Queen Vic Fire Week
Encyclopedia
"Queen Vic Fire Week" is a group of four episodes of the BBC soap opera
EastEnders
, broadcast between 6 and 10 September 2010 on BBC One
. The episodes included a fire at The Queen Victoria
public house
, also known as The Queen Vic or The Vic, and the departure of the character Peggy Mitchell
, portrayed by Barbara Windsor
, who left the series after sixteen years in the role. During the episodes, Peggy—the pub landlady—has her crack cocaine
-addicted son Phil
(Steve McFadden
) imprisoned in The Queen Victoria, forcing him to go cold turkey
. She later learns that her deceased husband Archie
(Larry Lamb
) was murdered by local resident Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner
). Before she can report Stacey to the police, Phil escapes and sets the pub on fire. Stacey and her infant daughter Lily are trapped inside, but are rescued by Ryan Malloy
(Neil McDermott
), prompting Stacey to reveal to him that his is Lily's father. The pub destroyed, Peggy decides against reporting Stacey for Lily's sake. She plans to make a fresh start, bidding her family goodbye and leaving Walford
.
The episodes were directed by Lee Salisbury and produced by Bryan Kirkwood
. The first was written by Daran Little
and the remainder by Simon Ashdown
. Kirkwood intended to give Windsor an "epic and poignant" departure, as befitting her status as the ultimate EastEnders matriarch. The fire storyline was created for her exit, and to facilitate a refurbishment of The Queen Victoria set for the transition to high-definition television
broadcasting. The episodes were filmed over seventeen days, more than twice the series' typical filming duration, with the interior set rebuilt on the George Lucas Stage in Elstree for the fire. A special version of the theme tune
, called "Peggy's Theme", was created for Windsor's final episode. It was released as an EP
, available for download following the episode, and features as the lead track on composer Simon May
's album The Simon May Collection
. The episodes were accompanied by two documentaries on BBC Three
, one following the filming of the fire, and the other examining ten of Peggy's most iconic moments in EastEnders.
Viewership ranged from 8.60–10.09 million, with no episode watched by less than a third of the total viewing audience. They were the most watched programmes on BBC One in the week of broadcast, and the Friday episode was the second-most watched show across all channels. The episodes received a mixed response from critics. Several highlighted inaccuracies and implausibilities in the storyline, including the lack of fire alarms and sprinklers in the pub. Others focussed on Peggy's departure, with James McCarthy of the Western Mail writing that it would "doubtless remain the stuff of EastEnders legend for years to come," and Jim Shelley
calling it "a good way to go." In contrast, the Daily Mirror Polly Hudson found Peggy's exit a nonsensical "non event", and Gareth McLean of The Guardian
deemed it "suitably sentimental", but several years overdue. The fire was nominated in the "Best Stunt" category at the 2011 All About Soap
Bubble Awards.
) and Ryan Malloy
(Neil McDermott
) to let everyone know the pub is hers again. Peggy's friend Pat Evans
(Pam St. Clement
) arranges a hen party for Janine at the R&R nightclub, but Janine feels betrayed by Pat when Peggy reveals that she said Janine's marriage would not last. Janine meets a man named Richard Monroe (Andrew Hall
), who settles her bill. Impressed by his car, Janine leaves with him. Worried about her son Phil
(Steve McFadden
) because of his addiction to the drug crack cocaine
, Peggy enlists the help of Minty Peterson
(Cliff Parisi
) and Billy Mitchell
(Perry Fenwick
) to abduct him from the flat he is living in. They bring him back to The Queen Victoria, locking him in the living room upstairs, where the windows have been boarded up to stop him from escaping. Stacey Branning
(Lacey Turner
) reveals to Dot Branning
(June Brown
) that her deceased husband Bradley
(Charlie Clements
) is not the father of her baby Lily.
(Jake Wood
), who tells her he already knows. Concerned by Stacey telling people her secrets, he wonders if she has ceased taking medication for her bipolar disorder
. He tells her that she needs to keep the truth about Lily's father and the fact that she killed
Peggy's husband Archie
(Larry Lamb
) several months previously to herself. Phil tries to convince various people to let him out as he is suffering withdrawal symptoms, but nobody will. Janine awakens in Richard's flat and gets dressed, though they did not have sex. She returns home and tells Pat that she feels guilty, and Pat tells her not to inform Ryan. Janine fears that she is not good enough for Ryan, but he reassures her and they marry. Stacey attends their wedding reception in The Queen Victoria, leaving Lily in a bedroom upstairs. She is surprised by a photograph of Peggy and Archie, and is frightened to hear Phil making noises in the living room. Stacey tells Peggy that she thinks Archie is alive and locked upstairs. Peggy assures Stacey that Archie is dead, telling her that Bradley killed him, as he was posthumously found guilty of the murder. Stacey then confesses that she killed Archie.
(Samantha Womack) tells Peggy she is five months pregnant and asks Peggy not to leave as she is like a mother to her. Peggy tells Ronnie to give her real mother, Glenda
(Glynis Barber
), another chance. Peggy's daughter Sam
(Danniella Westbrook
) does not want her to leave as Peggy promised to look after Sam's baby Richard for her, however, Peggy says she is old now and the baby needs a strong mother. Peggy gives her jewellery to Sam to sell so she has some money. Peggy speaks to Phil, accepting responsibility for making him the way he is and offering to help him get off the drugs. He says she needs him more than he needs her and that she suffocates him. Realising that he is right, Peggy asks the rest of her family to look after him, saying emotional goodbyes. Though Phil claims not to have meant what he said, Peggy says she has to leave for his sake. As she leaves the house, Phil begins to follow her, but she sends him back inside. She looks at the pub and walks out of Walford
.
