Tiffany Mitchell
Encyclopedia
Tiffany Dawn Mitchell is a fictional character
from the BBC
soap opera
EastEnders
, played by Martine McCutcheon
from 1995 until 1998. The character was created by the writer, Tony Jordan
. She was introduced as a school friend of Bianca Jackson
and became a prominent and popular character during her tenure due to a combustible relationship with the soap's landlord, Grant Mitchell
. McCutcheon quit the role in 1998 in order to pursue a musical career. Producers made the controversial decision to kill the character off, an act that McCutcheon publicly criticised as she had hoped to return at some stage. A book released in 1998, documenting Tiffany's time in the soap, was a number one bestseller.
(Gavin Richards
) and Louise Raymond
(Carol Harrison
). Louise abandoned Tiffany and her younger brother Simon
(Andrew Lynford
) when they were children, and they were raised by their alcoholic father. Tiffany attended school with Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer
) and Natalie Price
(Lucy Speed
) where she was a popular student. As a teenager she had an affair with her teacher and became pregnant to him; when Terry found out he pushed her down the stairs, causing her to miscarry.
(Ross Kemp
), but they bond after sharing drinks and end up having sex. When sober, they agree not to repeat this, and Tiffany starts dating Tony Hills
(Mark Homer
). They move in together and the relationship blossoms until Tiffany discovers she is pregnant. She knows the child might be Grant's, but she decides to claim that it's Tony's. Then she finds Tony kissing her brother and realizes that Tony's bisexual and has been having an affair with Simon. Devastated, she tells Grant that he's the baby's father and he whisks her away to Paris in November 1996 for a quick wedding, his main priority being not Tiffany but the baby. Tony refuses to believe Grant is the father and many fights ensue, with Tiffany staunchly denying that Tony has any claim on this child who is now to be known as a Mitchell.
Unfortunately, Tiffany finds life as Mrs. Grant Mitchell difficult. Grant won't let her socialize with her friends and forbids her to drink alcohol, fearing how it would harm his child; when he finds her drinking an alcoholic cocktail, he's furious and Tiffany threatens to leave him. Grant turns violent, almost attacking her, but he's halted by the arrival of Lorraine Wicks
. Lorraine consoles a distraught Tiffany, who breaks down and admits that Grant may not be her baby's father. Lorraine tries to convince Tiffany to tell Grant the truth, but Tiffany decides against it and keeps up the pretense. Meanwhile, Lorraine makes her real intentions toward Grant clear: on Christmas Eve
1996 she and Grant kiss and on New Year's Eve, she informs Grant that Tiffany's baby might not be his. Grant violent ejects Tiffany and starts an affair with Lorraine, which destroys Tiffany.
Tiffany gives birth to daughter Courtney by Caesarean section
in March 1997, and for a moment Grant softens towards his wife. However he's soon denying that Courtney is his and Tiffany is forced to get a paternity test, which confirms that Courtney is Grant's child. He allows Tiffany to stay at the Vic so he can keep his daughter close. Still in love with him, Tiffany begs him to take her back. Grant initially responds by threatening to sue for sole custody of Courtney, but he changes his mind after Lorraine leaves Walford. Grant and Tiffany reconcile in August 1997, renew their wedding vows, and take a romantic trip to Paris
, but by 1998, they are rowing again. During a heated argument, Grant hits his own mother, Peggy
(Barbara Windsor
), who is trying to stop Grant from hurting Tiffany. Following this, Tiffany moves in with her own mother.
Grant attempts to reconcile with Tiffany, but she decides she wants a divorce. She grows close to police officer Beppe di Marco
(Michael Greco), who has fallen for her and despises Grant for mistreating her. Grant counters this by making a pass at his mother-in-law and they have sex. The affair ends abruptly when Tiffany reconsiders divorcing Grant. They reunite, but months later Tiffany hears them over a baby monitor
, discussing their affair. Without telling either of them, Tiffany starts packing to leave Walford. She confronts Grant, telling him she's taking Courtney and he would never see her again. In her haste she falls down the stairs and is hospitalized with a blood clot in the brain
. Everyone assumes that Grant pushed her and he is arrested on Christmas Day 1998, prompted by Beppe, who persuades Tiffany to go along with the charade that Grant has pushed her, and withholds evidence from the police that would clear Grant of wrongdoing.
On New Year's Eve
, Tiffany is released from hospital. For a second time she makes plans to leave Walford with Courtney. She goes to The Vic to allow Peggy to say goodbye to her granddaughter and says goodbye to her friends and family. She tells her mother she never wants to see her again and hurts Beppe by informing him that she is not in love with him and is leaving Walford without him. Tiffany changes her mind about framing Grant and writes a signed confession clearing him of any wrongdoing, and instructs Bianca to give it to the police after she has departed. Unbeknownst to Tiffany, Grant has already been released from prison on bail
. He returns to the Vic, moments before Tiffany herself returns to claim Courtney. Upon discovering Tiffany is planning to leave, Grant takes Courtney and flees. Hysterical and frightened, Tiffany pursues them, which results in her running straight into an oncoming car that was driven by Frank Butcher
(Mike Reid
). A helpless crowd watch as she dies at the scene. Tiffany is cremated and her ashes are scattered at Peacehaven
.
