Peggy Mitchell - Creation

Creation

Peggy was introduced as a guest character in April 1991, by executive producer Michael Ferguson. The character was brought in as the mother of the already established Mitchell clan: Phil (Steve McFadden), Grant (Ross Kemp) and Sam (Danniella Westbrook). Specifically, she played a key role in a storyline about the elopement of her daughter Sam with Ricky Butcher (Sid Owen). Peggy was played by actress Jo Warne for a period of three months, but was written out upon the completion of the storyline. Two other actresses had been cast in the part before Warne. The first quit before she could film any scenes, and the second filmed eight episodes, though all of her scenes were scrapped before broadcast.

The character did not make another appearance until 7 November 1994, when she was reintroduced by series producer Barbara Emile as a regular character. The actress was recast, the role being taken over by Barbara Windsor, already well known to viewers as a comic actress, notably appearing in the long-running Carry On films. Scott Matthewman of The Stage commented on the recast in 2006: "Quite the biggest — and most inexplicable — transformation is that of Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders. While Barbara Windsor has dominated the role...first appearing in, the character had appeared briefly years earlier, played by Jo Warne, a lady who physically is as different from our Babs as it's possible to get."

Steve McFadden and Ross Kemp had attempted to persuade EastEnders writer Tony Jordan to develop a spin-off for their characters, which would star Windsor as Peggy. The idea never advanced beyond informal discussions, but when the producers decided to reintroduce Peggy, McFadden and Kemp suggested Windsor play her. Windsor had previously expressed a desire to join the cast of EastEnders. Chat show host Chris Evans of Channel 4's The Big Breakfast made a public broadcast instructing viewers to fax or phone the BBC with pleas for Windsor's instatement. However, Windsor was already in negotiations with the BBC about appearing in the serial. June Deitch, the EastEnders casting director, had met with Windsor to discuss the matter, and was convinced when Windsor declared that she would "like to play my own age for a change". At the time, the producers had already thought about reintroducing Peggy, and Windsor was cast despite originally being considered too "well-known". Windsor has spoken of her "terrified" reaction to being asked to audition, commenting: "I had the weekend to prepare and I cried all the time. I didn't know how to do soap acting. I was so used to using my hands, my eyes." She auditioned with two scenes, one emotion, one "jolly" which Windsor has described as "agony", explaining: "I was afraid of playing Barbara Windsor, so when I had to laugh I went 'huh, huh'. Anything rather than 'tee, hee, hee'." In an interview with the Walford Gazette, a US-based newspaper dedicated to EastEnders, Windsor commented on her casting: "I was thrilled, I could rest my tired bones working on a marvelous television show that I deeply respected. I was very excited about the possibility playing this feisty lady who would come in and shake up her two boys' lives."

Windsor has been described as the biggest "name" that EastEnders has ever added to its cast, and her arrival came at a time in the show's history that has been branded its "worst creative period". Mark Lawson for The Independent wrote that Windsor's casting was intended to combat low ratings, commenting: "The Windsor initiative seems to be a direct response to suggestions that EastEnders has become too gloomy: a view heavily advanced by Roy Hattersley, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, and fan of the BBC series' rival on ITV, Coronation Street. Certainly, Miss Windsor has been associated throughout her career with the lighter touch." According to Windsor, 27 million viewers watched her first appearance as Peggy on-screen. Mark Lawson for The Daily Telegraph has stated that five million extra viewers watched her first scenes, reporting that initially: "The critics said that she lacked the 'brassiness and vulnerability' for soap acting and that, stripped of her bubbly image, 'nothing much of interest was revealed'. Ironically, viewers complained that she was too upmarket." Windsor has commented of the impact of her pre-existing celebrity status: