Lilly Mattock
Encyclopedia
Lilly Mattock is a fictional character
from the BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
, played by the late Barbara Keogh
from 1998–1999. Lilly liked to forget her age and concentrate on having fun. She had a rude awakening when she was mugged in 1999, and fun-loving Lilly was never quite the same again.
. She was married to Jack Temple, manager of the Westwood Girls, until he died in 1983. She arrived in Albert Square
in 1998 when she moved into a flat with fellow senior-citizen Dot Cotton when both of their respective homes burnt down.
Lilly's fun-loving, cheeky personality was in stark contrast to Dot's and the two would often wind each other up with their obvious personality differences. She once even tried to persuade Dot that Jeff Healy had amorous intentions towards her, which had Dot in a bit of a fluster. She was also the first known person in the Square, before Jeff himself, to refer to her consistently as "Dorothy".
Lilly was never one to let her age spoil her fun and she could often be seen giving the youngsters of Walford a run for their money by clubbing in e20, trouncing Huw Edwards
and Lenny Wallace
at a game of poker
and making an exhibition of herself in salsa
classes. Her penchant for late-night clubbing even prompted owner Steve Owen to bar her from his club, for fear that she would upstage his younger clientele.
Lilly worked for Terry
and Irene Raymond
at the First Til' Last grocery store and when coming home from one of her late shifts she was mugged by an armed youth. After this ordeal, Lilly became a recluse, not wanting to go out for fear of being attacked again. Suddenly faced with her own fragility, Lilly was forced to deal with the realisation that she wasn't as strong or independent as she thought. It took many months for Lilly to face the outside world and her personality was changed forever as a result.
Lilly and Dot's differences soon began to take their toll and in 1999 Lilly made the decision to leave Walford and move into sheltered accommodation when the insurance cheque for her flat came through, leaving Dot to move in with Pauline Fowler
.
Lilly was brought in as an elderly companion for the long-running character Dot Cotton, played by June Brown
; the characters moved in together following the destruction of their block of flats. Described as "the silver-haired gossip", Lilly was intended to be a "comedy double act" with Dot, taking over the place of Dot's former sparring partner, Ethel Skinner
(Gretchen Franklin
). Storylines concentrated on the obvious personality differences between Dot and Lilly, and the problems this caused. The majority of Lilly's storylines were comic, for which she was praised by Merle Brown, critic for the Daily Record
. She was also used to highlight a more serious issue, when in 1999 she was mugged by a criminal called Gareth, and subsequently became agoraphobic
, refusing to go out. Though she eventually got over this with Dot's assistance.
Lilly's backstory was revealed in her official biography on the BBC website, told from the character's perspective:
public house that Mark Fowler
was HIV positive. A few weeks later, Dot was seen moving into the house of Pauline Fowler
, citing irreconcilable differences with Lilly. The decision to axe Lilly was reportedly prompted by actress June Brown, who plays Dot Cotton. Brown had allegedly complained that the comedy doubleact between Dot and Lilly was not right. A BBC insider told The People
newspaper "[Dot and Lilly were] supposed to be two pensioners providing comedy scenes but June thought it was rubbish. She even threatened to walk out but now she's staying on with the promise of better storylines". Actress Barbara Keogh was said to be "devastated" by the decision.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
soap opera
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...
, played by the late Barbara Keogh
Barbara Keogh
Barbara Keogh was a British actress who is possibly best remembered for playing Lilly Mattock in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, as well as playing various roles in comedy sketch-show, Little Britain....
from 1998–1999. Lilly liked to forget her age and concentrate on having fun. She had a rude awakening when she was mugged in 1999, and fun-loving Lilly was never quite the same again.
Storylines
Lilly was a former hoofer with the Westwood Girls (a showgirl), performing throughout Europe and the Far East at the close of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was married to Jack Temple, manager of the Westwood Girls, until he died in 1983. She arrived in Albert Square
Albert Square
Albert Square is the fictional location of the BBC soap opera EastEnders. It is ostensibly located in the equally fictional London borough of Walford in London's East End. The square's design was based on the real life Fassett Square in Hackney, and was given the name Albert Square after the real...
in 1998 when she moved into a flat with fellow senior-citizen Dot Cotton when both of their respective homes burnt down.
Lilly's fun-loving, cheeky personality was in stark contrast to Dot's and the two would often wind each other up with their obvious personality differences. She once even tried to persuade Dot that Jeff Healy had amorous intentions towards her, which had Dot in a bit of a fluster. She was also the first known person in the Square, before Jeff himself, to refer to her consistently as "Dorothy".
Lilly was never one to let her age spoil her fun and she could often be seen giving the youngsters of Walford a run for their money by clubbing in e20, trouncing Huw Edwards
Huw Edwards (EastEnders)
Huw Edwards is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Richard Elis. Huw was introduced in 1996 and remained on-screen till 1999.-Storylines:...
and Lenny Wallace
Lenny Wallace
Lenny Wallace is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Desune Coleman.Lenny was a fun loving individual, who didn't take life too seriously. He had a penchant for loud music and an eye for the ladies.- Storylines :...
at a game of poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
and making an exhibition of herself in salsa
Salsa (dance)
Salsa is a syncretic dance form with origins in Cuba as the meeting point of Spanish and African cultures.Salsa is normally a partner dance, although there are recognized solo forms such as solo dancing "suelta" and "Rueda de Casino" where multiple couples exchange partners in a circle...
classes. Her penchant for late-night clubbing even prompted owner Steve Owen to bar her from his club, for fear that she would upstage his younger clientele.