, Tiffany Raymond was conceptualised by EastEnders scriptwriter Tony Jordan
as a school friend of already established character Bianca Jackson
(Patsy Palmer
). Actress Martine McCutcheon was cast in the role. McCutcheon has revealed that she was initially hesitant about auditioning for the part, commenting to The Guardian
, "An agent called me and said there was a part on EastEnders and I said, very offhandedly, 'I don't really want to do soap, because I want to do movies, and nobody I know goes from soap to movies, and it's just not the sort of actress I want to be [...] this agent said to me, just let me send you a synopsis of the character and see what you think, and I thought she was fantastic. And I watched EastEnders that night and I realised just how many people talked about it. So I told my agent, 'All right, I'm going to go for it, I'm not in a position to be fussy".
In Larry Jaffee's book, Albert Square & Me: The Actors of Eastenders, McCutcheon discussed the auditioning process at the BBC in December 1994, saying that the casting directors liked the way she read, but did not feel that her dress sense tallied with their vision of Tiffany. They asked her to return in a few days dressed like their vision, in "flashy clothes and junk jewelry" and showing a "bit of cleavage". McCutcheon attended "gangster clubs" to research the type of clothing worn by women that frequented them. She returned to the BBC wearing fishnet stockings, a tight lycra skirt, junk jewelry, orange lipstick and fake tan. She was told that her look was "perfect" and several days later she was informed that she had been given the role.
McCutcheon's final competitor for the role of Tiffany was actress Claire Goose
, who later appeared in EastEnders in a minor role as a hairdresser before achieving fame in the BBC drama series Casualty
.
McCutcheon has claimed that she partly based her portrayal of Tiffany on her own mother, Jenny; her mother gave her advice on how to play the character. McCutcheon claims her mother told her "to wear the dangly earrings with the short skirts and the low, V-neck tops, because that's what the barmaids wore. She was very open about it all. She'd say you need to lean over and say in a breathy but firm voice, 'Hello! What d'you fancy?' And, hopefully, they'll say, 'You', and you'll get free drinks all night." McCutcheon has described Tiffany as "fun and sassy". She added, "She has also got a lot of her morals wrong and she's a bit back to front. But she means well!"
(Mark Homer
). In the storyline, Tony struggles with his homosexuality and, fearful of these urges, begins a relationship with Tiffany. This facilitates several plot twists, when Tiffany discovers she is pregnant she is uncertain as to whether the baby is Tony's or Grant's, and simultaneously, Tony begins an affair with Tiffany's brother Simon Raymond
(Andrew Lynford
). When Tony and Simon's gay affair is uncovered, Tiffany reunites with Grant after telling him her baby is his and they elope off-screen.
Depicted as a problematic marriage, according to a show insider in 1996, "The marriage runs into trouble before the ink has even dried on the wedding certificate". In the storyline Grant falls for another barmaid, Lorraine Wicks
(Jacqueline Leonard
), and the Mitchell partnership ends in separation the same year when Grant is informed that Tiffany's baby might not be his. Later, Grant begrudgingly reunites with Tiffany in 1997 when he is confirmed as the father, but attempts to brand Tiffany as an incompetent mother. The Mitchell baby saga was a ratings success for EastEnders. Commenting on the storyline and her character, McCutcheon said in 1997, "Tiffany will be really upset that Grant is trying to make out she's not a good mother. It's so unjust, she adores [her daughter] Courtney. She's changed completely since the birth. She used to be hard and selfish, only interested in men and clothes, being free and having a wild time. Now all she wants is to settle down. Grant can't complain if he feels his daughter isn't being looked after properly. He hasn't given Tiff the support she needs."
Tiffany's determination for the marriage to succeed despite upset was a repetitive theme and in 1997, McCutcheon discussed Tiffany's motivation and development as Tiffany and Grant prepared to have the marriage blessed in a more formal ceremony aired on-screen: "Tiffany sees [her marriage to Grant] as her last chance to grab some happiness.She never wants to suffer again the way she did. The pair of them gave their all in an effort to try to make it work. so delighted to have Grant back that this should be the best day of her life." McCutcheon claims that this spelt a new phase for Tiffany's character as she made a determined effort to win Grant back but under her own terms: "Now Tiffany is much more assertive. She loves Grant, but this time round she will never allow him to rule her life. Grant has to remember that now she sees it as equally important to be a mother as well as a wife. Having her daughter Courtney, she knows she will never be alone and does not need to follow meekly in Grant's shadow." McCutcheon added, "[Tiffany]'s changed completely since the birth [of her daughter]. She used to be hard and selfish, only interested in men and clothes, being free and having a wild time. Now all she wants is to settle down."
On-screen, Tiffany's exit storyline centred upon another break-up with husband Grant after she discovered that he had slept with her mother Louise
(Carol Harrison
). Leading up to her final scenes in December 1998, Tiffany and Grant were involved in a row that left Tiffany hospitalised after falling down the stairs; Tiffany attempted to farme Grant for pushing her. 20 million viewers watched the episode. Matthew Robinson said he was delighted by the figures, saying they showed "our stories just get better and better. It's a great tribute to EastEnders' storyliners, writers and cast, particularly Martine McCutcheon as Tiffany." Viewing figures remained high throughout Christmas 1998 week as the storyline climaxed in Tiffany's exit on the New Year's episode of 1998, when Tiffany was killed after being hit by a car while trying to retrieve Courtney from Grant. Her exit was watched by over 12 million viewers.
McCutcheon publicly slammed the BBC's "Controller of Continuing Drama Series", Mal Young
, who was one of the executives who made the decision to kill her character. She accused him of treating her unfairly and bringing her role in the soap to an end so irrevocably, merely as punishment for leaving. In turn, Young has hit back at McCutcheon, saying her anger only arose because she wanted him to keep her role in EastEnders open as a 'safety net', in case her pop career failed, and he was not prepared to do this. McCutcheon has subsequently written an autobiography
entitled Who Does She Think She Is?: My Autobiography, which depicts Young less than favourably. Robinson has defended the decision to kill the character, telling Walford web, "Far from hasty, the decision was carefully made, not just by me, but by the trio of Mal Young, Peter Salmon (BBC1 Controller) and me. We knew exactly what we were doing and it was exactly right for the show at the time, whatever Martine continues to say about it. Sometimes, actors want to have their cake and eat it. This is not possible in a streamlined production factory, like EastEnders." McCutcheon commented, "I wanted to be written out but not in such a final way. I was very upset. Even if I become the most successful singer in the world, I would still have loved it if I could have walked back into the Queen Vic." In a subsequent interview she added, "What I wanted to do was come back, no matter what happened. To come back, walk into the Vic and say, `Hello Grant'. I told them that even if I had a number one single I would sign a contract to say I'd turn up in the Vic one last time because people would love it. I knew the BBC producers had given time off to other cast members. I thought they might do the same for me. But they wouldn't budge. They just said: `No - you either stay with it as it is or we're going to kill you off'. I said: `Don't you think that's a little drastic? We've got the best writers in Britain. There are loads of wonderful, dramatic things we can do. It doesn't mean you have to kill her off forever. That leaves no hope for me, for the public as far as the character goes, and no hope for the show as far as Tiffany is concerned [...] they knew I would make my singing career work and they wanted to get their pound of flesh from me before I went."
has suggested that Tiffany was an iconic character, akin to original characters Den Watts
and Angie Watts
(Leslie Grantham
and Anita Dobson
). McCutcheon has suggested that Tiffany was universally liked by men and women, "was the kind of allowable fantasy, fancied by men, admired by women, that enabled all viewers to love her". McCutcheon claims that she received lots of fanmail whilst in the role, with offers of marriage proposals. She claims that young girls idoloised Tiffany. McCutcheon's performance as Tiffany saw her win 'Most Popular Actress' at the 1997 National Television Awards
, and 'Best Actress' at the 1998 TV Quick
and TV Choice Awards. Tiffany was voted Britain's sexiest soap star in 1997.
In the book, Monarchies: What Are Kings and Queens For?, the authors relate Tiffany's death in EastEnders to the real death of Princess Diana - a senseless death of a beautiful young woman. The authors suggest that Tiffany's death was one of the most powerful and popular stories featured in EastEnders. They suggest that like Diana, Tiffany was "A beautiful, flawed and misunderstood woman, she died in tragic circumstances while escaping a pursuer who wanted to possess her." Tiffany's death has been described as event television in the book Television at the crossroads, meaning a programme that causes audiences to break their viewing habits for an evening and all migrate to the same channel at the same time.
Grant and Tiffany's volatile relationship made headlines in July 1997 amid reports that EastEnders bosses were considering airing a controversial storyline that would see Tiffany raped by Grant. The plot, which was slated to be aired on Christmas Day 1997, evoked criticism from female MPs and children's groups, TV clean-up campaigners and church officials, who were all expressive in unanimous condemnation about the BBC's "cynical ploy to win the seasonal ratings war over arch-rival Coronation Street
." Labour MP Ann Clwyd
suggested that the BBC should "reconsider" and Michelle Elliott, director of the children's charity Kidscape
, said: "This is an appalling, outrageous, utterly nauseous example of rape for ratings." Reports also alleged that Grant's actor Ross Kemp was not happy about the plot either and threatened to quit the role unless the scripts were altered. Subsequently, the plot never came to fruition.
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 Martine McCutcheon
Martine McCutcheon
Martine McCutcheon is an English singer, television personality and Laurence Olivier Award-winning actress. McCutcheon had minor success as one third of the pop group Milan in the early 1990s; however, it was her role as Tiffany Mitchell in BBC's EastEnders that made her a household name in the UK...
from 1995 until 1998. The character was created by the writer, Tony Jordan
Tony Jordan
Tony Jordan is a British television writer. He was listed as the number 1 television screen writer in the UK by Broadcast magazine and among British Broadcastings Top 20 in The Stage ., He currently resides in Hertfordshire, UK.For many years, he was lead writer and series consultant for BBC One...
