Prisoner Cell Block H Wiki
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"Thank you for everything."

Judy Bryant was a former inmate of Wentworth Detention Centre.

Before her arrest and indictment to Wentworth Judy worked as a taxi driver and was in a relationship with Sharon Gilmour. Judy brought dope into Wentworth after Sharon's arrest just to 'visit' Sharon as her 'sister' but the inmates and staff quickly realise the she is in love with her.

Judy after Sharon's death vows revenge on Jock Stewart and manages to do so in her escape from Wentworth getting him arrested and then again after she is released from Wentworth she leaves Jock injured and paralysed.

Upon another release from prison Judy oversees the two halfway houses that housed inmates released from prisons, and even named the second halfway house Driscoll House after Susie Driscoll, Judy would work closely with Wally Wallace and the prison.

Judy would return to Wentworth for her final stint after assisting and aiding in Hazel Kent's death with the rumours swirling in halfway house that she had done it. Judy surrenders to police and is sent back to Wentworth to a prison in shock. Judy losses the respect of some of the women but gets the respect back eventually.

Judy leaves Wentworth to begin a new life which included being a music writer and singer.

Before Wentworth

Judy was introduced as Sharon Gilmour's "sister" in Episode 091, but it quickly becomes obvious that they are actually lovers. Judy was a Taxi Driver in Melbourne's eastern suburbs.

While visiting Sharon, Judy is manipulated into bringing drugs into the prison for Sharon, out of love the prisoners and staff eventually realise that Judy is not Sharon's sister but something else, her lover. When Judy feared that Sharon was in love with Chrissie Latham, Judy deliberately got herself arrested, at Wentworth, by hiding drugs in her coin clip, and freely handing it over to Meg Jackson for inspection.

Life in Wentworth

After Sharon is murdered by Jock Stewart, Jock describes in vivid detail how he murdered her to Judy, causing her to swear revenge on him, angered by the fact that Jock got away with it scot free at the time, and causing Judy to help instigate a rooftop protest to get the message to the public about Sharon's murder. This rooftop protest ended with another death, that of Leanne Burke.

Judy made a couple of escape attempts not long after this, the first escaping hospital and attempting to flee the country to see her sick father before he dies, and the second during the collapse of the underground tunnel - Judy was on the right side of the collapse. Judy finds a friend called Wally Wallace and his daughter. Then Wally gets arrested and Judy runs away and stays with Helen Smart doing prostitution. Jock Stewart starts blackmailing her to give him $300 each day (172). Eventually Judy gets sick of it and calls the police and said he is looking after her and Judy was recaptured and Jock was arrested.

Despite claiming to be a virgin in an earlier episode, Judy has a daughter Lori Young, who tracks her down, and even gets herself imprisoned to be closer to her mother. Lori is eventually released, and marries Geoff Maynard.

After a scheme Judy manages to pull with Doreen Anderson leaving the prison understaffed, Judy is transferred to Barnhurst, but is transferred back for her parole hearing where she is released.

Judy encounters Jock Stewart on the outside when Judy is out with Lori and Geoff celebrating, she notices Jock come out of the bathroom, when he tracks her down and threatens to expose her past to Lori and Geoff, but they already know. Jock rapes her when she refuses to get him money. Judy manages to run and when Jock chases after her, he ironically falls down a flight of stairs himself, and is left paralyzed.

After her release she opens the Susie Driscoll Halfway House in honour of ex-Wentworth prisoner Susie Driscoll. Many ex-detainee's are housed at Driscoll House to help them get back on their feet, including Lizzie Birdsworth, Maxine Daniels and Paddy Lawson. Judy is sent to Wentworth yet again for giving her terminally ill friend and former inmate Hazel Kent an overdose. She gets upset when Joan Ferguson tells her Bea is being transferred to Barnhurst. When she arrives back Lizzie isn't happy with her and ignores for a little while but soon starts speaking to her again. Pixie Mason wants Judy to take over as Top Dog from Sonia Stevens but Judy isn't interested. Judy gets a five year sentence. She takes over as Top Dog when Sonia tries to take over when Minnie Donovan is ill. She leads a protest on the roof when Joan poisons Minnie with the help of Cass Parker (419). Minnie hands the top dog position over to Judy (421). Judy stirs some trouble for Joan while she is Acting Governor, first the women refuse to leave the rec room and Joan turns the heating off. When Erica Davidson comes to Wentworth to investigate Joan as Acting Governor Judy and the women refuse to leave the laundry. When Major Ferguson is kidnapped to get Reb Kean out of Wentworth, Judy keeps Reb in the dinning room and Joan resigns.

Judy eventually leaves Wentworth to begin a new musical career as a folk singer after finding out she is being released she decides its time to make her own destiny (534). It was mentioned during Myra's funeral that Judy was on a world tour in New Zealand (556). Reb Kean has a flashback of Judy while looking at Willie Beecham (577).

Trivia

  • Betty Bobbitt originally tried for the role of Bea Smith, but didn't get it because she couldn't get the yell right.
  • Judy was originally supposed to be short term, and die from her bad heart, but the writers kept her around when she was more loved by the fans.
  • Ep 337 - in her father's will she is named Judy May Bryant and not Frances (writer's slip?)
  • Upon the news of the death of Maxine Daniels, Judy's initial reaction is hilariously over dramatic.
  • Judy appears briefly in episode 577 as a vision in the mind of Reb Kean who is returned from Blackmoor. Reb is looking at the back of Willie Beecham sat at the piano and instead sees the back of Judy.
  • Technically Judy shouldn't have been allowed to go on a "world tour" because of her criminal history she would not have been allowed to leave the country.
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