Kate's father, Daniel Collins, is an "obscure foreign film" actor whose career peaked at age 8 when he appeared in a peanut butter commercial.

The bossy, intimidating Alice has managed to both raise her three children and drive her husband into submissive silence, because of her persistent talking and badgering.

After a family dinner that goes south when Lucy and Judy announce that they are getting married, Charlotte tries to commit suicide by overdosing on a medication.

After having her stomach pumped, Charlotte tries again by jumping out of a moving van on a bridge and although she does not die, she is seriously injured and is confined to a wheelchair.

The next day, Alice's husband and her children are planning to leave, with the former finally saying something by answering Kate's question about their departure.

This explains Edmund's inability to keep names and number of children straight over the years before also dropping the bomb that he was up to his "prostate in debt".

During this time Kate finally gives her eulogy and also reads a piece of paper Ryan gave her and delivers a heartwarming speech written by him.