abstract
| - __TOC__ Claire Stanton is a character in The Bill. Claire Stanton was in her early thirties, and got where she was by hard graft and a genuine passion of the police - in short she was a strong woman who was very good at her job. She arrived at the station from Finchley, allegedly to move closer to her mother who had recently suffered a stroke. As a colleague, Claire was personable and had a warm open charm that meant it was very hard not to like her. She got on equally with men and women and though attractive, it was in a straightforward, down to earth way - she would never use her sexuality to get on - she didn't need to and wouldn't see the point. Claire may have been charming, but she knew how to play people and the system. She deftly manipulated any situation to her own advantage, so much so that she would leave a conversation having got a lot from you, yet having given nothing away of herself. In truth though, when her colleagues tried to get past the bright exterior they soon started to hit a brick wall. She developed such a convincing professional persona that the true Claire Stanton had become very well hidden - even Claire would be hard pressed to find her. On the surface though, the sense of humour and straight approach to policing, meant that when working with Clare, you always knew where you stood. It was this clarity and humour that fast turned her into the DC's choice of sergeants to be stuck on a boring obbo with. The direct approach and no holes barred teasing, soon made inroads with her fellow sergeants too. Their chauvinistic scepticism was soon mostly forgotten as they were begrudgingly forced to admit - Claire Stanton was good news. What they didn’t realise though was that she had been placed at Sun Hill by CIB to gain evidence of DS Don Beech's corruption. Unfortunately her clandestine investigation into Beech became compromised by her affair with John Boulton, following whose murder she became more determined than ever to nail desperate Don. After supposedly killing him in Australia she resigned. Even after she quit the force to work in security, she made it her mission to bring Beech to justice - and eventually did - getting him sent down for life.
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