Dot Cotton
Dot Cotton | |
---|---|
EastEnders character | |
Portrayed by | June Brown Tallulah Pitt-Brown (flashback) |
Duration | 1985–1993, 1997–2020 |
First appearance | Episode 40 4 July 1985 |
Last appearance | Episode 6065 21 January 2020 |
Classification | Former; regular |
Created by | Julia Smith and Tony Holland |
Introduced by |
|
Book appearances | The Baffled Heart |
Spin-off appearances |
|
Reiss Colwell |
Dorothy "Dot" Branning (also Cotton) is a fictional character from the
Dot first appeared in EastEnders in July 1985 as the mother of notorious criminal and original character Nick Cotton (John Altman). The character worked as a launderette assistant for most of that time, along with original character Pauline Fowler (Wendy Richard), and was close friends with original characters Ethel Skinner (Gretchen Franklin) and Lou Beale (Anna Wing). Dot moved away with her son and his family in 1993. In reality, Brown left the show in 1993, unhappy with the development of her character. Brown returned to the role in April 1997, and on 28 April 2017, Dot overtook Pat Butcher (Pam St Clement) as the second-longest-serving character in EastEnders, surpassed only by original character Ian Beale (Adam Woodyatt).[3] In April 2012, Brown took a six-month break from the show to write her memoirs.[4] Dot temporarily departed on 18 May 2012. She returned on 14 January 2013.[5][6] In February 2015, Dot began appearing less frequently due to Brown gradually losing her eyesight;[7] this aspect of her life was written into her character the following year. In February 2020, Brown announced that her appearance in the previous month would be the character's last, as she was dissatisfied with the storylines being given to her. Following Brown's death on 3 April 2022, the character of Dot died off-screen on 1 December 2022. A special episode centring around Dot's funeral was broadcast on 12 December 2022, with past and present characters paying their respects to the character.
A recurring storyline in the serial was Dot's continuous forgiveness of her son's villainous crimes. Initially married at the start of the series to conman Charlie Cotton (Christopher Hancock), Dot married again in 2002 to pensioner Jim Branning (John Bardon) and the union proved to be popular with fans. Brown and Bardon won awards for their on-screen partnership. On 31 January 2008, Dot became the first character ever to appear in a monologue episode of a British soap opera, "Pretty Baby....". The acclaimed episode saw Dot reminiscing about her years of loss and grief into a tape recorder as a message to her ailing husband Jim. Dot was used to explore topical and controversial issues such as euthanasia, cancer, immigration, and homophobia.
Dot was generally well received by critics: she has been referred to as a cultural archetype and Brown won multiple awards for her portrayal. However, aspects of the character, such as her smoking and her religious beliefs, have been criticised, with religious groups suggesting Dot's faith is used in a pejorative manner. The character has also made an impact on popular culture; she has been spoofed, most notably by Alistair McGowan, and has been credited as inspiration for catwalk collections.
Storylines
Backstory
Dot's backstory states that she was born in
1985–1993, 1997–2020
Dot is introduced as the gossiping, chain smoking, Christian friend of
Dot moves in with fellow senior citizen Lilly Mattock (Barbara Keogh) and is arrested for the illegal use of cannabis, which she confuses for herbal tea. When Lilly leaves after she is mugged, Dot moves in with Pauline. Her oldest friend Ethel also comes to stay with the Fowlers for a time, having become terminally ill. Ethel begs Dot to help her end her life. Torn between her Christian beliefs against euthanasia and her best friend's wishes, she helps Ethel to die, but later feels she should be jailed for murder. When the police do not believe her story, Dot demands retribution in another form and she ends up in court for shoplifting. She initially avoids a prison sentence but is imprisoned for 14 days for contempt of court following an outburst in the courtroom.[8]
When Dot reappears on the square after serving her sentence, she learns that Nick has also been released from prison. She goes to stay with Pauline's son Mark Fowler (Todd Carty) for a while and encounters Ashley (now played by Frankie Fitzgerald) after he runs away from home. Eventually, Nick himself returns to the square and reunites with Dot – who is shocked to see her son once more. Initially sceptical over Nick's previous criminality, Dot is pleased to have her family around and moves out of the Fowler household to live with them. Mark, however, is unimpressed and the two end up clashing with each other on multiple occasions. Nick's feud with Mark leads him to cut the brakes on Mark's motorbike in an attempt to kill his rival. However, Ashley ends up crashing the motorbike at the launderette in front of his family and the Fowlers. Ashley is confirmed to have died and Dot is devastated. On the night before Ashley's funeral, Dot is horrified to learn that her son is responsible for Ashley's death upon overhearing Nick telling Mark about this during another confrontation between them. The following day, Ashley's funeral takes place and Dot disowns Nick, telling him that he is no longer her son, and he leaves Albert Square in disgrace.
