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Lynda said a friend of her mum's emailed her to break the heartbreaking news that not only had 94-year-old Marjorie Bond passed away, but that her funeral had already happened. The friend added that she had 'not been allowed' to tell Lynda in time for her to attend the service.
Marjorie had put Lynda up for adoption when she had her as a single mum, but mother and daughter were reunited 25 years ago.
Lynda, who has two children Michael and Robbie, said getting the email was 'absolutely devastating' and left her 'grief-stricken'.
"I have spent the last 25 years befriending my mum and her sisters and feeling responsible for them in a way that I certainly didn't have to," Lynda said, adding "What really hurt was this woman being given specific instructions not to tell me until after the funeral because she didn't want me there embarrassing everybody."
Lynda, 63, said it made her feel 'horrible' and as though she was 'being rejected all over again'. She said: "I find it very distressing. But there's absolutely nothing I can do about it."
Lynda was brought to Britain from Canada as a child after being adopted by Donald and Ruth Bellingham. When she became a mum herself at 35, she decided to try and find her natural birth mother.
She admits she could never quite forgive Marjorie for giving her away, and knew she was put up for adoption because her mother had been 'ashamed'.
"It was a massive shame at the time. Mum had three sisters – one was married and had a child and the other sister never married. "
She says: "I discussed it with my mother when I was 40 to try to get her head around the horror of what she had done. I used to ring her once a month... but it was all very awkward."
Such a sad way for a mother and daughter relationship to end.
Our favourite on-screen mums
- Lois, Malcolm in the Middle<p> Stress-ball Lois doesn’t stop. Doesn’t stop shouting, screaming and stressing at her four children, even sending cheeky Francis to a naval academy when it all got too much. But if someone so much as implies a threat to her boys, there’s serious trouble…<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘Oh, come on, Malcolm. If we only looked at stuff we could afford, all we would ever see is crap.’</p>
- Sue Brockman, Outnumbered<p> Sue’s three children run rings around her and husband, Pete, as they go about their, really very ordinary, lives. The three siblings outwit, outsmart and sometimes even outrun the pair, and Sue, lovingly, tries to sort them all out while keeping her dignity and not shouting. Too much.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘It's not her bowl, because I broke her bowl this morning and had to drive all the way to Ikea to get her one that's identical but it *is* identical.’</p>
- Morticia Addams, Addams Family<p> Not your average stay at home mum, but Morticia keeps her home and family in her bizarre order. As well as children Wednesday and Puglsey, she also has husband, Gomez, Uncle Fester, Lurch and Grandmama to deal with. All that and she still looks fabulous every single day. </p>
- Roseanne Conner, Roseanne<p> Sharp-tongued Roseanne could take anyone down a peg or two in a matter of minutes, but by the end of each episode, one of her brood of three had either learnt a lesson, changed their ways or grown up in the space of half an hour thanks to her unbeatable advice.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘I am so amazing... if I ever get off this couch, I'll be unstoppable.’</p>
- Mrs Gump, Forrest Gump<p> Mrs Gump is a constant support in Forrest’s life as he struggles to get to grips with the real world away from home. We challenge anyone not to sob when she passes away living Forrest to cope alone.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote: </strong>‘You have to do the best with what God gave you.’</p>
- Erin Brockovich<p> A single mum of three, Erin works hard (and plays hard) to keep her brood happy and healthy, and won’t have a bad word said about any of them.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘How 'bout this for a number? Six. That's how old my other daughter is, eight is the age of my son, two is how many times I've been married - and divorced; sixteen is the number of dollars I have in my bank account. 850-3943. That's my phone number, and with all the numbers I gave you, I'm guessing zero is the number of times you're gonna call it.’</p>
- Olivia Walton, The Waltons<p> Raising seven children, living with the in-laws and coping with the Great Depression, Olivia Walton would do anything for her family, and was pretty thrifty to boot, not that her children ever went without the essentials, of course.</p>
- Lynette Scavo, Desperate Housewives<p> Mum of four Lynette might have had the odd blip (taking your child’s ADD medication, anyone?) but she holds her family together, through even the dark times, staying strong despite battling cancer and taking in her husband’s love child. A force to be reckoned with from the small screen.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘Yeah, our Porter, the kid who communicates with grunts and shrugs, writes this beautiful, heart wrenching poetry.’</p>
- Marge Simpson, The Simpsons<p> Raising three sometimes tricky kids (four if you count hapless hubby, Homer) Marge keeps the whole Simpsons clan in check, deals with scraps and scrapes and regularly sorts out her neighbours to boot.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘The way I see it, if you can raise three kids who can knock out and hogtie a perfect stranger, you must be doing something right.’</p>
- Barbara, The Royle Family<p> Hard-working Barbara is the one person who sticks up for her son, Anthony when he’s told to do everything around the house, without complaining. She also gets Brownie points for making endless cups of tea for anyone who pops round, regardless of the time or state of them.</p>
- Peggy Mitchell, Eastenders<p> Peggy struggled to get her not-so-little-ones in order throughout her years on the square. With drugs, drink and drama all plaguing her boys Grant and Phil and daughter, Sam, she believed anything could be sorted when you’re a family and you sit down together for a Sunday roast.</p> <p> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘You're a Mitchell! And It's all about family.’</p>
- Lois, Family Guy<p> Lois has two awkward teens, a talking dog and a baby who is plotting to take over the world one nappy change at a time. All due respect.</p> <p> <strong>Favourite quote: </strong>‘Together we can do anything: face any foe, overcome any obstacle.’</p>
- Ma Larkin, The Darling Buds of May<p> Warm, loving and an excellent cook, Ma Larkin keeps her brood (and everyone else in the vicinity) fed, watered, healthy and happy. Plus we love that fact that everyone - family and non-family and even her husband, Pa - calls her Ma.</p>
- Mrs Weasley, Harry Potter<p> Anyone who can knit seven children a natty jumper every year for Christmas AND get them all to wear them without complaining gets a massive thumbs up from us.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote: </strong>‘Not my daughter, you bitch!’</p>
- Leigh Anne Tuohy, The Blind Side<p> Leigh is a strong-minded mum who takes in Michael, who is friends with her daughter at school and doesn’t have a loving family to look after him. Based on a true story, Leigh is one mum who really tries to help a youngster in need. <br /> <br /> <strong>Our favourite quote: </strong>‘You threaten my son, you threaten me.’</p>
- Helen Parr, The Incredibles<p> A former superhero, Elastigirl, who moves to the suburbs with her family, Helen dons her red and black all-in-one once again to well and truly kick ass when her husband gets into a spot of bother trying to relive his glory days.<br /> <br /> <strong>Favourite quote:</strong> ‘Everyone's special, Dash.’</p>
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