The Queen Victoria
- For the Queen, see Victoria of the United Kingdom. Queen Vic is also the nickname of the Queen Victoria Market.
 | This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. (October 2009) |
 | |
| Company type | Fictional |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public house |
| Headquarters | 46 Albert Square, Walford |
Key people | EastEnders characters |
| Owner | See employees |
The Queen Victoria (often referred to as The Vic or The Queen Vic) 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
In the show's story, the Square was built around 1860, during the reign of Queen Victoria. Originally, the pub was to be called The Balmoral, but upon the death of Prince Albert in 1861, it was re-named as a tribute to the mourning Queen. As originally seen in the series, the exterior was brown. It was later painted green and cream until Grant Mitchell set fire to the pub for insurance money on Sharon Watts's birthday in 1992, after which it was painted red.
During the first months of the show, The Queen Victoria had a partition wall down the middle of the bar, which separated it into two sections. The smaller section, known as the 'snug', housed a dart board and fruit machines, whilst the larger section, known as the saloon bar, was used primarily as the customer seating area. Den Watts got permission from the brewery to remove the partition in October 1985, and hired Tony Carpenter to do the job.
In reality, the pub exterior shell on the outdoor permanent set was built during 1984 as the set for the new series, which debuted on 19 February 1985, was created. The exterior shell was made to look as though it had stood for a hundred years. The internal sets are in a studio separate from the building situated in the Square.
In the storyline, The Queen Victoria was originally owned by a brewery who leased it to the occupying tenants. With the help of Grant and Phil Mitchell, Sharon Watts bought the freehold of the pub in 1991, and it has remained a free house ever since. In June 2007, as part of a story arc, the pub had its first refurbishment in 15 years.
Fire
In September 2010, The Queen Victoria was severely damaged by a fire - the second one in less than 20 years - in a storyline created to allow the set to be redesigned for high definition.[1] It was announced that after the pub is burnt down, Alfie Moon and Kat Moon will run it. A separate set was built on the George Lucas sound stage at Elstree Studios to allow the interior set to be (safely) set alight.
A team of nearly forty-five crew members were involved in the filming of the fire including Make Up, Stunt Team, Fire Safety Officers, Cameras, Lighting, Sound and the Costume department. [2] The exterior scenes took five half days to shoot (as it could only be shot at night) and were shot at the BBC studios in Borehamwood. The interior scenes were shot a week after and took three days to film.
To prepare for the fire, the set was re-created on a specially designed fire stage at Elstree Film Studios which is especially designed and equipped for fire scenes. [2] EastEnders Production Manager Rona McKendrick says "Potentially hazardous scenes like this always require specialist knowledge and we rely on their experience and advice to ensure that everything is achieved as safely as possible. We had a Stunt Team comprising of Lee Sheward, our Stunt Co-ordinator and his team of Stunt Doubles. A Visual FX team designed and executed all the fire sequences and we had specialist Fire Officers providing out of vision fire cover / safety."
Of the fire itself, McKendrick said "Everyone was very sad to see the Vic taken out of Stage One and moved to Elstree Film Studios for the burn, I’ve known the set for 18 years and to see the enormous space it left was as if a piece of history had been removed". [2]
Storylines
When EastEnders first begins in 1985, the pub is owned by the brewery, Luxford & Copley, and managed by Den and Angie Watts.
Before Den and Angie, Gus and Flo Leonard were the landlords, until 1950, when Alf and Polly Barrett took over. They, in turn, relinquished control of the pub in 1975 when Den and Angie took over. However in the early episodes of the show (1985)Den is referred to as the 'new' landlord leading to speculation that their tenure began much later than 1975. Their marriage ends in divorce on Christmas Day 1986, in an episode that attracted 30.15 million viewers who tuned in to see Den Watts hand over divorce papers to wife, Angie. This remains the highest rated episode of a soap in British television history.
Den remains in control for almost two years afterwards, when he passes control to Pat and Frank Butcher. They are in charge for just two years, when in 1990 Eddie Royle becomes the new landlord. Eddie is murdered by Nick Cotton after just one year as landlord, and Sharon Watts takes over. She lives there with her husband, Grant, and his brother, Phil, until her marriage to Grant collapses after three years. Sharon leaves, and the pub is sold to Grant's mother, Peggy.
Peggy marries Frank Butcher in 1999, and they run the pub together. When Grant leaves, Phil sells his share of the pub to Dan Sullivan for a mere £5, mostly to spite his domineering mother, but also because he is in the throes of serious alcoholism at the time. Eventually, Phil buys back his share and throws Dan out.
Peggy is forced to sell The Queen Victoria in early-2001, after Frank disappears and leaves her penniless. Peggy is shocked when Sharon returns as the new co-owner of the pub with business partner, Steve Owen. Steve later sells his share to Phil when he is trying to raise ransom money when his wife, Melanie, is kidnapped.
In 2002, Sharon sells her share back to the Mitchells, and Peggy appoints Alfie Moon as manager. In late-2004, Den Watts tricks his way back behind the bar, but in early-2005, he is killed by his second wife, Chrissie, who then forges Den's signature on a deed of transfer, telling customers that Den has left Walford and signed the pub over to her.
Just before being arrested for Den's murder in November 2005, Chrissie sells The Queen Victoria to Ian Beale, but this sale is nullified after Chrissie admits to forging Den's signature. The pub's ownership, therefore, reverts to Sharon, who should have inherited it on Den's death; she hands the pub back over to Phil and Peggy Mitchell.
In December 2009, after Sam flees the country, breaking her bail conditions, the Mitchells are put under severe debt and Phil secures The Queen Victoria against a loan from Ian Beale. Ian is forced to sell the loan to Archie Mitchell, who takes control of the pub, though Peggy and Phil vow to fight him and carry on as normal, selling drinks supplied by Jack Branning as they are unable to get credit from the wholesaler. Peggy and Phil eventually hand over the keys to Archie and his fiancée Janine Butcher, though the change in ownership upsets locals and they attract no customers. Archie is murdered in the pub on Christmas Day 2009 and the pub remains closed while the police investigate. The pub is then put up for sale. However, in January 2010, it is revealed that in his will, Archie left The Queen Victoria and the rest of his estate to his daughter, Roxy Mitchell. Roxy decides to sell the pub in August 2010, though Peggy tries to stop this. Eventually. Roxy decides Peggy is the best person to run the pub and signs it over to her.
In September 2010, Phil, who has become addicted to drugs, gets locked inside a room by his mother Peggy. Phil breaks out and has an argument with Peggy downstairs, and lights a match, dropping it on the alcohol-soaked floor. The fire consumes the pub and everyone escapes, though Phil is trapped by a beam and has to be rescued by Peggy and Billy, and Stacey Branning is trapped upstairs with her baby, Lily, and they are rescued by Ryan Malloy. After Peggy leaves Walford, she signs the pub over to Phil. Later that month, Alfie Moon leases it for him and his wife Kat, but tells Kat he has bought it and she is unhappy about it. Kat later finds out from Phil that he is still the owner.
Employees
Current employees
The pub is currently closed for renovations after being destroyed in a fire and has no employees, though Phil Mitchell is legally the owner and Alfie Moon and Kat Moon are leasing it from him.
Past employees
- Owners: James Wilmott-Brown, Luxford and Copley, Ian Beale
- Landlords: Gus Leonard, Alf Barrett, Den Watts, Eddie Royle, Frank Butcher, Grant Mitchell, Dan Sullivan, Steve Owen, Phil Mitchell, Archie Mitchell
- Landladies: Flo Leonard, Polly Barrett, Angie Watts, Pat Butcher, Sharon Watts, Chrissie Watts, Roxy Mitchell, Peggy Mitchell
- Managers: Alfie Moon, Barry Evans, Dave Roberts
- Bartenders: Lofty Holloway, Arthur Fowler, Nina Harris, Sam Mitchell, Ricky Butcher, Little Mo Mitchell, Kat Moon, Spencer Moon, Jake Moon, Simon Wicks, Melanie Healy, Trevor Morgan, Donna Ludlow, Kathy Beale, Clyde Tavernier, Michelle Fowler, Cindy Beale, Steve Elliot, Tiffany Mitchell, Debbie Wilkins, Lorraine Wicks, Jan Hammond, Binnie Roberts, Josie McFarlane, Mary Flaherty, Shelley Lewis, Dennis Rickman, Honey Mitchell, Sean Slater, Dawn Swann, Ryan Malloy, Danny Mitchell, Glenda Mitchell, Ronnie Mitchell, Chelsea Fox, Christian Clarke, Shirley Carter, Tracey, Pat Evans, Billy Mitchell, Peggy Mitchell
- Cleaners: Ethel Skinner, Pauline Fowler, Little Mo Mitchell, Rosie Miller, Juley Smith, Shirley Carter, Danielle Jones
- Potmen: Tom Clements, Jim Branning
- Caterers: Ethel Skinner, Debbie Wilkins, Magda Czajkowski, Cindy Beale, Hattie Tavernier
- Bookkeeper: Natalie Evans
Key events in The Queen Victoria
- 1985: Den Watts sleeps with his daughter's best friend, Michelle Fowler in the bar, resulting in Michelle becoming pregnant.
- 1986: Den Watts serves Angie with divorce papers, on Christmas Day.
- 1988: Potman Tom Clements dies in the gentlemen's toilets, of a heart attack, on 21 April.
- 1992: Grant Mitchell sets fire to the pub in order to claim money on the insurance, with his wife, Sharon, trapped inside.
- 1994: Michelle Fowler is shot by Dougie Briggs.
- 1994: "Sharongate": Sharon Mitchell is caught out when a taped confession of her affair with Phil Mitchell is played by Grant in the bar at Phil and Kathy's engagement party.
- 1995: Grant and Michelle sleep together in the bar, resulting in Michelle getting pregnant.
- 1998: Tiffany Mitchell falls down the stairs and falsely accuses Grant of pushing her.
- 2000: Pat Evans and Frank Butcher are humiliated by Peggy Mitchell when she exposes their affair by reading out a goodbye letter from Frank.
- 2003: Little Mo Mitchell is raped - and impregnated - by Graham Foster.
- 2003: Kat and Alfie Moon marry on Christmas Day.
- 2005: In the soap's 20th Anniversary episode, Den Watts is killed by wife Chrissie with Pauline Fowler's dog-shaped doorstop; she buries his body under concrete in the cellar of the pub.
- 2005: Den's body is uncovered by Sam Mitchell on the day of Sharon and Dennis Rickman's wedding.
- 2007: The pub is raided by Terry Bates and his gang who are looking for Jase Dyer; windows, the bar, jukebox and fruit machine are destroyed.
- 2008: On Christmas Day, Sean Slater discovers that he is not Amy's father and that the real father is Jack Branning.
- 2009: During Archie and Peggy Mitchell's wedding reception, Ronnie Mitchell discovers that Danielle Jones is her daughter.
- 2009: Archie is murdered by Stacey Slater, who pushes the bust of Queen Victoria onto his head, on Christmas Day.
- 2010: The pub is raided by Billie Jackson and his crew for money.
- 2010: Phil starts a fire to hurt his mother Peggy, which soon destroys the entire building.
References
- ^ Green, Kris (22 June 2010). "'EastEnders' pub to burn down in blaze". Digital Spy. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
- ^ a b c Conder, Matt (15 September 2010). "Walford Web - Walford Lite - The Great Fire of Walford - Behind the Scenes". Walford Web. Walford Web. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
External links
- The Queen Victoria BBC EastEnders profile