Glenda Mitchell
EastEnders character
Glynis Barber as Glenda
Portrayed byGlynis Barber (2010–2017)
Rose Reynolds (2022 flashback)
Duration2010–2011, 2016–2017, 2022
First appearanceEpisode 3927
7 January 2010 (2010-01-07)
Last appearanceEpisode 6550
5 September 2022 (2022-09-05)
ClassificationFormer; regular
Introduced by
In-universe information
Occupation
  • Barmaid
  • Bookmaker
  • Club manager
FamilyMitchell
HusbandArchie Mitchell (backstory)
SonsDanny Mitchell
DaughtersRonnie Mitchell
Roxy Mitchell
GrandsonsJames Branning
Matthew Mitchell Cotton
GranddaughtersDanielle Jones
Amy Mitchell

Glenda Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Glynis Barber. The character first appeared in the programme on 7 January 2010.[1] She departed on 8 March 2011.[2] She returned for two episodes in January 2016 and three in May 2016. She made an unannounced return in the 30 December 2016 episode. She departed from the show again on 10 February 2017.[3] Glenda is the former wife of Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb); mother of her son Danny (Liam Bergin),Ronnie (Samantha Womack), and Roxy (Rita Simons).

Storylines

Backstory

Glenda is the estranged mother of Ronnie and Roxy Mitchell and former wife of Archie Mitchell.[4][5] She married Archie in 1968, and they lived in Limehouse and Romford with their daughters. In a flashback episode to 1979, Glenda struggles with motherhood as well as with Archie's infidelities. As their marriage progressed, she watched as Archie abused Ronnie. She had an affair with a man named Nick Winterton, who promised to leave his wife, but never did. In 1989, Glenda became pregnant by Nick and left Archie when she was five months pregnant, leaving Ronnie. She did not tell Archie, Ronnie, or Roxy about her son Danny.[6] Archie told their daughters that Glenda was living in Australia and Ronnie wrote to her regularly, but she was actually living in Brixton. She attempted to track Ronnie and Roxy down once, but found they had moved on and gave up.

2010–2011

Glenda goes to Walford after reading about Archie's murder in a newspaper. She walks on Peggy Mitchell (Barbara Windsor) saying that Ronnie and Roxy are her daughters. Glenda explains that Peggy is not their stepmother as Glenda and Archie never divorced. Glenda stays overnight and tells her daughters about her life in France. Peggy receives a phone call during Archie's will reading saying that Archie and Glenda were divorced. Glenda reveals that she never lived in France, but instead lives in a council estate in London. Ronnie, with the help of her former boyfriend Jack Branning (Scott Maslen), tracks Glenda down, 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. Ronnie tells Glenda about her daughter Danielle Jones (Lauren Crace) and shows her a picture, but Glenda shows little interest. When she calls Ronnie Veronica, this upsets her and she leaves. Glenda shows Danny his father's obituary and gives him the address of The Queen Victoria, where Ronnie and Roxy live. Danny and Glenda plan to con Roxy out of £1 million.

Glenda arrives at The Queen Vic and states 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. Glenda tells Ronnie and Roxy that Danny is not Archie's son, and they ask Danny to leave. Glenda offers Danny a key to her flat, revealing her eviction was a lie. Peggy tells Roxy that Glenda insulted Archie in front of Roxy's daughter Amy (Amelie Conway), so Roxy throws Glenda out. Glenda attempts to befriend Peggy's son Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden), but he is not interested. The next day, Glenda convinces Roxy and Ronnie to talk and they reconcile. Glenda moves in with Roxy and Amy, who have moved out of The Queen Vic. At the reopening of the R&R nightclub, Glenda and Peggy argue about Ronnie and Roxy, and Glenda reveals that she knew Archie was sexually abusing Ronnie.

Glenda returns on the night of the fire at The Queen Vic (see Queen Vic Fire Week) to comfort her daughters. Glenda flirts with Leon Small (Sam Attwater) in a betting shop and they later have sex. Roxy is unable to pay for Ronnie and Jack's wedding as someone stole Roxy's money, so Glenda distracts the manager of the hotel where they are marrying, allowing them to marry without paying. She discovers that Phil and his partner Shirley Carter (Linda Henry) stole Roxy's money, so attempts to blackmail Phil 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. While at Ben Mitchell's (Joshua Pascoe) welcome home party, Glenda insults a number of people including Phil, Ronnie, Ian, Shirley, and Ben, before leaving early. Back at her flat, she is pushed down the stairs. When Ian's son Peter Beale (Thomas Law) discovers her affair with Ian, he confronts Glenda and warns her to stay away from Ian. This makes her believe that Peter was the person who pushed her down the stairs. However, she realises it was Ben and reports him to the police. Phil discovers Glenda's affair with Ian and blackmails Ian into giving Ben an alibi. Phil forces Glenda to withdraw her complaint and their relationship ends.

