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{{Short description|British drama telefilm}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox television
Line 8 ⟶ 9:
| director = [[Gavin Millar]]
| creative_director =
| starring = {{plainlist|
*[[Victoria Wood]]<br />
*[[Julie Walters]]<br />
*[[Celia Imrie]]<br />
*[[Deborah Grant (actress)|Deborah Grant]]<br />
*[[Duncan Preston]]<br />
*[[Thora Hird]]<br>
*[[Shirley Stelfox]]<br>
*[[Anne Reid]]}}
| theme_music_composer =
| opentheme =
Line 24 ⟶ 33:
| company = [[BBC]]
| channel = [[BBC One]]
| picture_format = [[4:3]], [[PAL]] ([[576i]])
| audio_format =
| first_aired = {{start date|1994|9|11|df=yes}}
| last_aired =
Line 36 ⟶ 43:
 
==Plot==
Margaret Mottershead works as a cook at a [[motorway service area]]. She joins her colleagues on a trip to London, where they have been invited to see a recording of the television show ''Magic Moments'' (a parody of ''[[Surprise, Surprise (TV series)|Surprise, Surprise]]''). Pat Bedford, the glamorous British star of an American [[soap opera]], appears on the show to promote her memoir, unaware that she herself is one of the surprises. The host brings Margaret on stage and reveals that Pat is her long-lost sister. Pat is embarrassed by her working class [[Northern England|Northern]] origins, but hugs Margaret and feigns happiness in order to appear gracious and likeable.
{{long plot|date=October 2021}}
Margaret Mottershead works as a cook at a motorway service station. She joins her colleagues on a works outing to London to see a recording of ''Magic Moments'', a ''[[Surprise, Surprise (TV series)|Surprise, Surprise]]''-style television series. Pat Bedford, the glamorous British star of an American soap, returns to the UK to promote her book on the show, unaware that the producers have planned to make her part of one of the surprises. During the show, Margaret is shocked to be invited onto the stage by the host Maeve and asked about her sister Patricia, whom she has not seen for 27 years. Backstage, Pat freezes in a panic when she hears the name "Patricia Theresa Mary Mottershead" and is invited on-stage to meet her long-lost sister Margaret. Attempting to remain professional, Pat embraces Margaret and feigns happiness. Afterwards, she tries to prevent the programme being broadcast, only to discover that it was live on air. The vain, beautiful Pat rejects Margaret, ashamed of her sister and fearing further damaging revelations about her past. Margaret prepares to leave, but the coach has left without her. Unaware of Pat's true feelings, her assistant Claire has arranged for Margaret to stay with Pat at her luxury hotel.
 
InUnaware theof Pat's true feelings, her assistant, Claire, arranges for Margaret to stay with Pat at her luxury hotel. The next morning, a film crew from ''Magic Moments'' film crew arrives to follow the pair getting to know each other, and Pat resigns herself to staged bonding for the cameras. Margaret phones her boyfriend, Jim, to lettell him know wherethat she iswill return home shortly, but his disapproving mother does not pass on the message. Pat tries unsuccessfully to pay off an angry Margaret, who tells Pat she doesn't want anything from her. Once the newspaper articles come out, Margaret realizes that they have viciously misquoted her and her colleagues at the motorway service station and fears for her job. She stays though, when tabloid journalist Stella Kincaid, desperate for dirt on Pat, discovers a woman she thinks is Pat's mother Vera in a nursing home in Pat's home town. Pat and Margaret talk about how horrible their mother was and Margaret agrees to help Pat. The two head [[North of England|North]], hoping to stop Vera talking to the press. In the car, Margaret shares a bit of her life. She mentions that she was once married and, soon after losing her husband, had a miscarriage.
 
