Roland Connor is first introduced in Season 9 when his mother Joanne Braxton (nee Perly) brings him to a Baby Day Promotion at the bank which is ingeniously robbed.
After being orphaned, he is briefly adopted by William Murdoch and Julia Ogden. Barely a year old, he has already been through a great adventure.
Murdoch Mysteries Jilliam fans call him 'Baby Roland', not to be confused with Baby Braxton from Season 1.
Appearances and Mentions
Raised On Robbery
- Dr. Ogden is asked to inspect all the mothers and their prams. She is immediately smitten by baby Roland calling him "beautiful". Holding her gaze, he takes a shine to her. Joanne says, "Roland's just discovered the joy of dropping things," and asks Julia to hold him for a moment. Enamored by him, Julia does not complete the inspection of his pram. "Did you hear that, William? He's taken a shine to me." William gives Roland a wave, "How could he not."
- Murdoch discovers that Nigel Braxton is not only the robber, he is Roland's father as well. Attempting to escape in the final confrontation at the bank, Nigel and Joanne are killed, leaving young Roland an orphan since he has no next of kin, according to George's background check.
- Julia tells William she wants "to adopt him", but Murdoch is reluctant until the woman from the orphanage comes for him.
The Big Chill
- His new mother and father find it, if not awkward, challenging to keep Roland near them and do their work, giving up nothing. William and Julia are determined to live their lives as they otherwise would, "modern parents in a modern age." By the end of the episode, William invents the Gleeful Bouncer (a.k.a. Jolly Jumper). He's made three of them: one for the morgue, one for his office, and one for home—so they "will never miss a moment."
A Case of The Yips
Wild Child
- Rebecca James' autopsy of Joanne Braxton reveals that the Braxtons are not Roland's parents. A concerned Julia hires Freddie Pink to find Roland's real parents. Pink's investigation discovers that Roland's real mother died in childbirth and that Joanne was the midwife, who reported that the baby had died too, and the father never questioned the official report.
- At the end of the episode, Roland is returned to his father by William, who finds it difficult to do so, but his duty precedes his feelings.
House of Industry (Mentioned)
The Devil Inside
- Roland makes a shocking appearance.
Trivia
- Baby Roland is played by twin boys who are uncredited cast members at this time
- When show-runner Peter Mitchell was recently asked, "...does this mean Roland is gone for good or could he return? Or are we headed for adoption?" Mitchell gave this reply, "We could be headed either way. We’re talking about that right now. It was a moving thing and a charming thing to have this baby in their lives for a while, but we haven’t really focused on that part of Season 10 yet."
- "This is something I can't share with you," actress Hélène Joy, who plays Julia Ogden, told Keerthi Mohan of International Business Times India, when asked about the possibility of the duo expanding their family. "I'd love to say there's a great secret however the writers haven't even shared it with us! That is usually what they do when they have really big secrets. I'm hoping for a nice juicy story line with another gorgeous child."
