Peggy Mitchell (also Butcher) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. Peggy was initially played by Jo Warne when she first appeared in the episode broadcast on 30 April 1991, featuring in 10 episodes. Peggy was reintroduced in 1994, recast to Barbara Windsor, who made her first appearance in the episode broadcast on 7 November 1994. Peggy became a regular character, and Windsor played the role until she was forced to take a long break due to poor health and departed on 23 May 2003. She returned for two episodes broadcast on 16 and 17 September 2004, before returning as a regular character on 8 September 2005. Windsor announced in October 2009 that she would be leaving the show and departed on 10 September 2010. Windsor returned to the show for guest appearances on 20 September 2013, 25 September 2014, 17 February 2015 (as part of the show's 30th anniversary celebrations) and 15 January 2016. She then appeared in six episodes between 9 and 17 May 2016, where the character was killed off. Her voice is last heard in the following episode, on 19 May 2016. Peggy's funeral aired on 4 July 2016. An archived recording of her voice was heard on 25 January 2022. On 26 July 2022, it was announced that Peggy would feature in a flashback episode set in 1979, alongside her husband Eric and their children Phil, Grant and Sam. Jaime Winstone played the role of Peggy for this special episode, which aired on 5 September 2022. She returned again in 2025 to appear as part of a mental health storyline for Phil and she made a guest appearance on 13 February.
Peggy is fiercely protective of her family and the Mitchell name, and is famous for her catchphrase "Get outta my pub!", used when ejecting people from The Queen Victoria during her reign as the landlady. Her storylines have included a series of failed romances, most notably a non-lasting marriage with established character Frank Butcher (Mike Reid) and then a short-lived wedding to her brother-in-law Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb). She has also been central to several plotlines revolving around health issues; launching a hate campaign against the HIV positive character Mark Fowler (Todd Carty) before later going on to make amends with him when she is later diagnosed with breast cancer, which she recovers from; a longstanding feud with daughter-in-law Sharon Watts (Letitia Dean); an on-off rivalry and companionship with her frenemy Pat Evans (Pam St Clement); and clashing with many villains such as Frank's troublesome daughter Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) and gangland boss Johnny Allen (Billy Murray). It was then Peggy's final storyline saw her cancer return in May 2016, which ultimately leads to the character being killed-off when she dies by suicide.
Creation
Peggy was introduced as a guest character in April 1991, by executive producer Michael Ferguson. The character was brought in as the mother of the already established Mitchell clan: Phil (Steve McFadden), Grant (Ross Kemp) and Sam (Danniella Westbrook). Specifically, she played a key role in a storyline about the elopement of her daughter Sam with Ricky Butcher (Sid Owen). Peggy was played by actress Jo Warne for a period of three months, but was written out upon the completion of the storyline. Two other actresses had been cast in the part before Warne: the first quit before she could film any scenes, and the second, Frances Cuka (who had appeared in the EastEnders prequel CivvyStreet), filmed eight episodes, though all of her scenes were scrapped before broadcast.
The character did not make another appearance until 7 November 1994, when she was reintroduced by series producer Barbara Emile as a regular character. The actress was recast, the role being taken over by Barbara Windsor, already well known to viewers as a comic actress, notably appearing in the long-running Carry On films. Scott Matthewman of The Stage commented on the recast in 2006: "Quite the biggest – and most inexplicable – transformation is that of Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders. While Barbara Windsor has dominated the role...first appearing in [1994], the character had appeared briefly [three] years earlier, played by Jo Warne, a lady who physically is as different from our Babs as it's possible to get."
Steve McFadden and Ross Kemp had attempted to persuade EastEnders writer Tony Jordan to develop a spin-off for their characters, which would star Windsor as Peggy. The idea never advanced beyond informal discussions, but when the producers decided to reintroduce Peggy, McFadden and Kemp suggested Windsor play her. June Deitch, the EastEnders casting director, had met with Windsor to discuss the matter, and was convinced when Windsor declared that she would "like to play my own age for a change". Windsor has spoken of her "terrified" reaction to being asked to audition, commenting: "I had the weekend to prepare and I cried all the time. I didn't know how to do soap acting. I was so used to using my hands, my eyes." She auditioned with two scenes, one emotion, one "jolly" which Windsor has described as "agony", explaining: "I was afraid of playing Barbara Windsor, so when I had to laugh I went 'huh, huh'. Anything rather than 'tee, hee, hee'." According to Windsor, 27 million viewers watched her first appearance as Peggy on-screen.