. She was introduced as a school friend of Bianca Jackson
Bianca Jackson
Bianca Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Patsy Palmer. The character was introduced by executive producer Leonard Lewis and appeared initially from 1993 to 1999, when Palmer opted to leave. In 2002 executive producer John Yorke brought the character...
and became a prominent and popular character during her tenure due to a combustible relationship with the soap's landlord, Grant Mitchell
Grant Mitchell (EastEnders)
Grant Anthony Mitchell is a fictional character from the British soap opera EastEnders, played by Ross Kemp. Grant first appeared in 1990, introduced by producer Michael Ferguson to revamp the show. Kemp remained until 1999 when he opted to leave...
. McCutcheon quit the role in 1998 in order to pursue a musical career. Producers made the controversial decision to kill the character off, an act that McCutcheon publicly criticised as she had hoped to return at some stage. A book released in 1998, documenting Tiffany's time in the soap, was a number one bestseller.
Backstory
Tiffany was the only daughter of TerryTerry 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...
(Gavin Richards
Gavin Richards
Gavin Richards is a British actor, writer and director. His father is music critic Denby Richards, emeritus editor of Britain's oldest classical music magazine, Musical Opinion....
) and Louise Raymond
Louise Raymond
Louise Raymond is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Carol Harrison from May 1998 to April 1999. Louise was the estranged mother of the characters Tiffany and Simon Raymond. She was featured most prominently in a high-profile storyline about adultery, when she...
(Carol Harrison
Carol Harrison
Carol Harrison is a British actress and writer. She is known mostly for her work on British television, in particular her role as Louise Raymond in BBC's EastEnders.-Career:...
). Louise abandoned Tiffany and her younger brother Simon
Simon Raymond
Simon Raymond is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Andrew Lynford. Simon was introduced in 1996 as the homosexual brother of Tiffany Mitchell. His relationship with the bisexual character Tony Hills featured a gay kiss that caused controversy in the UK; numerous...
(Andrew Lynford
Andrew Lynford
Andrew Lynford is a British television presenter and actor. He is widely remembered for playing the role of Simon Raymond in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders and presenting Playdays for Children's BBC....
) when they were children, and they were raised by their alcoholic father. Tiffany attended school with Bianca Jackson (Patsy Palmer
Patsy Palmer
Patsy Palmer is an English actress. Palmer made an early television appearance on the children's drama show Grange Hill, but is best known for playing Bianca Jackson in the popular British television soap opera EastEnders. Originally in the cast from 1993–1999, Palmer returned to EastEnders in...
) and Natalie Price
Natalie Evans
Natalie Evans is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Lucy Speed between 1994 and 2004. Natalie first appeared in January 1994, depicted initially as an unhappy, insecure teenager; she was among various regular characters brought in to increase the cast following the...
(Lucy Speed
Lucy Speed
Lucy Renee Speed is an English actress known for her television roles as Natalie Evans in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders, and DS Stevie Moss in the ITV1 police drama series The Bill.-Early life:...
) where she was a popular student. As a teenager she had an affair with her teacher and became pregnant to him; when Terry found out he pushed her down the stairs, causing her to miscarry.
1995-1998
Tiffany arrives in Walford in January 1995 to visit her best friend Bianca. After finding work as a barmaid at The Queen Vic public house, Tiffany moves to Walford. She clashes with landlord Grant MitchellGrant Mitchell (EastEnders)
Grant Anthony Mitchell is a fictional character from the British soap opera EastEnders, played by Ross Kemp. Grant first appeared in 1990, introduced by producer Michael Ferguson to revamp the show. Kemp remained until 1999 when he opted to leave...
(Ross Kemp
Ross Kemp
Ross James Kemp is a BAFTA award-winning British actor, author and journalist, who rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
), but they bond after sharing drinks and end up having sex. When sober, they agree not to repeat this, and Tiffany starts dating Tony Hills
Tony Hills
Tony Hills is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Mark Homer.-Storylines:Tony arrives in Walford from Norfolk on 7 September 1995 with his sister, Sarah Hills . He is unsympathetic and sells ecstasy with a friend, Dan Zappieri . Eventually, he quits dealing after Dan...
(Mark Homer
Mark Homer
Mark Homer is a British actor of stage, television and film. He is best known for playing Tony Hills in the popular British soap opera EastEnders from 1995 to 1999. His subsequent work includes guest appearances in Silent Witness and Spine Chillers, both also for the BBC...
). They move in together and the relationship blossoms until Tiffany discovers she is pregnant. She knows the child might be Grant's, but she decides to claim that it's Tony's. Then she finds Tony kissing her brother and realizes that Tony's bisexual and has been having an affair with Simon. Devastated, she tells Grant that he's the baby's father and he whisks her away to Paris in November 1996 for a quick wedding, his main priority being not Tiffany but the baby. Tony refuses to believe Grant is the father and many fights ensue, with Tiffany staunchly denying that Tony has any claim on this child who is now to be known as a Mitchell.
Unfortunately, Tiffany finds life as Mrs. Grant Mitchell difficult. Grant won't let her socialize with her friends and forbids her to drink alcohol, fearing how it would harm his child; when he finds her drinking an alcoholic cocktail, he's furious and Tiffany threatens to leave him. Grant turns violent, almost attacking her, but he's halted by the arrival of Lorraine Wicks
Lorraine Wicks
Lorraine Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Jacqueline Leonard between 1996 and 1997.-Storylines:...