Glenda helps Roxy get her money back by breaking into Phil's safe, but he catches them when Glenda decides she wants to take more money. Phil tells Roxy that Glenda stole the money, and Roxy finds cash in Glenda's wardrobe. Roxy refuses to believe Glenda when she says Phil planted it. Glenda reveals her affair with Phil to Roxy. Nobody believes Glenda, and Roxy ejects Glenda from her flat. Ronnie wants nothing to do with Glenda until she threatens to tell Jack that she has been lying about missing her counselling sessions, so Ronnie allows Glenda to stay with her. When Ronnie fears that Glenda is getting close to discovering she swapped her deceased baby James Branning with Tommy Moon, Ronnie tells Jack about missing the counselling sessions and throws Glenda out. Glenda visits Ian's wife Jane Beale (Laurie Brett) to tell her about the affair, but Jane already knows. Shirley, who has learned of the affair from Ben, physically threatens Glenda. Glenda leaves Walford.[7]

2016–2017

Glenda returns to help Roxy after her attempted rape by her fiancé Dean Wicks (Matt Di Angelo). After helping Roxy pack up her belongings, she visits Ronnie and Jack and tries to talk Roxy out of moving to Portugal. Glenda encounters Claudette Hubbard (Ellen Thomas), and when Ronnie tells her that Claudette said that Phil's father Eric Mitchell murdered Claudette's husband, Glenda claims that Claudette must be lying. Glenda leaves after a phone call from Danny.[8] She returns in May, looking for Roxy, as she borrowed £3,000 from her and Danny before disappearing. Glenda and Ronnie visit Roxy in hospital, as she has been beaten up, but find she has discharged herself.[9] When she returns, Glenda admits to Roxy she would not have returned if Roxy had not taken her money, leading Roxy to offer her £5,000 on the condition she does not return. Glenda takes the money and leaves.[10]

Glenda returns seven months later with Danny after Roxy calls asking for help because of her cocaine habit.[11] Ronnie asks Roxy to give her away at her wedding. After the wedding, Ronnie and Roxy both drown in the hotel swimming pool.[12] Glenda is informed of this by the police and she identifies their bodies.[13] Glenda watches Jack and Ronnie's wedding DVD at Jack's house, upsetting Jack since the children could have also seen it.[14] After Ronnie and Roxy's funerals, Glenda tells Jack that she intends to take custody of Matthew as a replacement for not being in her daughters' lives.[15] Danny uses this opportunity to attempt to extort £20,000 from Jack; Glenda slaps him and tells Jack that her motive is not financial gain. Jack asks Glenda to move in to help him look after the children.[16] Jack is furious when he finds out that Glenda has allowed Amy to get her ears pierced and throws Glenda out.[17] He later realises that Glenda's intentions were good, and he tells her she can be a part of Amy, Matthew, and Ricky's lives.[18] Months later, Jack takes the children to visit Glenda to escape Charlie Cotton (Declan Bennett).

Creation

Casting

On 17 October 2009, it was announced on the EastEnders website that Jill Gascoine had been cast as Glenda,[19] and would appear in 2010. 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".[1]

The part was subsequently recast to Glynis Barber.[1] She explained that on her first day, she was told Glenda's backstory and had no time to read all the scripts, filming "on a need-to-know basis."[4] Barber initially appeared in nine episodes in January 2010, and returned again on 2 April 2010.[20][21]

A younger version of Glenda appeared in a flashback episode that aired on 5 September 2022, portrayed by Rose Reynolds, with the episode focusing on the Mitchell family in the 1970s.[22]

Characterisation

The character is described as "polished, demure, dynamic and assured".[19] Barber described Glenda as 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."[5] Soap opera reporting website Holy Soap describes Glenda as having "cougar qualities", being a "glamorous granny", "feisty", and a "blonde bombshell".[23] Barber said that she dislikes her character and would not trust Glenda as a friend, as she is only interested in men, but said that Glenda would be fun to be with on a night out.[24]

Reception

In March 2011, Glenda was nominated for "Villain of the Year" at The British Soap Awards.[25] 8.6 million people watched Glenda's last episode, according to overnight ratings.[26]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Green, Kris (23 October 2009). "'EastEnders' recasts Glenda Mitchell". Digital Spy. Retrieved 23 October 2009.
  2. ↑ Kilkelly, Daniel (2011). "Glenda's luck runs out". Digital Spy. London: Hachette Filipacchi UK. Retrieved 1 March 2011.
  3. ↑ Lindsay, Duncan (10 February 2017). "EastEnders airs another character exit". Metro.
  4. 1 2 Green, Kris (30 December 2009). "EXCLUSIVE: Glynis Barber (Glenda Mitchell, 'EastEnders')". Digital Spy. Retrieved 30 December 2009.
  5. 1 2 Green, Kris (30 December 2009). "Bonus Scoop: More from 'Enders Glenda Mitchell". Digital Spy. Retrieved 30 December 2009.
  6. ↑ Stewart, Tony (2 January 2010). "EastEnders: Mummy dearest". Daily Mirror. Trinity Mirror. Archived from the original on 5 September 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
  7. ↑ Executive Producer: Bryan Kirkwood; Director: Nic Phillips; Writer: Daran Little (8 March 2011). "Episode dated 08/03/2011". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  8. ↑ Executive Producer: Dominic Treadwell-Collins; Director: Toby Frow; Writer: Anya Reiss (1 January 2016). "Episode dated 01/01/2016 (part 2/2)". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  9. ↑ Executive Producer: Dominic Treadwell-Collins; Director: Steve Finn; Writer: Leo Richardson (4 May 2016). "Episode dated 04/05/2016". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  10. ↑ Executive Producer: Dominic Treadwell-Collins; Director: Steve Finn; Writer: Daran Little (6 May 2016). "Episode dated 06/05/2016". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  11. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: Toby Frow; Writer: Lauren Klee (30 December 2016). "Episode dated 30/12/2016". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  12. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: Toby Frow; Writer: Rob Gittins (1 January 2017). "Episode dated 01/01/2017". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  13. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: John Howlett; Writer: Colin Wyatt (3 January 2017). "Episode dated 03/01/2017". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  14. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: John Howlett; Writer: Alex Straker, Robert Butler (5 January 2017). "Episode dated 05/01/2017". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  15. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: Neil Alderton; Writer: Daran Little (20 January 2017). "Episode dated 20/01/2017 (part 1/2)". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  16. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: Neil Alderton; Writer: Daran Little (20 January 2017). "Episode dated 20/01/2017 (part 2/2)". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  17. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: Steve Finn; Writer: Lauren Klee (9 February 2017). "Episode dated 09/02/2017 (part 2/2)". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  18. ↑ Executive Producer: Sean O'Connor; Director: Steve Finn; Writer: Lauren Klee (10 February 2017). "Episode dated 10/02/2017". EastEnders. BBC. BBC One.
  19. 1 2 "The Gentle Touch arrives in Walford". BBC Online. 17 October 2009. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009. Retrieved 17 October 2009.
  20. ↑ "Episode dated 2/4/2010". EastEnders. 2 April 2010. BBC. BBC One.
  21. ↑ Green, Kris (20 January 2010). "Barber teases Glenda's future in 'Enders". Digital Spy. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
  22. ↑ "EastEnders: Jaime Winstone to play young Peggy Mitchell in flashback episode". BBC. 27 July 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  23. ↑ "Glynis and Lindsey's pal plot". Holy Soap. (Five). 19 November 2010. Archived from the original on 24 November 2010.
  24. ↑ Daniels, Colin (21 November 2010). "Choose your Digital Spy edition". Digital Spy. London: Hachette Filipacchi UK. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  25. ↑ Kilkelly, Daniel (7 March 2011). "British Soap Awards 2011 voting opens". Digital Spy. London: Hachette Filipacchi UK. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  26. ↑ Laughlin, Andrew (9 March 2011). "Glenda fallout grabs 8.6m on 'EastEnders'". Digital Spy. London: Hachette Filipacchi UK. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
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