Who is Roland Michell from Possession: A Romance and what is their importance?

Roland Michell is a part-time research assistant to Professor Blackadder. He is 29 years old. Roland graduated from Prince Albert College, London in 1978 and received his PhD at Prince Albert College in 1985. He is a small man with a lot of soft, black hair and brown eyes. He tends to look tired and feels that his life is a disappointment. He does not really care what others think of him, though, so he is not self-conscious.