Roy Gardner



Royal "Roy" Gardner was the son of Mrs. Gardner, brother of Aline and Dorothy Gardner and also Anne Shirley's beau.

Early life
Roy was born in early 1860s in Kingsport, Nova Scotia, to Mr. and Mrs. Gardner. He was raised there along with his sisters Aline and Dorothy. Roy attended school at the age of six and he was very smart student. He decided to continue with studies.

Redmond College
He had to delay because his mother was ill.

Courtship with Anne
Anne and Roy, during the last two Redmond years of college, were most definitely courting. Anne, who met him under a pavilion during a rainstorm, felt an "instinctive thrill" that he was the one. Dark, melancholy and inscrutable, Roy fit her ideal perfectly. When he offered her his umbrella, she readily accepted.

Later Life
He married after recovering from his disappointment from Anne's refusal and became happy.

Personality
Roy was man who was so perfect it was boring. Anne had been conning herself into loving him because he was so perfect. He was smart and neat, however he wasn't funny or anything. He couldn't relate to Anne like Gilbert could. Anne described him to be like a diamond. He wasn't anything like she expected he would be like. On the outside he had the looks and the ability to speak poetically, but on the inside he had only seriousness (although the good kind).

Etymology
Roy is a male given name of Irish and Gaelic origin and means red. It is also form of Old French term roi which means king. This name was very popular in late 19th century.

Behind the scenes

 * Anthony Forrest portrayed Roy in two episodes of 1975 TV series Anne of Avonlea.
 * In The Blythes Are Quoted, Roy's surname was consistently mispelled as Gardiner. The editor decided to leave it in the text.
 * Morgan Harris, a character from Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel (1987), is based on Royal Gardner.

Book appearances

 * Anne of the Island
 * Anne's House of Dreams (mentioned only)
 * Anne of Ingleside (mentioned only)

Short story appearances

 * The Blythes Are Quoted

TV series appearances

 * Anne of Avonlea (1975)