. Lorraine consoles a distraught Tiffany, who breaks down and admits that Grant may not be her baby's father. Lorraine tries to convince Tiffany to tell Grant the truth, but Tiffany decides against it and keeps up the pretense. Meanwhile, Lorraine makes her real intentions toward Grant clear: on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
1996 she and Grant kiss and on New Year's Eve, she informs Grant that Tiffany's baby might not be his. Grant violent ejects Tiffany and starts an affair with Lorraine, which destroys Tiffany.
Tiffany gives birth to daughter Courtney by Caesarean section
Caesarean section
A Caesarean section, is a surgical procedure in which one or more incisions are made through a mother's abdomen and uterus to deliver one or more babies, or, rarely, to remove a dead fetus...
in March 1997, and for a moment Grant softens towards his wife. However he's soon denying that Courtney is his and Tiffany is forced to get a paternity test, which confirms that Courtney is Grant's child. He allows Tiffany to stay at the Vic so he can keep his daughter close. Still in love with him, Tiffany begs him to take her back. Grant initially responds by threatening to sue for sole custody of Courtney, but he changes his mind after Lorraine leaves Walford. Grant and Tiffany reconcile in August 1997, renew their wedding vows, and take a romantic trip to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, but by 1998, they are rowing again. During a heated argument, Grant hits his own mother, Peggy
Peggy Mitchell
Margaret Ann "Peggy" Mitchell is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders. Peggy was initially played by Jo Warne when she first appeared on 30 April 1991, featuring in the series on a recurring basis over several weeks. Peggy was reintroduced in 1994, recast and was then played by...
(Barbara Windsor
Barbara Windsor
Barbara Ann Windsor, MBE , better known by her stage name Barbara Windsor, is an English actress. Her best known roles are in the Carry On films and as Peggy Mitchell in the BBC soap opera EastEnders....
), who is trying to stop Grant from hurting Tiffany. Following this, Tiffany moves in with her own mother.
Grant attempts to reconcile with Tiffany, but she decides she wants a divorce. She grows close to police officer Beppe di Marco
Beppe di Marco
Beppe di Marco is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Michael Greco.Beppe was his family's pride and joy, so it was a big shock to them when he was fired from the police force for attempting to frame local hardman Grant Mitchell...
(Michael Greco), who has fallen for her and despises Grant for mistreating her. Grant counters this by making a pass at his mother-in-law and they have sex. The affair ends abruptly when Tiffany reconsiders divorcing Grant. They reunite, but months later Tiffany hears them over a baby monitor
Baby monitor
A baby monitor, also known as a baby alarm, is a radio system used to remotely listen to sounds made by an infant. The transmitter unit, equipped with a microphone, is placed near to the child. It transmits the sounds the baby makes by radio waves to a receiver unit with a speaker carried by, or...
, discussing their affair. Without telling either of them, Tiffany starts packing to leave Walford. She confronts Grant, telling him she's taking Courtney and he would never see her again. In her haste she falls down the stairs and is hospitalized with a blood clot in the brain
Brain
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
. Everyone assumes that Grant pushed her and he is arrested on Christmas Day 1998, prompted by Beppe, who persuades Tiffany to go along with the charade that Grant has pushed her, and withholds evidence from the police that would clear Grant of wrongdoing.
On New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
, Tiffany is released from hospital. For a second time she makes plans to leave Walford with Courtney. She goes to The Vic to allow Peggy to say goodbye to her granddaughter and says goodbye to her friends and family. She tells her mother she never wants to see her again and hurts Beppe by informing him that she is not in love with him and is leaving Walford without him. Tiffany changes her mind about framing Grant and writes a signed confession clearing him of any wrongdoing, and instructs Bianca to give it to the police after she has departed. Unbeknownst to Tiffany, Grant has already been released from prison on bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
. He returns to the Vic, moments before Tiffany herself returns to claim Courtney. Upon discovering Tiffany is planning to leave, Grant takes Courtney and flees. Hysterical and frightened, Tiffany pursues them, which results in her running straight into an oncoming car that was driven by Frank Butcher
Frank Butcher
Francis Aloysius "Frank" Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by the late Mike Reid. Frank made his first appearance on-screen as a guest character in 1987 but, due to a positive viewer reception, he was reintroduced in 1988 as a regular. Reid took a long...
(Mike Reid
Mike Reid (entertainer)
Michael Reid was an English comedian, actor, author and occasional television presenter from Hackney in east London, who is best remembered for playing the role of Frank Butcher in EastEnders and hosting the popular children's TV show Runaround...
). A helpless crowd watch as she dies at the scene. Tiffany is cremated and her ashes are scattered at Peacehaven
Peacehaven
Peacehaven is a town and civil parish in the Lewes district of East Sussex, England. It is located above the chalk cliffs of the South Downs approximately six miles east of Brighton city centre, on the A259 road...
.
Creation
Introduced in 1995 by series producer Barbara EmileBarbara Emile
Barbara Emile is a British television producer. Emile contributed to the BBC soap opera EastEnders for several years. She first started working on the serial as script editor underneath producer Leonard Lewis, and she began producing the programme in 1992. Following the departure of Lewis in 1994,...
, Tiffany Raymond was conceptualised by EastEnders scriptwriter Tony Jordan
Tony Jordan
Tony Jordan is a British television writer. He was listed as the number 1 television screen writer in the UK by Broadcast magazine and among British Broadcastings Top 20 in The Stage ., He currently resides in Hertfordshire, UK.For many years, he was lead writer and series consultant for BBC One...
as a school friend of already established character Bianca Jackson
Bianca Jackson
Bianca Butcher is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Patsy Palmer. The character was introduced by executive producer Leonard Lewis and appeared initially from 1993 to 1999, when Palmer opted to leave. In 2002 executive producer John Yorke brought the character...
(Patsy Palmer
Patsy Palmer
Patsy Palmer is an English actress. Palmer made an early television appearance on the children's drama show Grange Hill, but is best known for playing Bianca Jackson in the popular British television soap opera EastEnders. Originally in the cast from 1993–1999, Palmer returned to EastEnders in...
). Actress Martine McCutcheon was cast in the role. McCutcheon has revealed that she was initially hesitant about auditioning for the part, commenting to The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, "An agent called me and said there was a part on EastEnders and I said, very offhandedly, 'I don't really want to do soap, because I want to do movies, and nobody I know goes from soap to movies, and it's just not the sort of actress I want to be [...] this agent said to me, just let me send you a synopsis of the character and see what you think, and I thought she was fantastic. And I watched EastEnders that night and I realised just how many people talked about it. So I told my agent, 'All right, I'm going to go for it, I'm not in a position to be fussy".
In Larry Jaffee's book, Albert Square & Me: The Actors of Eastenders, McCutcheon discussed the auditioning process at the BBC in December 1994, saying that the casting directors liked the way she read, but did not feel that her dress sense tallied with their vision of Tiffany. They asked her to return in a few days dressed like their vision, in "flashy clothes and junk jewelry" and showing a "bit of cleavage". McCutcheon attended "gangster clubs" to research the type of clothing worn by women that frequented them. She returned to the BBC wearing fishnet stockings, a tight lycra skirt, junk jewelry, orange lipstick and fake tan. She was told that her look was "perfect" and several days later she was informed that she had been given the role.
McCutcheon's final competitor for the role of Tiffany was actress Claire Goose
Claire Goose
Claire Goose is a British actress. She is best known for her role as nurse Tina Seabrook in the BBC television drama Casualty and later as DS Mel Silver in Waking the Dead.-Life and career:...
, who later appeared in EastEnders in a minor role as a hairdresser before achieving fame in the BBC drama series Casualty
Casualty (TV series)
Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
.
Characterisation
Tiffany has been described as a "tart with a heart". According to McCutcheon, Tiffany's original character outline, as described by the casting directors, portrayed her as a "feisty and quite bitchy character, quite worldly."McCutcheon has claimed that she partly based her portrayal of Tiffany on her own mother, Jenny; her mother gave her advice on how to play the character. McCutcheon claims her mother told her "to wear the dangly earrings with the short skirts and the low, V-neck tops, because that's what the barmaids wore. She was very open about it all. She'd say you need to lean over and say in a breathy but firm voice, 'Hello! What d'you fancy?' And, hopefully, they'll say, 'You', and you'll get free drinks all night." McCutcheon has described Tiffany as "fun and sassy". She added, "She has also got a lot of her morals wrong and she's a bit back to front. But she means well!"
Relationship with Grant Mitchell
A volatile relationship between Tiffany and her boss, landlord Grant Mitchell, was scripted in the show. It began with a one-night stand on-screen, which lead to "a sizzling undercurrent between them". McCutcheon felt in 1996 that there was a lot of chemistry between Grant and Tiffany and was keen for the characters to have a legitimate relationship. However, plots went on to pair Tiffany with another character, the sexually confused Tony HillsTony Hills
Tony Hills is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Mark Homer.-Storylines:Tony arrives in Walford from Norfolk on 7 September 1995 with his sister, Sarah Hills . He is unsympathetic and sells ecstasy with a friend, Dan Zappieri . Eventually, he quits dealing after Dan...
(Mark Homer
Mark Homer
Mark Homer is a British actor of stage, television and film. He is best known for playing Tony Hills in the popular British soap opera EastEnders from 1995 to 1999. His subsequent work includes guest appearances in Silent Witness and Spine Chillers, both also for the BBC...
). In the storyline, Tony struggles with his homosexuality and, fearful of these urges, begins a relationship with Tiffany. This facilitates several plot twists, when Tiffany discovers she is pregnant she is uncertain as to whether the baby is Tony's or Grant's, and simultaneously, Tony begins an affair with Tiffany's brother Simon Raymond
Simon Raymond
Simon Raymond is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Andrew Lynford. Simon was introduced in 1996 as the homosexual brother of Tiffany Mitchell. His relationship with the bisexual character Tony Hills featured a gay kiss that caused controversy in the UK; numerous...
(Andrew Lynford
Andrew Lynford
Andrew Lynford is a British television presenter and actor. He is widely remembered for playing the role of Simon Raymond in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders and presenting Playdays for Children's BBC....
