Triffids
The titular triffids are large, sapient, carnivorous plants capable of independent, albeit slow, movement; they are also capable of communicating with each other and thus are able to launch coordinated attacks upon the helpless human population after they were blinded by the green meteor shower. Triffids hunt by launching an extremely toxic barb from their stalks. The toxin quickly breaks tissues down into a liquid that they can more easily ingest. There are no clear explanations of the origin of the creatures but the characters in the novel do mention possible theories of how they came to be. Triffids are a cash crop and are widely farmed for their valuable extracts that are described in the novel as “superior to fish or vegetable oils.”
William "Bill" Masen
The narrator and protagonist of the novel described as a soft-spoken, relatively plain man of about thirty. He is objective, analytical, and has a tendency to over think matters. This characteristic proves to be a real boon though when the triffids begin to wreak havoc on the populace as he is able to calmly think through situations even when fully immersed in danger. He developed a keen interest in these strange creatures after having survived an attack as a young boy and his interest in them eventually leads him to work on a triffid farm as a botanist. He surmises that triffids were bioengineered in the USSR and may have accidentally been released into the wild. Bill manages to avoid being permanently blinded by the meteor shower because he was hospitalized, having already been temporarily blinded by triffid poison. He eventually regains his sight and discovers to his horror that 90% of the earth’s population has been permanently blinded by the surreptitious green meteor shower. Widespread chaos ensues as the effects of epidemic of blindness sets in and Bill finds himself striving to adapt to a post-apocalyptic world as best as he can, facing it with equal parts uneasiness and optimism.
Josella Playton
Bill’s love interest is an attractive young woman in her mid 20’s, with grayish-blue eyes and blonde hair. She is one of the first sighted survivors that Bill comes across. Josella comes from a well-to-do family and has gained some notoriety for having authored a raunchy novel, Sex is My Adventure. She manages to avoid the blinding effects of the mysterious green meteor shower because she had literally slept through it, having drunk heavily during a party the night before. She, like Bill awakens to a world immersed in chaos. Although initially frightened by the circumstances she looks ahead with hope and tries to adjust to the “new normal” and proves to be quite philanthropic as the novel progresses.
Susan
A young girl approximately nine or ten years of age that Bill and Josella rescue and eventually adopt after a triffid attacks and kills her brother. She develops a deep hatred for triffids as a result of the attack. Susan, unlike many of the survivors, immediately accepts that violence and danger is now an inextricable feature of the triffid overrun world and she deals with this in a matter-of-factly manner. She is eventually entrusted with the responsibility of running Bill and Josella’s home when she gets older.
Wilfred Coker
A thin, dark-haired man about thirty years old upon Bill and Josella’s first encounter with him, Wilfred is a canny public speaker, and champions the cause of the newly blind by capturing sighted people to lead and assist the newly blind until 'help' arrives. When Wilfred realizes that it isn’t right to coerce people he has a change of heart and he joins up with Bill to find Josella and Beadley’s group. He is a realistic man who understands the necessities of survival but believes not just in hard work but also in working intentionally and intelligently. He can be impatient with those who don't agree with his viewpoints.
Michael Beadley
The leader of a group of sight-enabled survivors hiding out at the University Tower, Michael is a lean, tall, broad-shouldered man with a melancholy, weary appearance. Unlike Wilfred or Bill, Michael takes a completely cynical and decidedly Darwinian outlook in response to the disaster. He believes that they are all on their own now and they must now care for themselves. This mindset also causes him to regard the newly blind members of society as a waste of resources being all but completely dependent on the sighted members of the community. He desires to create a new society where sighted people are supreme and he is preoccupied with the re-population of the human race. He cruelly refuses to help blind men but would rescue a few blind women for the base purpose of using them as breeding stock.
Florence Durrant
A tall, dark, thin-lipped, devoutly Christian woman who leads her own society, a splinter cell of the Beadley group, at Tynsham Manor; her religious views cause her to adopt a cooperative philosophy as the social structure of her community. She is proud and independent, often refusing assistance much to the chagrin of her group members. Florence highly disapproves of the alternate society suggested at the University conference disgusted at the prospect of multiple unions solely formed for the purpose procreation. Her group eventually dies out because they refused to make practical considerations for survival such as taking stock of appropriate supplies; they were obsessed with taking in as many of the newly blind survivors as they could accommodate.
Walter Lucknor
A good friend of Bill Masen in the triffid-farming business before the green meteor shower event; because of his background Walter was extremely knowledgeable of triffid physiology and behavior. He was one of the first few to suspect their sapience and inter-species communication abilities. He was also the first to hypothesize that the human reliance on their sight was the only matter than prevented the Triffids from hunting humans for food.
Umberto Christoforo Palanguez
Umberto is one of the characters largely credited or blamed, depending on how you look at the situation, for the introduction of triffids into the world. He marketed a new type of oil to a company in the novel called The Arctic and European Fish Oil Co. Shortly after its introduction into the market it was discovered that the miraculous oil they were selling came from processed triffids. Characters in the novel believe that a plane he was on crashed dispersing triffid seeds he was carrying thus spreading the deadly plants all over the globe.
Torrence
A sighted, redheaded, ruthless man tasked with leading one of Wilfred Coker's blind survivor group. Prone to violence, he casually shoots one of the blind men under Bill's care. In the novel’s final chapter he ends up joining a pseudo-military organization bent on establishing a feudal society. In this vicious society he prospers and tries to impose his rules upon them.
Alf
A practical, illiterate man who is aware of the situation and tries to adapt to the dangers of the new world the best that he can. He is a joins Bill's group of blind survivors after Wilfred Coker captured him.
Ivan Simpson
The pilot for the Beadley party who locates and rescues Bill and the others at Shirning, Ivan then invites them to travel with them to the Isle of Wight.
Dr. E.H. Vorless
An elderly, white-haired man, Professor of Sociology who explains to the survivors the new rules of society that the community, whether they agree with them or not, must live by.
"The Radioman"
A dark, young man who accompanied Stephen Brennell, another survivor; he had been planning to start a radio store when the meteor shower event occurred. Bill and Wilfred meet him and his group in Dorset and decide to travel as a group to rejoin Florence’s group located in Tynsham. The Radioman is a quick learner and quite resourceful as he is described as capable of teaching himself to fly a helicopter when the need arises.
Dennis Brent
The courageous and ingenious proprietor of Shirning Farm, he responds to the threat of the triffids by designing a helmet to protect against triffid stings. Dennis is an extremely independent character that manages to learn Braille on his own and even makes use twine to find his way back to the village on his forays against the triffids. He refuses to accept pity or assistance, trying to manage as much of his own affairs as he can.
Mary Brent
Dennis Brent’s wife who was pregnant at the time of the green meteor shower, she gives birth to their daughter shortly after Bill’s arrival.
Joyce Taylor
A close friend of the Brent Family who accompanied Mary during her pregnancy, she is stung by a triffid on her hand as she goes looking for help.