When Windsor took over the role in 1994, she was unhappy with the way Peggy was being scripted. She has commented, "a few things weren't quite right about Peggy at the beginning. On a purely superficial level, the wig didn't fit right. And the clothes weren't right either. They appeared too downmarket. I was particularly worried about how the character was viewed by the producer and writers. I saw her as much ballsier than they did. I think they envisioned Peggy as this rather sad, vulnerable lady who spent all her time worrying about her children." She has also been branded a "battleaxe" by Dave West of entertainment website Digital Spy, and someone who "wears her heart on her sleeve" by Windsor.
It has been speculated that Windsor based Peggy on Violet Kray, mother of the infamous East End gangsters, the Kray twins; however Windsor has denied this.
Development
Peggy has been central to numerous high-profile storylines, including a battle with breast cancer, a failed marriage to Frank Butcher, and various business and family upsets.
Breast cancer
In 1996, Peggy featured in a storyline about breast cancer. It was the first time that the soap had given one of its characters the illness, though the issue was covered much less substantially in 1987 as a means of promoting breast cancer screening, when Sue Osman (Sandy Ratcliff) discovered a lump on her breast, which turned out to be benign.
Peggy's breast cancer storyline was devised at the suggestion of a scriptwriter in a story conference session and, according to the production staff, was an idea "that had been knocking about for a long time." In Lesley Henderson's book, Social Issues in Television Fiction, an EastEnders researcher explains that: "A lot of illnesses [...] translate quite readily into strong dramatic material", and the experience of being hospitalised or waiting on test results is something everyone can identify with. BBC Production chief executive Matthew Bannister praised Windsor's portrayal of Peggy coming to terms with a mastectomy, commenting: "It's brought a good deal of comfort and help to us and a lot of other people."
Oncology nurses and consultants were involved in the development of the storyline, which was based on a real life case study. In Clive Seale's book, Health and the Media, EastEnders was praised for putting its message across without being "gruelling". It has also been praised for showing "potent scenes" of a woman coming to terms with her diagnosis, scenes that also provided "rare opportunities" to portray a cancer patient "behaving badly" and depicting "ambivalent feelings (such as denial or anger)" — as it had been noted that cancer patients are typically portrayed in the media as "beatific, serene figures".
Played by Mike Reid, Frank had been a regular character in the serial from 1987 to 1994, and had appeared in a recurring role until 1998, when Reid agreed to return full-time. Frank's history on the show included a former marriage to another long-running matriarch, Pat Butcher (Pam St. Clement). Their history as lovers featured prominently in Peggy's narrative in 1998, when, after agreeing to marry Frank, Peggy was wrongly told that Frank and Pat were having an affair. A special two-hander episode aired in November 1998, featuring only Pat and Peggy for the entire duration. It concentrated on Peggy's reaction to the suspected affair, whilst simultaneously addressing Pat's unresolved history with Frank and the apparent destruction of Pat's own marriage to Roy (Tony Caunter), who had also responded badly to the rumours about his wife's infidelity. The episode, written by Tony Jordan, featured what the Sunday Mirror described as one of "the most vicious fights ever filmed by a soap", with both throwing glasses at one another and Pat slapping Peggy across the face exclaiming "You bitch!" and Peggy responding by slapping Pat exclaiming "You cow!". According to press reports, the fight scene between the characters was "so powerful that it had to have scenes and dialogue cut so it could be screened before the 9 pm watershed." Barbara Windsor was reportedly bruised during the filming. Windsor commented, "The writer didn't want a namby- pamby cat fight between two silly girls. We were throwing chairs and bottles and the adrenaline was at a high. When I saw the programme I couldn't believe how good it was. Pam and I were really proud." The Sunday Mirror described it as: "one of the most impressive episodes of all time". In the eventual episode, it was actually Grant Mitchell who persuaded his mother to marry Frank – with whom he had been feuding following his accidental killing of wife Tiffany – after Peggy was having second thoughts, thinking that Frank was only marrying her out of pity.
