Alfred Cole
Alfred 'Alfie' Cole is the Earl of Bramley. He is played by Alex.
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| Portrayed by James McAvoy | |
| Full Name | Alfred Alexander Finchley Cole |
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| Title | Earl of Bramley |
| Associated Noble House(s) | Earldom of Bramley, Viscount Castlereagh |
| Date of Birth | 1 December 1775 |
| Father | Charles Cole |
| Father's Rank | Earl |
| Mother | Anna Cole nee Hamilton |
| Mother's Rank | Countess |
| Town Residence | - |
| Income | - |
| School | Harrow |
| University | - |
| Year Attained Title | 1807 |
Family
Father: Charles Cole, the late Earl of Bramley d. 1807
Mother: Anna Cole (nee Hamilton)
Sister: Susannah Charlotte Werlington (nee Cole) b. 1774 married Colin Werlington
Brother: Hamilton Cole b. 1778
Sister: Constance Anne Cole b. 1790
Brother: Charlie Cole b. 1789
Paternal uncle: James Cole
Aunt: Ursula Cole
Multiple cousins of similar age
Background
Alfred is the second child, and eldest son, of a respectable five children.
His parents were introduced on a Wednesday evening at Almacks, London, when she was nineteen and he twenty-five. There was no instant attraction but she recognised in him a steady, confident character (who was single) and he in her a pleasant spark that made him smile (and that she was single). She was flattered by the attention, he flattered by her deference, they wed the following spring and children followed an appropriate time later. If the relationship ever blossomed into love it was a short-lived sort of love and soon enough gave way to a friendship and then to an amiable enough acquaintance where both actively avoided spending any time alone. Their children grew up in a happyish environment in northern England.
Upon Alfred, the impressionable young Lord Castlereagh as he then was, the key influences during childhood were his father’s manifest importance and power in the town (and, indeed, across whole county); his quick and generous elder sister Susannah, the laughter and bonhomie of the troupes of his parents’ friends who came, ate, drank, hunted.
By the time he was sent down to Harrow (the Cole alma mater) he was a sociable, bright child who was eager to please. By the time he made it to Oxford he had developed a large group of friends and was rarely seen out of company with them: the Hawk and Hare was their inn and woe betide anyone who attempted to claim the back table.
By 1810 Alfred was Earl in his own right, his father having passed a few years earlier, and he began to notice that many of his friends had — somewhere along the line — wed. Accordingly, their happy circle’s entertainments had matured: gone were raging Seasons of debauched explorations of Covent Garden, gone were risqué encounters in libraries at hunting parties (not strictly true, they still existed — they were just better kept secrets for the stakes were higher), children were being produced and proudly displayed at dinner parties. Alfie cheerfully accepted that it was time for him, too, to find a wife.
Lady Frances Howard made it easy for him. She was fair, well-connected and (most importantly, though he of course did not recognise it), universally recognised as very eligible indeed. Done. They were introduced towards the end of the 1810 Season at Almacks — just as his parents had been. A few weeks later he had proposed and she accepted and everyone was very pleased for the handsome couple. Not least the handsome couple.
And there the fairytale ends. The start of the 1811 Season brought with it rumours that the engagement had ended sometime before Christmas. The fact that both Alfie and Frances are now back in town, she still with her maiden name, he still flirting his way through the Almacks crowds, seems to prove them true. Alfred himself won’t be drawn on the matter and nor will his family.
However, simply by being in London he clearly has a point to make: That He Is Fine.
Appearance
Alfie is tall and rangy, lean, with a restless sort of energy about him and an athletic appearance -- whilst not, in actuality, being terribly athletic) His features are boyish and, perhaps to counter this, over winter he tends towards attempting grow a (rather unimpressive) beard. His hair is an average shade of brown and his eyes a bright, clear blue.
Personality
Alfie has quite a serious mind and sensitive soul but cheerfully camouflages these quite well as he is also very outgoing indeed. He is likes to be in company and feels most at home at a ball or a large house party or in the billiards room at the club, surrounded by the gents in his inner circle. He is least at home in any form of confrontation and prefers group interactions over one-on-one conversations. The Season is his favourite time of the year. Many might describe him as a happy-go-lucky type with more friends and energy than your average peer.
All of that is true, but under it lies a man who is deeply conscious of what others think of him. He is more prone to pack mentality than most and notably poor at making decisions himself. This goes some way to explaining his quick choice of bride (she was universally considered lovely and so a simple choice) and most definitely explains his sense of style (sharply tailored to be the height of fashion, whatever that is at the time). He is so comfortable with his external persona and it is now so well lived-in that this underlying insecurity rarely shows — though his elder sister and younger brother have both seen a bit of it of late given recent events.
Besides ensuring he looks the part, his other interests include helping his friends engineer the most lavish of house parties, cricket, making hilarious entries in the White’s betting book.