Catherine McAvoy
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| Portrayed by Keeley Hawes | |
| Full Name | Catherine Helen McAvoy, Dowager Countess of Kirkfries |
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| Associated Noble House(s) | Earldom Parry, Barony of Loseley, Earldom of Kirkfries |
| Date of Birth | 18th March 1781 |
| Father | Henry Layton (deceased) |
| Father's Rank | Earl |
| Mother | Louisa Layton (nee Barnet) |
| Mother's Rank | Dowager Countess |
| Town Residence | {{{residence}}} |
| Year of Debut | 1798 |
| Dowry | £40,000 |
| Year of Marriage | 1798 |
| Spouse | Godfrey McAvoy |
| Spouse's Rank | Earl |
| Year of Widowhood | 1800 |
| Issue | None |
Lady Kirkfries is the eldest child of the first Earl and Countess Parry. She married the Earl of Kirkfries in 1798 and was widowed in 1800 after two years of unhappy marriage. Since then, she has become a fashionable hostess in Edinburgh, known for her feminist opinions, outspoken opinions, and her lovers.
Catherine is played by Rose.
Family
Henry Layton, Earl Parry (deceased) - father
Louisa, Dowager Countess Parry - mother
Henry Layton, Earl Parry - brother
Lady Phoebe Layton/Sister Maria Agnes - sister
Archibald Layton, Marquess of Crantock - great-uncle
Jane, Duchess of Welby (deceased) - cousin
Lady Madalene Rossington - first cousin once removed
Sophia, Duchess of Leighton (deceased) - paternal aunt
Nicholas, Duke of Leighton - cousin
Lord William Gosling - cousin
Constance Blackwood - maternal aunt
Richard Blackwood - cousin
Background
Lady Catherine Layton, elder sister of the current Earl and Lady Phoebe Layton was brought up at Loseley Park in Berkshire and made her debut in 1798. She was one of the most admired young ladies of the season, being beautiful, extremely lively and witty, an excellent singer and most importantly rich. Drunk on adoration and full of self-confidence and desire for independence she married the Earl of Kirkfries for his unentailed title on a very short acquaintance. This was a mistake. Once Lord Kirkfries had got his young wife back to his estate in Scotland, he proceeded to treat her with coldness and tyranny bordering on the cruel. Catherine who had felt merely indifferent towards him on their marriage soon grew to loathe him and herself for marrying him. Fortunately he died of food poisoning after only two years of matrimony in 1800, leaving her his entire fortune and property. The title itself has reverted to the crown.
Since Lord Kirkfries' death, Catherine has thrown herself into Scottish high society, taking a house in Edinburgh during the season and entertaining lavish house parties at Kirkfries Castle in the summer. She has taken and discarded many lovers since her husband's death but shows no sign of contemplating remarriage.
She remains close to her brother Henry and she has recently arrived in London to stay with him, following a falling out with a lover in Edinburgh and his wife and mother.
Relationships
Friends
Henry, Earl Parry: Catherine has a strong, close relationship with her brother.
Georgiana, Lady Louth: Met Lady Louth at church and immediately liked her.
Lady Gwendolyn Moncrieff: Met Lady Gwendolyn at Henry's party and immediately talked to her about rather personal matters.
Robert Vickery: A school friend of Henry's whom Catherine has now met.
Emma Vickery: Catherine enjoyed riding with her.
Robert Fitzgerald: Catherine enjoys flirting with Lady Viola's brother.
Lady Viola Fitzgerald: Catherine enjoys Lady Viola's company though does not know her ell.
Lovers
Enemies
Thread Tracking
Tuesday 30th April
- Lady Kirkfries to Lord Parry[1]: Catherine announces her intention to come to London
Saturday 4th May
- La Belle Ecossaise[2]: Catherine arrives at Layton House
Sunday 5th May
- Hills of the North in a Southern Church[3]: Catherine and Henry meet Lady Louth at church
- du besoin d'avoir une femme dans ma confidence[4]: With Lady Gwendolyn, Miss Pritchard and the Duke of Leighton
Monday 6th May
- Riding in Rotten Row[5]: Out riding with Henry and meeting Mr. And Miss Vickery
- Curiosity and the Cat[6]: Calling on the Baroness de Grave
Tuesday 7th May
- A Chance Collision[7]: Bumping into John Quinn on Bond Street
- I dearly love to laugh[8]: With Henry and Dosie in the milliner's
- From One Brother to Another[9]: Calls on Robbie Fitzgerald with Henry
- Whispered during intermissions[10]: With Charity and Gabriel at the opera