Jemima (2024)

"People find it scary apparently."― Jemima to the other ghosts^[src]

Jemima is the ghost of a little girl who died of plague and now has the ability to make her singing heard by the living. She is portrayed by actress Anya McKenna-Bruce.

Biography[]

Everything is unknown about Jemima save for her cause of death. The exact era she was born in cannot be determined and it is unknown if she is somehow connected to the other plague victims in the basem*nt, but if she is she may prefer not living in the basem*nt as she seems to be the only child ghost. However, given that there were no major outbreaks in the UK after the 1666 epidemic, we can definitively say that this is the latest she died. Thomas mentions that she was rumored to haunt the pantry and kitchens when he was alive so she has certainly been dead since before the Regency period. As she sings 'Ring a Ring o' Roses' it is likely she learned it following her death, as 1790 is when the song developed with the melody Jemima sings the song in.

She is recruited by her fellow ghosts in Who Do You Think You Are? to sing 'Ring a Ring o' Roses' to Alison in their initial attempt to frighten her out of the house, however, Alison never hears this thanks to Mike blaring music from the speakers. She does not take part in their second attempt to force her out after she develops the ability to see the dead.

Jemima appears again during Bump In The Night when Cap, Thomas and Pat ask her to attempt speaking to the police and alert them to the fact Button House has been broken into. Regrettably Jemima only appears to have her singing be heard as she just repeats a few lines of her song instead much to the chagrin of her fellow dead. Pat attempts to put the information to the melody but this is to no avail either. Despite all of this it is Jemima's voice which causes the police to arrive as the operator believed she could hear a little girl and got the number traced.

Appearance[]

Jemima is dressed simply in a dirty, peasant dress and knit shawl. Her hair covers most of her face which is coated in plague sores. Her sunken eyes make her stare even more disturbing and she always carries a small straw doll with her.

Personality[]

She is a ghost of few words, often speaking in short sentences or one word answers, and mostly keeps to herself. Due to her disturbing appearance, lurking nature as well as her intense stare the other ghosts - including The Captain - are scared of her to some extent, something which she has made no attempt to change.

It is unknown if she intentionally uses her ability to have her singing heard by the living to frighten people or if she just likes the song and it is a macabre consequence.

As she is only a young girl, it is possible that Jemima is confused about her status as a ghost. She obviously has figured out she’s a ghost, but might not have a name for it and may not be completely aware of her powers or environment.

Trivia[]

• Despite haunting the pantry and kitchens Jemima has never actually been seen there.
• She has interacted more with The Captain than any other ghost.
• In the original concept for Ghosts, it was planned that one of the main ghost characters would be a child, but this was abandoned when it was realized that a child actor growing up would present too many difficulties for the show. Jemima's limited role is all that remains of that idea in the series proper.
• She is only seen in two episodes (one from season 1 and one from season 2). It is unknown if she has moved onto the afterlife.