Miranda Bailey

Dr. Miranda Bailey
Dr. Miranda Bailey, portrayed by Chandra Wilson
First appearance	"A Hard Day's Night"
Created by	Shonda Rhimes
Portrayed by	Chandra Wilson
Information
Aliases	The Nazi, Mandy
Gender	Female
Age	34
Occupation	Chief Resident Fifth-year General Surgery Surgical Resident at Seattle Grace Hospital
Title	M.D.
Spouse(s)	Tucker Jones (ex-husband) Marcus King (high school crush)
Children	William George Bailey Jones ("Tuck") (son; with Tucker)

Miranda Bailey is the name of a fictional character on the ABC television series Grey's Anatomy. The character is portrayed by actress Chandra Wilson, who won a 2007 Screen Actor's Guild Award for the role. Chandra Wilson was also nominated for a supporting actress in a drama series at the 2007 Emmy Awards for this role.

Background

Miranda Bailey, a graduate of Wellesley College, is a resident surgeon who was also previously in charge of the five interns (now first-year surgical residents, except for Dr. George O'Malley, who failed the intern exam). Her colleagues refer to her as "The Nazi" because of her tough personality and blunt attitude. Although often harsh with her interns, she has been shown to provide both support and advice when they need it; some might say she practices "tough love." For instance, Bailey stayed by Cristina during her pregnancy scare and her initial recovery; she also held Izzie's hand when Izzie was giving bone marrow for her daughter. She cares about her patients and is a committed surgeon. She married Tucker Jones c.1995. They had been married for ten years and trying to conceive for seven when Miranda announced her pregnancy with their first child. Her son, William George Bailey Jones, was born during a bomb scare at Seattle Grace while her husband was in surgery with Dr. Derek Shepherd, having crashed his car on the way to the hospital (It's The End Of The World/As We Know It, a two-part episode). George O'Malley helped her through labor, and she thanked him by naming her son William George Bailey Jones (although he is nicknamed "Tuck" for his father). Through the rest of season 2 into season 3, Bailey was seen adjusting to becoming a parent and reconciling this with her desire to continue her career as a surgeon. Her professional confidence was shaken when Izzie Stevens cut Denny Duquette's LVAD wire and Denny subsequently died after his heart transplant; Bailey felt that she wasn't in control of her interns, and that the incident was ultimately her fault. She was criticised for the events at a Morbidity and Mortality conference in Oh, The Guilt, with one colleague questioning outright her competence at juggling career and motherhood. While her confidence has been somewhat restored since then, she still feels bad about not spending enough time with her son, once making a late-night call to sing "God Bless the Child" to him. Disillusioned by how little she can help patients as a surgeon, Bailey decided to open a free clinic at Seattle Grace in the middle of season 3. She faced initial difficulties getting support from the attendings, but after talking with the Chief, managed to get their agreement to work there. The Denny Duquette Memorial Clinic has since opened using part of the $8.7 million bequeathed to Izzie by Denny, and Bailey is satisfied that the clinic will change people's lives for the better. She is competing for the post of Chief Resident, but in the final episode of Season Three, she finds out she lost to Callie Torres. Dr. Richard Webber has indicated that she could become Chief of Surgery in a few years' time. In season four, Miranda decided to be Callie's "number two," as Torres was lacking in performance as Chief Resident. The Chief saw Bailey pick up the slack, and delegate exceptionally well, and eventually realized that Miranda was covering for Callie. He fired Torres from the position, and told Bailey that he made a mistake in not giving her the job in the first place. He also apologized for taking Dr. Bailey for granted. At this Miranda broke down in tears hugged the Chief. This is an example of the emotional baggage the "Nazi" carries, and shows one of her very rare "weak moments."

Casting

Sandra Oh was initially looking to audition for the part of Dr. Bailey.^[1]

References