Dot establishes a relationship with neighbour
Dot receives a police visit informing her that Nick has died. One of the police officers returns later to tell her that he is actually her grandson
Dot confesses to the police and is charged with Nick's murder and subsequently imprisoned. Dot initially decides to plead guilty, believing she should atone for her sins in prison, but when Jim dies, she attends his funeral and realises how much her family needs her. She changes her plea and is cleared of murder at the court hearing; however, she is found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to prison for 14 months. She is released four months later. Dot reveals that she thinks she is going blind to
Dot trips over Dave and falls awkwardly onto a chair. Nobody knows she is injured until her step-granddaughter,
Creation
Although Dot had been referred to since the very early episodes of the programme as the mother of villain Nick Cotton (John Altman), she did not actually appear on-screen until episode 40 in July 1985.[9] Dot was conceptualised by show creators, Tony Holland and Julia Smith, along with the other original characters.[9] Introduced as the "bible thumping arch-gossip" of the launderette, Dot was a character who bridged the generations.[9] The actress June Brown was given the role after being recommended by actor Leslie Grantham, who played original character, Den Watts.[10]
Brown was offered the part of Dot Cotton for a period of three months initially and in her own words, she was brought in "merely to be Nick Cotton's mother because Nick was coming back again".[11] Brown has told Decca Aitkenhead of The Guardian in 2009 that she was wary of joining a soap opera as she had seen EastEnders once on television, "and there was an argument going on, and I thought, 'Oh, I don't want to watch all that,' so I switched it off. I didn't watch it again until I was asked to be in it."[12] The role was extended and the character has become one of the longest-running to have featured in EastEnders.[12]
Becoming Dot; characterisation
Appearance
To become the character of Dot Cotton, Brown is required to wear a wig to replicate Dot's 1950s "Italian Boy" hairstyle that has remained in a largely unchanged style since she first appeared in 1985.[13] Originally, the hair sported by Dot actually belonged to the actress, but Brown later started wearing a wig.[14] Brown has stated that as soon as Dot's hairpiece is on, she becomes the character.[15] The unchanged style of Dot was deemed so important by the programme makers, that when Brown requested to have dental work carried out to improve her prominent front teeth, the producers refused to allow it, arguing that Dot could not afford expensive tooth capping. Brown was not permitted to alter her teeth until early 1991 when they became loose.[13] Brown has indicated that she does not want Dot's style altered.[16] She claimed in 2002 that Dot had the same coats in her wardrobe that she was given in 1985. The fur-collared coat Dot wears for special occasions was donated by the character Angie Watts (Anita Dobson) in 1988 when she left the serial.[16] Brown commented, "I like the older clothes [...] I don't want new clothes, I'm happy the way she is. She thinks she looks really smart. She's got a terrible opinion of herself that woman!"[16]
Personality and religion
Brown has said that when she was cast as Dot, she was given a list of illnesses the character had. She added, "It meant she was a hypercondriac [
In Kathryn and Phillip Dodd's published essay, From EastEnd to EastEnders, Dot has been used as an example of the media's representation of the working-class as community-orientated, but defensive: "evangelist-cum-launderette supervisor. Eagle-eyed, she patrols the Square, confronting evil and despair and asking those stricken with doubt to trust God, while simultaneously organizing the local
The character has taken on a matriarchal role in the absence of her own family, taking on the burdens of numerous waifs and strays throughout the show's history, including
Describing Dot, Brown has said, "I love playing her – she's a strong character. Dear old Dot, she's got strong moral views and odd religious beliefs, but her heart's in the right place. She has that awful worried expression on her face the whole time".[19] Brown has noted the changes within Dot since the show's inception, saying that initially Dot was sharp and selfish, but since her character remarried in 2002, she has gained security and has "no reason to have the hypochondria she had in the past [...] She's become more caring over the years. She enjoys the company of young people. She loves her church. She can get in an anxious state – I like it when Dot's hysterical! She's also amusing, mostly because she doesn't realise she is".[23]
Comedic role
As well as being tragic, Dot is scripted as a comic character.