Lilly worked for Terry
Terry Raymond
Terrence Gordon "Terry" Raymond is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Gavin Richards. Terry was initially introduced briefly in 1996 as the drunken father of Tiffany and Simon Raymond...
and Irene Raymond
Irene Raymond
Irene Constance Ethel Raymond is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Roberta Taylor. Introduced in 1997 as the matriarch of the Hills family, Irene remained in the serial until 2000, when the actress opted to leave...
at the First Til' Last grocery store and when coming home from one of her late shifts she was mugged by an armed youth. After this ordeal, Lilly became a recluse, not wanting to go out for fear of being attacked again. Suddenly faced with her own fragility, Lilly was forced to deal with the realisation that she wasn't as strong or independent as she thought. It took many months for Lilly to face the outside world and her personality was changed forever as a result.
Lilly and Dot's differences soon began to take their toll and in 1999 Lilly made the decision to leave Walford and move into sheltered accommodation when the insurance cheque for her flat came through, leaving Dot to move in with Pauline Fowler
Pauline Fowler
Pauline Fowler is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a long-running serial drama about working class life in the fictional London borough of Walford. She was played by actress Wendy Richard between 1985 and 2006. Pauline was created by scriptwriter Tony Holland and producer...
.
Character creation and development
The character Lilly Mattock, played by Barbara Keogh, was introduced in November 1998 by the executive producer of EastEnders, Matthew Robinson. Lilly was one of several characters introduced in the latter part of 1998, readressing the cast balance following Robinson's decision to axe a large proportion of characters, earlier in the year.Lilly was brought in as an elderly companion for the long-running character Dot Cotton, played by 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...
; the characters moved in together following the destruction of their block of flats. Described as "the silver-haired gossip", Lilly was intended to be a "comedy double act" with Dot, taking over the place of Dot's former sparring partner, Ethel Skinner
Ethel Skinner
Ethel May Skinner is a fictional character from the British soap opera EastEnders, played by the late Gretchen Franklin. Ethel Skinner also features in a 1988 EastEnders special, entitled Civvy Street, set on Albert Square during the Second World War, where the character is played by Alison...
(Gretchen Franklin
Gretchen Franklin
Gretchen Franklin was an English actress with a career in showbusiness that spanned over eighty years.She was born in Covent Garden, west London, a cousin of the actor Clive Dunn. She was best known for playing the character of Ethel Skinner in the long running BBC One, soap opera, EastEnders...
). Storylines concentrated on the obvious personality differences between Dot and Lilly, and the problems this caused. The majority of Lilly's storylines were comic, for which she was praised by Merle Brown, critic for the Daily Record
Daily Record (Scotland)
The Daily Record is a Scottish tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. It had been the best-selling daily paper in Scotland for many years with a paid circulation in August 2011 of 307,794 . It is now outsold by its arch-rival the Scottish Sun which in September 2010 had a circulation of 339,586 in...
. She was also used to highlight a more serious issue, when in 1999 she was mugged by a criminal called Gareth, and subsequently became agoraphobic
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder defined as a morbid fear of having a panic attack or panic-like symptoms in a situation from which it is perceived to be difficult to escape. These situations can include, but are not limited to, wide-open spaces, crowds, or uncontrolled social conditions...
, refusing to go out. Though she eventually got over this with Dot's assistance.
Lilly's backstory was revealed in her official biography on the BBC website, told from the character's perspective:
Departure
In September 1999, Lilly Mattock became the 26th character to be axed from EastEnders by Matthew Robinson, less than a year after her arrival. The character was never given an official exit, and was just quietly dropped from the serial, making her last appearance on 2 September 1999. In the storyline she had an argument with flatmate Dot Cotton after blurting out in The Queen VictoriaThe 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 that Mark Fowler
Mark Fowler
Mark Albert Fowler is a fictional character from the popular British BBC soap opera EastEnders. Mark was an original regular character in the series starting February 1985 but became a semi-regular after his original portrayer David Scarboro was written out of the role in April 1985. Scarboro made...
was HIV positive. A few weeks later, Dot was seen moving into the house of Pauline Fowler
Pauline Fowler
Pauline Fowler is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a long-running serial drama about working class life in the fictional London borough of Walford. She was played by actress Wendy Richard between 1985 and 2006. Pauline was created by scriptwriter Tony Holland and producer...
, citing irreconcilable differences with Lilly. The decision to axe Lilly was reportedly prompted by actress June Brown, who plays Dot Cotton. Brown had allegedly complained that the comedy doubleact between Dot and Lilly was not right. A BBC insider told 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....
newspaper "[Dot and Lilly were] supposed to be two pensioners providing comedy scenes but June thought it was rubbish. She even threatened to walk out but now she's staying on with the promise of better storylines". Actress Barbara Keogh was said to be "devastated" by the decision.