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Barbara June Thompson (née Mayfair), usually referred to by her family as simply "Maw Maw", is Louise Thompson's mother, Virginia's grandmother, Jimmy's great-grandmother, Hope's great-great-grandmother and Burt's grandmother-in-law and one of the main characters in Raising Hope. She is portrayed by Cloris Leachman.

Character Biography[]

Early Life[]

Barbara June was born on September 19th, 1926. She married Wilfred Thompson and had 2 children, one of them being Virginia's mother, Louise. Louise became pregnant at a young age with Virginia, and soon abandoned her. After Louise left, Maw Maw and Paw Paw were left to raise Virginia themselves.

Later Life[]

When Maw Maw's granddaughter Virginia was fifteen, she was impregnated by Burt Chance and had a son, Jimmy. In a flashback in the episode "Say Cheese", Maw Maw tells a young Jimmy to kill her if she ever becomes as crazy as Burt and Virginia, suggesting that she was probably lucid when Jimmy was a child.

When Jimmy was 23, he impregnated his serial-killer one-night-stand, Lucy Carlyle, and she had the baby in prison. Jimmy gets custody of the baby after Lucy's execution, and Virginia names the baby "Hope". Hope is Maw Maw's first great-great granddaughter.

It is expected that Maw Maw will live well into her great-great granddaughter's life, since in the episode "A Germ of a Story," it is implied that the family's poor hygiene has resulted in them living long lives.

In the season three episode "Mother's Day", Maw Maw met her mother on Mother's Day after Burt and Barney went to take pictures of Maw Maw's childhood home.

The Series[]

Hope

Season 1[]

Maw Maw is shown to be a heavy smoker in the first few episodes, and likes to burn Burt with her cigarettes. In the episode "Dead Tooth", however, she tells Burt when she is lucid that she quit smoking in 1971 because she wanted to live long enough to find out what Virginia would turn into and seems horrified at the idea that Virginia and family are letting her smoke.

In the episode "Don't Vote for This Episode", Jimmy tells Hope about his 18th birthday and how, on the morning of his birthday, Maw Maw kicked he, Burt and Virginia out of the house, spouting that they were all adults now and she wouldn't have to feel bad about kicking them out.

Season 2[]

Trivia[]

  • ​She sometimes thinks that Jimmy is her late husband, Wilfred Thompson.
  • She is rarely lucid, and it generally lasts for only a few moments.
  • She seems to enjoy eating spaghetti in the bathtub.
  • Burt and Virginia have to lock her in her room at night because she has a history of doing crazy things in her sleep, such as bringing a horse to the house.
  • She appears to be a heavy smoker in the first few episodes, but in later episodes is no longer a smoker.
  • She was once a cheerleader for the Baltimore Colts.
  • She shares a birthday with her great-grandson, Jimmy.
  • She Loves pickles and taffy.
  • She was once crowned Miss Natesville.
  • She used to be a bathing suit model.
  • She was once a member of the USO.
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