Barry Harper (ne VanAnderman) is a character on ONtv's Harpers Falls. He is played by Big Brother Alumna, Wil Heuser.
The very handsome Barry is a long time friend of the Harper family and the best friend of Dylan Harper. He and Dylan first met in pre-kindergarten, and had been close friends ever since. When they became school aged, Dylan went to his family's boarding school, Harper Academy in Brockton, Massachusetts; and Barry went to Choate-Rosemary Hall school in Wallingford, Connecticut. At various times, they would visit each other at their respective schools.
Barry was popular and very well liked. He attracted crushes from both male and female though he was always gay, but he had little patience with the same simpering female students that wanted to date him, because he was not interested in females. He had always one person on his mind, most of his life.
In spite of his popularity, Barry was extremely lonely. If he had had his way, Dylan would have gone to school with him. In fact, at one point, Dylan had been accepted at Choate-Rosemary Hall, but his mother, Shelby Whitehead Harper insisted that because he lived near Harper Academy, that he should attend school there, so he is close to his mother. In some ways, although he got along with the first Mrs. Harper, he was also angry at her for keeping his best friend from him.
Barry went to Yale, because of where he had gone to school. His grades were absolutely stellar, and although he and Dylan went to rival schools, they still maintained ties. It is rumored that both Barry and Dylan also rooted for each other's schools, which is a clear sign of their tight bond. Despite that, Dylan had gone through two failed relationships.
Not long after Dylan's long time spouse, Alex Corwin died, Barry had regained ties with his closest friend, (him having moved to Boston Proper from Brockton) and was there to comfort him through the whole ordeal. Barry had finally realized that he had been in love with Dylan his whole life, and now it finally came to pass that they were in love.
However, some people in and outside of the Harper family (mainly outside) thought that the relationship was too soon. Barry and Dylan eventually realized that on their own, and they quietly ended the nascient relationship, but their friendship remained very much intact. In fact, they are closer friends than ever.
Barry is now trying to slowly match up Dylan with another recent widower, Adam Mathison, who had just lost his lover, his mother and his adopted daughter in a horrifying car accident in Philadelphia. Also assisting him in this is Dylan's cousin, Jennifer.
Barry is concerned about the fact that his mother, Marie, is hiding something about his brother, Matthew, known as Matty. Unlike his friendship with Dylan, he and Matty had never gotten along. Matty always seemed to command his mother's attention, while Paul focused more on Barry. Also Matty had destroyed some toys of Dylan's when they were younger; and Matty had always made his disdain known about Dylan, two things that Barry did not tolerate about his brother.
To his mind, and to his father's mind, Matty is in Florida and had been for a number of years, but no word has been heard about him. He is quite suspicious about his mother's constant trips to Washington State, which she has constantly been doing at least twice a month. Both Barry and Paul, are very concerned about this development and are trying to figure out what is going on, but to no avail. Dylan knows something about Barry's predicament with his mother and brother, and is there to offer his best friend all the support he needs.
After his dad moved to Washington State to be with his mother, the Harpers take Barry in as their own, and, like Adam, he defiantly takes the name of Harper. His parents, who were close friends of the Harpers were in agreement with Barry's choice of action. Of course, Dylan's snide aunt, Erica Harper was against the plan, but thanks to Dylan's grandfather, Richard Harper, Erica was over ridden, and Barry was allowed to take the name.
It was made more official when Michael and Wendy adopted Barry, with his family's blessing, and he became his best friend's brother. At first, it would be difficult, making the transition between best friends and becoming brothers, but with Barry and Dylan having known one another since they were children, it made the transition much easier and the already solid bonds the two shared were made all the more stronger and more iron-clad.
He now proudly calls himself Barry Harper, which thrills him that he can be with his best friends, Adam and Dylan. Barry has also become a part of a growing circle of gay friends in the Beacon Hill area. Along with Dylan and Adam, he is joined by Roger Lambert; Matt Ackerman; his former enemy, Libby and newcomer Sean Balducci.
Eventually, he, as well as Libby and the others realized that Richard was a fake. He was really an imposter named Frank Wallace who was under the employ of Erica. Once the scheme was revealed, Barry was infuriated and has vowed to see the wicked woman destroyed, and siding with him firmly are the rest of his circle, including a furious Libby. The group then employed fresh steps and stringent measures to ensure Dylan's safety. Especially when the wicked Erica is concerned, no step is too strong or no measure too miniscule enough to keep the wicked woman away from his precious brother.