A tragicomic character, Dot was known for her devout Christian faith, gossiping, chain smoking, hypochondria, and motherly attitude to those in need. A recurring storyline in the serial has been 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 screen partnership. On 31 January 2008, Dot became the first character ever to appear in a monologue episode, "Pretty Baby...", of a British soap. 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 has been used to explore topical and controversial issues such as euthanasia, cancer, immigration and homophobia.