0:00:02 > 0:00:05Tonight, we celebrate the life of Britain's favourite East End bird.
0:00:05 > 0:00:07She's given us laughs...
0:00:07 > 0:00:09That is Queen Vic property.
0:00:09 > 0:00:10Woo!
0:00:10 > 0:00:12- Pat's naughty.- ..love...
0:00:12 > 0:00:14The old dog.
0:00:14 > 0:00:15..tears.
0:00:15 > 0:00:16FRANK!
0:00:16 > 0:00:18And tantrums.
0:00:18 > 0:00:20- You bitch!- You cow!
0:00:20 > 0:00:23- That was good! - They broke the mould when they made this one
0:00:23 > 0:00:27so raise your glasses and get ready to say, "Farewell, Pat."
0:00:50 > 0:00:56Patricia Louise Evans passed away on 1st January 2012.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00She was surrounded by her closest family, who loved her more than she knew.
0:01:00 > 0:01:01Mum, mum.
0:01:01 > 0:01:06In her 25 years on the square, she's given us some great memories.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08STAMMERS: I don't want to die.
0:01:08 > 0:01:13Pat Butcher is not only one of the most iconic soap characters ever,
0:01:13 > 0:01:15one of the most iconic TV characters.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19Pam's portrayal of Pat is up there with all the best.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22Pat's character is, like, huge for the nation
0:01:22 > 0:01:27and she is THE legend of soaps, isn't she?
0:01:27 > 0:01:28Before we say, "See ya, babe,"
0:01:28 > 0:01:33let's take a trip down memory lane to see how the lady became a legend.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38It's 1986.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42Robert Palmer's topping the charts, Rubik cubes are stumping the nation
0:01:42 > 0:01:44and Den and Ange are at the helm of the Vic.
0:01:44 > 0:01:46Give it a rest, Ange.
0:01:46 > 0:01:50Cue one feisty lady to hit the square. She had trouble written all over her.
0:01:50 > 0:01:53- Bit pricey, innit?- Pardon?- This lot.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57I can remember that first sequence when I walked through the square.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59I met up with Ian.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02Just like your dad, aren't you? Honest Pete.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05Cheeky chappie's little boy, aren't you?
0:02:05 > 0:02:07My mum told me never to talk to strange women.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10What leapt out at me was the vivacity of the character.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13I mean, she was a goodtime girl.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16Denny Watts!
0:02:17 > 0:02:20From the moment that Pat walked into the square...
0:02:20 > 0:02:24- Do we know you?- It's been a good few years. That better?
0:02:24 > 0:02:27The history was coming out and the trouble that she caused.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31- Come and give your old mum a kiss, Simon.- Leave off, Mum.
0:02:31 > 0:02:33'I never imagined after that'
0:02:33 > 0:02:35that I'd be in the show for 25 and a half years.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38I want you, you bitch, out of this square once and for all,
0:02:38 > 0:02:41and no repeat performances, understand?
0:02:41 > 0:02:44Repeat performance? Huh! I haven't even started yet.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51Pat was here to stay and keen to make a lasting impression.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54I think as far as iconic TV characters go,
0:02:54 > 0:02:56you have to have a very strong identity.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59With Pat Butcher you've got the whole kit and caboodle.
0:02:59 > 0:03:04So much so, there's no shortage of celebs ready to have a go at our Pat.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06They call me Snakes
0:03:06 > 0:03:11because I look like a python that's swallowed a bus.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14Hey, Pat.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17Can I interest either of you in a half share in a car lot?
0:03:17 > 0:03:21Haute couture Pat has been gracing Walford's catwalk
0:03:21 > 0:03:23for a quarter of a century.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27- What are you wearing? Something in PVC no doubt.- I might.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30In the depths of the EastEnders wardrobe department
0:03:30 > 0:03:33there's a collection of the most colourful clothes known to man.
0:03:33 > 0:03:40I mean, look at you. You've had the same old style for the past 15 years and it was old-fashioned back then.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got things to do.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46Pat's style is ludicrous.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48Sure this looks OK?
0:03:48 > 0:03:50I don't know if I'd use the word "stylish".
