This Life's spokesman for Equal Opportunities, the biker in black bats for both sides. Rampant, monosyllabic and grumpy, with big hair an big hangups, Ferdy blow dries his boxers and batters BMWs with pieces of scaffolding. Confused? So is Ferdy.

But it's not funny to make fun of Ferdy, for Ferdy spends his life being tortured whenever he has any fun. It's easy for the others (with the glaring exception of Miles) to be comfortable with his bisexuality, but Ferdy is in agonies about it: it's just something he can't accept. He regards it as the source of all his troubles.

He's probably right. He first appears on the screen as Warren's Big Hope. After one night of rampant sex Warren is babbling to his therapist about how Ferdy's 'the one'; about how he can see himself taking Ferdy back to the valleys to meet the folks. But Ferdy ignores Warren's phone calls and is still intent on getting married to Bjork look-alike Mia in two weeks' time. Warren is distraught - and so is Ferdy when Mia finds out about the extra-mural activities. Ferdy thinks Warren told her and it's not until much later he discovers the informant was Seb, an ex-colleague who proceeds to take Ferdy's place in Mia's life. By way of thanks Ferdy proceeds to take a scaffold pole to Seb's BMW.

And that's not even the half of it. After Warren is caught cottaging, he implores Ferdy to keep him company in the house - platonically. Even though he has been kicked out of his parents' home, Ferdy is reluctant to stay. He's extremely uncomfortable around Miles, and the house is not a happy place to be at the moment. Yet, Ferdy is still crashing there after Warren's departure - and he wants to take Warren's place. Why? Because he's made some friends, that's why. Like Warren, he wants to belong somewhere, and he's bonded with Anna, Milly - and especially Egg. Miles won't admit it, but he's ferociously jealous of Egg's friendship with Ferdy. In his quiet way, Ferdy becomes the catalyst for Egg's career as a cook, teaching him Mexican recipes and, more importantly, boosting his confidence.

Sex remains a problem: he's started an affair with Lenny the plumber but still can't handle the idea of having a boyfriend - especially when Lenny introduces him to his sister. Next thing Ferdy knows he's picked up a girl and taken her back to the house for the night. A big mistake: Miles informs her of Ferdy's batting tactics and, when Ferdy and Lenny get back together, drops hefty hints to the latter about the same issue. Ferdy loses it and thumps Miles: 'just tell them you got punched in the face by a poof.' It's the mortification of Miles.

What Miles doesn't know is that Ferdy saw what was going down on the sofa while the newly affianced Francesca was asleep upstairs. He could have blown the whistle, but he isn't spiteful.

He tries, again and again, to form some sort of friendship with Miles - but Miles is having none of it. The homophobic taunts flow thick and fast and he refuses to have drinks with Ferdy or even share his dope - in his presence at least. When Ferdy is out of the house it's a different story and, on the night when the police come to quiz Ferdy about he BMW incident, Miles is getting wrecked with Egg on Ferdy's blow. Egg gets the giggles in front of the plod and is such a mess he can't even make tea. Miles rages around, flushes Ferdy's dope down the loo - and then finds himself having to commit perjury 'to cover Ferdy's arse'. A splendid irony.

Eventually Miles and Ferdy make peace - and Ferdy and Lenny make frantic love in the loo at Miles's wedding. Ferdy declares his love for Lenny - but somehow we reckon the story of Ferdy's sexual struggles hasn't ended.