). When Tony and Simon's gay affair is uncovered, Tiffany reunites with Grant after telling him her baby is his and they elope off-screen.
Depicted as a problematic marriage, according to a show insider in 1996, "The marriage runs into trouble before the ink has even dried on the wedding certificate". In the storyline Grant falls for another barmaid, Lorraine Wicks
Lorraine Wicks
Lorraine Wicks is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Jacqueline Leonard between 1996 and 1997.-Storylines:...
(Jacqueline Leonard
Jacqueline Leonard
Jacqueline Leonard is an English television, film and theatre actress.Best known for her appearances in long-running British television shows, she played Lorraine Wicks in the London-based soap opera EastEnders, and also appeared in the Glasgow-based soap River City as gangster's wife Lydia...
), and the Mitchell partnership ends in separation the same year when Grant is informed that Tiffany's baby might not be his. Later, Grant begrudgingly reunites with Tiffany in 1997 when he is confirmed as the father, but attempts to brand Tiffany as an incompetent mother. The Mitchell baby saga was a ratings success for EastEnders. Commenting on the storyline and her character, McCutcheon said in 1997, "Tiffany will be really upset that Grant is trying to make out she's not a good mother. It's so unjust, she adores [her daughter] Courtney. She's changed completely since the birth. She used to be hard and selfish, only interested in men and clothes, being free and having a wild time. Now all she wants is to settle down. Grant can't complain if he feels his daughter isn't being looked after properly. He hasn't given Tiff the support she needs."
Tiffany's determination for the marriage to succeed despite upset was a repetitive theme and in 1997, McCutcheon discussed Tiffany's motivation and development as Tiffany and Grant prepared to have the marriage blessed in a more formal ceremony aired on-screen: "Tiffany sees [her marriage to Grant] as her last chance to grab some happiness.She never wants to suffer again the way she did. The pair of them gave their all in an effort to try to make it work. so delighted to have Grant back that this should be the best day of her life." McCutcheon claims that this spelt a new phase for Tiffany's character as she made a determined effort to win Grant back but under her own terms: "Now Tiffany is much more assertive. She loves Grant, but this time round she will never allow him to rule her life. Grant has to remember that now she sees it as equally important to be a mother as well as a wife. Having her daughter Courtney, she knows she will never be alone and does not need to follow meekly in Grant's shadow." McCutcheon added, "[Tiffany]'s changed completely since the birth [of her daughter]. She used to be hard and selfish, only interested in men and clothes, being free and having a wild time. Now all she wants is to settle down."
Departure
In September 1997, it was leaked to the press that McCutcheon was considering leaving EastEnders in order to pursure a singing career. Rumours about her exit continued throughout early 1998, with sources suggesting that McCutcheon was hoping to remain on EastEnders while also releasing music. In an interview with website Walford Web, executive producer at the time has given his account of what happened. He suggested that McCutcheon demanded that "the BBC allow her to come and go within the series at her behest, making it impossible for storyliners to write coherently for her character." Because of this, the show's boses made the decision to kill the character of Tiffany off. McCutcheon was displeased with this and went public with her criticism of the decision, stating that she was not informed by the producers but heard the news on the radio after a tabloid newspaper ran a front page story with the headline "Tiff's a stiff". Robinson has suggested that this was due to an unsanctioned leak to the press.On-screen, Tiffany's exit storyline centred upon another break-up with husband Grant after she discovered that he had slept with her mother Louise
Louise Raymond
Louise Raymond is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Carol Harrison from May 1998 to April 1999. Louise was the estranged mother of the characters Tiffany and Simon Raymond. She was featured most prominently in a high-profile storyline about adultery, when she...
(Carol Harrison
Carol Harrison
Carol Harrison is a British actress and writer. She is known mostly for her work on British television, in particular her role as Louise Raymond in BBC's EastEnders.-Career:...
). Leading up to her final scenes in December 1998, Tiffany and Grant were involved in a row that left Tiffany hospitalised after falling down the stairs; Tiffany attempted to farme Grant for pushing her. 20 million viewers watched the episode. Matthew Robinson said he was delighted by the figures, saying they showed "our stories just get better and better. It's a great tribute to EastEnders' storyliners, writers and cast, particularly Martine McCutcheon as Tiffany." Viewing figures remained high throughout Christmas 1998 week as the storyline climaxed in Tiffany's exit on the New Year's episode of 1998, when Tiffany was killed after being hit by a car while trying to retrieve Courtney from Grant. Her exit was watched by over 12 million viewers.
McCutcheon publicly slammed the BBC's "Controller of Continuing Drama Series", Mal Young
Mal Young
Mal Young is a British television producer and executive producer.-Background:His initial career was in the Graphic Design industry, and it was not until the age of 27 that he began working in television, on the acclaimed Channel 4 soap opera Brookside.Working on the show for nearly a decade, he...