Pat tries to pay off Margaret to deny that they are related, but only succeeds in angering her. Meanwhile, tabloid journalist Stella digsKincaid updiscovers dirta onwoman Patshe bybelieves trackingto downbe hertheir oldmother, neighboursVera, discoveringin a nursing home in thetheir processhome thattown. Pat hadand aMargaret childrecall athow thehorrible agetheir ofmother fifteenwas, and Margaret agrees to help Pat. SheThe alsotwo hearshead insinuationsnorth, thathoping to stop Vera hadtalking beento athe prostitutepress. TheHowever, sistersthey find that the Verawoman in the nursing home is not their mother and continue on. Jim, believing Margaret has dumped him, has gonegoes to London to find her. He meets Claire, and the two follow Pat and Margaret north. Stella, however, has managed to track the real Veraback down, and after seeing photographs of her realizes she is linked to another story{{spnd}}a timeshare scandalnorth.
 
WhileStella hidinglearns fromthat StellaPat had a child at the age of fifteen and hears rumours that Vera was a petrolprostitute. stationShe infinds the Northreal Vera, theand glamorousafter Patseeing isphotographs accidentallyof hosedher downrealises withshe wateris bylinked to another story: a powertimeshare hose,scandal. leavingWhile herhiding soakingfrom wet.Stella Thisat forcesa herpetrol tostation, changePat outis ofaccidentally herhosed expensivedown clotheswith andwater, expensiveleaving leatherher jacketsoaking wet. Having left all her luggage and, credit cards, and identification within ClaireLondon, Pat has to borrow money from Margaret to buy a cheap shellsuit at the petrol stationsuit. To add to her humiliation, Patshe is unable to book into a hotel as,due again, she has left allto her creditlack cardsof and identification with Clairefunds and the management state she isn't suitably dressed. Margaret asks her boss Bella to give Pat a bed for the night, but she is furious with Margaret over false claims in a newspaper article that Margaret is ditching her job and moving to Loscheap Angelesclothing.
 
Margaret takes Pat to her [[bedsit]], where theshe twotells arguePat aboutthat theafter differentshe pathsleft their lives have taken. Margaret reveals thathome, Vera was sent to prison after Pat left and sheMargaret endedwas upplaced beingin fostered[[foster around, whilecare]]. Pat reveals that shein wasfact, thrownVera threw her out because she becamewas pregnant. Jim arrives with Pat's bag, but when he provesis more worriedinterested aboutin leavingreturning home to his mother alone than about meeting Pat, an irritated Margaret ends their relationship. Pat takes Margaret to the Swiss Cottage Cafécafé where she worked as a teenager, which is still owned by her old boss, now planning to retire. Claire joins them for dinner, where she gives Pat "a note from a fan", actually given to Jim by Stella. The notewhich appears to be from Vera, asking to meet, but in fact, has beenwas written by Stella, who knows where Vera is living.
 
Pat and Margaret are stunned to find their mother hadis wonnow thewealthy poolsafter andwinning hasat a large housegambling. Vera assumes Margaret wants money; Pat angrily tells Vera she owes them, butfor their unhappy childhood. Vera remindspoints Patout that therefollowing wasPat's nothingown tosuccess, stopshe hercould trackinghave Margaretsought downout Margaret and givinggiven her a better life, forcing Pat to admit she is hard and selfish like her mother. Vera claims that she's what drove Pat to make a success of her life, and revealstells her daughters that she has to sell theher luxurious house because of the timeshare scandal; at this point. Stella appears with her photographer and tells the sisters that Vera has given her an [[scoop (news)|exclusive]]. She further threatens to trace Pat's realizeschild, shebut Pat in turn reveals that her son found her many years before and has beenno interest in being involved with the media. Margaret defends Pat, arguing that she should be applauded, rather than derided, for beating the odds; Stella offers to make the story sympathetic to the women if all three give her an exclusive, to which Pat and Margaret setreluctantly upagree.
 
Margaret and Jim make up their quarrel when he decides to leave his mother and move in with Margaret. AtMargaret the airport,declines Pat's fails to persuade Margaretoffer to move to the United States with her,. but, inIn a surprise move, Pat takes Vera instead, telling heras "they're very big at the moment, celebrities' mums", and giving Stella a happy ending for her story. Pat leaves Margaret a goodbye letter which haswith a set of keys with it;to the final scene shows Margaret and Jim happily clearing up at the Swiss Cottage Cafécafé, which Patshe has bought for herMargaret sisterand Jim.▼
Stella reveals Vera has given her an exclusive and that she knows about the baby, threatening to trace Pat's child. However, Pat turns the tables by revealing he has already traced her many years before and has no interest in being involved with the media. Margaret angrily tells Stella that Pat should be applauded for beating the odds rather than derided in the press; Stella offers to make the story a sympathetic "rags to riches" tale if all three women give her an exclusive; the goal to create a TV mini-series of their story. Margaret suggests Meryl Streep should play her in the series.
 
▲Margaret and Jim make up their quarrel when he decides to leave his mother and move in with Margaret. At the airport, Pat fails to persuade Margaret to move to the United States with her, but, in a surprise move, takes Vera instead, telling her "they're very big at the moment, celebrities' mums", and giving Stella a happy ending for her story. Pat leaves Margaret a goodbye letter which has a set of keys with it; the final scene shows Margaret and Jim happily clearing up at the Swiss Cottage Café, which Pat has bought for her sister.
 
==Cast==
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==Production==
The film was created and written by Wood, (whose last full-length drama was ''[[Happy Since I Met You]]'' in 1981),.<ref name="Duguid">{{cite web|last=Duguid|first=Mark|title=''Pat and Margaret'' (1994)|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1246899/|work=[[Screenonline]]|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|accessdateaccess-date=26 September 2010}}</ref> It was directed by [[Gavin Millar]], recommended to Wood by Julie Walters,<ref name="rees">{{Cite book |title=Let's Do It: The Authorised Biography of Victoria Wood |first=Jasper |last=Rees |chapter=Chapter 16: Henry and Albert, Margaret and Pat |isbn=9781409184126 |location=London |publisher=[[Orion Publishing Group|Trapeze]] |year=2020}}</ref> and produced by Ruth Caleb.<ref name="Rampton">{{cite news|last=Rampton|first=James|title='Ooo, it's that woman off telly': Victoria Wood has moved from the sketch to the big picture. James Rampton joined her on location as filming for ''Pat and Margaret'' drew to close|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film--ooo-its-that-woman-off-telly-victoria-wood-has-moved-from-the-sketch-to-the-big-picture-james-rampton-joined-her-on-location-as-filming-for-pat-and-margaret-drew-to-close-1413539.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/film--ooo-its-that-woman-off-telly-victoria-wood-has-moved-from-the-sketch-to-the-big-picture-james-rampton-joined-her-on-location-as-filming-for-pat-and-margaret-drew-to-close-1413539.html |archive-date=25 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|accessdateaccess-date=26 September 2010|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=13 July 1994}}</ref> AnWood earlywas draftaccustomed to a level of control over the scriptdirection wasof rejectedher byscripts, [[Londonwhich Weekendled Television|LWT]]to frustration with Millar, who saidat one point told her, "aGo filmaway is[and] let me do it", and on another occasion reminded Anne Reid, "[Victoria's] not directing this; I'm directing this." Nevertheless, Wood liked and admired Millar, and acknowledged that she had a sketch"nosy, youcritical, interfering knowside".<ref name="Ramptonrees" />
 
An early draft of the script was rejected by [[London Weekend Television|LWT]], who told Wood, "A film is not a sketch, you know."<ref name="Rampton" /> The script underwent significant changes between the second and third drafts, as Wood worked in material "possibly suggested by [her] sessions of [[psychotherapy|therapy]]", such as her own issues stemming from maternal abandonment, assisted by [[script editor]] [[Robyn Slovo]]. The third draft also reworked the character of Claire as Celia Imrie had become pregnant, and added the running gag of Pat's [[malapropism]]s.<ref name="rees"/>
 
In 2010, the film was adapted as a 90-minute [[radio drama]], starring [[Sarah Lancashire]] as Margaret and [[Tracy-Ann Oberman]] as Pat. The cast also included Wood's frequent collaborators [[Imelda Staunton]], [[Thelma Barlow]], and [[Philip Lowrie]]. It aired on [[BBC Radio 4]] as a Christmas Day special.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pat and Margaret |author=BBC Radio 4 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00wqjb2 |access-date=7 November 2023}}</ref>
 
===Filming locations===
* Motorway services – [[Heston services]] on the [[M4 motorway|M4]]<ref name="Rampton" />
* Peacock Productions studios – [[BBC Elstree Centre]]
* Sanctuary Spa, [[Covent Garden]]
* Margaret's flat – Grafton Road, [[Acton, London|Acton]]<ref name="Rampton" />
* Jim's mother's house – 65 Oozehead Lane, [[Blackburn]]
* Pat and Margaret's childhood home – Woodlea Road, Blackburn<ref>{{cite news |title=Five Years Ago: Stars in the street |url=https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/6121337.five-years-ago-stars-street/ |accessdateaccess-date=22 October 2020 |work=Lancashire Telegraph|date=8 June 1999}}</ref>
* Vera's house – Longacre, Billinge End Road, Blackburn
* The Swiss Cottage Cafe – The Green, [[Darwen]]
 
==Reception==
The film was watched by more than 10&nbsp;million viewers.<ref>{{cite news|last=Brown|first=Maggie|title=Talk of the Trade: Big money but little interest in TV films|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/talk-of-the-trade--big-money-but-little-interest-in-tv-films-1568406.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/talk-of-the-trade--big-money-but-little-interest-in-tv-films-1568406.html |archive-date=25 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|accessdateaccess-date=26 September 2010|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=17 January 1995}}</ref>
 
After going on location during filming, James Rampton for ''[[The Independent]]'' wrote that the film "contains many lines of vintage Victoria...And – judging from the script – the film is not a three-minute idea tortuously spun out over 90, but a living, breathing feature, with characters rather than caricatures and pathos rather than punchlines."<ref name="Rampton" /> For [[Screenonline]], Mark Duguid wrote the drama is Wood's "most ambitious, rounded and mature work to date" and describes it as "rapturously received". On Wood's comparisons with [[Alan Bennett]], he says that she "certainly shares Bennett's gift for characterisation and his ear for comic but natural dialogue".<ref name="Duguid" /> ''The Daily Telegraph''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s Judith Woods described ''[[Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV]]'', ''[[Dinnerladies (TV series)|Dinnerladies]]'' and ''[[Acorn Antiques]]'' as "character-led television gems".<ref>{{cite news|last=Woods|first=Judith|title=Don't laugh... she's serious|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/comedy/3665296/Dont-laugh...-shes-serious.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130217035551/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/comedy/3665296/Dont-laugh...-shes-serious.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 February 2013|accessdateaccess-date=26 September 2010|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|date=22 May 2007}}</ref>
 
The film won the [[Broadcasting Press Guild]] Award for best single drama, and the best actress and best screenplay awards at the [[Reims Television Festival]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Victoria Wood|url=http://www.speakerscorner.co.uk/file/631bb31c648373e6b5917e0e78ada1fe/victoria-wood-comedienne-cabaret-music-awards-host-after-dinner-stand-up.html|publisher=Speakers Corner|accessdateaccess-date=26 September 2010}}</ref> The drama was also nominated for two [[British Academy Television Awards]] in 1994: [[British Academy Television Award for Best Single Drama|Best Single Drama]], and [[British Academy Television Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] for Wood.<ref>{{cite web|title=Television Nominations 1994|url=http://www.bafta.org/awards/television/nominations/?year=1994|publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts|BAFTA]]|accessdateaccess-date=26 September 2010}}</ref>
 
==References==
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