Donna Rigden
There's a lot of Shelia in Donna's character. Like Shelia, Donna has long dark hair, comes from the northern part of Louisiana and likes to laugh. Her idea of fun is to use water and ice - OK in a hot climate but 'Brrrr' in the UK. She's fascinated by science and the chemistry of life.
Donna was raised by her grandparents after her parents were killed in an 'accident' at a sewage plant.
Like Shelia, Donna gets caught out occasionally by the differences in language between the UK and USA. After 18 years both finally learnt that the passenger side of a car is on the left in the UK.
| UK | US equivalent | US meaning of UK word/s |
|---|---|---|
| Boot (of a car) | Trunk | A type of shoe |
| 'Knock you up' | Wake you up by knocking on your door or windows | Make you pregnant |
| Pastie | A savoury pastry | Tassel worn on stripper's nipple |
| Rubber | Eraser | Condom |
| Biscuit | Cookie | The English call an American biscuit a scone |
| Motorway | Interstate | |
| Tyre | Tire | You can get tired but not tyred in the UK |
| Flat | Apartment | Punctured 'tire' (See above) |
| 'Spotted dick' | A current pudding | A venereal disease |
| Midgie | Gnat | Chocholate candy or a derogatory tern of someone short of stature |
| Hash key (#) | Number or pound key | A messy key which is correctly called an 'octothorpe' |
| Pound (£) | (Huh?) | The UK unit of currency |
| Pet (Term of endearment esp. in North) | Honey or other term of endearment | An animal |
| Hall (Big house) | Mansion | Civic building - Town Hall |
Of course Donna is totally mystified by the strong local dialect in use in Newcastle and Northumberland. That's understandable when many in the UK wouldn't understand, "Divn't fash yersel Hinnie but divn't drop yer dottle on the proggy mat man. Translation: "Don't worry about it but don't drop your cigarette ash on the carpet."
Alcohol and Donna just don't mix. You might think it's impossible for someone to be drunk after drinking just half a glass of brandy but Donna, like Shelia has American Indian blood in her veins and has no tolerance of alcohol. Just half a pint of cider (10 oz) is enough to make Shelia badly affected.
We envisioned Donna would look something like Terry Farrell or Kristin Kreuk
The books
Isle or aisle?