Together Frank and Peggy ran The Queen Victoria, and were involved in various family and business crises, including a "tug-of-war" for their public house with "cuckoo-in-the-nest" Dan Sullivan (Craig Fairbrass). After taking time off in 2000 due to ill-health, Reid announced that he was quitting the soap in May 2000. The pair enjoyed a liaison on a Spanish beach during a week-long August special set on the Costa Blanca, which saw Frank and Peggy go away with Pat and Roy and Terry and Irene Raymond (Gavin Richards and Roberta Taylor). In December 2000, Ian Hyland of the Sunday Mirror voted the scene in which Peggy slaps both Pat and Frank as one of the "TV fights of the year", saying "It was Peggy's speech which really made it a Bonfire Night to remember. But the slaps were equally well dispatched." Commenting on Reid's exit, Windsor has said, "We fell out when I found out he was leaving because it was a shock for me. I was really upset. I've known him 30 odd years and I really like working with him. We had a great relationship as friends as well as performers. I got my own back when I had to slap him after I found out he was fooling around with Pat. I did the slap twice as I didn't think I did it hard enough the first time." Windsor's absence was originally only supposed to be a year long. She stated at the time: "This has been a very hard decision for me to make because I'm so happy here on EastEnders but it's been a long time without a proper break. I just feel some time off would be good for me and for the character too." Louise Berridge, then EastEnders<nowiki>'</nowiki> executive producer, commented: "Barbara has been an absolute trouper for more than eight years on this show. We hope she has a great time and look forward to bringing her back with a big story in 2004." Her absence coincided with a two-year ratings slump for EastEnders, with David Liddiment in The Guardian drawing direct correlation between her return and the show's "ratings rejuvenation". The episode in which she returned was watched by 10 million viewers, winning EastEnders a 47% audience share in the timeslot.
Relationship with Archie Mitchell; running for local government
In March 2008, the BBC announced that Larry Lamb had been cast as Archie Mitchell, the brother of Peggy's late husband Eric. Archie was scripted as a love-interest for Peggy and Peggy's backstory was retconned to incorporate a romantic history with Archie. Portrayed as an adulterous villain, Archie began controlling Peggy, changing her clothing and her hair style and instructing her on how to behave.
In 2009 Peggy ran as an independent candidate in the local council elections against Archie's wishes. Writers wanted a storyline that allowed Peggy to stand up for her beliefs, and felt that running for local government would allow her to speak passionately about the community. After a scene showed Janine Butcher (Charlie Brooks) asking Peggy, "Where would Tony Blair have been without Alastair Campbell?", Campbell responded by giving advice to Peggy in a video blog. A response from Peggy was then recorded, thanking Campbell for his input. Peggy pulled out of the election at Archie's request ahead of their wedding, however the storyline set up a later episode in which Boris Johnson made a guest appearance in EastEnders. On 1 October 2009, Johnson appeared in the show as himself, visiting Walford and The Queen Victoria and conversing with Peggy. Johnson commented on his appearance: "It was, of course, a tremendous honour to step inside that most venerable of London landmarks, The Queen Vic, and share a scene with another of the capital's icons, the fabulous Barbara Windsor." Executive producer Diederick Santer stated: "We couldn't let the visit pass without the Mayor entering London's most famous pub, The Queen Vic, and meeting its formidable and politically active landlady Peggy Mitchell."
Peggy and Archie's wedding was filmed on location in North London in January 2009 and was screened on 2 April 2009 that year in an hour-long special. To promote the storyline, EastEnders screened a trailer showing Peggy being assembled in her wedding outfit by a robot, which symbolised Archie's control of her. Realising the extent to which Archie had been controlling and trying to change her throughout their engagement, Peggy gave him an ultimatum at the altar: he either accept the real her, or call the wedding off. Archie chose to marry her, though Tim Teeman for The Times commented: "'[T]he real Peggy' is a hazy concept: there's Peggy the big-hearted East End landlady and Peggy the crone famous for rasping 'Get ahht my pub' to anyone who crosses her path. For someone into evil mind control, Archie has brilliant taste. The wedding outfit he had chosen for Peggy was much nicer than the tatty net curtains that even Miss Havisham would have rejected that the 'real Peggy' chose to marry in." However, the marriage lasts only as long as the reception; when Peggy realises Archie has been manipulating other members of his family, Peggy throws him out and a feud ignites between Archie and the Mitchell clan.
Peggy resumes her plan to run for council in 2010, but is furious to discover that Pat is also running. The storyline introduces the character of Harvey Freeman, played by Martin Jarvis, a freelance journalist who is reporting on the election. Harvey is a potential love interest for both Peggy and Pat, and causes friction between the friends.
