Family in Focus The Johnsons

Continued....... Meanwhile Mick had other problems to contend with, the Pizza Parlour had been damaged by flooding from the flat above caused by Tinhead O’Leary attempting to steal a washing machine. The damage was extensive and Mick believed his only option was to close for good, but Gladys who had recently sold her house insisted that Mick should accept her offer of money to refurbish the shop. Despite receiving medication from the doctor, Gladys was still in a lot of pain, so in desperation Mick turned to Jimmy Corkhill who reluctantly supplied him with enough drugs to help Gladys.One night when Gladys was in terrible pain she tried to suffocate herself with a pillow but didn't possess enough strength. Mick and Elaine were with her at the time, so believing that Gladys wanted them to help her die, first Elaine then Mick held the pillow on Gladys until she passed away. Both Elaine and Mick were consumed with guilt by what they had done although they both believed it was what Gladys had wanted. The doctor suspected nothing and so issued a death certificate and Mick told Elaine they should keep what happened on that night to themselves. Elaine thought Cassie had a right to know and despite Mick's advice, she told Cassie how Gladys had died. Cassie was shocked by Elaines confession and decided to report both Mick and Elaine to the police. Mick and Elaine were arrested and charged with murder but were allowed home on bail Instead of standing by Mick, Elaine couldn't’t face the prospect of prison and left Mick to face the trial on his own. At the trial Mick told the court that Cassie alone had held the pillow on Gladys and so Mick was found not guilty and allowed to leave court a free man. Before their arrest Mick and Elaine had reopened his shop, this time as a chippy called “ Chips with Everything “ After the trial Mick’s new business proved very popular and he was soon receiving a good income. At this time he was not happy with the standard of education his daughter Gemma was receiving so decided to enrol her in a private school and although Gemma was unhappy at the thought of losing all her fiends she passed the entrance exam with flying colours and soon settled into her new school. It was not long before Mick found a new love interest , a new hairdresser Pauline started working in the salon next door and it was soon obvious she was attracted to Mick. Despite her apparent interest in him Pauline rejected Mick's first suggestion of as date, however when he asked her out a second time Pauline eagerly accepted. The relationship seemed to be going well, until Pauline introduced Mick to her daughter Andrea, who made it very obvious to Mick that she also fancied him. Not wishing to disappoint either of them, Mick decided his best option would be to date them both. The situation was further complicated when Leo met Andrea and decided to ask her out, although she told him she was already seeing someone Leo persisted until one day he saw Mick and Andrea kissing. Leo confronted Mick about his relationship with Andrea but agreed not to tell Pauline when Mick told him he intended to stay with Andrea and stop seeing Pauline. Although Mick tried to let Pauline down gently, she was puzzled as to why Mick wanted to end the relationship until a short while later she caught Mick and Andrea together in the chippy. Mick tried to explain, but Pauline was not happy and poured a pan of batter over his head, much to the amusement of passers by. Undeterred by this messy conclusion to his relationship with women, Mick soon met another woman who found him attractive, this time though she was wealthy and married. As if the incident at the chip shop wasn't’t bad enough Mick was embarrassed again when his daughter Gemma and her school friend returned home early one day and caught him in bed with his new lover. The situation was made worse by the fact that Mick's new girlfriend just happened to be Gemma’s friends mother. While Mick was away one night, Leo and Tinhead held a party at his house, but it all went wrong when one of the guests Nikki Shadwick was drug raped, and Mick discovered Leo’s involvement in drugs. Mick was also annoyed by the fact the alleged rape took place in Gemma’s bedroom. He was convinced that rape suspect Luke Musgrove was guilty and resented Sinbad allowing the Musgrove family to continue living at No 9. Despite their disagreement Mick allowed Sinbad to continue living in his house but soon had even more guests to contend with. Gemma managed to persuade Mick to let her have a pet hamster which soon cost him money in vets bills when it became ill after a couple of days. A family crisis ended with Mick agreeing to look after Jerome, the son of a relative who needed a stable environment to prevent him getting into trouble with the police. Mick’s main concern though was that Jerome would be a bad influence on Leo. His fears proved to be well founded as Jerome began to make his mark on Brookside Close. Jerome had been left some money by his father, but instead of spending it wisely as Mick suggested, he bought a flash car and a mobile phone. When a racist Josh and his gang arrived in the area intent on causing trouble, Jerome made it clear he was not going to be intimidated. After Mick and Sinbad were attacked by Josh, Jerome retaliated in a revenge attack on Josh's gang. During the fight one of the racists was so badly injured he ended up in a wheelchair. Josh vowed to get even, and one of his first victims was Mick. Although he didn't attack Mick he vandalized his chip shop. Mick had earlier been fined for a breach of health regulations, so this act of vandalism was the last straw. Mick felt he had no option but to close his chip shop for good. Josh hadn't finished with Jerome either, one night he arrived on the close intending to firebomb the Johnson's, but as he attempted to throw the petrol bomb he covered himself in burning petrol and burnt to death instead. After recent events the atmosphere in the Johnson house became very tense as Mick blamed Jerome for bringing trouble to his door. Jerome left the close for a while but later returned to live with Nikki Shadwick at No. 6. Leo meanwhile found himself a job working as a gardener but both Mick and Sinbad instead of finding new jobs spent their time watching television. Gemma could twist Mick round her little finger, so when she asked if she could have a holiday in Barbados with friends he readily agreed. Within a few days of Gemma arriving in Barbados Mick received a phone call from Gemma's friends father saying he was sending her home as he had caught her smoking drugs. When Gemma arrived home Mick questioned her about the drugs, but Gemma denied being involved saying it was all her friends fault. However Mick was in for a further shock on New year's Eve when Gemma collapsed at the Millennium Club after taking an ecstasy tablet. Gemma was rushed to hospital where she lay in a coma for several hours, but to Mick's relief she came round and later made a full recovery. Mick was quick to apportion blame for Gemma's experience to Lindsey Corkhill he owned the club. There was more bad news for Mick when Gemma was expelled from the private school, when they found out what Gemma had done. At first Mick tried to get Gemma reinstated at the school, but later when they offered to take her back he decided instead to send her to Brookside comprehensive school. When Gemma protested about being sent to the school, Mick resorted to bribery by offering Gemma money to attend. Just as Mick thought his life would get back to normal his ex-wife Josie turned up on his doorstep. Apparently Gemma had written to her saying she was unhappy living with Mick and also about the drugs incident. Gemma was keen to go and live with Josie, who wasn't at first very keen on the idea, but later Mick was shaken when Josie agreed to take Gemma back with her. The one good thing to come out of Josie's visit was a job for Mick. While she was there Mick took her out for a meal at Susannah's restaurant where Susannah was having problems with a new chef. When the chef walked out, Mick offered to help out and was later offered the job as the new chef. About this time Susannah was trying to get back at Max by making him jealous, so when Mick started working at the restaurant she soon started flirting with him. Mick was only to happy to respond to her advances and he and Susannah would often meet up at the restaurant after hours to continue their affair. When Susannah became the victim of Emily's vendetta she turned to Mick for support and later moved in with him for a while after her house was flooded. Mick became very fond of Susannah and at one point proposed to her, but Susannah didn't take his proposal seriously. Later Mick tried again and this time Susannah realized he really meant it, so after seeking a second opinion from Jacqui Dixon she accepted Mick's proposal. Although Mick was delighted by Susannah's acceptance, he soon had other things on his mind, first his son Leo announced he intended joining the police force, then his best mate Sinbad was accused of child abuse. At first Mick was confident Sinbad was completely innocent, but after discussing it with Susannah he began to have second thoughts. It were these doubts that was to cause a serious rift between him and Sinbad, as Mick felt he had no choice but to ask Leo if Sinbad had ever touched him in an indecent way. Leo was furious with Mick for even asking such a question and later told Sinbad about Mick's doubts. Sinbad felt so angry about this he moved out of Mick's house and stayed with the Corkhill's until after his name was cleared. Although Sinbad later moved back to No 5, his friendship with Mick would never be the same again and so he eventually decided to move away from Brookside Close. Mick was devastated by his decision and felt very guilty that he had ever doubted his best mate. As Mick's wedding day drew nearer he began to hear rumours about Susannah having an affair, but when he confronted her about this, Susannah denied the allegation and said that Jacqui ( who had started the rumour ) was only trying to discredit her. On the Eve of his wedding Mick called round to see Susannah unexpectedly and found Darren there, but Susannah explained that Darren was there to administer first aid after she had been attacked by Jacqui. Later Mick, annoyed by Jacqui's attack on Susannah called to see Mike Dixon to cancel the arrangement for him to video the wedding. Jacqui was also at the Dixon's when Mick arrived and told him Darren had called on Susannah before the attack and they had virtually confessed to having an affair. Mick confronted Susannah about having an affair with Darren and although at first she denied it, Susannah later confessed it was true. Devastated by this shocking revelation, Mick told Susannah the wedding was off, returned home and destroyed the wedding cake in a fit of anger. The next morning Susannah was nowhere to be found, so Mick assumed she had used the honeymoon tickets to go away for a while. A few days later Susannah was discovered dead in her kitchen, having apparently fallen down the stairs. Meanwhile Mick had consoled himself by starting a relationship with Jeromes mother Yvonne, but when he heard about Susannah Mick felt guilty and told Yvonne he no longer wanted to see her. Jerome argued with Mick over the way he had treated his mother and as a result the atmosphere was very tense in the Johnson house for a while. Later Mick and Yvonne were reconciled, and after problems with her neighbours agreed to move in with Mick. Meanwhile Leo had struck up a relationship with Cheryl, a much older married woman whose husband was in prison. Cheryl wasn't really interested in a long term relationship and only wanted to have a good time while her husband was away. It wasn't too long before Mick found out about Leo's involvement with Cheryl and although he didn't exactly approve, he didn't try to stop Leo seeing her. Mick was proud of Leo and that he was progressing with his career in the Police Force, but this pride turned to anger when he discovered Leo had done something both foolish and illegal. One of their neighbours held a party, and their daughter Adele Murray who had a crush on Leo finally managed to get her man. Leo arrived at the party having already been out drinking and discovered Cheryl was more interested in Jimmy Corkhill. Adele seized the opportunity to seduce Leo and before long they had sex in her bedroom. Leo soon realised he had made a big mistake by having unprotected sex with Adele who was only fifteen, and at first tried to keep it a seceret by agreeing to go out with her. A letter arrived from the police saying his transfer to London had been approved, which gave Leo the excuse he wanted to finish with Adele and leave the close. Before he left though, Adele gave Leo a note, which Mick found suspicious. Mick quizzed Leo about this and Leo confessed he had made a stupid mistake with Adele. Mick was furious with Leo and at first wanted him face up to his responsibilities, but later decided it would be best if he left for London immediately. Tim and Emily later moved in with Mick after they were married. Jessie didn't approve of the marriage and refused to let Tim stay at the bungalow, so Mick took pity on the newlyweds them and allowed them to stay at No 5. He soon had cause to regret his generosity, when he returned from holiday with Yvonne to discover Tim had held a party which resulted in a lot of damage being caused. Meanwhile Adele Murray had realised she was pregnant and when she confessed to Diane and Marty that Leo was responsible, Marty called on Mick in a fury. A heated argument between the two parents resulted in them fighting, but after things had calmed down Mick offered to help out and inform Leo of Adele's condition. Although Leo was willing to accept full responsibility, Adele decided to have an abortion instead. Mick wanted to make his relationship with Yvonne more permanent and was keen for them to get married. At first Yvonne was reluctant to commit herself but Emily persuaded her that she should accept Mick's proposal. However Yvonne didn't really share Mick's enthusiasm for the wedding and soon regretted her decision. Frightened by what his reaction would be Yvonne tried to leave without telling him, but Mick returned home just as she was about to leave. Mick had bought an engagement ring and was devastated that she was leaving him. After trying unsuccessfully to persuade her to stay he took his anger out on Jerome, which made Yvonne even more determined to leave, taking Jerome with her. Mick then turned his attention to Max and Jacqui who appeared to be very happy together. Suspecting that they had plotted to kill Susannah, his former fiancé, Mick attacked Max and tried to make him confess. Jacqui managed to persuade him that neither of them had anything to do with Susannah's death, and Mick left to drown his sorrows with a bottle of whiskey. Mick's world was shattered and for a while he contemplated suicide, but after listening to Jimmy Corkhill, Mick decided to leave and start a new life away from the close.

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