a beach boy suntan – coupled, in his case, with the brightness of a 40 watt light bulb." O'Brien told her that he chose to play Shane "a bit dumber" than he was meant to be and more quick-tempered, as he did not want the character to be so nice. He felt that Shane was wimpy. Shane was paired with Daphne Lawrence (Elaine Smith) for a romance story. During the show's first-season finale, Daphne ends the relationship as she is in love with Des Clarke (Paul Keane). After breaking up with Des, Daphne reconciles with Shane and they become engaged, however, Daphne worries that she is rushing into marriage on the rebound and they end the engagement. A love triangle was then established between Daphne, Shane and Des. In June 1986, Stephen Cook from TV Week reported that Daphne would accept a marriage proposal from one of the men, which would result in marriage. Smith thought Daphne was best suited to Shane and said she had a great deal of love for him. O'Brien told Cook that as far as Shane is concerned, Daphne is the only woman he has ever loved and feels that he is more suited to her than Des. Whilst drunk at Paul and Terry Inglis' (Maxine Klibingaitis) wedding reception, Shane boasts about how badly he treats Daphne. Writers later devised a dramatic story for Shane, which sees him involved in a car crash which kills Jean Richards (Margot Knight). Shane is driving home from Daphne and Des Clarke's (Paul Keane) wedding when he loses control of his car and crashes into a stationary vehicle. O'Brien told Patrice Fidgeon from TV Week that "there's a blowout just as Shane is trying to negotiate a difficult turn coming down the hill. He loses control of his car and careers into a parked car." Jean dies and Shane feels guilty because he had drunk alcohol at the party. Though Shane had only drunk a small amount of alcohol. Alex Carter (Kevin Summers), a local resident gives him some brandy to calm his nerves following the crash. O'Brien revealed that Shane faces manslaughter charges as a result. The police arrive and breathalyse Shane, who is arrested and later released on bail. O'Brien explained that "if he loses his license Shane feels that's the end of his livelihood. But what shatters him the most is that he has killed a