a keen awareness of ethical issues, to the point where a conflict of opinions with Tim over his planned in-centre menu results in Linda and a group of environmentally-minded friends staging an animal rights protest outside, where Tim is shut inside a small cage to prove her point. Her cheerful nature may explain why she is chosen to staff the reception desk during Carole's assertiveness training. Linda has a brother, who works in a tropical disease centre at Birmingham and is knowledgeable about poisonous plants and spiders, and they want to go to Oregon to start up a gun shop there. Linda also says she has a sister in one episode. She met her long-term partner Edward at school and brings him to a social event at the centre on one occasion; he is considerably older than Linda, leading her to admit that he was her headmaster. Linda is drawn to the spiritual life, stating that her ambition is to become the first female Archbishop of Canterbury. At the time of Brittas' planned departure for Brussels, Linda had been offered a place at theological college and the Christmas 1994 special, "In The Beginning", implied that she did go on to become a senior member of the clergy. Tim Whistler Tim Whistler (played by Russell Porter) is a pool attendant and chef. Tim is bisexual and, unbeknownst to Gordon Brittas, in a relationship with fellow pool attendant Gavin Featherly, with whom he shares an apartment. Like most of his colleagues, Tim despises his manager, Brittas, and often complains or schemes to disrupt the centre to get at him through strikes and protests. Although a lively, confident worker, Tim is slightly mentally troubled and has regular appointments with psychiatrists. He has mood swings, becomes jealous over Gavin, and cannot endure Gavin's noticing anyone but him. His unbalanced, emotional persona makes their relationship increasingly strained as the series progresses and causes a further rift between them when Gavin becomes a deputy manager. Tim and Gavin stay together despite this tension but Tim occasionally snipes at Gavin and resents his sucking up to Brittas. Although Tim has few apparent aspirations within the leisure centre, he briefly gets excited at the prospect of becoming a deputy manager when Brittas leaves for a new job of European Sports Commissioner in Brussels. However, this fails to eventuate after Brittas is almost 'killed' at the end of series