FILE #013: Christian Pollard

Name: Christian Percival Pollard (based on Kristian Pohjola, an old character)
Date of birth: 14 February 1997
Age: 22
Height: 180cm
Nationality: English of Polish descent
Hometown: London, England (born in Krakow, Poland)
Languages: English, Polish
Eye colour: Blue
Hair colour: Dark blond
Skin colour: Fair
Distinctive features: Lots of scars on back, a mole under left eye
Personality in a few words: A lovable and caring star runner who is always there for his friends.
Family: Daniel Pollard (father), Charlie Pollard (older brother); Kelly Pollard (mother; divorced)
Issues: Severe apple allergy, mixed anxiety/depression disorder, body dysmorphic disorder/anorexia

Detailed information

Favourite music: Ramones, Sex Pistols, The Clash
Favourite movies: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Psycho, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Favourite TV series: Orange Is the New Black, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Lost
Favourite foods: Chicken tikka masala, nachos, sushi
Hobby: Gaming, reading

Character history

COMING SOON

The creative process

Christian, who was originally a Finnish teenager called Kristian Pohjola, belonged to the same universe as Renny, Newt, Johnny and Lachlan; Inside These Walls. Now, I can't remember exactly what his crime was - I have an inkling it was something related to possessing drugs or dealing them. But don't quote me on that, because I'm not at all sure. He was definitely guilty of his crime, though, and was rightfully doing community service for it. That short-lived, underdeveloped universe of mine apparently had some very questionable laws, so maybe it's a good thing that it never actually went anywhere. Obviously, the first version of Christian was a part of the Neljän seinän sisällä-universe. He wasn't a particularly memorable character, though; Kristian was a slightly loud but lovable fool and his main storylines dealt with his allergy of apples and his relationship.
   Christian's personality itself didn't actually change that much in the remaking process. He became a bit more shy and caring, but the fact that he's always there ready to stand up for his friends has always remained the same. I've always imagined him as a gentle giant, if you will. He's always been someone who's almost exhaustingly kind, and the first version of him was someone who wasn't good at showing it. However, I realised that I had one too many guys who had issues with displaying their true feelings, so I decided to change Christian a bit. He became someone who easily lets people know that he cares, and I imagine him as someone you'd definitely want in your corner. Best friend goals, perhaps.
   The biggest change in Christian's appearance was probably his eyes, as they were blue/green before. That, and the fact that he had a few piercings, but I didn't feel like they fit him, so I got rid of them and gave a mole instead. As I mentioned before, he's always been tall; I think he's one of the tallest out of all my children, even in his early stages. I like to self-insert my shortness into my characters, but for some reason I never felt like Christian would be short. He always felt like a tall person. If I close my eyes and imagine him as a real person, I see this really tall, lanky guy with blue eyes and dirty blonde hair. The scars on his back are something he's also always had. The reason for them is his allergy, which has caused him to scratch at his back (often unknowingly, or, you know, unconsciously) so much that scarring has occurred.
   Now, as I mentioned above, the first version of Christian didn't really have much going for him. I kept his allergy because it's something I can't imagine him without, but it isn't that big of a storyline for him these days. When we reinvented the old Neljän seinän sisällä-universe, I came up with the idea of him wanting to become a professional athlete. In particular, a runner. In itself it felt like a really plain storyline, so that's where I got the idea for his eating disorder, mixed in with an (un)healthy dose of body dysmorphia. The way it goes for him is that at some point his coach tells him to lose a little bit of weight in order to improve his speed (don't look at me like that, I don't have a clue how these things work in real life), which causes him to think that he's not muscular enough (this is where the dysmorphia kicks in) and eventually it develops into an eating disorder.
   In the original universe, Kristian was dating a boy named Onni. I don't remember whether their story actually progressed anywhere or if we ever even got to a point where they became an item, so it's quite possible that their relationship was only planned, but never actually managed to happen. In Sunset Bay, I initially thought about pairing him up with Renny, but then I got a better idea. Back in the OG universe days, I had sneakily thought about pairing Kristian up with one of my other characters, Japi. Obviously that never happened, but seeing as Japi is the character who eventually became Johnny, it gave me the idea to put them together. I haven't yet come up with an actual ''timeline'' for their relationship, but it's a big storyline for both of them, seeing as they both have their own issues and in a fashion true to almost all of my children, they're never upfront about their problems until they almost literally explode in their hands. I don't know where they get that from...