, who was one of the executives who made the decision to kill her character. She accused him of treating her unfairly and bringing her role in the soap to an end so irrevocably, merely as punishment for leaving. In turn, Young has hit back at McCutcheon, saying her anger only arose because she wanted him to keep her role in EastEnders open as a 'safety net', in case her pop career failed, and he was not prepared to do this. McCutcheon has subsequently written an autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
entitled Who Does She Think She Is?: My Autobiography, which depicts Young less than favourably. Robinson has defended the decision to kill the character, telling Walford web, "Far from hasty, the decision was carefully made, not just by me, but by the trio of Mal Young, Peter Salmon (BBC1 Controller) and me. We knew exactly what we were doing and it was exactly right for the show at the time, whatever Martine continues to say about it. Sometimes, actors want to have their cake and eat it. This is not possible in a streamlined production factory, like EastEnders." McCutcheon commented, "I wanted to be written out but not in such a final way. I was very upset. Even if I become the most successful singer in the world, I would still have loved it if I could have walked back into the Queen Vic." In a subsequent interview she added, "What I wanted to do was come back, no matter what happened. To come back, walk into the Vic and say, `Hello Grant'. I told them that even if I had a number one single I would sign a contract to say I'd turn up in the Vic one last time because people would love it. I knew the BBC producers had given time off to other cast members. I thought they might do the same for me. But they wouldn't budge. They just said: `No - you either stay with it as it is or we're going to kill you off'. I said: `Don't you think that's a little drastic? We've got the best writers in Britain. There are loads of wonderful, dramatic things we can do. It doesn't mean you have to kill her off forever. That leaves no hope for me, for the public as far as the character goes, and no hope for the show as far as Tiffany is concerned [...] they knew I would make my singing career work and they wanted to get their pound of flesh from me before I went."
Reception
BBC executive Mal YoungMal Young
Mal Young is a British television producer and executive producer.-Background:His initial career was in the Graphic Design industry, and it was not until the age of 27 that he began working in television, on the acclaimed Channel 4 soap opera Brookside.Working on the show for nearly a decade, he...
has suggested that Tiffany was an iconic character, akin to original characters Den Watts
Den Watts
Dennis Alan "Den" Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by actor Leslie Grantham. He became well known for his tabloid nickname, "Dirty Den"....
and Angie Watts
Angie Watts
Angela "Angie" Watts is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera EastEnders, played by Anita Dobson from the first episode of the show until 1988 when the actress decided to quit and the character was written out....
(Leslie Grantham
Leslie Grantham
Leslie Michael Grantham is an English actor best known for his role as "Dirty" Den Watts in the soap opera EastEnders. He is also a convicted murderer, having served 10 years for the killing of a German taxi driver, and he generated significant press coverage as the result of an online sex scandal...
and Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson is an English television actress and singer. She gained her highest profile while playing Angie Watts in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
). McCutcheon has suggested that Tiffany was universally liked by men and women, "was the kind of allowable fantasy, fancied by men, admired by women, that enabled all viewers to love her". McCutcheon claims that she received lots of fanmail whilst in the role, with offers of marriage proposals. She claims that young girls idoloised Tiffany. McCutcheon's performance as Tiffany saw her win 'Most Popular Actress' at the 1997 National Television Awards
National Television Awards
The National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...
, and 'Best Actress' at the 1998 TV Quick
TV Quick
TV Choice, is a British weekly TV listings magazine published by H. Bauer Publishing, the UK subsidiary of family-run German company Bauer Media Group...
and TV Choice Awards. Tiffany was voted Britain's sexiest soap star in 1997.
In the book, Monarchies: What Are Kings and Queens For?, the authors relate Tiffany's death in EastEnders to the real death of Princess Diana - a senseless death of a beautiful young woman. The authors suggest that Tiffany's death was one of the most powerful and popular stories featured in EastEnders. They suggest that like Diana, Tiffany was "A beautiful, flawed and misunderstood woman, she died in tragic circumstances while escaping a pursuer who wanted to possess her." Tiffany's death has been described as event television in the book Television at the crossroads, meaning a programme that causes audiences to break their viewing habits for an evening and all migrate to the same channel at the same time.
Grant and Tiffany's volatile relationship made headlines in July 1997 amid reports that EastEnders bosses were considering airing a controversial storyline that would see Tiffany raped by Grant. The plot, which was slated to be aired on Christmas Day 1997, evoked criticism from female MPs and children's groups, TV clean-up campaigners and church officials, who were all expressive in unanimous condemnation about the BBC's "cynical ploy to win the seasonal ratings war over arch-rival Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
." Labour MP Ann Clwyd
Ann Clwyd
Ann Clwyd Roberts is a Welsh Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Cynon Valley since 1984.-Early life:Ann Clwyd is the daughter of Gwilym Henri Lewis and Elizabeth Ann Lewis...
suggested that the BBC should "reconsider" and Michelle Elliott, director of the children's charity Kidscape
Kidscape
The London-based charity Kidscape was established in 1985 by child psychologist Michele Elliott. Its focus is on children’s safety, with an emphasis on the prevention of harm by equipping children with techniques and mindsets that help them stay safe....
, said: "This is an appalling, outrageous, utterly nauseous example of rape for ratings." Reports also alleged that Grant's actor Ross Kemp was not happy about the plot either and threatened to quit the role unless the scripts were altered. Subsequently, the plot never came to fruition.