Glenda Mitchell

Glenda Mitchell
EastEnders character
File:GlendaMitchell.JPG
Portrayed by	Glynis Barber
Duration	2010–11
First appearance	7 January 2010
Last appearance	8 March 2011
Classification	Present; regular (departing)
Introduced by	Diederick Santer
In-universe information Occupation Barmaid (2010) Bookmaker (since 2010) Club Manager (since 2011) Family Mitchell Husband Archie Mitchell (1968–91) Sons Danny Mitchell Daughters Ronnie Mitchell Roxy Mitchell Grandsons James Branning Granddaughters Danielle Jones Amy Mitchell

Glenda Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Glynis Barber. The character first appears in the programme during the episode broadcast on 7 January 2010. Jill Gascoine was originally cast as Glenda, but she withdrew during her first day on set and the part was quickly recast to Barber. Glenda has been described as "complex", "vulnerable", "demure, dynamic and assured". She is the former wife of Archie Mitchell, played by Larry Lamb, and mother of Ronnie (Samantha Womack), Roxy (Rita Simons) and Danny (Liam Bergin). It was confirmed on 26 February, 2011 that Glenda will leave EastEnders in March 2011.

Storylines

Backstory

Glenda is the estranged mother of Ronnie (Samantha Womack) and Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons), and estranged ex-wife of Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb). Barber commented on Glenda's backstory in an interview with Digital Spy, saying "[Archie] was an abusive bully. An abused woman can be intimidated, but at the same time think they need the man and they're scared to leave because the bully convinces them that they need each other. That's different to love. Glenda didn't love Archie but she loved her girls. However, because she didn't love Archie, she was able to leave – she had to get away. She's a very strong-minded and tough woman. Leaving an opulent lifestyle, her daughters, her family, a big house and her protective husband behind was a risk. She had no qualifications and she's had to live by her wits." She also said, "When she lived with Archie, he was very controlling of her. Even though she lived in a beautiful house and had a glamorous lifestyle, life became unbearable and she had very genuine reasons for going off. She's never got back to the life she once had, and it's been very tough for her ever since."

Glenda married Archie in 1968. They had two daughters and lived in Romford. During their marriage, she watched as Archie controlled and abused Ronnie. She had an affair with a man named Nick Winterton, who promised to leave his wife, but never did. Glenda became pregnant by Nick, and left Archie, deciding she did not want him to control another of her children, leaving Ronnie when she was five months pregnant. Her son Danny (Liam Bergin) was born but she did not tell Archie, Ronnie or Roxy about him. Since her departure from her daughters' lives, Roxy could not forgive her for abandoning them, but Ronnie was more understanding as she witnessed the change that occurred in their mother. Archie told their daughters that Glenda was living in Australia and Ronnie wrote to her regularly, but this turned out to be another lie, because she was living in Brixton. She attempted to track Ronnie and Roxy down once, but finding they had moved on, she gave up looking for her daughters.

2010—

Glenda arrives in Walford on 7 January 2010 after reading about Archie's murder in a newspaper. She walks in just as Peggy Mitchell (Barbara Windsor) has said Ronnie and Roxy are still her girls, saying they are her girls, not Peggy's. Glenda talks to her estranged daughters, who are shocked at her sudden appearance after 21 years. She explains why she has not been in touch but Ronnie and Roxy are not interested. Roxy is angry and tells Glenda that she stopped being her mother the day she left and that Peggy has been more of a mother to them but Glenda explains that Peggy is not their stepmother as she and Archie never divorced. Ronnie is upset that Glenda has only talked about herself, and asks her to leave. Peggy talks to Glenda, who says she was jealous of Peggy and reveals a scar on her wrist from a suicide attempt. Glenda gets frustrated with Peggy for making such a fuss over her. Glenda stays overnight and the next day she tells her daughters about her life in France. She apologises for missing half their lives. Peggy decides to cook a dinner for the family but Glenda upsets her by saying she has booked a table in local restaurant Fargo's. After the meal, Glenda's credit card is declined, and Peggy accuses her of being a fraud as she found new clothes in her suitcase, saying she obviously had to leave her past behind in a hurry. Glenda explains that her fashion designer friend gave her samples on loan, and realises her card is out of date so uses another one, leaving Peggy embarrassed. Ronnie, Roxy and Glenda then start to get along. Peggy receives a phone call during Archie's will reading saying that Archie and Glenda were divorced. Glenda says she did not sign anything but Archie's lawyer, Emma West, says if she was untraceable for two years then her signature would not have been needed. She leaves, and later talks to Ronnie, telling her she only came back to contest the will to make sure Ronnie and Roxy got what they deserved. Roxy asks her to go back to France but she then reveals she never lived in France but instead lives in a council estate in South London, and the clothes were from a catalogue. Ronnie says she is just like Archie, and just before she leaves Ronnie asks her why she left them, and she reveals that she was pregnant.