In June 2010, it was announced that The Queen Victoria would be destroyed in a fire to tie in with EastEnders transition to high definition
so the set could be completely refurbished. It was reported that the fire could tie in with the departure of Peggy or one of the several other characters whose departure had previously been announced. Director Lee Salisbury said the fire, as well as Peggy's departure, would have a huge effect on several characters, especially the Mitchell family
, of which Peggy is the matriarch. Kirkwood said the fire was "one of the most spectacular stunts that EastEnders has ever seen, and it's very exciting."
The episodes took seventeen days to film, where normally crew are given eight days to film a week's worth of episodes. Between forty and forty-five members of crew were required for filming the fire episode, including assistant directors, a design department, cameras, lighting, sound, make up, costume, visual effects, fire safety officers and a stunt team consisting of a stunt co-ordinator and stunt doubles. Filming was done with four television cameras, a steadicam
and a dolly
. The exterior fire scenes were filmed first, in five night shoots lasting until 4 a.m., and the real exterior set was burnt. Safety was the top priority for the fire scenes, and fire safety advisors ensured all cast and crew were protected. Stunt doubles wore flame-proof gel on their faces and for the scene where Ryan and Stacey fall from the ladder, several layers of cardboard boxes were stacked on the ground for the stunt doubles to fall onto. For filming the final explosion scene, all the actors whose characters were involved were filmed separately for their reactions. The explosion had to be delayed due to a power failure at Elstree Studios, two minutes before the explosion was due to be set off, which also affected a live broadcast of Big Brother
. The power cut lasted two hours and filming was further delayed due to rain. The explosion was completed in a third take
. Despite the delay, the scenes were completed on schedule. Salisbury noted that the demise of such an iconic set as The Queen Victoria left several cast members in tears.
The interior set of The Queen Victoria pub was taken apart and rebuilt exactly to scale on the George Lucas Stage, a fire stage at Elstree Film Studios, for interior scenes, filmed over four days. The interior set took seven weeks to build and two weeks to get into the studio. Controlled gas pipes were used to shoot jets of flames and a header was specially built to collapse on Phil. Salisbury had to ensure that the fire for the interior scenes matched that of the already-filmed exterior scenes. Producers decided to extend the 10 September episode featuring Peggy's departure by ten minutes, meaning it would clash with rival soap opera Coronation Street
.
. Instead the occasionally used "Julia's Theme", a piano version of the theme, was reworked specially for the broadcast, and given the name "Peggy's Theme". The theme was created by the original theme tune composer, Simon May
, who was reportedly thrilled to write the theme tune for Windsor. He added more piano to the theme and gave it a "more melancholy feel". May composed the theme not knowing what would happen on screen, but when Kirkwood brought a rough edit of the episode, May noted that the music fitted perfectly first time, saying it was "remarkable and very moving." The theme features as the lead track on the album The Simon May Collection
and was also released as an EP available to download immediately after the episode. He revealed: "All the actors and crew had made a really special couple of shows. My main purpose was to bring something to the table, and I didn't think it would be a single. [...] But when everybody heard the track they said 'you've got to release that as the single because it's something special'."
, the documentary looked at ten moments from Peggy's time in the show that made her a British icon. According to overnight figures, it received ratings of 4.49 million viewers. Official ratings raised the figure to 4.62 million. A documentary looking at the filming of the fire was broadcast on 24 September 2010 on BBC Three
. It received 800,000 viewers.
and admired the special effects and performances of the episode, but said that it seemed unlikely that everyone would have escaped safely, especially Stacey and her baby. Roz Laws from the Sunday Mercury
wondered if the fire episode was inaccurate due to the lack of fire alarms, sprinklers and emergency lighting in the pub, but noted that the episode's use of the song "Murder on the Dancefloor
", featuring the line "Gonna burn this god damn house right down", was "clever". A writer for Heat
said "We knew the Vic fire was coming, but actually seeing it was quite another thing, and knowing that it also marked the end of an era with the departure of Windsor made it that much more emotional." A reporter for the Nottingham Evening Post
wrote "Never in the history of soap fires, of which there have of course been legion, have so many hilariously overindulgent explosions been captured on camera." The Mail on Sunday
picked the fire episode as the "Soap of the Day", while The People
deemed the lack of deaths "a wasted opportunity." Ally Ross wrote in his column in The Sun that the fire episode was "twenty minutes of shouting", questioned why one character was seen flouting the smoking ban and Phil was boarded up behind an inward-opening door, and opined that he was glad to see Peggy leave as she had become "increasingly psychotic" and "vile".
Writing for entertainment news website Digital Spy
, Daniel Kilkelly said Peggy's final episode featured "plenty of poignant moments [...]—not least the scene which saw Peggy standing in the destroyed Queen Vic and appearing completely devastated." Gareth McLean from The Guardian
said the use of "Peggy's Theme" was a "suitably sentimental sendoff" for the character, but said that "in hindsight, Peggy should have left Walford three or four years ago, her character trapped in a cycle of increasingly samey stories that reduced her to a parody of her former self", describing her efforts to put out the flames as "like a very sooty clockwork mouse". James McCarthy of Welsh newspaper Western Mail said Windsor's "final emotional scene will doubtless remain the stuff of EastEnders legend for years to come," and Jim Shelley
from the Daily Mirror said "It was a good way to go." However, Shelley's colleague Polly Hudson said Peggy's exit was a "non event", as "Peggy just left, nonsensically and at complete odds with everything we've learnt about her character over the last 15 years."
In February 2011, the fire was nominated for 'Best Stunt' at the 2011 All About Soap Bubble Awards. In May, it was nominated for 'Spectacular Scene of the Year' at the 2011 British Soap Awards
.
used the "dramatic and distressing" events of EastEnders to publicly highlight the devastation a real fire can cause, urging viewers to be more aware of how to protect themselves.
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
EastEnders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
, broadcast between 6 and 10 September 2010 on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
. The episodes included a fire at The Queen Victoria
The Queen Victoria
The Queen Victoria is a fictional Victorian public house in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders. It has the fictional address of 46 Albert Square, Walford, London E20.-Appearance and development:...
public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, also known as The Queen Vic or The Vic, and the departure of the character Peggy Mitchell
Peggy Mitchell
Margaret Ann "Peggy" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. Peggy was initially played by Jo Warne when she first appeared on 30 April 1991, featuring in the series on a recurring basis over several weeks. Peggy was reintroduced in 1994, recast and was then played by...
, portrayed by Barbara Windsor
Barbara Windsor
Barbara Ann Windsor, MBE , better known by her stage name Barbara Windsor, is an English actress. Her best known roles are in the Carry On films and as Peggy Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders....
, who left the series after sixteen years in the role. During the episodes, Peggy—the pub landlady—has her crack cocaine
Crack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
-addicted son Phil
Phil Mitchell
Philip James "Phil" Mitchell is a long-running fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Steve McFadden.Phil first arrived in Albert Square on 20 February 1990, and was soon joined by his brother, Grant, sister Sam and mother Peggy...
(Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden is an English actor, known for his role as Phil Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, which he has played since1990.-Early life:...
) imprisoned in The Queen Victoria, forcing him to go cold turkey
Cold turkey
"Cold turkey" describes the actions of a person who abruptly gives up a habit or addiction rather than gradually easing the process through gradual reduction or by using replacement medication....
. She later learns that her deceased husband Archie
Archie Mitchell
Archibald Lionel "Archie" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Larry Lamb.The character of Archie is the father of already established characters Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell , and a member of the Mitchell family, who have appeared in the soap since 1990...
(Larry Lamb
Larry Lamb (actor)
Lawrence Douglas "Larry" Lamb is an English actor who has worked frequently in television. He is best known for playing one of the greatest villains of British soap Archie Mitchell in the BBC television soap EastEnders, Michael Shipman in the BBC television show Gavin & Stacey and Mischievous...
) was murdered by local resident Stacey Branning (Lacey Turner
Lacey Turner
Lacey Amelia Turner is an award-winning English actress. She is best known for portraying the role of Stacey Slater on the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a role for which she has won 33 awards...
). Before she can report Stacey to the police, Phil escapes and sets the pub on fire. Stacey and her infant daughter Lily are trapped inside, but are rescued by Ryan Malloy
Ryan Malloy
Ryan Malloy is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Neil McDermott. From his arrival on 28 April 2009, the character remained a mystery in the show for a number of months until he was revealed as the half brother of established character Whitney Dean...
(Neil McDermott
Neil McDermott
Neil McDermott is a British stage and television actor who is best known for portraying Ryan Malloy in the BBC television soap opera EastEnders from April 2009 until 2011.-Career:...
), prompting Stacey to reveal to him that his is Lily's father. The pub destroyed, Peggy decides against reporting Stacey for Lily's sake. She plans to make a fresh start, bidding her family goodbye and leaving Walford
Walford
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where one of the series' creators, Tony Holland, lived and a blend of Walthamstow, where Holland was born, and Stratford. The suffix 'ford' is also found throughout East...
.
The episodes were directed by Lee Salisbury and produced by Bryan Kirkwood
Bryan Kirkwood (producer)
Bryan Kirkwood is a Scottish-born British television producer. He was the producer of teen Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks from 2006 until 2009 and has been the executive producer of the BBC soap EastEnders since 2010.- Personal life :...
. The first was written by Daran Little
Daran Little
Daran Little is a BAFTA Award-winning British television writer, most notable for his work on Coronation Street from 2000 until 2010.-Career:...
and the remainder by Simon Ashdown
Simon Ashdown
Simon Ashdown is a British television writer, best known as being a BAFTA award-nominated EastEnders writer.Ashdown is currently series consultant and lead writer on EastEnders. He was involved in the creation of the Slater family, and along with other writers, developed the characters around the...
. Kirkwood intended to give Windsor an "epic and poignant" departure, as befitting her status as the ultimate EastEnders matriarch. The fire storyline was created for her exit, and to facilitate a refurbishment of The Queen Victoria set for the transition to high-definition television
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
broadcasting. The episodes were filmed over seventeen days, more than twice the series' typical filming duration, with the interior set rebuilt on the George Lucas Stage in Elstree for the fire. A special version of the theme tune
EastEnders theme tune
The EastEnders theme tune was composed by Simon May in 1984. He was assisted by Leslie Osborne.The theme is largely based upon percussion, strings and the piano, it is widely known for its dramatic use of sound, particularly the drums that begin at the end of an episode – which adds a sense...
, called "Peggy's Theme", was created for Windsor's final episode. It was released as an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, available for download following the episode, and features as the lead track on composer Simon May
Simon May
Simon May is a British musician and composer, best known for composing some of British television's best known theme tunes, including EastEnders and Howards' Way, and for composing the music for the 1988 film The Dawning....
's album The Simon May Collection
The Simon May Collection
The Simon May Collection is a 2010 compilation album of television and film music written by Simon May.The album was released to coincide with the departure of the character Peggy Mitchell, played by Barbara Windsor, from the BBC soap opera EastEnders...
. The episodes were accompanied by two documentaries on BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
, one following the filming of the fire, and the other examining ten of Peggy's most iconic moments in EastEnders.
Viewership ranged from 8.60–10.09 million, with no episode watched by less than a third of the total viewing audience. They were the most watched programmes on BBC One in the week of broadcast, and the Friday episode was the second-most watched show across all channels. The episodes received a mixed response from critics. Several highlighted inaccuracies and implausibilities in the storyline, including the lack of fire alarms and sprinklers in the pub. Others focussed on Peggy's departure, with James McCarthy of the Western Mail writing that it would "doubtless remain the stuff of EastEnders legend for years to come," and Jim Shelley
Jim Shelley (TV critic)
Jim Shelley is a British television critic who writes a column for the Daily Mirror each Monday titled Shelleyvision. Prior to writing for the Daily Mirror he wrote for The Guardian and his collection of reviews "Interference: Tapehead vs. Television" was published by Atlantic Books...
calling it "a good way to go." In contrast, the Daily Mirror Polly Hudson found Peggy's exit a nonsensical "non event", and Gareth McLean of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
deemed it "suitably sentimental", but several years overdue. The fire was nominated in the "Best Stunt" category at the 2011 All About Soap
All About Soap
All About Soap is a fortnightly UK magazine, released on Tuesday. Storylines of the shows it covers are from soap operas shown in the United Kingdom and from Australia....
Bubble Awards.
6 September 2010
Peggy Mitchell, who has just regained her status as landlady of The Queen Victoria public house, decides to throw a wedding reception for Janine (Charlie BrooksCharlie Brooks
Charlene "Charlie" Brooks is a Welsh actress, best known for playing Janine Butcher on the BBC soap opera EastEnders.-Acting career:...
) and Ryan Malloy
Ryan Malloy
Ryan Malloy is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Neil McDermott. From his arrival on 28 April 2009, the character remained a mystery in the show for a number of months until he was revealed as the half brother of established character Whitney Dean...
(Neil McDermott
Neil McDermott
Neil McDermott is a British stage and television actor who is best known for portraying Ryan Malloy in the BBC television soap opera EastEnders from April 2009 until 2011.-Career:...
) to let everyone know the pub is hers again. Peggy's friend Pat Evans
Pat Evans
Patricia Louise "Pat" Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. She has been played by Pam St. Clement since 12 June 1986, just over a year after the show first aired...
(Pam St. Clement
Pam St. Clement
Pamela Ann Clement , known by the stage name Pam St. Clement, is an English actress. She has played Pat Evans in the BBC soap opera EastEnders since 1986, and is now one of the programme's longest-serving cast members. St. Clement announced her intention to leave EastEnders on 8 July 2011 and will...
) arranges a hen party for Janine at the R&R nightclub, but Janine feels betrayed by Pat when Peggy reveals that she said Janine's marriage would not last. Janine meets a man named Richard Monroe (Andrew Hall
Andrew Hall (actor)
Andrew Hall is an English actor and director.Most recently has been seen in ITV's Coronation Street playing the controversial character of Marc Selby...
), who settles her bill. Impressed by his car, Janine leaves with him. Worried about her son Phil
Phil Mitchell
Philip James "Phil" Mitchell is a long-running fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Steve McFadden.Phil first arrived in Albert Square on 20 February 1990, and was soon joined by his brother, Grant, sister Sam and mother Peggy...
(Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden
Steve McFadden is an English actor, known for his role as Phil Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, which he has played since1990.-Early life:...
) because of his addiction to the drug crack cocaine
Crack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
, Peggy enlists the help of Minty Peterson
Minty Peterson
Richard "Rick" Peterson is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Cliff Parisi. He made his first appearance on 11 March 2002. His nickname was given to him because he was always late for work, turning up "after eight" when he was an apprentice mechanic...
(Cliff Parisi
Cliff Parisi
Cliff Parisi is an English actor of Italian descent, largely recognised for his performance as Rick 'Minty' Peterson in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders.-Career:...
) and Billy Mitchell
Billy Mitchell (EastEnders)
William "Billy" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Perry Fenwick, who made his first appearance on 2 November 1998. Billy was seen when Phil went to visit his godson Jamie. However, he didn't arrive in the Square until 2 August 1999, almost a year after...
(Perry Fenwick
Perry Fenwick
Perry Fenwick is an English film and television actor. He has one sister, Tracey, and two brothers, Faron and Lee. He is, also, the second cousin of Georgina Hagen, who played Lauren Waters in the series of Britannia High....
) to abduct him from the flat he is living in. They bring him back to The Queen Victoria, locking him in the living room upstairs, where the windows have been boarded up to stop him from escaping. Stacey Branning
Stacey Slater
Stacey Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lacey Turner. She made her first appearance on 1 November 2004. The character was introduced as a feisty and troublesome teenager, an extension of the already established Slater clan...
(Lacey Turner
Lacey Turner
Lacey Amelia Turner is an award-winning English actress. She is best known for portraying the role of Stacey Slater on the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a role for which she has won 33 awards...
) reveals to Dot Branning
Dot Branning
Dorothy "Dot" Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, EastEnders, played by June Brown since 1985. In a special episode entitled EastEnders: Dot's Story a young Dot was played by Tallulah Pitt-Brown in flashbacks. Dot first appeared in EastEnders in July 1985 as the mother of...
(June Brown
June Brown
June Muriel Brown, MBE is a British actress, best known for her role as the busy-body, chain-smoking gossip Dot Cotton in the long-running British soap opera EastEnders and for making other high profile television appearances on shows such as Doctor Who, Coronation Street, Minder, The Bill and...
) that her deceased husband Bradley
Bradley Branning
Bradley Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Charlie Clements. He made his first appearance on screen on 24 January 2006 and last appeared on 22 February 2010. Clements has won multiple awards for his portrayal....
(Charlie Clements
Charlie Clements
Charlie Clements is an English actor, best known for the role of Bradley Branning in the BBC soap opera EastEnders from January 2006 to February 2010. He has won several soap and magazine awards for his performance.-Biography:...
) is not the father of her baby Lily.
7 September 2010
Stacey explains to Dot that Bradley knew he was not Lily's father. Dot informs Bradley's father MaxMax Branning
Max Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Jake Wood. He made his first appearance on 27 June 2006.-Backstory:Max is the fifth child and second son of Jim and Reenie Branning...
(Jake Wood
Jake Wood
Jake Dylan Wood is an English actor, best known in his homeland for playing Max Branning on "EastEnders" and in the United States as the current voice of the GEICO gecko.-Biography:...
), who tells her he already knows. Concerned by Stacey telling people her secrets, he wonders if she has ceased taking medication for her bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder or bipolar affective disorder, historically known as manic–depressive disorder, is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or...
. He tells her that she needs to keep the truth about Lily's father and the fact that she killed
Who Killed Archie?
"Who Killed Archie?" is a storyline from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, which began on 25 December 2009, Christmas Day, when the character Archie Mitchell, played by Larry Lamb, was murdered by an unseen person. Events leading up to and following the murder put several characters in the frame, in...
Peggy's husband Archie
Archie Mitchell
Archibald Lionel "Archie" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Larry Lamb.The character of Archie is the father of already established characters Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell , and a member of the Mitchell family, who have appeared in the soap since 1990...
(Larry Lamb
Larry Lamb (actor)
Lawrence Douglas "Larry" Lamb is an English actor who has worked frequently in television. He is best known for playing one of the greatest villains of British soap Archie Mitchell in the BBC television soap EastEnders, Michael Shipman in the BBC television show Gavin & Stacey and Mischievous...
) several months previously to herself. Phil tries to convince various people to let him out as he is suffering withdrawal symptoms, but nobody will. Janine awakens in Richard's flat and gets dressed, though they did not have sex. She returns home and tells Pat that she feels guilty, and Pat tells her not to inform Ryan. Janine fears that she is not good enough for Ryan, but he reassures her and they marry. Stacey attends their wedding reception in The Queen Victoria, leaving Lily in a bedroom upstairs. She is surprised by a photograph of Peggy and Archie, and is frightened to hear Phil making noises in the living room. Stacey tells Peggy that she thinks Archie is alive and locked upstairs. Peggy assures Stacey that Archie is dead, telling her that Bradley killed him, as he was posthumously found guilty of the murder. Stacey then confesses that she killed Archie.
9 September 2010
Peggy demands that Stacey leave the pub and Stacey pleads with her not to call the police for Lily's sake. She attempts to tell Ryan that he is Lily's father, but is interrupted by Pat, who thinks Stacey is trying to seduce him. Phil smashes through the door using a crowbar that was left in the room. He starts taking cash and drinking alcohol, and interrupts Peggy before she can call the police about Stacey. They argue, with Phil accusing Peggy of loving the pub more than she loves him and throwing a match to the alcohol-soaked floor to start a fire. It spreads quickly, causing an explosion. The customers flee the pub and Peggy tries in vain to extinguish the flames, but is forced out by her friends and family. Stacey, unaware of the events, heads upstairs to Lily and becomes trapped. She uses the crowbar to smash a boarded-up window and hands Lily over to Ryan, who has climbed a ladder. Peggy realises Phil is still inside and returns to the building with Billy. They find him trapped beneath a wooden beam, and are able to drag him out to safety. Ryan goes back up the ladder and carries an unconscious Stacey out. Stacey regains consciousness and sees that Lily is safe, and tells Ryan that Lily is his daughter. Peggy stares at the pub as it is completely destroyed.10 September 2010
The next day, Peggy visits Stacey in hospital and asks her to confess to burning the pub, as a sentence for arson would be less than one for murder, but Stacey refuses. Peggy realises that Stacey needs to look after her daughter so she leaves. She goes into the pub and looks around as she remembers events from her time there. She then tells Billy she wants to take Phil away to make a fresh start and to protect him. Her niece RonnieRonnie Mitchell
Veronica Elizabeth "Ronnie" Branning is a fictional character from the British BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Samantha Womack. Ronnie and her sister Roxy were introduced by executive producer Diederick Santer in July 2007; Ronnie is the "ice" to Roxy's "fire"...
(Samantha Womack) tells Peggy she is five months pregnant and asks Peggy not to leave as she is like a mother to her. Peggy tells Ronnie to give her real mother, Glenda
Glenda Mitchell
The following is a list of characters who first appeared or are due to appear in the BBC soap opera EastEnders in 2010, by order of first appearance...
(Glynis Barber
Glynis Barber
Glynis Barber is a South African actress of Afrikaner descent, born and brought up in South Africa. She was born Glynis van der Riet. When she was five years old, her parents divorced, and she and her mother moved to Johannesburg. She is best known for her portrayal as Sgt...
), another chance. Peggy's daughter Sam
Sam Mitchell (EastEnders)
Samantha Margaret Priscilla "Sam" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC One soap opera EastEnders. The third member of the Mitchell family to be introduced, Sam entered as a 15-year-old school girl in July 1990, played by Danniella Westbrook. Westbrook quit in 1993, but was reintroduced...
(Danniella Westbrook
Danniella Westbrook
Danniella Westbrook is an English actress and television presenter. She is known for being the original actress to play Samantha Mitchell in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders from 1990–93, 1995–96, 1999–2000 and 2009–10. Away from EastEnders she has presented various shows, and was also a...
) does not want her to leave as Peggy promised to look after Sam's baby Richard for her, however, Peggy says she is old now and the baby needs a strong mother. Peggy gives her jewellery to Sam to sell so she has some money. Peggy speaks to Phil, accepting responsibility for making him the way he is and offering to help him get off the drugs. He says she needs him more than he needs her and that she suffocates him. Realising that he is right, Peggy asks the rest of her family to look after him, saying emotional goodbyes. Though Phil claims not to have meant what he said, Peggy says she has to leave for his sake. As she leaves the house, Phil begins to follow her, but she sends him back inside. She looks at the pub and walks out of Walford
Walford
Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where one of the series' creators, Tony Holland, lived and a blend of Walthamstow, where Holland was born, and Stratford. The suffix 'ford' is also found throughout East...
.
Background
In October 2009, actress Barbara Windsor's decision to leave EastEnders after sixteen years of portraying the character Peggy Mitchell was announced. The show's executive producer, Bryan Kirkwood, said it was a massive honour for him to be responsible for the character's exit, but explained that as she has become the "quintessential matriarch of the show", they had to get the exit storyline right, which he said would be "both epic and poignant". Windsor gave one year's notice of leaving, giving the production team time to come up with a storyline, and was asked to keep her decision a secret until the announcement was made. Kirkwood looked at Windsor's first episode and decided her exit should be about Peggy and her son Phil, as Peggy's arrival came at a time when Phil needed her most, and since then, she had believed that Phil still needed her. Peggy's exit came when she realised his mother was not what Phil needed. Windsor did not want to know in advance how her character would leave, but hoped she would not be killed off. She commented: "My exit was beautifully written and I really couldn’t have asked for a better send-off for Peggy."In June 2010, it was announced that The Queen Victoria would be destroyed in a fire to tie in with EastEnders transition to high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
so the set could be completely refurbished. It was reported that the fire could tie in with the departure of Peggy or one of the several other characters whose departure had previously been announced. Director Lee Salisbury said the fire, as well as Peggy's departure, would have a huge effect on several characters, especially the Mitchell family
Mitchell family
The Mitchell family is a fictional family in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The first Mitchell nuclear family introduced were Eric Mitchell's widow Peggy Mitchell and her three children, Phil, Grant and Sam...
, of which Peggy is the matriarch. Kirkwood said the fire was "one of the most spectacular stunts that EastEnders has ever seen, and it's very exciting."
Production
Filming
All four episodes were directed by Lee Salisbury, who learned three weeks before filming that he would be working on the episodes, and said he was "a bit dumbstruck" to discover he would be directing the fire episodes and Windsor's departure, but that he was proud to do so. He said his main aim for the fire was to show the fear, panic and pandemonium that comes when a fire starts and quickly spreads. He wanted the story to be character-led rather than led by the fire, saying that the fire "almost becomes a backdrop". Salisbury said it was hard to make the fire look real because "you can't actually set fire to stuff". As the fire lasted for some time, characters' scenes could be divided up in to small sections. Salisbury commented: "Bryan Kirkwood, the writer [Ashdown] and myself also wanted it to be an episode where things kept happening and the audience would keep thinking, 'Wow, that must have been the explosion' or 'That must have been the stunt'. But more things keep happening and happening, and I think that's what people will find really shocking." The production team had several production meetings for the weeks' worth of episodes, whereas there is usually just one.The episodes took seventeen days to film, where normally crew are given eight days to film a week's worth of episodes. Between forty and forty-five members of crew were required for filming the fire episode, including assistant directors, a design department, cameras, lighting, sound, make up, costume, visual effects, fire safety officers and a stunt team consisting of a stunt co-ordinator and stunt doubles. Filming was done with four television cameras, a steadicam
Steadicam
A Steadicam is a stabilizing mount for a motion picture camera that mechanically isolates it from the operator's movement, allowing a smooth shot even when moving quickly over an uneven surface...
and a dolly
Camera dolly
A camera dolly is a specialized piece of filmmaking and television production equipment designed to create smooth camera movements . The camera is mounted to the dolly and the camera operator and focus puller or camera assistant, usually ride on the dolly to operate the camera...
. The exterior fire scenes were filmed first, in five night shoots lasting until 4 a.m., and the real exterior set was burnt. Safety was the top priority for the fire scenes, and fire safety advisors ensured all cast and crew were protected. Stunt doubles wore flame-proof gel on their faces and for the scene where Ryan and Stacey fall from the ladder, several layers of cardboard boxes were stacked on the ground for the stunt doubles to fall onto. For filming the final explosion scene, all the actors whose characters were involved were filmed separately for their reactions. The explosion had to be delayed due to a power failure at Elstree Studios, two minutes before the explosion was due to be set off, which also affected a live broadcast of Big Brother
Big Brother 2010 (UK)
Big Brother 2010 was the eleventh regular series of the British reality television series, Big Brother and the final series to be broadcast on Channel 4. The series was launched on Wednesday 9 June 2010, and was aired on Channel 4 and E4 for 77 days with the finale on 24 August 2010, where Josie...
. The power cut lasted two hours and filming was further delayed due to rain. The explosion was completed in a third take
Take
A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production.-Film:In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup"...
. Despite the delay, the scenes were completed on schedule. Salisbury noted that the demise of such an iconic set as The Queen Victoria left several cast members in tears.
The interior set of The Queen Victoria pub was taken apart and rebuilt exactly to scale on the George Lucas Stage, a fire stage at Elstree Film Studios, for interior scenes, filmed over four days. The interior set took seven weeks to build and two weeks to get into the studio. Controlled gas pipes were used to shoot jets of flames and a header was specially built to collapse on Phil. Salisbury had to ensure that the fire for the interior scenes matched that of the already-filmed exterior scenes. Producers decided to extend the 10 September episode featuring Peggy's departure by ten minutes, meaning it would clash with rival soap opera Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
.
Theme music
Windsor's final episode on 10 September 2010 did not end with the usual EastEnders theme tuneEastEnders theme tune
The EastEnders theme tune was composed by Simon May in 1984. He was assisted by Leslie Osborne.The theme is largely based upon percussion, strings and the piano, it is widely known for its dramatic use of sound, particularly the drums that begin at the end of an episode – which adds a sense...
. Instead the occasionally used "Julia's Theme", a piano version of the theme, was reworked specially for the broadcast, and given the name "Peggy's Theme". The theme was created by the original theme tune composer, Simon May
Simon May
Simon May is a British musician and composer, best known for composing some of British television's best known theme tunes, including EastEnders and Howards' Way, and for composing the music for the 1988 film The Dawning....
, who was reportedly thrilled to write the theme tune for Windsor. He added more piano to the theme and gave it a "more melancholy feel". May composed the theme not knowing what would happen on screen, but when Kirkwood brought a rough edit of the episode, May noted that the music fitted perfectly first time, saying it was "remarkable and very moving." The theme features as the lead track on the album The Simon May Collection
The Simon May Collection
The Simon May Collection is a 2010 compilation album of television and film music written by Simon May.The album was released to coincide with the departure of the character Peggy Mitchell, played by Barbara Windsor, from the BBC soap opera EastEnders...
and was also released as an EP available to download immediately after the episode. He revealed: "All the actors and crew had made a really special couple of shows. My main purpose was to bring something to the table, and I didn't think it would be a single. [...] But when everybody heard the track they said 'you've got to release that as the single because it's something special'."
Related media
A number of trailers were released to television in August 2010 to promote Peggy's departure from the series, and a section on the official EastEnders website was dedicated to the character, allowing fans to "heart Peggy". The 10 September episode was followed by a twenty-minute episode of documentary programme EastEnders Revealed titled "Peggy Mitchell: Queen of the Vic". Narrated by Shane RichieShane Richie
Shane Richie is an English actor, comedian, singer and media personality, known for his portrayal of the character Alfie Moon in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders.-Early life and career beginnings:...
, the documentary looked at ten moments from Peggy's time in the show that made her a British icon. According to overnight figures, it received ratings of 4.49 million viewers. Official ratings raised the figure to 4.62 million. A documentary looking at the filming of the fire was broadcast on 24 September 2010 on BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
. It received 800,000 viewers.
Ratings
The 6 September episode, featuring Janine's hen party, attracted 9.54 million viewers on BBC One. It was watched by 36.1% of television viewers during its original broadcast. The later BBC Three repeat was viewed by 840,000 people, attaining a 3.9% share of the audience during broadcast. The 7 September episode, in which Stacey confessed to Peggy that she killed Archie, was viewed by 8.60 million people on BBC One and 990,000 on BBC Three, with audience shares of 34.9% and 4.7% respectively. The fire episode on 9 September received 9.40 million viewers and a 41% share of the audience, and the BBC Three repeat saw 1.59 million viewers (7.4%) tuning in. Peggy's departure on 10 September received 10.09 million viewers for BBC One, a 38.1% share during broadcast, and the later BBC Three repeat was watched by 1.16 million viewers, attaining a 5.3% share. Additionally, the four episodes were the most-watched programmes on BBC One that week and the Friday episode was the second most-watched on all channels.Critical response
The fire and Peggy's exit episodes garnered a mixed reception by critics. Liam Tucker, founder of website Watch With Mothers, compared the fire episode to the film The Texas Chain Saw MassacreThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
and admired the special effects and performances of the episode, but said that it seemed unlikely that everyone would have escaped safely, especially Stacey and her baby. Roz Laws from the Sunday Mercury
Sunday Mercury
Sunday Mercury is a Sunday tabloid published in Birmingham, UK, and owned by Trinity Mirror.The first editor was John Turner Fearon , who left the Dublin-based Freeman's Journal to take up the position...
wondered if the fire episode was inaccurate due to the lack of fire alarms, sprinklers and emergency lighting in the pub, but noted that the episode's use of the song "Murder on the Dancefloor
Murder on the Dancefloor
"Murder on the Dancefloor" is a song written by Gregg Alexander and Sophie Ellis-Bextor, produced by Alexander and Matt Rowe for Ellis-Bextor's first album Read My Lips. After the release of "Take Me Home" in August 2001, Ellis-Bextor released her best-selling single to date in December 2001...
", featuring the line "Gonna burn this god damn house right down", was "clever". A writer for Heat
Heat (magazine)
Heat is a British entertainment magazine published by German company Bauer Media Group. it is one of the biggest selling magazines in the UK, with a regular circulation over half a million. Its mix of celebrity news, gossip and fashion is primarily aimed at women, although not as directly as in...
said "We knew the Vic fire was coming, but actually seeing it was quite another thing, and knowing that it also marked the end of an era with the departure of Windsor made it that much more emotional." A reporter for the Nottingham Evening Post
Nottingham Evening Post
The Nottingham Post is an English tabloid newspaper which serves Nottingham, Nottinghamshire and parts of Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire....
wrote "Never in the history of soap fires, of which there have of course been legion, have so many hilariously overindulgent explosions been captured on camera." The Mail on Sunday
The Mail on Sunday
The Mail on Sunday is a British conservative newspaper, currently published in a tabloid format. First published in 1982 by Lord Rothermere, it became Britain's biggest-selling Sunday newspaper following the closing of The News of the World in July 2011...
picked the fire episode as the "Soap of the Day", while The People
The People
The People, previously known as the Sunday People, is a British tabloid Sunday-only newspaper. The paper was founded on 16 October 1881.It is published by the Trinity Mirror Group.In July 2011 it had an average daily circulation of 806,544....
deemed the lack of deaths "a wasted opportunity." Ally Ross wrote in his column in The Sun that the fire episode was "twenty minutes of shouting", questioned why one character was seen flouting the smoking ban and Phil was boarded up behind an inward-opening door, and opined that he was glad to see Peggy leave as she had become "increasingly psychotic" and "vile".
Writing for entertainment news website Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
, Daniel Kilkelly said Peggy's final episode featured "plenty of poignant moments [...]—not least the scene which saw Peggy standing in the destroyed Queen Vic and appearing completely devastated." Gareth McLean from The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
said the use of "Peggy's Theme" was a "suitably sentimental sendoff" for the character, but said that "in hindsight, Peggy should have left Walford three or four years ago, her character trapped in a cycle of increasingly samey stories that reduced her to a parody of her former self", describing her efforts to put out the flames as "like a very sooty clockwork mouse". James McCarthy of Welsh newspaper Western Mail said Windsor's "final emotional scene will doubtless remain the stuff of EastEnders legend for years to come," and Jim Shelley
Jim Shelley (TV critic)
Jim Shelley is a British television critic who writes a column for the Daily Mirror each Monday titled Shelleyvision. Prior to writing for the Daily Mirror he wrote for The Guardian and his collection of reviews "Interference: Tapehead vs. Television" was published by Atlantic Books...
from the Daily Mirror said "It was a good way to go." However, Shelley's colleague Polly Hudson said Peggy's exit was a "non event", as "Peggy just left, nonsensically and at complete odds with everything we've learnt about her character over the last 15 years."
In February 2011, the fire was nominated for 'Best Stunt' at the 2011 All About Soap Bubble Awards. In May, it was nominated for 'Spectacular Scene of the Year' at the 2011 British Soap Awards
British Soap Awards
The British Soap Awards is an annual awards ceremony to honour the best of British soap operas.The first event took place in 1999 and takes place in May each year. Although it is an ITV production, the events were held at the BBC Television Centre, in London until 2010. The 2011 awards relocated to...
.
Impact
The London Fire BrigadeLondon Fire Brigade
The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for London.Founded in 1865, it is the largest of the fire services in the United Kingdom and the fourth-largest in the world with nearly 7,000 staff, including 5,800 operational firefighters based in 112 fire...
used the "dramatic and distressing" events of EastEnders to publicly highlight the devastation a real fire can cause, urging viewers to be more aware of how to protect themselves.