Played by Mike Reid, Frank had been a regular character in the serial from 1987 to 1994, and had appeared in a recurring role until 1998, when Reid agreed to return full-time. Frank's history on the show included a former marriage to another long-running matriarch, Pat Butcher (Pam St. Clement). Their history as lovers featured prominently in Peggy's narrative in 1998, when, after agreeing to marry Frank, Peggy was wrongly told that Frank and Pat were having an affair. A special two-hander episode aired in November 1998, featuring only Pat and Peggy for the entire duration. It concentrated on Peggy's reaction to the suspected affair, whilst simultaneously addressing Pat's unresolved history with Frank and the apparent destruction of Pat's own marriage to Roy (Tony Caunter), who had also responded badly to the rumours about his wife's infidelity. The episode, written by Tony Jordan, featured what the "Sunday Mirror" described as one of "the most vicious fights ever filmed by a soap", with both throwing glasses at one another and Pat slapping Peggy across the face exclaiming "You bitch!" and Peggy responding by slapping Pat exclaiming "You cow!". According to press reports, the fight scene between the characters was "so powerful that it had to have scenes and dialogue cut so it could be screened before the 9 pm watershed." Barbara Windsor was reportedly bruised during the filming. Windsor commented, "The writer didn't want a namby- pamby cat fight between two silly girls. We were throwing chairs and bottles and the adrenaline was at a high. When I saw the programme I couldn't believe how good it was. Pam and I were really proud." The "Sunday Mirror" described it as: "one of the most impressive episodes of all time". In the climax of the storyline, both couples resolved their differences, and their relationships remained intact.