0:03:50 > 0:03:53- Not wearing that, are you? - What's wrong with it?
0:03:53 > 0:03:55It's like being punched in the face by a blancmange.
0:03:55 > 0:03:57Urgh!
0:03:58 > 0:04:01It's just bizarre but yet brilliant and it works.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09I've loved having that image because it's so different from me.
0:04:09 > 0:04:11I see.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14The costume department tried to get me into trousers.
0:04:14 > 0:04:16Why?
0:04:16 > 0:04:19I said, "Pat would never wear trousers."
0:04:19 > 0:04:22Nestled between the leopard print and the Lycra
0:04:22 > 0:04:25is Walford's answer to the Crown Jewels.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27Yes, Pat's earrings collection.
0:04:27 > 0:04:31Whatever she's wearing, the earrings completely don't match.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35- You don't think they're a bit cheap? - Course they are. Perfect for you.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40I think Pat's earrings are part of her bravado, daring you to mock them.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42Eh?
0:04:42 > 0:04:46Pat collected earrings like other women collected shoes.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48# We are living in a material world
0:04:48 > 0:04:51# And I am a material girl. #
0:04:51 > 0:04:53'I have to admit this,'
0:04:53 > 0:04:56there were a couple of pairs in there that were mine.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58The earrings are so important they led to
0:04:58 > 0:05:01one of the most shocking revelations in Albert Square history.
0:05:01 > 0:05:06If we're unhappy about something we come right out and say it, yes?
0:05:06 > 0:05:10- I don't like your earrings. - I beg your pardon?
0:05:10 > 0:05:12None of 'em. I never have.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18Crikey, Roy. That is below the belt.
0:05:19 > 0:05:23Like it or loathe it, her image turned heads
0:05:23 > 0:05:25and certainly attracted a man...or two.
0:05:25 > 0:05:28- I'd never blame a lady. - I ain't no lady.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30Pat's love life has been busy, it's fair to say.
0:05:30 > 0:05:35- Fancy continuing this tonight? - How could I resist?- You charmer.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39'Men do find her very attractive.'
0:05:39 > 0:05:42The proof is in how many geezers she's had, isn't it?
0:05:42 > 0:05:45He's passed it and I've still got what it takes.
0:05:45 > 0:05:47'Pat Butcher is the poor man's version'
0:05:47 > 0:05:50of Elizabeth Taylor.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52She's been Pat Harris.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54- Pat Beale?- Then Wicks?
0:05:54 > 0:05:57Butcher. Is there another one?
0:05:57 > 0:06:00- Um...- And...
0:06:01 > 0:06:04Evans!
0:06:04 > 0:06:07I don't know if she had other husbands. She had plenty of lovers.
0:06:07 > 0:06:12Name the time, the place and list the joys in store for me and who knows what will happen?
0:06:12 > 0:06:13HE COUGHS
0:06:15 > 0:06:18- Can I tempt you? - I presume you mean a drink.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20'Easy, tiger!'
0:06:20 > 0:06:23In those early scenes she was at it with everyone.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26She was at it with Pete, with Den Watts.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28- You and me on the odd occasion. - We were kids.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31She slept with Den? The old dog!
0:06:31 > 0:06:36The only time that Pat really comes alive is when she's in the sack!
0:06:36 > 0:06:39I think Pat's naughty.
0:06:39 > 0:06:41A nice fresh salad will perk it up!
0:06:44 > 0:06:49EastEnders deserve a pat on the back for portraying the more mature person...
0:06:49 > 0:06:51You could stay for the evening, if you like.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53- Till late?- Or early.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55..still enjoying a very healthy love life.
0:06:55 > 0:07:00- A woman of a certain age, a woman like me has needs.- Needs?- Needs.
0:07:00 > 0:07:01What sort of needs?
0:07:01 > 0:07:05It might upset younger people at home who think when you get past 50
0:07:05 > 0:07:10that sort of thing doesn't happen any more but we have news for them. It does.
0:07:10 > 0:07:15We're both adults, we both know what I'm talking about.
0:07:15 > 0:07:20Patrick? That was wild. I couldn't believe that. That was quite a sexy scene.
0:07:20 > 0:07:21Ready for round two?
0:07:21 > 0:07:23# You can leave your hat on. #
0:07:23 > 0:07:27It's not good, I think, for young viewers if it's seen.
0:07:27 > 0:07:29That, one has to draw the line at.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32So not too many details, I think.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34I couldn't find a thing to wear.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41She might have done the old how's your father a few times
0:07:41 > 0:07:44but there was only one man who had the key to Pat's heart.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46- AS FRANK:- Pat.- Pat.- Pat!
0:07:46 > 0:07:48What are you? Some sort of pilchard?
0:07:48 > 0:07:51Wheeler dealer and East End geezer, Frank Butcher.
0:07:51 > 0:07:52Hello, babe.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56Pat and Frank were childhood sweethearts. They had a quickie in Clacton aged 16
0:07:56 > 0:08:00and that bound them together for the rest of their lives.
0:08:00 > 0:08:01Will you be my wife?
0:08:01 > 0:08:04You're bloody right I will.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06'She just lost her heart to him,'
0:08:06 > 0:08:09apart from everything else she lost to him.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Their wedding was an EastEnders classic,
0:08:11 > 0:08:15the most talked-about nuptials since Charles and Diana.
0:08:15 > 0:08:20I'd like to introduce you to a very good friend of mine, Mrs Frank Butcher.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24'We really, really enjoyed that episode. The whole thing was beautiful.'
0:08:24 > 0:08:27I can remember Gretchen doing a knees-up.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29THEY ALL SING
0:08:31 > 0:08:35I think that would have been the most fulfilled moment of her life.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40But happily-ever-after lasted only four years.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44- Hello, sweetheart.- Don't you sweetheart me, Frank Butcher.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46I'm done for, baby.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49You just never, ever learn. I could murder you, Frank Butcher.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51Money trouble beat the Butchers.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55- Some people get second mortgages. - They have more credibility with the building society.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58Don't use that tone. I'm trying to help.
0:08:58 > 0:08:59Then say something useful!
0:08:59 > 0:09:03And Frank did what he did best. He walked away.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06Do you miss him?
0:09:06 > 0:09:09Heartbroken and abandoned, it seemed unlikely she'd ever love again.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13SOBS: Oh, Diane!
0:09:14 > 0:09:17But Cupid's arrow strikes when you least expect it.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19I won't be responsible for my actions.
0:09:19 > 0:09:23'The circumstances in which she met Roy were strange.'
0:09:23 > 0:09:24Mr Evans?
0:09:24 > 0:09:28- I'm sorry, Mr Evans.- It's all right. - Pat Butcher, Deals On Wheels, Walford.
0:09:28 > 0:09:32- I don't believe I've had the pleasure.- It won't be a pleasure, I can assure you.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34'She gave him a piece of her mind.'
0:09:34 > 0:09:37He was absolutely bowled over by this woman.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39You see my idiot son paid you good money for a car.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43I took a customer out in it, we got three miles and the engine blew up.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46- I...- I don't want you to say anything, Mr Evans.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48'He liked this feisty lady'
0:09:48 > 0:09:50who suddenly came into his office
0:09:50 > 0:09:53and started reading the riot act to him.
0:09:53 > 0:09:58The rocky start developed into a rock-steady relationship. Pat's life was on the up.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00Happy birthday, love.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04What Pat settled for was security and niceness.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08- I love you, Roy. - And I love you.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11Things should have been happy from that moment on for the two of them
0:10:11 > 0:10:16but of course life isn't always like that and sadly it wasn't to be.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19MUSIC: "Stop The Cavalry" by Jona Lewie
0:10:19 > 0:10:22On Christmas Day 1995,
0:10:22 > 0:10:26the nation settled on their sofas to see Pat's life turned upside down.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28Look who it is.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36Hello, babe.
0:10:36 > 0:10:38It was doomed as soon as Frank came in.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41I'm back now and it doesn't matter what he thinks
0:10:41 > 0:10:45or anybody else thinks, I know you still love me.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47Why don't you just listen to her?
