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. 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." 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."