John William Fairfax was the owner of Fairfax Iron before being Ghost-Touched by the ghost of his former lover, Annabel Ward, whom he had murdered out of rage.
On the Lockwood & Co. TV series, John Fairfax is portrayed by Nigel Planer.
History[]
Many years ago, before the apex of the Problem, John Fairfax was a wild boy. His father wanted him to go straight into the family business, the Fairfax Iron Company, but Fairfax instead spent years living it up in London, drinking, gambling and trying to be an actor. During this time, he met Annabel Ward and became romantically entangled with her. The two ended up in a violent confrontation and he choked her to death, hiding her body at 62 Sheen Road. Following this, Fairfax eschewed romance for the remainder of his life, never marrying and having no children. He assumed his father's position and took over day-to-day affairs at Fairfax Iron.
Many years later, the body and ghost of Annabel Ward were discovered at 62 Sheen Road, along with the locket commissioned by Fairfax that was the ghost's Source. Learning of Lockwood & Co.'s activities, Fairfax hired the company for a job at one of his properties, Combe Carey Hall, hoping that the combined hauntings of the Red Room and Screaming Staircase would finish them off. Anthony Lockwood, however, pieced together Fairfax's intentions and the group succeeded in banishing the Hall's hauntings and escaping from the premises, only to be met by the waiting Fairfax. He then attempted to personally kill them all. However, Lucy Carlyle, who had retained Ward's necklace, used it to release Annabel Ward's spirit, which then killed Fairfax via Ghost-Touch. Having served its purpose, the ghost then disappeared from the world. As Lucy released Annabel, Fairfax donned a pair of goggles which seemed to do nothing. These were taken from the scene by George Cubbins, the only piece of evidence not claimed by DEPRAC, and were later revealed to have the ability to allow even those who did not possess Talent to see ghosts.
Behind the scenes[]
On the Netflix television series, much of the backstory of John Fairfax's father is instead transferred to himself. He is said to have been very connected in Soho before having built Fairfax Iron up from nothing and also having been into gambling and casinos.
References[]
- ↑ The Screaming Staircase, V: And After, Ch. 25 - "Fairfax himself had no direct heirs. It turned out he had never married and had no children of his own. So perhaps Annabel Ward had been the love of his life, after all."