Smoking
Smoking cigarettes has become synonymous with Dot, and Brown has suggested that the habit is "intrinsic" to the character.[27] Dot's smoking was criticised by private healthcare company Bupa in 2008, when they rated her television's most unhealthy character. They suggest that, in order to spread a public message, Dot should appear breathless, not with "implausibly good health". They added, "Though Dot Cotton has a smoker's voice – deeper than you might expect, she does not seem to be short of breath or wheezy" and that viewers would be influenced by this.[28] However, Dot's smoking has been described by broadcasting watchdogs Ofcom as "justified in the context of the programme as a representation of an East End character" and they therefore stipulate that enforcement of broadcast smoking-sanctions would be unlikely on EastEnders.[29]
Development
The gossip
Upon her arrival, Dot Cotton was quickly established as the gossip, whose purpose, as author Anthony Slide sees it, was "that of a Greek chorus, commenting on the foibles of her fellow residents of Albert Square, from her vantage point as manager of the local launderette".[19] The "gossip" is a soap opera role that author Christine Geraghty has described as "crucial to the audience's engagement with a serial and provides both a source of information and a means of speculation for the viewer."[22] She asserts that a fundamental aspect of British soap is the idea of supporting members of community, based on the sharing of intimate knowledge, allowing "practical and emotional needs to be met" within the enclosed community.[22] However, according to Geraghty, there is nevertheless "an unease about the price paid for such support and an acknowledgement of the fine-line between neighbourliness and nosiness. The 'gossip' personifies this unease and though her task of passing on information and ferreting out problems is crucial to the community, she [...] is frequently the butt of mockery and criticism [...] The avidity with which Dot Cotton seeks out news is the subject of some embarrassment to her more restrained neighbours but the exchange of information she provides is essential if the community is to provide support to its members [...] the very process of exchanging information makes her an essential yet mistrusted figure."[22]
Indeed, it has been noted that, throughout the soap's early years, Dot was portrayed as a "lovable
Despite Dot's remaining penchant for gossip, it has been noted by Cole Moreton of The Independent in 2008 that the character has "evolved from a nasty gossip into a strong character for whom viewers feel warmth".[31] Author Dorothy Hobson has discussed this in her book Soap Opera, suggesting that Dot, while providing a narrative function as a gossip, has in turn been the subject of other people's gossip, with her own problems, troubles and vulnerability.[32]
Notable relationships
Nick
Dot's relationship with her wayward son Nick (John Altman), has been a feature of the character's narrative since her inception. Unlike Dot, Nick is scripted as a semi-regular character, one who comes and goes sporadically and, as authors Jill Marshall and Angela Werndly have observed, "we know heartache is in store for Dot Cotton every time her son, 'Nasty Nick', turns up [...] The recurrence of generic elements means we derive pleasure from expectation and prediction."[33]
Executive producer Diederick Santer has discussed the "wonderfully dysfunctional mother-son relationship" Nick shares with Dot and her perpetual willingness to give Nick another chance regardless of his history of wrongdoing.[34] Santer explained: "There's that thing where you sort of dare to hope that someone's changed, which is really tragic. They've let you down a hundred times, and yet you still hope that the hundred and first time they'll have changed."[34] Actor Leslie Grantham has stated that Dot is the "one friend in [Nick's] life", while series story producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins has affirmed: "Dot's always going to forgive him. And that's the beauty of Nick and Dot."[34] Concurring with this sentiment, John Altman (Nick) agreed: "No matter what he does, she'll forgive him. So did a lot of gangsters' mothers throughout history. Probably Al Capone's mother thought he was a sweet lad, you know."[34]