2010 departure
On 28 October 2009 it was announced that Windsor had quit the show and would leave in 2010 after 15 years. She said: "EastEnders has been wonderful to me and it's no secret that it changed my life all of those years ago. I'll be so sad to leave Peggy behind; she's such a wonderful character to play. I have had the pleasure of working with a marvellous cast and crew and have made many lasting good friends. To have had the honour of showing the Queen around the set is something that will stay with me forever." Peggy's final episode, which aired on 10 September 2010, was preceded by a number of television trailers in August and a new section on the EastEnders website dedicated to the character. The episode ended with a special reworking of the piano version of the EastEnders theme tune known as "Julia's Theme", called "Peggy's Theme". Tribute was then paid to her in a clip programme, Peggy Mitchell: Queen of the Vic. Peggy's final episode attracted 10.1 million viewers, and was the second most-watched programme in the week of 6–12 September.
At the recording of the new series of The Rob Brydon Show for BBC Two, Brydon asked if Windsor would consider returning, to which Windsor replied, "Never say never".
Breast cancer return and death
After making three separate returns in September 2013, September 2014 and another in February 2015 to commemorate 30 years of EastEnders during Live Week, Windsor made an unannounced return to EastEnders on 15 January 2016. After this, it was announced that the character was to be killed off, losing her battle with breast cancer. The scenes were filmed in secret in November 2015, following Windsor's personal decision for Peggy to be killed. She said: "Peggy is a character close to my heart but I made the decision a while ago that I need to say goodbye to Peggy once and for all as otherwise she will always be there, urging me to go back and that is something I need to shut the door on. After thinking long and hard about it, I realised that it is time for me and the audience to say our final farewells to the lady who I have loved for many years and I thought that whilst [executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins], who I adore, is still in charge I want him to be the one to oversee it. I am grateful that Dominic has accepted my decision and together, since late last summer, we have been secretly plotting Peggy's last scenes."
Treadwell-Collins said, "when [Windsor] told me her decision back in the summer [2015], we both had a little cry before getting excited about how Peggy Mitchell, the matriarch to end all matriarchs could bid her final farewell to Albert Square. In Peggy Mitchell, Barbara has created one of the greatest ever characters on British television, someone who has become as synonymous with EastEnders as The Queen Vic itself. So this is the end of an EastEnders era. But it is also an opportunity to send Peggy Mitchell out in style in what will be one of the most heartbreaking, uplifting and epic exits an EastEnders character has ever had. We can't wait to have Barbara back at EastEnders, even if it is for the final time. The most professional of professionals on set and off, and a true friend, we have all been working harder than ever to make Barbara and Peggy Mitchell proud."
On 3 May 2016, it was revealed that Peggy would refuse treatment and decide to spend time with her family. Windsor said it was a "special week" of episodes with "lots of surprises" that would be "a perfect ending for Peggy". Peggy's final scenes aired on 17 May 2016; however, her voice was heard in the following episode, which aired on 19 May 2016.
On 25 January 2022, the voice of Peggy is heard by Phil, who is contemplating whether to become an informant for the police, or spend the rest of his life behind bars. Phil hears Peggy's voice, telling him "Phil, you gotta get out there and defend what's yours" and "You're surrounded by people who love you, just try to love yourself...". Due to Windsor's death in December 2020, Peggy's soundbites were taken from archive footage from previous episodes. because she was pregnant with their son Phil (Steve McFadden). Eric grew to be a keen boxer and he soon ended up working for his gangland boss, Johnny Allen (Billy Murray). This impacted the marriage as Johnny constantly taunted Eric, making him do demeaning jobs because Eric was a better boxer than him. Eric fell in love with a glamorous woman called Maureen Loftus and planned to elope with her, but he changed his mind at the last minute – unable to desert his family, who he grew to resent. Eric took his anger out on Peggy and was often violent towards her and Phil. She won Best Actress at the 1999 British Soap Awards, and was granted a Lifetime Achievement award in 2009. She also won a Lifetime Achievement award at the 2001 Inside Soap awards, and was named the UK's top soap matriarch in a 2009 Inside Soap poll. She also won the Soap Legend award at the 2009 TV Now Awards. Furthermore, Windsor was nominated for the Outstanding Serial Drama Performance award at the 2008 and 2009 National Television Awards, Best Soap Actress at the 2007 TV Now Awards, Best Actress at the 2009 British Soap Awards, and Best Actress at the 2009 Inside Soap awards.
thumb|Windsor was opposed to the storyline which saw Peggy mount a hate campaign against [[Mark Fowler (Todd Carty) for being HIV positive.|261x261px]]
The character was viewed unfavourably by a proportion of viewers in 1996, when Peggy discovered that Mark Fowler (Todd Carty) was HIV positive and subsequently mounted a hate campaign against him. Windsor has since revealed that she was initially opposed to the storyline: