Edina's mother (portrayed by June Whitfield) - her name is not known - referred to as 'Mrs M' by Patsy and 'Gran' by Saffron, is a good-natured old woman and the mother of Edina Monsoon and the grandmother of Saffy. She is detested by her daughter but adored by her granddaughter. She has an ambiguous relationship with Edina and seems to regard her with indifference, giving all her motherly devotion to Saffy. In the earlier series, she is a valuable ally for Saffy in her struggle for domestic control, often mentioning embarrassing facts from Eddy's and Patsy's childhood. Edina addresses her, usually indirectly, as "Old Woman", and only four times in the series as "Mum". Edina's insults never seem to affect her; in fact, she usually manages to retaliate with a few hard-hitting but humorous insults of her own. Sometimes she recognises the eccentricities of Edina, Patsy, and visitors to the house. At times she even seems to see the dysfunctional qualities in Saffy. In the first episode, she is apparently not in regular interaction with the other characters, appearing only in Edina's flashback to her teenage years. By the second episode, "Fat", she visits Edina's home to see Saffy. By the third episode, "France", when she meets Patsy there, it seems the two have not seen each other in some time ("Still blonde then?", remarks Mother); here Patsy seems to resent her and apparently the feeling is mutual. After this it is apparent that like Patsy, Mother is a regular visitor to Edina's home, and that Patsy and Mother seem basically to like one another, despite the odd snide comment. Later episodes reveal that Mother had been a sort of surrogate mother to Patsy, whose own mother neglected her; however, their relationship is ambiguous. Patsy shows her some respect, even helping her at times. Mother sometimes makes condescending remarks about Patsy, even in her presence, once telling Edina that "poor dear sad old Patsy" is not a suitable or reliable friend. Mother has occasionally confused a drag queen for Patsy. When Mother's never-seen husband dies in the episode "Death", Edina infuriates Saffy by responding to the news with a blank stare and the question "Did he leave a will?" Mother doesn't seem to care much either (she had to make a note of his funeral date), realising that she'll have a bit more room at her house, and explaining to Saffy that she has had longer to get used to the idea of her husband dying.