of taking drugs in Friends Like You, Mike recommended Jackie to reccomend her. At the end of the episode when it was proved that Gina hadn't been taking drugs, the pair shared a kiss. Mike and Jackie later fell in love and got married, although their relationship

PC Mike Bradley and Jackie Lambert make up in Testament

Mike and Jackie make up at the end of Testament

became strained in the episode, Testament, when her uncle, Henry Tomkinson, became a suspect in a hit and run accident. Her aunt, Joyce, immediately saw that Mike was smitten with her and she lectured her niece on what would happen if the firm went into financial difficulties. Her uncle was indeed the suspect and when Jackie found out, she took him straight to the police station to confess. At the time, an old friend of Mike's came up from the Met, Rodney Marshall who persuaded him to transferr back although Mike decided that it wasn't what he wanted. Mike and Jackie later kissed and made up. Mike asked Jackie to marry him at the end of Honor Among Thieves. Later, Mike and Jackie got married in the episode Shotgun Wedding where her aunt actually disapproved of rushing into marriage and thought that Mike wasn't good enough for her. She even thought that Jackie was pregnant - which she wasn't. Jackie tried to persuade her aunt that she was welcome to come although she just declined in spite of changing her mind anyway. Their marriage came under strain before it had even started when she was meeting a photographer, Sean Banks who was threatening to publish nude photographs of her sister Elizabeth in a national newspaper unless they paid him £1000. They argued over the fact that Mike thought it was Jackie herself - until he met her sister. Mike then helped to set Banks up and get him arrested. In the episode The Son-In-Law, Mike was shocked to discover that Jackie hadn't told her parents they were now married. When, Lionel and Edwina Lambert arrived from South Africa, they quickly made it clear that Jackie could have done better for herself. They even tried offering her a job in Cape Town. In Home Truths, her parents turned up again when it was revealed they were staying with her friends, the Hendersons. When Jacob Fairbrother was buried under a pile of rocks, Jackie decided to represent them although her mother was actually hoping she would represent the Hendersons. Although Jackie refused. In Safe House, Mike had to rescue Jackie when she got kidnapped while they were trying to hide a suspect Barry Ross, who was going to give evidence against another dangerous criminal, Jim Duggan. Although married to Jackie at the time, this was also when Mike met Dr Tricia Summerbee, his future girlfriend. In Weight of Evidence, they fell out when Ben Ealham was let off after she represented him in court after he was under suspicion for raping Sian, a young girl who was helping Gina out behind the bar at his twenty-first birthday party. In With This Ring, him and Jackie also fell out over the fact he had booked them a holiday but she was too busy caught up in her work. He then went off on his bike, already upset that Frank McCreedy had blamed him for his wife's suicide, he then phoned Oscar who told him to talk it over with Jackie rather than just keeping inside him - which he said he himself should've done and he might be still married with a son. He told Mike to not to do the same mistake. Mike went home and made it up with Jackie who said that he was a copper and just doing his job. In series ten, in the episode Smile for the Camera, him and Jackie began recieving phone calls at all hours and it seemed that someone was stalking Jackie. Mike assumed that it was Anthony Smythe and that he and Jackie were having an affair. When Mike went to confront Anthony about the situation he denied the whole thing obviously, with Craddock furious and taking him off the case. Things continued to esculate when the stalker turned up at the police house and Jackie burst into the pub unexpectedly. Blaketon, ever the private detective, offered to lend a hand and they discovered one possible suspect, Martin Padmore in one of the old files. It turned it was Padmore, who was obsessed with Jackie and when Mike and Alf arrived at his house they discovered a shrine devoted to her, with pictures everywhere. He was the one who left the film rappers in the garden of the police house and sent Jackie the flowers. He held Jackie at gunpoint in her car but she escaped into the woods and Mike and Alf arrived just in time to arrest him. In the episode Truth Games, Jackie was brought in to act as solicitor for Adrian Miller, a businessman who was holding a meeting at a hotel when he was accused of indecently assaulting Lisa Preston, but there were problems when Adrian said he didn't want a female lawyer representing him. However things soon changed when Miller was found not guilty and turned the charm on Jackie - requesting to see her again. Jackie eventually did have an affair - with Adrian and Jackie revealed that she wanted to be with him. In Still Water, Mike was devastated when she told him their marriage was over and finally departed leaving him a note on the coffee table.

Recurring characters

Lady Patricia Brewster

DI Shiner

Edwina Lambert

Mike met Jackie's mother only twice and it was clear that she didn't approve of the idea of him marrying her daughter. In fact, it was clear that she wanted her daughter's marriage to fail.

Adrian Miller

Mike first met Adrian Miller in the series ten episode Truth Games, where he'd been accused of indecently assaulting Lisa Preston. Mike's wife Jackie was to be his solicitor but Adrian said that he didn't want a female one. But things changed after they realised that Miller was innocent when he recieved a phone call at The Aidensfield Arms saying that Lisa would drop the charges unless he paid £500. It turned out that Lisa and a man named Lettington were making the charges up just so they could claim the cash later. The two were then arrested. Adrian then tried to tempt Jackie with his charms after asking to see her again, unknown to Mike. Jackie then began seeing Adrian again on business matters before starting an affair with him. It is presumed that Jackie had been rushing off to London to see him in The Buxton Defence but Mike was left suspicious after he was unable to contact her. Adrian met Mike one final time in Still Water, where he didn't tell him that he was seeing Jackie. Adrian had been having a meeting with Jackie as it was clear that she wasn't still so sure what to do. Mike interrupted the meeting the meeting to see Jackie. At the same time Mike had been accused of taking bribes and he asked her if she'd put any money in his bank account. Mike later tried to be friendly and asked him what had him back up to Yorkshire and Adrian replied that it was busines and pleasure. Adrian remained silent about his affair with Jackie. Jackie was the one who confessed, saying that she was in love with Adrian. Mike was devastated and said that she hardley knew him. He said that she was his wife and wouldn't let her do this. Jackie said that she felt suffocated in Aidensfield. After Mike arrested Giles Sutton for rigging the markets, he came back to find an empty police house and only a note from Jackie on the coffee table. It seemed as though Jackie had left him for Adrian and the pair later divorced.


From Nicholas Rhea's website

A disciplined professional with an excellent future in the police force, Mike Bradley has seen his career go from strength to strength since transferring to Ashfordly almost five years ago. The same sadly can't be said for his love life and the climax of series eleven saw him facing the loss of another love as Tricia Summerbee fought for her life after succumbing to her heart condition.

"I'm pleased to say she's survived and when we return she's back to her old self!" Jason Durr reveals. "I think Mike would have taken her death very badly. This illness has made Mike and Tricia grow stronger together. Even though there's misunderstandings between them there's a flourishing undercurrent of love there."

The relationship hasn't been the easiest largely due to their conflicting professional lives.

"They don't always meet in the most romantic of situations and often they'll meet at the scene of a crime," says Jason. "Also because of the way their lives are structured they can't plan the romantic meals out - if they are both free they'll grab a bag of chips!"

Last series there was a huge Will they, won't they? element to the relationship and Mike showed signs that he wasn't too keen to commit. Jason doesn't agree that Tricia's illness has been a factor in Mike's reluctance.

"You could say that after losing Jackie he's worried that Tricia's illness will eventually lead to him losing her too," says Jason. "He's a really nice bloke and wouldn't behave in such a selfish way. If he's guilty of anything it's that he's too protective of her. He is mildly concerned that he may lose another love - that could be slowing down the process somewhat but I think he's more concerned about her."

Work-wise, Bradley goes from strength to strength.

"He's such a golden boy it makes you sick!" Jason laughs. "He's got a quite ambition - he's not in any hurry although he has passed his sergeant's exams. He saw so much when he was down at the Met that he's grown into the life in the country. Outside influences want him to do more. They know he's a bright copper and very good at what he does so there's lots of avenues open to him. I think his relationship with Tricia is possibly making him resist this.""


Rhea about PC Mike Bradley:


"Mike Bradley does not appear in my early books, but on screen he arrived with long hair while riding a powerful motor bike. Jason Durr's task was not easy - he had to create a likeable character who would one day replace PC Nick Rowan but he did this within a very short time. Bradley's good looks, his wide police experience before coming to Aidensfield and his strong personality have combined to produce a very interesting character. So what's in store for him in Aidensfield? We'll have to wait and see..."


This series sees Mike on top form dealing with some of the toughest cases of his career.

"There's loads of action in this series," says Jason. "Last year we had a lot of difficulties with Foot and Mouth which restricted the way we worked to some extent. We are free now to roam the moors again so we can fit in far more of the chases, explosions and stunts that have become such a trademark of the show."

As with all of the Heartbeat regulars Jason particularly enjoys the time he spends at the heart of the North Yorkshire Moors in the real location for Aidensfield, Goathland.

"It's amazing being back in Goathland with a vengeance. It's remarkable the amount of tourism that's sprung up there even during the time I've been on the show. When we film there are often hundreds of people watching us - it's like a bizarre form of street theatre. This causes us a fair few problems! It's hilarious when the crowd reacts to some stunt or other and we have to patiently remind them that they need to remain quiet!"

Over the last couple of years Goathland hasn't just become famous for Heartbeat but also for the railway station sequences in Harry Potter.

"Now you're never sure if the crowds are here to see us or Harry Potter", says Jason. "There'll be the die-hard Heartbeat fans and then every time a train arrives, weaving between them there'll be hoards of kids with their Harry Potter back packs on!"

It has already been announced that at the end of series twelve Jason will be leaving Heartbeat after four highly successful series.

"Anybody who has been in my position will have mixed feelings," says Jason. "When you decide to leave however you get the chance to reflect on your experience and make the most of the time that remains. Heartbeat's been so all-consuming I'm excited about entering a new chapter in my life. I'll miss it terribly but at least I've had five years worth of very happy memories. I think it would be harder to leave if I'd only been here a couple of years. The time has come though to pass the baton on. I've learned so much and gained so much from being part of the show - I hope the show's gained plenty from me in return."

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