History Main / KindlyHousekeeper

* The title character in the comic strip ''Hazel'', as well as the Shirley Booth [[Series/{{Hazel}} sitcom]] adapted from it, is a tough-talking but sweet housekeeper.

[[folder:Films -- Animation]]

* CompositeCharacter Nanny (a stand-in for [[Literature/TheHundredAndOneDalmatians the novel]]'s Nanny Cook and Nanny Butler) in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians''. She's Roger and Anita's sweet cook and housekeeper who loves her employers and their dogs dearly. (This carries over into the [[Film/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians1996 live-action adaptation]].)

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]

* Annie in ''Film/ItsAWonderfulLife''. Sure, she snarks, especially with the younger Baileys, but it's clearly based on affection (which is equally clearly reciprocated).

%%* Calpurnia from ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird''.

* Jack from ''Literature/AlexRider''. Although she's younger than most of the examples, she still serves as a ParentalSubstitute for Alex.
%%* Ida Jungmann in Thomas Mann's ''Literature/{{Buddenbrooks}}''.
* Peggotty from ''Literature/DavidCopperfield'', David's nurse and his mother's housekeeper, is a nice older woman. She is characterized by her loyalty, since she looks out for him even as his family situation goes south.

* "Brownie" (Mrs. Brown, first name unknown) from Mary Grant Bruce's series of books (the "[[Literature/ALittleBushMaid Billabong Books]]") about the fictional Australian cattle station (ranch, in Americanese) named Billabong. After David Linton's wife died, Mrs. Brown, their cook/housekeeper took on the role of surrogate mother to his two very young children with the approval of her employer. She is depicted as kindly but firm, able to induce obedience through sheer love.

%%* Mrs. Bird from the ''Literature/PaddingtonBear'' stories.
* Mrs. Mullins from ''Jig-Saw'' plays with this. She devoted forty years of service to Taylsea Court and "has a heart of gold, [[SugarAndIcePersonality but only one person in a hundred discovers it under the gruff exterior]]." This is especially true for the protagonist, Mona, whom "Mullie" briefly considered a feminine rival.
* ''The Girl Who Chased the Moon'' features one. She helped raise the male lead and [[ShipperOnDeck approved of his budding romance]].
* Creator/ElizabethEnright gives us Evangeline Cuthbert-Stanley, a/k/a Cuffy, cook/housekeeper to Prof. Martin Melendy and substitute mother to his four chilren by his late wife, and later also to his adopted son Mark.
* ''Literature/AnimalInn'': Mrs. Racer, the visiting housekeeper who's been helping out the Taylors since Mrs. Taylor died, and Mrs. Wilson, the live-in housekeeper for the Sparks family.

* ''Series/DowntonAbbey'': Downton's housekeeper, Mrs. Hughes. Even though she can be stern in her duties, she is more easygoing than her male counterpart (Mr. Carson) is. She is shown to be open to the changing times and has shown great kindness to her fellow servants.
* Mrs. Bridges is the Kindly Queen of Kitchen in ''Series/UpstairsDownstairs''. She does have something of a temper but is a caring motherly figure to the servant folks.

%%* Leona from the ''Series/MyThreeSons'' episode "Domestic Trouble".
%%* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' serial ''Ghost Light'', the kindly housekeeper leaves at sunset, and once she and the day staff have left the CreepyHousekeeper appears. Guess when the TARDIS arrives.

%%* The Baxters' housemaid Series/{{Hazel}} Burke, played by Shirley Booth.

%%* Mrs Elsie Hughes of ''Series/DowntonAbbey''.

* ''WesternAnimation/DoctorSnuggles'' had Miss Nettles, an elderly ApronMatron who maintained the titular doctor's abode while he built his inventions.

** The [[Series/{{Sherlock}} BBC adaptation]] puts her in the same position, with John and Sherlock both very protective of their landlady ([[CatchPhrase not their housekeeper]]). For the offence of laying hands on Mrs. Hudson, Sherlock throws a CIA agent out of a window, and at the end of series 2 [[spoiler:Moriarty correctly identifies her as one of the three true friends in his life]].

* CompositeCharacter Nanny (a stand-in for [[Literature/TheHundredAndOneDalmatians the novel]]'s Nanny Cook and Nanny Butler) in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians''. She's Roger and Anita's sweet cook and housekeeper who loves her employers and their dogs dearly. (This carries over into the [[Film/101Dalmatians1996 live-action adaptation]].)

* CompositeCharacter Nanny (a stand-in for [[Literature/TheHundredAndOneDalmatians the novel]]'s Nanny Cook and Nanny Butler) in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians''. She's Roger and Anita's sweet cook and housekeeper who loves her employers and their dogs dearly.

* ''Series/CinderellaAndFourKnights'': In contrast to the late teens/early twenties cast, their housekeeper Ms. Beolgyo is middle-aged. She warms quickly to the houseguest Ha-won and helps her achieve her missions.

Such ladies can be not just a nanny but also a ParentalSubstitute to the children in the household (if there are any) to substitute for the DisappearedDad (if the housekeeper happens to be a man) or the MissingMom--usually the latter since housekeepers are [[AlwaysFemale traditionally women]] and it's usually TheJeeves who would act as a fatherly figure to the potential children. She will also often play TeamMom to the other servants (assuming she's not the only servant employed). Can be a SupremeChef considering that [[ThinkNothingOfIt it's all part of the job]], or an ApronMatron. In the latter case she may also be a ServileSnarker to verbally whip others.

* Mrs. Potts in ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' is a motherly middle-aged woman who looks out for and worries after her master, fellow servants, and son..

* Mrs. Higgins, from ''Film/TheMiracleWoman'', is the epitome of this trope: kind and willing to help John Carson in any endeavor.

* ''Series/DowntonAbbey'': Downton's housekeeper, Mrs. Hughes. Even though she can be stern in her duties, she is more easy-going than her male counterpart (Mr. Carson) is. She is shown to be open to the changing times and has shown great kindness to her fellow servants.
* Mrs. Bridges is the Kindly Queen of Kitchen in ''Series/UpstairsDownstairs''. She does have something of a temper, but is a caring motherly figure to the servant folks.

* The 2011 movie adaptation of ''Film/{{Jane Eyre|2011}}'' portrays Mrs. Fairfax this way.

* Subverted in Creator/SusanCooper's ''Literature/TheDarkIsRising series'' book ''Literature/OverSeaUnderStone'' (1965). Mrs. Palk appears to be one of these, but turns out to be TheMole, an agent of the Dark who sabotages the protagonists.
* Nanny Cook and Nanny Butler in ''Literature/TheHundredAndOneDalmatians''.

* Series/DowntonAbbey: Downton's housekeeper, Mrs. Hughes. Even though she can be stern in her duties, she is more easy-going than her male counterpart (Mr. Carson) is. She is shown to be open to the changing times and has shown great kindness to her fellow servants.

* The recent movie adaptation of ''Film/JaneEyre'' portrays Mrs. Fairfax this way.

* ''ComicBook/RobinSeries'': Mrs. [=McIlvaine=] is the Drake's housekeeper and acts as a strict but caring and matronly figure for Tim. While she has a tendency to side with Tim's father--who is her irrational and hotheaded employer--during arguments, Jack is rarely home and Tim's mother is deceased by this point so for about a year she was Tim's most consistent parental figure.

* The title character in the comic strip ''Hazel'', as well as the Shirley Booth [[Series/{{Hazel}} sitcom}} adapted from it, is a tough-talking but sweet housekeeper.

* The title character in the comic strip ''Hazel'', as well as the Shirley Booth [[Series/{{Hazel}} sitcom}} adapted from it, is tough-talking but sweet.

* Calpurnia from ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird''.

* Ida Jungmann in Thomas Mann's ''Literature/{{Buddenbrooks}}''.
* Peggotty from ''Literature/DavidCopperfield''.

* Mrs. Bird from the ''Literature/PaddingtonBear'' stories.

* Alice from ''Series/TheBradyBunch'' is portrayed this way.
* Leona from the ''Series/MyThreeSons'' episode "Domestic Trouble".
* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' serial ''Ghost Light'', the kindly housekeeper leaves at sunset, and once she and the day staff have left the CreepyHousekeeper appears. Guess when the TARDIS arrives.
* Mrs. Garrett, Edna, and Pearl from ''Series/DiffrentStrokes''.
* The Baxters' housemaid Series/{{Hazel}} Burke, played by Shirley Booth.

* Mrs Elsie Hughes of ''Series/DowntonAbbey''.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* The player character's mother in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite''. Her reaction to the player character and Bianca trashing the bedroom having Pokemon battles indoors? A cheery "No problem, I'll clean it up. You kids run along now!"
[[/folder]]

* Mrs. Beakly from ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987''.

* ''Film/MaryPoppins'' had one.
* Chessy in ''Film/{{The Parent Trap|1998}}'' (newer version with Lindsay Lohan).

* [[Creator/Elizabeth Enright]] gives us Evangeline Cuthbert-Stanley, a/k/a Cuffy, cook/housekeeper to Prof. Martin Melendy and substitute mother to his four chilren by his late wife, and later also to his adopted son Mark.

* Mrs. Potts in ''Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast'' is a motherly middle-aged woman who looks out for and worries after her master, fellow servants, and son..
* CompositeCharacter Nanny (a stand-in for [[Literature/TheHundredAndOneDalmatians the novel]]'s Nanny Cook and Nanny Butler) in Disney's ''Disney/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians''. She's Roger and Anita's sweet cook and housekeeper who loves her employers and their dogs dearly.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mrs__beakley.jpg]]

[[folder: Films -- Animated ]]
* Mrs. Potts in ''Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast'' is a motherly middle-aged woman who looks out for and worries after her master, fellow servants, and son..
* CompositeCharacter Nanny (a stand-in for [[Literature/TheHundredAndOneDalmatians the novel]]'s Nanny Cook and Nanny Butler) in Disney's ''Disney/OneHundredAndOneDalmatians''. She's Roger and Anita's sweet cook and housekeeper who loves her employers and their dogs dearly.

[[folder: Films -- Live-Action ]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

[[folder: Newspaper Comics]]
* The title character in the comic strip ''Hazel'', as well as the Shirley Booth [[Series/{{Hazel}} sitcom}} adapted from it, is tough-talking but sweet.

[[folder: Video Games]]
* The player character's mother in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite''. Her reaction to the player character and Bianca trashing the bedroom having Pokemon battles indoors? A cheery "No problem, I'll clean it up. You kids run along now!"

[[folder: Web Comics]]
* ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'': [[TheMedic Mikkel]] pulls double duty as this, being the oldest of the team, being both the TeamChef and the TeamMom, and keeping himself busy with making sure the tank and its contents stay clean when not needed for his prime duty.

[[folder: Western Animation ]]
* Mrs. Beakly from ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987''.
* Rosie from ''WesternAnimation/TheJetsons'' combines this with RobotMaid--she's very close to George, Jane, Judy and Elroy, who all consider her to be a member of the family and love her far too much to trade her in for a newer model (as Rosie's technically outdated).
[[/folder]]

Probably not an OldRetainer, since she usually doesn't have a high regard for doing things the [[GoodOldWays Proper Way]].

* Chessy in ''Film/TheParentTrap'' (newer version with Lindsay Lohan).

* ''WesternAnimation/TheJetsons'' have Rosie as their kindly housekeeper--she's a RobotMaid (and an outdated model at that), but the Jetson-family loves her far too much to trade her in for a newer model.