Edina Monsoon
Encyclopedia
Edina Monsoon is the main character in the BBC
programme Absolutely Fabulous
, played by Jennifer Saunders
, who is also the creator of the show. The character is known for her extravagance and various attempts to follow new crazes and trends.
, Eddie's teenage nickname was "The Shredder" due to her addiction to eating "huge amounts of tissue
s"; "whole toilet rolls
", Eddie's ex-husband Justin verified.
Edina is the owner of a (barely) successful metropolitan PR company. It seems that this stems partly from her being at the right places at the right times, and around the right people, from the late sixties to early eighties. In several episodes, including "Fashion" and "The Last Shout", Edina demonstrates the creativity, organisational ability and shrewd business sense that have made her successful.
Eddie's self-image is based on 1960s counterculture and the world of fashion and celebrity. She is fixated on self-indulgence and her ideas of self-actualisation. Eddie subscribes to every trend that arises, including New Age
spirituality
—she calls herself a Buddhist—and feng shui
. She aspires to move in the highest circles of creativity, fashion, and celebrity. She considers herself a follower of the latest trends, but, having no real sense of style of her own, Eddie is actually a fashion victim
, parading the latest fashion trends without understanding them or understanding what looks good on her. She is a die-hard fan of Christian Lacroix
and is quick to point out "It's Lacroix, darling, Lacroix".
She lives in a nice Holland Park
house, which she claims cost £1.5m, (see episode 'Hospital' series 2) with her daughter Saffy, and owns a public relations
firm whose only steady client is 1960s pop singer
Lulu
, whose professional relationship with Edina is hanging by a thread. In later years, this was switched to model Twiggy
and Spice Girl
Emma Bunton
, who also went to school with Saffy.
Edina is desperate to give off the aura of success, wealth and fabulousness. Her outrageous but always expensive wardrobe is one of her ways of doing this, as is the constant renovating of her home. She is extremely status conscious, loudly clarifying that her house is in Holland Park whenever someone identifies the neighbourhood as Shepherd's Bush
.
In an early episode, Edina says that she has always voted Labour
, but she notes her disdain for New Labour in the 4th season. She collects hefty alimony
payments from her two ex-husbands, Justin and Marshall. Saffy's father Justin is homosexual and for a time has a boyfriend named Oliver, who runs an antique shop with him. Marshall Turtle, Eddie's first husband, is the father of her homosexual and almost perpetually off-screen son Serge. Marshall later marries brash, scheming New-Age
California
n Bo Chrysalis (Gaffney
), who effortlessly rules over him. There is confusion about the order in which Edina married her husbands, but she states in the 2005 episode "Gay" after marrying Patsy in a mock civil partnership that her spouses were "Gay man, straight man, woman".
Homosexual men play an important role in Edina's social self-image, as tokens of fashionability and political correctness. She asserts the former by claiming that "gay men love [her]" and the latter by claiming that "all [her] friends are gay". However, on one occasion, she seconds Patsy's accusation of a "gay mafia" conspiracy to explain their professional failures. In one episode, Patsy and Eddie marry in an unofficial civil partnership in New York
. Although Eddie was unwilling at first, she beseeched Patsy to be married to her for the remainder of the holiday, explaining she'd never even come back from her honeymoon
s and still been married.
Edina claims to be a Buddhist, practising, in her words, "almost religiously". She also identifies as a vegetarian although she is seen eating meat on a few occasions. For dramatic purposes she had been described as being two stone (28 pounds) overweight. She frequently moans about being too fat; however, she hasn't the willpower to stay on any diet for long. She often says that one method she has used is to go shopping for clothes two sizes too small for her. Weak-willed as she is, she spends much of her life caught in an emotional tug of war between Patsy, her lifelong friend and corrupter, and Saffy, her sensible goody-two-shoes
daughter.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
programme Absolutely Fabulous
Absolutely Fabulous
Absolutely Fabulous, also known as Ab Fab, is a British sitcom created by Jennifer Saunders, based on an original idea by her and Dawn French, and written by Saunders, who plays the leading character. It also stars Joanna Lumley and Julia Sawalha, along with June Whitfield and Jane Horrocks...
