#cliffgerald

[mindibindi]

“It’s all in the eyes with women” - Assumpta looking at Peter

[mindibindi]

Peter + Assumpta + smiles (seasons 1 & 2 (cos season 3 was a smile-free zone))

[mindibindi]

The Return of Assumpta Fitzgerald:

I’m an invisible disaster I keep trying to walk but my feet don’t find the solid ground It’s like living in a bad dream I keep trying to scream but my tongue has finally lost its sound I’ve tried to say goodbye To the pieces of me that have already died I’m a ghost, haunting these halls Climbing these walls that I never knew were there And I’m lost, broken down the middle of my heart, heart I’m broken down the middle of my heart, heart, heart You know you make me a ghost... (x)

[mindibindi]

“I once read somewhere that a man who fears love, fears life. And I thought, ‘that’s it, that’s exactly what it is!’. A man who fears love, fears life. You know, and once you know that, suddenly commitment doesn’t seem terrifying anymore. And why would you want to cut yourself off from one of the richest experiences that life has to offer?”

[mindibindi]

“Could you do me a favour? Father Peter’s house. Could you get your dad to give it back to him? He’s getting a bit desperate.” ”You’ve been hearing confessions?” ”Something like that. Well...no. But there are more ways of making your feelings known than talking about them.”

Things I love about this scene:

midnight meetings

Assumpta in St Jo’s (the only time in season 3)

Peter & Assumpta looking at each other through bars because metaphor(!)

I don’t think Dervla has ever looked more beautiful than in the shot of her walking along the church fence

Shaun Davey’s score: this show wasn’t the same after he left either

every damn line: it’s written perfectly

role reversal: Peter being all irrational and angry and Assumpta being all patient and quiet because at least he’s talking to her and that’s all she wanted

Assumpta wearing Leo’s sweater: just another level of angst for Peter to deal with

Peter’s shock: because you just know he was thinking about her and then suddenly there she is and he’s like OMG, I love you, I’ve missed you, get away from me.

Assumpta giving him one last chance to be honest before walking away

[mindibindi]

Peter: Would you talk to her? Assumpta: Oh...it’s not my place to. What happened between Siobhan and Brendan is their business. Peter: Yeah, but we can’t just stand by and watch them fall out over this. Assumpta: Well, things might work out between them. Peter: No. These kind of complications always end up ruining friendships. Assumpta: It happens. Sometimes it can’t be helped... Peter: I hate to see people I care about get hurt. Assumpta: Alright, alright. I’ll talk to her. When I get a chance. Peter: Thanks. I really appreciate this. Assumpta: What’re friends for?

[mindibindi]

“Shall I tell you what the problem is?” “Sorry?” “Assumpta Fitzgerald.” “.....What?” “We live in a very small community, Father.” “Well, I hope you don’t think that.....Nothing’s happened.” “Is something likely to happen?” “No.” “Can you stand before that altar and tell God that nothing is likely to happen?”

[mindibindi]

Assumpta Fitzgerald: At the Beginning of Season 1 vs At the End of Season 1 of Ballykissangel

On re-watching this 90s Irish gem (actually it’s probably, like, my fourth or fifth complete rewatch), I was struck by how subdued the character of Assumpta was in the initial episode. This is something I’d never noticed before and, though it could be put down to the characterisation not being quite established yet, I prefer to take it as canon. It’s tempting with the first three seasons of this show to concentrate solely on the major and exquisitely angsty changes that play out in the green Father Clifford’s life. You can become so caught up in how coming to BallyK changes him, his life, his heart and soul that you don’t notice the more subtle changes occurring in his favourite sparring partner and sometime best friend. These changes are less life-changing and more character-building but sneakily apparent as early on as the first season. When we first meet Assumpta Fitzgerald, she is mildly friendly and mildly snarky. She is softly spoken and gives off an eternally tired, world weary air that ages her beyond her actual years. Her hair is long and limp and left pretty much as nature created it. She wears no discernible make-up and dresses in drab, colourless clothes. She generally wears old jeans with dark tops and faded flannel shirts of blacks, greys and greens. All of this makes perfect sense if you consider that Assumpta is a young woman stuck in grief. She is grieving for her mother, grieving both for her traumatic past and truncated future. This underlying melancholy in Assumpta is best illustrated by the scene in which she watches Father Peter give the last rites to the old mountainy man. (This haunting scene obviously has further meaning and great resonance, after knowing of Assumpta’s ultimate fate). It is unclear how long it’s been since Assumpta returned to BallyK to look after the family business and nurse her dying mother. Counting back from her death at 25 to the age she would’ve been post-college, it can’t have been too long a time. Despite not even knowing this history, the audience gets the impression of a not fully formed adult who feels trapped. Trapped in her home town, trapped in her own grief, trapped by her own fate. Until the new curate moves into the church up the road. Assumpta continues to occasionally exhibit the soft-spoken weariness of a woman hounded by sadness but, over time, the glimpses we see of her lighter side in the first episode begin to shine more brightly. Her wicked humour emerges, her irrepressible energy returns. She begins to bounce about, hair flying. Her eyes light up, her face animates. She begins to smile, wear her hair differently, wear an array of colours. The presence of Peter Clifford in Ballykissangel seems to light a fire inside Assumpta Fitzgerald, returning her to the fiery presence she probably always was. Her dampened flame springs back to life and begins to burn again. Gradually, over this and two subsequent seasons, we see her transform into the quick-witted, hot-tempered, caper-loving, floral-skirt-rocking, religion-hating, beautiful barmaid we all eventually fall in love with. She grows from a muted version of herself into the technicolour version. From a grieving, frustrated child into the spirited, sensitive woman Peter cannot help but fall for. <3