One of Nick's most notable returns to the series occurred in 1990.[35] Nick returned to his mother's life with the claim that he was a born-again Christian, which happened to coincide with her £10,000 win on the bingo. EastEnders writer Sarah Phelps explained: "For Dot, the idea that Jesus had finally spoken to Nick, that was all her Christmases coming at once! Nick knew that. It was sort of obvious that Nick could be saying 'Jesus walks with me' and then just go out and kick somebody or nick their wallet."[34] With the help of a fake priest, Nick managed to convince his mother of his new-found faith and then began a slow campaign to control her eating habits and poison her in order to claim her money. Discussing the storyline, scriptwriter Colin Brake has indicated that at first it was not clear to the audience whether Nick had reformed or not, but as the weeks passed it became obvious that he did intend to kill his mother, as he was shown practising a fake suicide note in Dot's handwriting – a foil to cover the intended murder; according to Brake, Dot remained blithely and perhaps purposefully ignorant to his wrongdoing.[35] The episode which culminated the storyline, written by P.J. Hammond, was set solely in Dot's house and featured an unusually small cast consisting of Nick, Dot, Nick's estranged father Charlie, Dot's close friend Ethel Skinner and Alistair the fake priest. At the last moment, in what Altman has called the "one time we saw a glimmer of Nick's good side",[34] Nick backed out of his plan and stopped Dot from eating the poisoned meal he had intended to kill her with. Once again Dot was left alone, broken-hearted at what her own son had been prepared to do to her.[35]
Other storylines have concentrated on Dot's various attempts to reform Nick, such as in 1991, when Nick returned with a heroin addiction. As the plot unfolded, Dot tried to curtail Nick's addiction by locking him in his room and forcing him to go
Following pleas from Brown to resurrect Nick, John Altman returned to the serial again in December 2008, in a storyline that saw Nick attempt to con Dot again, this time aided by a previously unheard of daughter, Dotty (Molly Conlin), who was born in 2002 after Nick's previous exit.[34] Altman explained: "Nick needed something, because I think if he didn't have little Dotty, for him to walk through that door, she would just have treated him as a complete outcast."[34] As the storyline progressed, it was revealed that Nick and Dotty had intentions to kill Dot for her inheritance; they concocted a plan to make her think she had developed dementia then overdose her with sleeping pills, which fails when Dotty has a change of heart and Nick flees once again after causing an explosion and being disowned by Dot.[36]
In March 2014, Dot is told by the police that Nick has died of respiratory failure from a heroin overdose the previous week. One of the police officers who breaks the news to Dot is Nick's son Charlie Cotton, although it is later revealed that he is impersonating a police officer. Charlie explains that he was conceived from a brief marriage Nick had with his mother Yvonne. During the funeral, Charlie and undertaker Les Coker prevent Dot from looking in the coffin. Dot is suspicious and invites Yvonne to tell the truth and she assures Dot that Charlie is her grandson. A few weeks later, Carol Jackson asks Charlie for advice, when he leaves his phone at her house, she answers a call and discovers that Nick is still alive.
Nick reappears in Albert Square seven months after his faked death. Ronnie takes an instant dislike to him and tries to bribe him to leave but Nick returns for Charlie and Ronnie's wedding. Nick decides to get revenge on Ronnie and cuts the brakes of her car. After the wedding, Roxy, Charlie and Ronnie are involved in an accident which hits and later kills Emma Summerhayes, while Ronnie ends up in a coma but survives. Yvonne discovers that Nick cut the brakes of the car. Yvonne tells Charlie but he does not believe her until he catches Nick with some of the money Ronnie used to bribe him. Then Nick implicates Yvonne in Ronnie's accident, so Charlie asks them both to leave. Dot hides Nick next door and obtains heroin for Nick. Later she finds him unconscious, Nick regains consciousness briefly but later dies in Dot's arms, in the same location that Reg Cox was discovered 30 years earlier.