0:10:47 > 0:10:51- You shut your mouth or I'll shut it for you.- That's your solution?
0:10:51 > 0:10:54- That's my solution! - Pack it in, the pair of you!
0:10:54 > 0:10:56'I think there were always'
0:10:56 > 0:11:00three people in that relationship. There was always Frank, there had to be.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04Right, I'll leave you two to it, then.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07'Deep down all that Pat wanted was Frank.'
0:11:07 > 0:11:09Roy felt like a poor substitute.
0:11:09 > 0:11:11Sleep on the sofa tonight.
0:11:11 > 0:11:13You are not walking away from me.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16- Roy, let me go.- You are my wife. You will do as I say.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18You're frightening me. Get off me, Roy!
0:11:21 > 0:11:24I haven't finished with you yet!
0:11:25 > 0:11:26I know.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30The affair became one of the biggest love sagas in TV history.
0:11:30 > 0:11:36The Pat-Roy-Frank-and-Peggy love rectangle lasted a decade.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38- They were off.- Hi.- Bye.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41- And on.- You don't know how much I've missed you.
0:11:41 > 0:11:45- Off.- You're a selfish, selfish man. - And on again.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48Yeah, missing you as well. It won't be long.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51And so off they got married to the other two.
0:11:51 > 0:11:56- Oh, Ricky.- One more.- You've got enough there.- Congratulations, Pat.
0:11:56 > 0:11:58Even that didn't stop them.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02- You want me too.- Want you? I wouldn't want you
0:12:02 > 0:12:06if you came gift-wrapped in your birthday suit in a revolving bowtie.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09You just knew that Pat and Frank were great in bed together.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13- What?- In a way that Pat and Roy probably weren't.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24'I always remember Pat's face'
0:12:24 > 0:12:27when Frank tried to persuade her to have sex in an aeroplane toilet.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32Don't even think about it.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35With a love life this complicated it was only a matter of time
0:12:35 > 0:12:37before the secret came out.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40Really, honestly, Peggy thought that Frank was hers,
0:12:40 > 0:12:42that he'd forgotten about Pat.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46They both stabbed her in the heart.
0:12:46 > 0:12:47SHE SOBS
0:12:53 > 0:12:57Hope you all enjoyed the fireworks. Good night.
0:12:59 > 0:13:04A whopping 20 million people tuned in to watch Pat's life fall apart.
0:13:05 > 0:13:09- SOBBING: Roy! - Get out, filthy whore!
0:13:09 > 0:13:12SHE SOBS
0:13:12 > 0:13:13No!
0:13:13 > 0:13:14Pat and Frank
0:13:14 > 0:13:17was the greatest love story the show has ever seen.
0:13:17 > 0:13:19Pat!
0:13:20 > 0:13:22PAT!
0:13:22 > 0:13:25And even though other men were very important in Pat's life,
0:13:25 > 0:13:28it's Frank who's waiting for her at the pearly gates.
0:13:30 > 0:13:31FRANK!
0:13:33 > 0:13:35Frank.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41You can't cop off with that many men
0:13:41 > 0:13:45and not pick up a few enemies. And Pat, well, she had bucket-loads.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48- You got a problem?- No, should I?
0:13:48 > 0:13:51Her attitude is out there. It's quite bolshie.
0:13:51 > 0:13:55She's not afraid to stand up for herself and tell people what she thinks of them.
0:13:55 > 0:13:57We'd better take this outside.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01She'd suffered quite a few hard knocks in her time.
0:14:01 > 0:14:06You can be a right hard-faced bitch sometimes. You know that?
0:14:06 > 0:14:09Yeah? Life has a habit of making me that way.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12If Pat challenged me to an arm wrestle in the Vic,
0:14:12 > 0:14:14I wouldn't put my house on it.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18Another little dip in the piggy bank?
0:14:19 > 0:14:21It's always been Frank for you, hasn't it?
0:14:21 > 0:14:25You wouldn't want to get into a fight with Pat because you'd lose.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27Get off me!
0:14:27 > 0:14:29Pat's quite an easy character
0:14:29 > 0:14:31to write for.
