Mary Flaherty is a fictional character

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 Melanie Clark Pullen

Melanie Clark Pullen

Melanie Clark Pullen is an Irish actress, producer and writer.-Career:Born and raised in Ireland, Clark Pullen studied drama at Trinity College, Dublin. Shortly after graduating, in June 1997, she was cast in her most notable role to date, as Mary Flaherty in the BBC soap opera EastEnders...

.

Mary is the granddaughter of Maggie Flaherty, 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...

's long-lost sister. Her parents are Conor

Conor Flaherty

Conor Flaherty is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Seán Gleeson.He first appeared in 1997 when his aunt Pauline Fowler tracked him and his mother Maggie Flaherty down in Ireland after she discovered Maggie was the sister she had never known about...

 and Geraldine Flaherty. She first appeared in a special week of episodes set in Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

.

When the Fowlers

The Beale/Fowler family

The Beale/Fowler family is a fictional family in the BBC soap opera EastEnders.For many years before the show began, the Beale family consisted of head of the family, Albert, his wife, Lou Beale, and their three children, Kenny and twins Pauline and Pete...

 went to Ireland to meet their relatives, Mary was a teenager in trouble. Although she had a level head on her shoulders, she was having an affair with an older married man, Gerry McCrae.

Mary found a good friend in her cousin Mark

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...

, and decided to return to Walford

Walford

Walford is a fictional borough of east London in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The name Walford is both a street in Dalston where one of the series' creators, Tony Holland, lived and a blend of Walthamstow, where Holland was born, and Stratford. The suffix 'ford' is also found throughout East...

 with the Fowlers to escape her alcoholic, violent grandfather Sean.

Pauline initially liked Mary, often remarking that she was like a young Lou Beale

Lou Beale

Louise Ada "Lou" Beale is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Anna Wing. The character is played by Karen Meagher in the 1988 EastEnders special, Civvy Street, set during the Second World War....

, but they couldn't live in the same house and Mary often had to find new accommodation.

Mary also came between Joe Wicks

Joe Wicks

Joe Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Paul Nicholls. He appeared on screen between 25 March 1996 and 14 November 1997. EastEnders was praised for the character's portrayal of schizophrenia.-Storylines:...

 and Sarah Hills

Sarah Hills

Sarah Hills is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Daniela Denby-Ashe.-Storylines:Sarah was rather troublesome when she arrived on Albert Square, shoplifting from various market stalls. This was noticed by Alistair Matthews, a shop manager and religious cult leader...

, but Joe slept with Mary and left her, breaking her heart.

Mary broke her pelvis while on holiday in Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

 and then got involved with Matthew Rose

Matthew Rose (EastEnders)

Matthew Rose is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Joe Absolom. He was introduced in 1997. In a deviation from typical casting protocol, the role of Matthew was constructed for Absolom after he auditioned for the production team; they were looking for new, raw...

 and Robbie Jackson

Robbie Jackson

Robert "Robbie" Jackson is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Dean Gaffney from 1993 to 2003. The character was axed in 2003 by executive producer Louise Berridge. He made brief returns in 2004 and 2010 for two family weddings.-Backstory:Robbie was the product of a...

, before leaving Walford with her father Conor and his pregnant lover, Mark's wife Ruth Fowler

Ruth Fowler

Ruth Fowler is a fictional character from the popular British BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Caroline Paterson from 1994 to 1999. Ruth was Mark Fowler's second wife and she was far more comfortable with his HIV status than many of his other girlfriends. However their marriage eventually...

. They now live in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.