Charlie
Like Nick, Dot's first screen husband, Charlie Cotton (Christopher Hancock), was also a semi-regular character who came and went throughout his duration in the show. Depicted as bigamous and a conman, Charlie typically would reappear in the show whenever he needed money or temporary accommodation and, because of Dot's Christian ideals regarding forgiveness, Charlie would always be permitted to return. According to Christopher Hancock, Charlie was "a truly revolting character, a loser."[37]
Producers decided to kill Charlie off in 1991; Charlie died off-screen when crashing his lorry on a motorway.
Charlie's funeral episode, written by Linda Dearsley, was aired on 11 July 1991, and was dominated by Dot's reaction to Charlie's death and her trip to identify his body. It is selected by writer Colin Brake as one of 1991's episodes of the year.[35]
Jim
Dot's second significant romance was built upon by scriptwriters in 2000 on the behest of producer
Bardon has revealed that both he and Brown were sceptical about their characters marrying. In an interview with American fan-based newspaper, Walford Gazette, he commented, "No way did the pair of us want to get married because we thought if we got married, we'd sit indoors and watch the telly every night. As it happened, we've had some nice things to do. And we are married, and it's worked out all right."[39] Brown has reiterated that she feared Dot would become boring if she married Jim, but that producers persuaded her that the marriage might be a good thing. On-screen, Dot had just suffered the death of her grandson Ashley (in which Nick had played a part), and Brown felt that a traumatic event like that would have changed her character. In her opinion, the only way Dot would have got over Ashley's death "would be to have someone else to care for and when it happened there was nobody [but] with marrying Jim she gets a family – that's what persuaded me. That house will become a house again – it will have a central point, they will be able to use the house as a central point, as Dot will be there."[16]
Critic Grace Dent has likened Dot and Jim to Coronation Street's Hilda and Stan Ogden, comparing a scene in EastEnders where Dot nags Jim and he prays for a quiet life to a similar one from Coronation Street, that aired decades before.[42] Brown discussed Dot's relationship with Jim in 2004: "Initially, Jim wasn't the sort of person that Dot approved of. He drank, he gambled, he lied – he wasn't reliable at all. But Jim decided that he quite fancied Dot – heaven knows why! I think that you always have to work out for yourself how you can make the character work in a new situation. I could see that Jim was kind to Dot [...] His kindness drew her towards him. [...] Dot's definitely in control of Jim. She quite enjoys bossing him around."[25] Brown stated that she enjoys her screen partnership with John Bardon, saying "We work very well together – he's got great timing and he can be very tender too."[25]
The on-screen relationship between Dot and Jim was halted in 2007 when Jim was hastily written out of the soap due to John Bardon suffering a major stroke.[43] In the script Jim suffered a stroke and was placed in the care of off-screen relatives. Dot and Jim remained together, with Jim making sporadic appearances between 2008 and 2009 to visit Dot.[44] A more permanent return for the character was announced in 2009.[45] However, it was reported in April 2011 that Bardon had filmed his exit from the series, and that the show's staff believed it marked the end of the character. A source told the Daily Mirror: "Dot's been struggling for a while and realises that she can no longer give Jim the care and attention he deserves and is forced to make the heartbreaking decision that he should move into a home. [...] It was very emotional on the set for the scenes where Dot discusses her decision and talks to Jim about him going into care for good. There were a lot of tears. [...] The feeling is that this is the end of Jim as a character because he won't leave the home and won't ever be a regular in Albert Square again."[46] It was reported that Jim could still appear in the care home if Bardon's health permitted it, although ultimately this did not happen, as Bardon never recovered enough to make any further appearances.[46] Jim left the show on 26 May 2011.[47] Brown opined that Dot would feel lonely without Jim, saying, "I think she'll be very lonely and feel she doesn't have much purpose in life. It was really important to tell this story because there are so many people in a similar situation to Dot. It was moving to act out, too — not just because of Dot and Jim's relationship, but because I'm really good friends with John Bardon in real life." Jim died off-screen four years later, shortly after the death of actor John Bardon.[48]
Rose
In May 2011, it was reported that Dot's estranged half-sister Rose would join the series, played by Polly Perkins. Reports stated that The sisters fell out when Rose had an affair with Dot's husband Charlie, but after suffering a bout of hypochondria, Dot would decide to track Rose down,[48] feeling it is time to put things right, but Rose will not be pleased to see Dot again after so many years.[49]
