Alan Boothe

Alan Boothe had apparently lived in skelthwaite all his life and knew all the main characters (despite the fact that the character had never been seen or mentioned before).

He was first seen in series 7 episode 1 when he was waiting for a bypass operation for his heart. he was past retirement age but Anna was letting him work at the factory. Part of the conditions of him having a bypass was for him to give up smoking and unhealthy foods which he ignored. When he fell ill Anna contacted his son Billy and his family and they invited Alan to come live with him. However he couldn't cope with living away from the town and in the end they came to live with him in skelthwaite. During this Alan collapsed and he did indeed have his bypass operation.

Now having to live a more healthy lifestyle under the guidance of Daughter in law Sally who was a nurse Alan adapted quite well to having his family around and became more involved in the Rugby team helping with their fundraising (such as a talent contest and a nude calender where he took the photos). He also provided support to David when Karen left him and when David couldn't be coach of the Scorpions anymore Alan took over but booked a female rugby team by mistake leading David to retake the coaching of the team.

When Beth's father didn't show up for her wedding to Tom, Alan walked her down the aisle.

In series 8 Ozias Harding took control of the factory and one of the first things he did was fire Alan. He justified it by saying he was past retirement age and the wage bill had to be reduced. This ultimately led to Billy resigning from the job as well.

Alan got bored just sitting around at home and got tempted again to start smoking. However before he could take a smoke he discovered a scratchcard in the newspaper he bought and he realised he had won a world cruise. Alan decided to take it and just before he left he managed to sort out a blip in Sally and Billy's marriage, helped redecorate the kitchen and contacted a local newspaper about his win (making the 50s night organised for the rugby team look like a farewell party). He was last seen in a taxi heading for his crusie.