[Seraphim]

I agree with the original poster.

I cannot agree with this post:

Originally Posted by jet

I don't think many people are pretending to like Linda, Zee. Most people are just sympathizing with her. I'm not fond of her myself but I give her a bit of a pass because she's had a hard time. She watched her husband and sister die of cancer and she went through the harrowing treatment for it herself.
She is obviously menopausal as she is always having hot flushes and fanning herself. Even as a man I know how emotionally all over the place and sensitive women can be when their hormones are running amok, and I'm not being patronizing here I hope: it's the truth.
Personally, if I was dealing with her sniping at me, I wouldn't take opportunities to have my own snipes at her. I certainly wouldn't make comments like 'have another vat of wine dear' on several occasions to wind her up. Not sure what he has on her there, but as he is an alcoholic it was pretty strange.
They are each as bad as each other (though I believe Jim is worse now) and to be honest I take her side more because of what I have written above and because I don't like what he used to be (and could still be, as none of us knows him personally) nor do I like him in the house. I see him as arrogant, manipulative and miserable. I don't like how he deals with situations and his recent lying and trying to shift the blame.

I hope this answers your question and makes sense.

I think this is extremely patronising and even insulting. (Not that I am offended, but I'm just saying). Being female and menopausal does not change someone's personality and it isn't even close to being an adequate excuse for Linda Nolan's sour bitching, spiteful conduct and manipulative behaviour. That over-the-top fake melt-down she had just because of the mention of Frank Carson's dressingroom was pathetic. Yes, we feel sorry that she's had a tough time and has lost her husband, but she felt strong enough to challenge Jim at every opportunity she got and to try to create new opportunities if none came up. Her husband broke the law years ago so it couldn't have come as a shock to her. She was just laying it on thick for sympathy.
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Jim has basically kept his mouth shut until now, but Linda basically opened the door to the comment during that huge scene she created in the garden beforehand. She brought the whole thing on herself, and I haven't an ounce of sympathy for her. She has probably been bitching about people and creating drama and friction since she was at school.

And as for Jim being miserable.. I'm a fun-loving party animal, and I've have been utterly miserable if I'd been Jim. Every time he walked into the bedroom there was a trio of women like MacBeth's witches, bitching about him. Every time he opened his mouth, she was onto him like a heat-seeking missile. Every time he tried to crack a joke, it got taken the wrong way. No wonder he was grumpy. Yeah, on this one occasion he seems to have tried to wriggle out of responsibility for her being so upset - he probably didn't anticipate her having such an over-the-top response, so he's trying to limit the damage. I have total sympathy for him. No-one is perfect. Most people I know, including myself, would not have coped so well under the same circumstances.