Friendships
An enduring friendship featured in EastEnders was the one shared between the characters Dot Cotton and
Their bickering and personality differences were often used for comic effect; however, in episode 248 of the show, scriptwriter
Author Dorothy Hobson has discussed the use of older female characters in British soap opera as a means of providing comedy. She compares Ethel and Dot's function in EastEnders to the trio of
Throughout her time in EastEnders, many of Dot's scenes have been set in Walford's launderette, where the character has worked as an assistant for almost the entire duration of her time in EastEnders.[53] Here, Dot was frequently featured with another long-running protagonist, fellow launderette colleague, Pauline Fowler, played by Wendy Richard from 1985 to 2006. Author Christine Geraghty has discussed the working environment the women inhabited, indicating that because the owner of the launderette is barely present, the "working relationship hinges on the friendships (or otherwise) of the women who work in it".[22] As with Ethel, Dot and Pauline's friendship was often used for comedic purposes; emphasis was placed on their differences, leading to numerous petty squabbles and in 2004 saw them "buried alive" underneath a collapsed fairground ride, in the midst of a cake-selling war.[54] However, Pauline and Dot were most frequently shown gossiping, reminiscing about the past, or sharing their woes in the launderette. The duo has been described by television personality Paul O'Grady as a "fabulous double-act": "Dot's probably Pauline's one and only confidant. Pauline eventually will break down and tell Dot things that she'd never tell anybody else."[55] On the episode marking the screen death of Pauline on 25 December 2006, Dot remarks to Pauline, "You're the only real friend I've got", in a scene that Tim Teeman of The Times has described as "one of the most moving scenes in a soap [in 2006]".[56]
1993 exit and 1997 return
In 1993, Brown decided to quit EastEnders after becoming "discontented" with the way Dot was portrayed.[57] The character departed on-screen in August 1993, when Dot moved away from the soap's setting to live with her son Nick and his family in Gravesend.[58] Of her departure, Brown told Donna Hay from What's on TV that "I love her, she appealed to me because she was so funny. If she'd been straight, she would have been boring to play. Instead she took her problems too seriously and dramatised everything."[59] In 1997 she revealed to the Daily Mirror: "I always felt Dot was one of those characters who should stay the same. She's a simple creature. There are some people who the same things happen to them again and again. They never learn [...] When I left, there was all that rubbish about it getting too much for me [but] I stopped because I wasn't being used very much. I thought, 'It's a part-time job'. It wasn't being written properly. Instead of finding the gossip and passing it on, [Dot was hearing the gossip from others]. [Dot] was living on a reputation. [viewers] said to me, 'I loved it when [Dot] had [...] varicose veins.' I thought: 'What?! That was in 1985, it's 1993!'. I was getting so tetchy, so I thought I'd go. I'd had enough. They were a bit shocked, because apparently there were some good stories coming up."[57] Expanding on this in 2008, Brown stated that she "didn't like what they were doing with Dot – she was meant to spread the gossip. Originally she was a fountain of knowledge then next thing I know, people are telling Dot what had been happening and I thought, 'No, this just won't do'. I was very annoyed, I felt like they had completely changed my character."[60]
In October 1996, newspapers reported that BBC bosses had approached Brown about reprising her role as Dot Cotton and, according to the Daily Mirror, Brown had been in negotiations with EastEnders for several months prior.[61] Brown is quoted by the paper as saying, "I have always been reluctant to go back because I thought Dot's character was not being portrayed properly. I thought it had faded. I always said if Dot comes back it must be as Dot."[61] Brown secured a deal to return and began filming on-location in Gravesend in February 1997.[57] The episode saw Dot's former lodger, Nigel Bates (Paul Bradley), visiting Dot to discover that Nick was once again in prison, leaving Dot alone.[57] Her return episode aired in April 1997. Brown has since revealed that she opted to return to EastEnders to raise her profile again.[60] She had originally only intended to return for a 3-month stint, but was persuaded to stay when a project she had been working on was cancelled.[60] In July 1997, she commented, "I've decided to stay in EastEnders. They asked me, and in the end I thought: 'Oh well, I might as well.' Everyone, including Barbara Windsor, Wendy Richard and Adam Woodyatt, was saying: 'Don't leave'. And people were coming up in the street saying: 'It's lovely to have you back.' Anyway, I find playing the old dear quite fun."[57] After a 5-month break, following Dot being held hostage in her flat by the escaped convict friend of her son, Brown returned to filming in October 1997 on a permanent contract.[57]