, played by Jennifer Saunders
Jennifer Saunders
Jennifer Jane Saunders is an English comedienne, screenwriter, singer and actress. She has won two BAFTAs, an International Emmy Award, a British Comedy Award, a Rose d'Or Light Entertainment Festival Award, two Writers' Guild of Great Britain Awards, and a Peoples Choice Award.She first came into...
, who is also the creator of the show. The character is known for her extravagance and various attempts to follow new crazes and trends.
Character history
Edina was born Edwina Margaret Rose Monsoon on 6 August 1951 in London; her parents' only child. She later changed her name to Edina and is nearly always called Eddie; only her mother and ex-husband Justin call her Edwina. According to PatsyPatsy Stone
Eurydice Colette Clytemnestra Dido Bathsheba Rabelais Patricia Cocteau Stone, more commonly known as Patsy Stone, is a fictional character on the UK television series Absolutely Fabulous, portrayed by actress Joanna Lumley.- Background :...
, Eddie's teenage nickname was "The Shredder" due to her addiction to eating "huge amounts of tissue
Facial tissue
Facial tissue and paper handkerchief refers to a class of soft, absorbent, disposable papers that is suitable for use on the face. They are disposable alternatives for cloth handkerchiefs...
s"; "whole toilet rolls
Toilet paper
Toilet paper is a soft paper product used to maintain personal hygiene after human defecation or urination. However, it can also be used for other purposes such as blowing one's nose when one has a cold or absorbing common spills around the house, although paper towels are more used for the latter...
", Eddie's ex-husband Justin verified.
Edina is the owner of a (barely) successful metropolitan PR company. It seems that this stems partly from her being at the right places at the right times, and around the right people, from the late sixties to early eighties. In several episodes, including "Fashion" and "The Last Shout", Edina demonstrates the creativity, organisational ability and shrewd business sense that have made her successful.
Eddie's self-image is based on 1960s counterculture and the world of fashion and celebrity. She is fixated on self-indulgence and her ideas of self-actualisation. Eddie subscribes to every trend that arises, including New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
—she calls herself a Buddhist—and feng shui
Feng shui
Feng shui ' is a Chinese system of geomancy believed to use the laws of both Heaven and Earth to help one improve life by receiving positive qi. The original designation for the discipline is Kan Yu ....
. She aspires to move in the highest circles of creativity, fashion, and celebrity. She considers herself a follower of the latest trends, but, having no real sense of style of her own, Eddie is actually a fashion victim
Fashion victim
Fashion victim is a term claimed to have been coined by Oscar de la Renta that is used to identify a person who is unable to identify commonly recognized boundaries of style....
, parading the latest fashion trends without understanding them or understanding what looks good on her. She is a die-hard fan of Christian Lacroix
Christian Lacroix
Christian Marie Marc Lacroix is a French fashion designer. The name may also refer to the company he founded.-Early life:Lacroix was born in Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône in southern France. At a young age he began sketching historical costumes and fashions. Lacroix graduated from high school in 1969...
and is quick to point out "It's Lacroix, darling, Lacroix".
She lives in a nice Holland Park
Holland Park
Holland Park is a district and a public park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, in west central London, England.Holland Park has a reputation as an affluent and fashionable area, known for attractive large Victorian townhouses, and high-class shopping and restaurants...
house, which she claims cost £1.5m, (see episode 'Hospital' series 2) with her daughter Saffy, and owns a public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
firm whose only steady client is 1960s pop singer
Pop Singer
"Pop Singer" is the début single from London-based glam rockers Rachel Stamp. It was released in February, 1996 through WEA. The single was released as a 2 track CD Single and limited edition pink 7" vinyl of 1000 copies...
Lulu
Lulu (singer)
Lulu Kennedy-Cairns, OBE , best known by her stage name Lulu, is a Scottish singer, actress, and television personality who has been successful in the entertainment business from the 1960s through to the present day...
, whose professional relationship with Edina is hanging by a thread. In later years, this was switched to model Twiggy
Twiggy
Lesley Lawson née Hornby known as Twiggy is an English model, actress, and singer. In the early-1960s she became a prominent British teenage model of swinging sixties London with others such as Penelope Tree....
and Spice Girl
Spice Girls
The Spice Girls were a British pop girl group formed in 1994. The group consisted of Victoria Beckham , Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm and Geri Halliwell. They were signed to Virgin Records and released their debut single, "Wannabe" in 1996, which hit number-one in more than 30...
Emma Bunton
Emma Bunton
Emma Lee Bunton is an English pop singer/songwriter and TV and radio presenter. She was a member of the 1990s girl group, the Spice Girls, in which she was known as Baby Spice as she was the youngest member. In 2010, she joined the judging panel on ITV's Dancing on Ice...
, who also went to school with Saffy.
Edina is desperate to give off the aura of success, wealth and fabulousness. Her outrageous but always expensive wardrobe is one of her ways of doing this, as is the constant renovating of her home. She is extremely status conscious, loudly clarifying that her house is in Holland Park whenever someone identifies the neighbourhood as Shepherd's Bush
Shepherd's Bush
-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....
.
In an early episode, Edina says that she has always voted Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, but she notes her disdain for New Labour in the 4th season. She collects hefty alimony
Alimony
Alimony is a U.S. term denoting a legal obligation to provide financial support to one's spouse from the other spouse after marital separation or from the ex-spouse upon divorce...
payments from her two ex-husbands, Justin and Marshall. Saffy's father Justin is homosexual and for a time has a boyfriend named Oliver, who runs an antique shop with him. Marshall Turtle, Eddie's first husband, is the father of her homosexual and almost perpetually off-screen son Serge. Marshall later marries brash, scheming New-Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
n Bo Chrysalis (Gaffney
Mo Gaffney
Maureen E. "Mo" Gaffney is an American actress, comedian, writer and activist.-Biography:She hosted two of her own television talk shows: Women Aloud! and The Mo Show...
), who effortlessly rules over him. There is confusion about the order in which Edina married her husbands, but she states in the 2005 episode "Gay" after marrying Patsy in a mock civil partnership that her spouses were "Gay man, straight man, woman".
Homosexual men play an important role in Edina's social self-image, as tokens of fashionability and political correctness. She asserts the former by claiming that "gay men love [her]" and the latter by claiming that "all [her] friends are gay". However, on one occasion, she seconds Patsy's accusation of a "gay mafia" conspiracy to explain their professional failures. In one episode, Patsy and Eddie marry in an unofficial civil partnership in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Although Eddie was unwilling at first, she beseeched Patsy to be married to her for the remainder of the holiday, explaining she'd never even come back from her honeymoon
Honeymoon
-History:One early reference to a honeymoon is in Deuteronomy 24:5 “When a man is newly wed, he need not go out on a military expedition, nor shall any public duty be imposed on him...
s and still been married.
Edina claims to be a Buddhist, practising, in her words, "almost religiously". She also identifies as a vegetarian although she is seen eating meat on a few occasions. For dramatic purposes she had been described as being two stone (28 pounds) overweight. She frequently moans about being too fat; however, she hasn't the willpower to stay on any diet for long. She often says that one method she has used is to go shopping for clothes two sizes too small for her. Weak-willed as she is, she spends much of her life caught in an emotional tug of war between Patsy, her lifelong friend and corrupter, and Saffy, her sensible goody-two-shoes
Goody Two Shoes
"Goody Two Shoes" is a popular song by Adam Ant. The song was released on the album Friend or Foe in 1982. The title phrase is a disparaging term for someone who is overly virtuous or conformist.-History:...
daughter.