Ronnie tracks Glenda down and pays her a visit, demanding to know if what she said was true. Glenda tells Ronnie about Danny, and says he does not know he has sisters as she wanted a new life and kept no pictures of her daughters. Ronnie then tells Glenda about Ronnie's daughter Danielle Jones (Lauren Crace) and shows her a picture but Glenda shows little interest, and instead, talks about her expensive cups that she has had for three years. Ronnie says if Glenda had not left, Danielle might still be alive, and then asks to see a picture of Danny. Glenda does not want to show her a photo, leading Ronnie to think Danny does not exist. Glenda breaks down, saying she should never have left. She reveals she has not seen Danny since she threw him out as he was as bad as his father, and says she wants to make up for lost time with Ronnie. When she calls Ronnie by the name Veronica, this upsets her, and she leaves without saying a word. Then Danny appears, startling Glenda, who smashes one of her beloved cups. The following week, Ronnie and Roxy come to find Glenda but she pays her neighbour Reg to tell them she has moved. Glenda shows Danny his father's obituary and gives him the address of The Queen Victoria public house where Ronnie and Roxy live. After Danny turns up, he calls Glenda so she can confirm he is who he claims to be. Glenda only wanted him to go to the funeral, not to find his sisters, and wants him to have nothing to do with them because Archie is still "inside their heads". Danny defies her and decides to stay, so she leaves. In April, Danny and Glenda plan to con Roxy out of at least £1 million. When Danny thinks Ronnie may have figured out his plan, Glenda arrives in a taxi and Danny tells her this, to which Glenda says they cannot leave empty handed and Ronnie cannot stop them. Glenda urges Danny to find out if Ronnie knows. Ronnie denies overhearing Danny's telephone conversation with Glenda, though Danny tells Glenda that Ronnie is playing games with him. Danny gives Glenda a plane ticket to the United States and says he will meet her at the airport. Ronnie tells Danny she has worked it out – that Danny is seeing someone. Danny agrees and says it is a married woman, and then calls Glenda to say Ronnie knows about their scheme and Glenda should go to the States on her own. However, she simply tears up the ticket.

Weeks later she arrives at The Queen Victoria and asks to stay overnight, stating that she has been evicted from her flat. She tells Danny that unless he persuades Roxy into letting her stay she will reveal their plan. After Roxy tries to evict her, she reveals bruises on her arm and says that Danny has been hitting her. She tells Ronnie and Roxy that Danny is not Archie's son, but they do not believe her at first. Eventually, they ask Danny to leave. Glenda offers Danny a key to her flat, revealing her eviction was a lie. Glenda decies to leave but Roxy and Ronnie want her to stay, leaving Peggy annoyed. Peggy is further upset when Roxy offers Glenda work behind the bar, but is pleased when Ronnie moves back to the pub and Glenda moves to Ronnie's flat. Glenda and Peggy attempt to outdo each other in order to win Ronnie and Roxy's affections. Peggy tells Roxy that Glenda insulted Archie in front of Roxy's baby Amy, leading Roxy to tell Glenda to get out. However, Peggy defends Glenda when a man calls her old. However, their feud resumes. Glenda attempts to befriend Peggy's son Phil (Steve McFadden), but he is not interested. On Ronnie's birthday, Glenda outdoes Peggy by bringing Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) out of hospital to see Ronnie. She lies to stop Peggy coming with her, Roxy and Ronnie to find Ronnie a wedding dress. Later, Glenda, Peggy and Jack overhear Ronnie telling Roxy that Archie raped her when she was 13 years old. Glenda finds it hard to believe at first but decides to say she does believe her as Peggy says she does not, allowing Glenda to win Ronnie's affections from Peggy. The next day, Glenda convinces Roxy and Ronnie to talk, and Roxy believes Ronnie about the rape and the girls reconcile. The next day Glenda moves in with Roxy and Amy, who has decided to move out of The Queen Victoria because of Peggy's refusal to believe Ronnie. Glenda tells to Peggy that she was won. At the reopening of the R&R nightclub, Glenda and Peggy argue about Ronnie and Roxy, and Peggy says Glenda could have taken her daughters with her when she left Archie, and Glenda says it was too late as Archie had replaced her, revealing that she knew Archie was abusing Ronnie. She sees Peggy and Ronnie talking, thinking Peggy is telling her, and this leads to Ronnie realising. Glenda admits to knowing and says she was too terrified of Archie to stop him. Ronnie and Roxy then leave their mother and move back into The Queen Victoria with Peggy. Glenda tries to make amends with Ronnie at R&R, but Jack throws her out. She later tries to get help from Peggy who feels sympathetic and gives her a chance to talk to her daughters. Ronnie and Roxy demand her to leave, saying that Peggy was more of a mother than Glenda ever was.