Issues
Euthanasia
In 2000, Dot was featured in a storyline about
The repercussions of the euthanasia for Dot's character have been described as "extremely serious" as she suffered from "untold guilt and felt that she needed to be punished for the action."[32] The Executive Producer overseeing this storyline, John Yorke, has discussed the storyline in a speech given at the Bishops' Conference for clergy and other ministers in the Diocese of St Albans: "Dot, as a good Christian, refused to help, until her love for her friend overcame her own fear of damnation. Riddled with an intolerable burden of guilt, she felt there was only one person she could talk to [Jesus] The Dot and Ethel storyline played out in over four months with many similar scenes, to an average audience of 16 million viewers. Dot [...] explored the full panoply of religious belief before coming back to terms with her maker. When Alan Bookbinder took over as head of religious broadcasting at the BBC he described EastEnders for the weeks the Dot and Ethel story ran as 'the best religious programme on television' and compared [it] to Graham Greene. While we felt a little uncomfortable in such exalted company, what it did show is that handled properly an audience is able to engage in, and relate to profound ethical debate."[18]
Deborah Annetts, CEO of the
Such was the controversy surrounding this storyline that the
Kidney cancer
In a 2004 plot, Dot was diagnosed with kidney cancer.[70] The programme makers sought advice from health care professionals when devising the storyline, including specialist information nurses from CancerBACUP. Nurse Martin Ledwick said, "We drew on our experience of talking to the thousands of people who call our helpline, to help advise the EastEnders scriptwriters. Many people react to a cancer diagnosis as Dot does in the BBC serial – with confusion and fear. We also speak to family and friends affected by the illness and those living with continuing uncertainty. EastEnders explores all these issues, and hopefully will help improve people's understanding of what it's like to be affected by a cancer diagnosis."[70]
According to Macmillan Cancer Support, "Dot's experience [increased] people's understanding of the emotional impact of a cancer diagnosis; how the illness affects family and friends; and what it's like to live with uncertainty. It also [helped] to raise awareness of a comparatively rare cancer and the fact that cancer is a disease most often affecting older people."[70]
Brown herself has confessed that she was unhappy with the storyline as she felt playing illness was not productive at her age.[71] Discussing Dot's reluctance to reveal her illness to anyone, Brown said "[it's] ironic because I've played her as a hypochondriac, longing for attention, for 20 years. Now something's wrong, she doesn't want anyone to know."[71]
Abandoned baby
In the Easter 2007 episode, Dot takes an abandoned baby she finds in a church. This was filmed in
Monologue
In January 2008, Dot became the first soap opera character to be featured in a
2020 departure and off-screen death
On 20 February 2020, it was reported that Dot's appearance on 21 January 2020 was her last and that Brown had announced that she would "never go back" when she told the Distinct Nostalgia podcast, "I don't want a retainer for EastEnders, I've left. I've left for good. I've sent her off to Ireland where she'll stay. I've left EastEnders." A BBC statement said: "We never discuss artists' contracts, however as far as EastEnders are concerned the door remains open for June, as it always has if the story arises and if June wishes to take part."[77][78] It was also reported that Brown was due to attend a gathering of the cast and crew for the show's 35th anniversary in February 2020, that her dressing room was intact and that there were no plans, to the production team's knowledge, for Brown to leave the role permanently.[79] Brown died in April 2022 without returning to the role of Dot.[80]
In August 2022, it was announced that a storyline around Dot's death, including the character's funeral, would take place later in the year. The executive producer of EastEnders, Chris Clenshaw, stated: "Everyone at EastEnders was truly heartbroken when June passed away earlier this year and, for quite a while, no-one could even think about saying goodbye to Dot – an iconic character who will go down in television history and be cherished forever. June was always adamant that she never wanted Dot's time to end while she was still with us, but she also knew that EastEnders would rightly say their farewells to Dot when the time was right. Sadly, that time has come and we are determined to give the audience, who treasured Dot for so many years, the fitting tribute that she so deeply deserves."[81] Dot died on 1 December 2022, and her funeral, complete with a glass hearse drawn by black horses, was broadcast on 12 December, somewhat "later than advertised" after being delayed by the Qatar football World Cup.
