{"id":42565,"date":"2023-12-26T18:00:19","date_gmt":"2023-12-26T17:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1949017"},"modified":"2023-12-26T20:12:49","modified_gmt":"2023-12-26T19:12:49","slug":"ghosts-co-creator-on-accidental-hidden-meaning-behind-baby-name","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/ghosts-co-creator-on-accidental-hidden-meaning-behind-baby-name\/","title":{"rendered":"Ghosts co-creator on accidental hidden meaning behind baby name"},"content":{"rendered":"

“If we were cleverer writers, that would have been the reason why we came up with it,” said Mathew Baynton. <\/p>

By David Craig\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 26 December 2023 at 17:00 PM<\/p>

\n\n

Ghosts came to an end on Christmas Day with an episode that saw Alison (Charlotte Ritchie) and Mike (Kiell Smith-Bynoe) return from hospital with their new arrival \u2013 baby Mia.<\/p>\n

As a refresher, Alison was revealed to be pregnant<\/a> in the season 5 premiere, which remained a key subplot in later episodes as the couple frantically made preparations and said goodbye to their lack of responsibility.<\/p>\n

Mia\u2019s name was confirmed in the Ghosts Christmas special 2023 trailer<\/a>, prompting Kitty (Lolly Adefope) to hilariously express her confusion: \u201cI thought she was called bumpy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fans may be wondering whether there\u2019s any particular significance to the name Mia in the eyes of the Ghosts<\/a> writers or the world of the show \u2013 so we put the question to co-creator Mathew Baynton, who revealed an accidental hidden meaning.<\/p>

He began: \u201cWe literally just sort of came up with a few [names] until we had Mia and thought, \u2018Oh, yeah, that feels about right,\u2019 and then it was only way, way afterwards that I realised it\u2019s a Mike and Alison compound.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fans can make their own minds up on whether this merging of names \u2013 Mi(ke) and A(lison) \u2013 was also a happy accident in-universe or a deliberate decision by the new parents.<\/p>\n

Baynton added: \u201cIf we were cleverer writers, that would have been the reason why we came up with it, but it wasn\u2019t at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

The arrival of Mia will, of course, change the lives of Mike and Alison forever, but the baby\u2019s birth also has an impact on the ghosts, who have become quite accustomed to dominating the attention of their mortal friends.<\/p>\n

\"Alison,\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Charlotte Ritchie and Kiell Smith-Bynoe star in Ghosts.<\/span><\/figcaption> BBC\/Monumental\/Guido Mandozzi<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Co-creator Laurence Rickard explained: \u201cFrom early on, we identified the fact that they are sort of a family in all but name, but I don\u2019t know the degree to which they\u2019ve ever consciously gone, \u2018Oh, that\u2019s what we are!\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd now this child arrives\u2026 and that\u2019s the family. The ghosts start to realise, \u2018Oh, hang on, then by default we actually aren\u2019t,\u2019 which is tricky for all of them. They\u2019ve all got some sort of family dynamic, particularly with Alison, but by extension with Mike, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cI think some handle it worse than others. Obviously, because Kitty\u2019s always felt this incredible kinship with Alison, I think that was the most prevalent sense of jealousy.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more on the Christmas special, check out our full recap of the Ghosts ending<\/a> \u2013 including insights from the writer\u2019s on that<\/em> flash-forward scene \u2013 and our comment piece questioning whether the show\u2019s farewell was undermined by its two finales<\/a>.<\/p>