Glenda returns on the night of the fire at The Queen Victoria to comfort her daughters. When Peggy leaves Walford, she tells Ronnie to give Glenda another chance, and invites Glenda to her wedding. Roxy convinces Glenda to apply for a job at the local bookmaker's. She works a day's trial and is left on her own. Her boss, Carol Jackson (Lindsey Coulson), is unhappy to discover Glenda has been selling alcohol, but she also took a lot of money. She also flirts with the much younger Leon Small (Sam Attwater) in the betting shop and they arrange to meet later. A few days later, Leon reveals to Fatboy (Ricky Norwood) that he slept with Glenda. A month later, Carol moves in with Glenda after the sudden death of her son Billie Jackson (Devon Anderson). Roxy is unable to pay for Ronnie and Jack's wedding as someone stole Roxy's cash, so Glenda distracts the manager of the hotel where they are marrying, allowing them to marry without paying. After discovering that Carol is in a secret relationship with their new lodger Connor Stanley (Arinze Kene), Glenda attempts to embark on a new relationship of her own. She discovers that Phil stole Roxy's money, so attempts to blackmail him by suggesting an affair. She then invites Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt) back to her flat, and they kiss. Glenda tells Ian to wait for her while she buys wine, and is almost hit by Phil's car. She then has sex with Phil, while Ian continues to wait for her back in her flat. Ian leaves when Glenda doesnt return. The next day she apologises to him. Glenda is unable to pay her rent, and asks Phil for the cash. He refuses, but Ian offers to pay her rent in exchange for sex, which Glenda agrees to. After another meeting for sex, she says that he is no good in bed. Later, Glenda meets with Phil again, and has sex with him too.

While at Ben Mitchell's (Joshua Pascoe) welcome home party, Glenda insults a number of people including Phil, Ronnie, Ian and Ben before leaving early. Back at her flat, she hears a noise and goes to investigate, but is pushed down the stairs. When Ian's son Peter Beale (Thomas Law) discovers their affair, he confronts Glenda and warns her to keep away from Ian. This makes her believe that Peter was the person who pushed her. However, she soon realises it was Ben and reports him to the police. However, Phil discovers Glenda's affair with Ian and blackmails him into giving Ben an alibi, and Phil forces Glenda to withdraw her complaint and their relationship ends. Jack sells his share of the club to Phil, and Glenda goes to to the club in place of Roxy to discuss the business. Phil offers her a job but she declines and he kisses her, rekindling their relationship. However, after Phil suffers a heart attack while with Glenda, he proposes to his girlfriend Shirley Carter (Linda Henry) and rejects Glenda for good. Glenda vows revenge and tells Roxy that Phil was the person who stole Ronnie's wedding money.

Creation

Casting

On 17 October 2009 it was announced on the EastEnders website that veteran actress Jill Gascoine had been cast as Glenda, the mother of established characters Ronnie (Samantha Womack) and Roxy Mitchell (Rita Simons), and ex-wife of Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb), and would appear in 2010. Of the casting, the show's executive producer Diederick Santer stated: "I'm so looking forward to welcoming the hugely talented Jill to EastEnders. I have a very clear memory of watching C.A.T.S. Eyes every Friday night, [and] Jill's character, Maggie Forbes, was always my favourite – tough, glamorous, and exciting – perfect qualities for Glenda Mitchell." On joining the show Gascoine added: "I'm thrilled to be joining the cast of EastEnders and I am really excited to be back on British TV." However, it was announced on 23 October 2009 that Gascoine withdrew from her filming commitments during her first day on set, as she felt that she "lacked the right experience to film such a big continuing drama". She said "I was so looking forward to playing Glenda but having spent the last 15 years working in America [...] I felt, on arrival, I lacked the right experience to film such a big continuing drama. I have tremendous respect for EastEnders and the cast so I didn't want to let the show or my fellow cast members down."

The part was subsequently recast to Glynis Barber. Barber said in an interview with media website Digital Spy: "I think they originally cast Jill [Gascoine] because she's of a similar age to Barbara [Windsor] and on screen, they're sisters-in-law, so it made total sense. The fact that they then cast me was a sign of the complete desperation to get someone quickly! To be perfectly honest, though, I think it worked out really well." She added "Glenda's very important in the whole Mitchell saga and because I had to come in at such short notice, within 24 hours of meeting [the cast], I was on set shooting 38 pages of dialogue! If someone had said to me beforehand, 'You're playing this really important character, Ronnie and Roxy's mum, you're a Mitchell, you have tons and tons of dialogue', I'd probably have been so nervous and completely freaked-out. It's a real blessing that I had no time to have a single nervous thought. There was no time for nerves and no time to over-think it." She explained that on her first day, she was told Glenda's backstory and had no time to read all the scripts, filming the character "on a need-to-know basis." Barber initially appeared in nine episodes in January 2010, and returned again on 2 April 2010.

Personality and characterisation

The character is described as "polished, demure, dynamic and assured"—a complete contrast to the nervous and quiet woman the Mitchell family knew previously—and is said to cause a shock when she turns up in Walford unannounced. In December 2009, Santer hinted that Glenda would provide intrigue for fans of the Mitchell family following Archie's murder, saying "The question for the audience—and for the rest of the Mitchells—is what does she want? On the face of it, she wants Archie's money because his will is read—and she's the original Mrs Mitchell. But is there more going on than just her being a gold digger? I'd suggest that there is." Barber described Glenda has having "a real edge, but at the same time, she's very vulnerable. She's such a complex character, too. Generally, what she's saying is true but the words she's encasing them in are lies." Soap opera reporting website Holy Soap describe Glenda as having "cougar qualities", being a "glamorous granny", "feisty" and a "blonde bombshell".

In August 2010, Barber told Inside Soap that although the character comes across as devious or a bitch, she simply tries to portray her as genuine, but the more genuine she attempts to make Glenda appear, the more devious she appears. Barber later said that she dislikes her character and would not trust Glenda as a friend as she is only interested in men, and Glenda was described by Carol on screen as "not a woman's woman". However, Barber said that Glenda would be fun to be with on a night out.

Development

In August 2010, scenes reveal that Glenda already knew that Archie abused Ronnie as a child. Barber commented on the storyline, saying "I found it a very difficult thing to get my head around, because if Glenda knew her child was being hurt all along, then she's a complete monster. So the way I played it was to try to justify why she pushed aside the uneasy feeling she had about what was taking place. She didn't want to think about anything that horrible."

Speaking of the storyline where Glenda and Roxy attempt to steal back Roxy's money from Phil, Barber explained that Glenda is "a woman scorned, and wants to fleece Phil for everything he's got." Phil frames Glenda for stealing the money, on which Barber told Inside Soap that Glenda is devastated that her daughter believes Phil: "Glenda doesn't think that Roxy will take Phil's word over hers, so she's devastated when she does. It makes no sense—Glenda is broke, so why would she leave a pile of money in her bedroom cupboard? She instantly knows that Phil planted the cash there. Glenda's so hurt that Roxy believes him instead of her."

Reception

In January 2011, Inside Soap branded Glenda as "Walford's cougar". They also assumed she would be a "mousey [sic] lady who couldn't stand up to her husband" because of the past references to her in the serial, but of her actual persona they stated: "Age hasn't mellowed Glenda! She's a maneater whose standards are so low that she's bedding Phil and Ian!"

See also

• List of EastEnders characters (2010)

External links

• Glenda Mitchell at BBC Online