Mum's Monday: EastEnder's Peggy Mitchell From 1994 - 2016

Peggy Mitchell - played by Dame Barbara Windsor - wife to the late Eric Mitchell, sister to Sal, mother to Grant, Phil and Samantha, grandmother to Courtney, Ben, Louise and Michelle fowler’s son, Mark who was fathered by Grant before she left for America. Michelle then she said she met someone on the plane whom she claimed to be Mark’s father.

Peggy’s first scene was with Phil after he was hospitalised to give him one of her mother-son speeches. From then on we see her becoming a more central character, and a more iconic character, as she became landlady of the Queen Vic. It wasn’t long before she shouted her famous words, which has become a well-known catchphrase, ‘GET OUT OF MY PUB.’

We see her marry Frank Butcher. After a while of them being married, Frank had an affair with Pat Evans. Her reaction to this news became one of the show’s best known storyline. Despite the affair Peggy and Pat become close friends as time goes on. However, their relationship together was unpredictable. They had their ups and downs, but in the end, they always resorted to being friends.

Peggy then marries Archie, her brother-in-law, who is controlling and a manipulative character. He quickly takes control of Peggy, and they grow to dislike each other. Archie’s story came to an end when he was killed by Stacy Slater after Stacy was attacked by him. At the time, we didn’t know it was Stacy. That storyline led onto the show’s first ever live episode when the true identity of the murderer was revealed to be Stacy.

Peggy left the show in 2010 after Phil, in a drunken mess, set fire to the Vic. After the Vic was burnt down, Peggy thought that her home wasn’t in the square anymore, and sought out somewhere else, but she made cameo appearances over the last few years whenever Phil gets in trouble, gets hospitalised once more, or if he’s struggling with financial problems.

Some other memorable scenes are when Peggy and Pat find themselves in an ice cream van and they get drunk. Phil is not happy at having to break up the party for 2; and one of their most famous scenes leading up to one of the most memorable cliff-hangers, when Pat and Peggy have a falling out after they had given each other a slap around the face yelling the words, ‘you bitch’ you cow’ at each other. Then, we hear doorbell being rung just before the end credits.

During her time away, her close friend Pat passes away from cancer. Peggy left a bottle of wine on her doorstep in memory of her before leaving once more, only to return during her final moments on the show.

Peggy finds out she has breast cancer, and after an operation to remove her breasts and extensive treatment, she pulls through and moves abroad. However, her cancer returns and is found out to be terminal. Peggy returns home to spend her final moments with her family. Grant, her son and brother to Phil, played by Ross Kemp, returns after a ten-year long absence to help Phil look after their mum. Peggy has made the decision to refuse any more treatment and instead wants to go out with dignity, which her son’s object to. She is still taking pain relief tablets, however, to keep herself going before her final moments, including passing on her blessings to the current landlady of the Queen Vic, Linda Carter.

Nearing the end of Peggy’s final episode, we hear a voice, smells smoke, and sees her friend Pat who has come back from beyond after re-enacting some of their famous moments, including the scene, ‘you bitch,’ ‘you cow,’ we see Peggy taking her pills and…

Peggy Mitchell last episode was aired Tuesday 17^th may 2016.

R.I.P. Peggy Mitchell