Divorced 35-year-old schoolteacher Maggie Brooks lives in a block of flats in London. Her next door neighbour, Mrs Perry (referred to as Mrs P.), is an eccentric, malapropism-prone elderly woman who takes it upon herself to interfere in Maggie's life as much as possible. Though they are not related, the duo have a classic mother/daughter relationship with Mrs P. regularly knocking on Maggie's front door to voice her opinions on a variety of things (including the men in Maggie's life).