The father, the patriach of the family, strong and silent, great in a crisis, with a dry, almost cutting sense of humour. A big man with a big heart, capable of huge moments of generosity, while refusing to spend any money at all on himself. Joe has worked in the Merchant Navy all his life and has often been away from home for six months at a time, but now he’s back in the family home and while there's never anything but love between him and Pauline, it's an added pressure on the Pearsons.