Reception
According to author Pauline Frommer, Dot has been embraced by the viewing British population as a cultural archetype.[82] Brown has suggested that Dot has universal appeal because everybody knows a person like Dot.[25] In 2009, a poll by magazine Inside Soap named Dot as the UK's 'greatest gossip' in a soap opera.[83]
Brown was nominated for the 'Best Actress'
At the time of the 2005 general election, Labour chiefs feared that an episode of EastEnders in which Dot learned to drive could distract viewers from voting.[97] In the same year, Dot was criticised as revealing an anti-religious bias on the part of the BBC. Dr Indarjit Singh, editor of the Sikh Messenger and patron of the World Congress of Faiths suggested that Dot's endless quoting from the Bible served to ridicule religion.[98] The character has been cited as an example of anti-Christian bias in the media. The BBC were accused of portraying Christians as old-fashioned in 2008 after an episode aired in which Dot asked a gay, male couple to stop kissing. The BBC responded, "EastEnders aims to reflect real life, and this means including and telling stories about characters from many different backgrounds, faiths, religions and sexualities."[99] In a report to the BBC's Board of Governors in July 2004 regarding religion, Dot was used as an example of how religion can be portrayed as stereotypical "out-of-date and occasionally offensive" in drama and entertainment output, that Christian figures are highlighted because of their faith "rather than seen as normal people who also have a religious belief". It was suggested that some Christians think Dot "is made deliberately unappealing to audiences by her eccentric traits and hypocritical behaviour". However, it was also suggested that others think she is convincing.[100]
Brown's single-hander episode of EastEnders received much critical acclaim. The Guardian' Nancy Banks-Smith deemed Brown possibly the only member of the cast with the exception of Barbara Windsor (Peggy Mitchell) capable of carrying such a monologue.[51] Robert Hanks for The Independent wrote that "I don't ever remember hearing anybody on a soap talk like this before. I mean, like a real person, with real feelings, such as self-pity and a desperate urge for self-preservation. Brown conveyed the seedy gloom of it all beautifully, as well."[101] Conversely, Tim Teeman posed the question in The Times: "I know she's a national institution and June Brown plays her like a dream, but was last night's Dot Cotton extravaganza really that great? Or even necessary?"[102] Teeman opined that: "Quite rightly, the producers want to eke as much gold out of the character and actress as possible: both are fantastic. But this was much-loved character overkill."[56] He deemed Dot a "soap icon",[56] however he also assessed that:
- This was a tour de force for sure – but an indulgent one. It didn't unlock anything substantially new to Dot. [...] Far from making us care more about Dot – we do anyway, it was preaching to the converted – it was a little, well, dull. Boring even. [...] [T]he episode revealed a nagging weakness: Coronation Street has a fine repertory of older characters and actors which gives the show its wonderful link to the past. In EastEnders, the same gatekeeping roles are played by Dot and Ian Beale: she is a jewel but, as she said, an all-too lonely one. Cherish her, absolutely, but don't turn her into a drag act.[56]
In popular culture
The character of Dot Cotton has been
Dot's old-fashioned style of dress has been likened to the clothing collection of
Dot's long-suffering, luckless life has also led to her being labelled as a gay icon by Tim Lusher of the Evening Standard.[115] The monthly Dot Cotton Club, a gay club night in Cambridge, is named in her honour.[116]
Dot is a notable smoker on British television as she regularly appears on-screen smoking. The character is so synonymous with smoking that the term "Dot Cotton syndrome" is used within the health industry to: "describe the elderly population who continue to smoke heavily without registering the health problems they are or will soon suffer from, seeing it as their only pleasure left in life".[117]
Impressionist
In the BBC drama Line of Duty one of the prominent detectives in series 1–3, Matthew Cottan, is nicknamed "Dot", on account of his surname.[120]
See also
References
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External links