0:14:31 > 0:14:33She always has a fantastic comeback and doesn't care
0:14:33 > 0:14:36what anyone thinks of her so you can get her to say anything.
0:14:36 > 0:14:41You couldn't give a drunken sailor with a bottle of rum a good time.
0:14:41 > 0:14:45Oh, there were plenty of characters ready to be Pat's arch nemesis.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49Slap me if it makes you feel...better.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53First to lay claim to the crown is her wicked stepdaughter.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57- You?- Hello, Pat.- Janine.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59'There are scenes when the intensity'
0:14:59 > 0:15:03of Pat and Janine's dislike is palpable.
0:15:03 > 0:15:10I would rather wade through a lake of doggy diarrhoea than talk to you.
0:15:10 > 0:15:14- Janine blames Pat for things that aren't Pat's fault. - I'm sick of it.
0:15:14 > 0:15:19You standing there like you're keeping the Frank Butcher flame burning or something.
0:15:19 > 0:15:22Because Janine blames everybody for everything.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25- Pat, put him down.- No!
0:15:25 > 0:15:29They can't stand each other most of the time, but Pat's a glutton for punishment.
0:15:32 > 0:15:33How dare you?
0:15:33 > 0:15:37Pam and I always used to get excited if we knew we had a good tear-up.
0:15:39 > 0:15:44You think you've got away with this, don't you? But believe me it will come back on you one day
0:15:44 > 0:15:47and when it does I hope you burn in hell.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51'Pat has always hoped that there's something'
0:15:51 > 0:15:56redeemable in Janine, that she can't be all bad.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00- JANINE'S VOICE:- Everything I learned, I learned from you.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02CRASH!
0:16:03 > 0:16:05Looks pretty bad to me, Pat.
0:16:05 > 0:16:10Mind you, maybe not quite as evil as her ever-jealous stepson, big bad Barry.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12Well, well, well.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15Barry was always, always looking out for his dad
0:16:15 > 0:16:21and he would never take Pat's side over his dad, even if his dad was totally wrong.
0:16:21 > 0:16:25- You're not fit to run this business. - You're not fit to run a marriage. - Oh, really?
0:16:25 > 0:16:27I think Barry ultimately came to hate Pat.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30- Roy!- Pat!
0:16:30 > 0:16:33Because he blamed her for his father's death.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35What have you done?!
0:16:35 > 0:16:39I remember one scene Barry is screaming at her on the stairs because Pat said,
0:16:39 > 0:16:42"I know what you're going through." He said, "Really?"
0:16:42 > 0:16:46Have you just found out your slut of a wife has been having an affair?
0:16:46 > 0:16:51- Have you just lost your only child? - Barry.- And your dad in the same week?
0:16:51 > 0:16:54The scenes were intense, very dramatic, very off the wall.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56I mean, they were on the verge of madness.
0:16:56 > 0:17:00You lose, I win. What's my prize?
0:17:00 > 0:17:02WHAT'S MY PRIZE?
0:17:03 > 0:17:07There's a great scene where Barry has traced Pat's family tree.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10It totally makes a mockery of her life, really.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14Your sons, your granddaughter, rotten to the core.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17I can't blame them for all of that. Look what they've come from.
0:17:17 > 0:17:22I describe those scenes at the end with Pat as a total gift. We both played them with relish.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25Now you talk about looking after me? You hypocrite!
0:17:25 > 0:17:28- It wasn't that simple. - I could have saved my marriage!
0:17:28 > 0:17:31It was already over. Nat didn't love you and never had.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35Pat is evicted and she wanders off into the cold.
0:17:35 > 0:17:36It was a great image.
0:17:36 > 0:17:41But surely only another hard-faced matriarch can truly stand up to Pat.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44There can only be one winner - Peggy Mitchell.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48Will you listen to yourself, you stupid, fat, old tart?
0:17:48 > 0:17:51Pat and Peggy are the queens of the catfight.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54I think you need to cool down, Peggy.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58- Pat would just knock you out. - How dare you?
0:17:59 > 0:18:02Whereas Peggy would scratch your eyes out.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07Of course with Pat and Peggy, fights revolved around one topic.
0:18:07 > 0:18:11You must have felt at home for a minute, lying on your back looking up at my Frank.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13Men.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17- You know what I don't understand? - How to keep your legs crossed?
0:18:17 > 0:18:18You go for it.
0:18:18 > 0:18:20You did it for me.
0:18:20 > 0:18:21You take back what you said.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25'Most of the slaps are real. She's like me.'
0:18:25 > 0:18:28We don't coast it. We like to go for it.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30You bitch!
0:18:30 > 0:18:32You cow!
0:18:32 > 0:18:35'Some of those hits must have hurt!'
0:18:35 > 0:18:36Get out of my pub!
0:18:36 > 0:18:38With pleasure.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40'Afterwards you go,'
0:18:40 > 0:18:45"That was good!" The adrenaline's going, you see. They're actually great scenes to do.
0:18:45 > 0:18:48'Then you hug each other afterwards.'
0:18:48 > 0:18:50See you whenever.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54Mind how you go, Pat. (You're not getting any younger.)
0:18:56 > 0:19:00But the truth is these two women were more alike than they dared to admit.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04Peggy realised that Pat was a tart with a heart.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07The script department saw there was potential
0:19:07 > 0:19:09for them to be more than just adversaries.
0:19:09 > 0:19:10'My heart goes out to Pat.'
0:19:10 > 0:19:14- She wrecked your marriage. - She's lost more than I have.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16'The difficulty was'
0:19:16 > 0:19:22finding the moment when you could see the chink in the armour when they might be less than adversaries.
0:19:22 > 0:19:27I don't know about forgiving, but maybe it's time to forget.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31The fact that Frank wasn't a looming shadow in their lives any more
0:19:31 > 0:19:34in a strange way brought them together.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42'I just thought that was very poignant when Peggy'
0:19:42 > 0:19:46walked down and sat next to her and they just held hands together.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49'We saw two very formidable, tough ladies develop'
0:19:49 > 0:19:54into the sweetest, most touching friendship the show has had.
0:19:54 > 0:19:55Thanks, Pat.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59'If Pat and Peggy were on each other's side,'
0:19:59 > 0:20:02there was no-one to touch us. We could take on the world.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04Don't just stand there.
0:20:04 > 0:20:06BOTH: Sling your hook!
0:20:06 > 0:20:07'Like with Harvey'
0:20:07 > 0:20:11when we realised he was playing one against the other, we let him have it.
0:20:11 > 0:20:13That is Queen Vic property.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15CHEERING AND WHISTLING
0:20:15 > 0:20:18Oh, yeah, very funny.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20Thelma and Louise weren't a patch on them.
0:20:20 > 0:20:23Right, let's do it.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30Just give them ice cream and a bottle of vodka
0:20:30 > 0:20:32and there's a whole world of trouble.
0:20:32 > 0:20:36Let me tell you something, Peggy. I love you.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40'The whole idea was fun. You've got the basics of quite good comedy'
0:20:40 > 0:20:43because you've got two elderly people behaving badly.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47We're at the hospital of course.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51Why don't you come over? We can have a game of doctors and nurses!
0:20:53 > 0:20:54Have you been drinking?
0:20:54 > 0:20:56'I hadn't realised how much'
0:20:56 > 0:20:59the public enjoyed it because even now they say,
0:20:59 > 0:21:03"Oh, you and Pat in the sweet van, we loved that."
0:21:03 > 0:21:07- It's time you both started acting your age.- Do you want a slap?
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Dee-dee-dee-dee, boop!
0:21:11 > 0:21:13It's not only Peggy that loves her.
0:21:13 > 0:21:17After 25 years, our Pat has finally learned to play happy families.
0:21:17 > 0:21:23Pat started as an edgy character and now she's metamorphosed into
0:21:23 > 0:21:28this great, warm matriarch at the head of this fantastic family.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32And what a family with two kids, five stepchildren,
0:21:32 > 0:21:36six grandchildren, four stepchildren and four great-grandchildren,
0:21:36 > 0:21:38she's had lots of parenting practice
0:21:38 > 0:21:40but her early attempts were dreadful.
0:21:41 > 0:21:47- You can go up in flames for all I care, Mum.- Stop that now. I've had enough of your whingeing.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49'I think Pat in her later life'
0:21:49 > 0:21:54was always trying to make up for the fact that she had failed her own children.
0:21:54 > 0:21:58You weren't a mother at all. I'm surprised you took time out to go to hospital and have me.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01Don't they deliver babies in the pub?
0:22:01 > 0:22:06With blood relationships in tatters, her first taste of happy motherhood came with stepson Ricky.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08Don't sound so surprised!
0:22:08 > 0:22:14A word of advice, Ricky. The future. That's where you should be looking.
0:22:14 > 0:22:16- Ricky is very, very special to her. - You all right?
0:22:16 > 0:22:20- Fine, love, thanks. - I was worried about you.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24It's almost as if she saw Frank there but without the bluster.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29If there's one person in the world I don't want to lose, it's Ricky.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33Over the last few years Pat's really proved herself as a good matriarch.
0:22:33 > 0:22:36She looks after everyone. She's made up for her mistakes.
0:22:36 > 0:22:41- Nana Pat!- Hello, trouble. Treble trouble!
0:22:41 > 0:22:44Pat is a really good grandma. She's always there.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47- Nana Pat rules. - I thought that might get a reaction.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50'Bianca thinks Pat's always going to be there
0:22:50 > 0:22:52'and I think it'll be one of those situations'
0:22:52 > 0:22:59where she loses someone and realises what a huge gap it is in her life. I think it'll hit her hard.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02You always did give really good cuddles.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05SHE SOBS
0:23:11 > 0:23:16Six months ago, Pam St Clement decided it was time to bow out of EastEnders.
0:23:16 > 0:23:18'I've always worked by the old actor adage,'
0:23:18 > 0:23:22"Leave the stage while they still want more."
0:23:22 > 0:23:26I think no-one could imagine Pat leaving the square.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30If she can't leave, she'll have to leave us here.
0:23:30 > 0:23:34So it was written into the script that Pat would discover she had cancer.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36Goodbye, Ian.
0:23:38 > 0:23:45The last month or two, working up to Pat's exit, has been pretty tough.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49- How are you feeling? - I've been better, Dot. Been better.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51'People have been saying,'
0:23:51 > 0:23:56"How does it feel to be going?" I can't even think about that.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58I can grieve at another time
0:23:58 > 0:24:02but at the moment I've got a massive job to do.
0:24:02 > 0:24:03Pat.
0:24:03 > 0:24:09I'm not well, Janine, I can't cope with anything else today.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12'Those last few weeks were exhausting and traumatic'
0:24:12 > 0:24:15because we're losing one of our favourite girls.
0:24:18 > 0:24:20'It's really intense'
0:24:20 > 0:24:23and she just played it really beautifully.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27It's New Year's Day. I never liked it very much.
0:24:27 > 0:24:32Fresh start, resolutions you never keep.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37I don't have to worry about that this year, do I?
0:24:37 > 0:24:39'What Pam does in the New Year's episode'
0:24:39 > 0:24:43is one of the best performances I've ever seen in EastEnders.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47I'm scared.
0:24:51 > 0:24:56So after 25 years and 2,183 episodes,
0:24:56 > 0:25:00Walford and the nation mourned the loss of Pat.
0:25:00 > 0:25:05EastEnders will never be the same. This is the end of an era.
0:25:05 > 0:25:11To play the same part for 25 years is an enormous achievement.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14'Pat is just a great bird'
0:25:14 > 0:25:18and that's why I think it's a character that will be sorely, sorely missed.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21'I don't think anyone will ever match up to Pat Butcher.'
0:25:21 > 0:25:25There is one and only and that's her.
0:25:25 > 0:25:32Pat Butcher. Iconic, legendary, irreplaceable.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34You will be dearly missed on the square.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37It's been lovely being part of your life.
0:25:37 > 0:25:38Rest in peace.
0:25:38 > 0:25:43And in the words of Frank Butcher, "Take care of yourself, babe."
0:25:50 > 0:25:54Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:25:54 > 0:25:58E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk