She returned in 1998 to aide in the exit of Jenny Harrison (Maggie Harper), briefly in 2002 to attend good friend Nick's (Karl Burnett) wedding, in 2012 to support Rachel McKenna (Angela Bloomfield), and in 2017 for her onscreen death.

[2] Elizabeth McRae was cast in the role and was delivered an initial 30 scripts in February 1992, being sceptical that the show would last over a year due to curiosity over how her character could develop over such a long period.

[6] Marj made her debut on the shows first ever episode and even spoke the first ever line: "Shortland Street Accident and Emergency Centre!

McRae agreed to reprise the role in 1998 as part of the exit storyline for the character of Marj's best friend Jenny Harrison (Maggie Harper),[3] but ruled out returning full-time to the soap.

[14] Working behind the front desk at Shortland Street clinic since its inception, Marj was introduced as a gossip-fueled face of the reception.

She and her husband Tom (Adrian Keeling) were horrified when their teenage son Stuart (Martin Henderson) claimed that he was the father of a baby that had been delivered.

It was quickly revealed that Stuart's eldest brother Darryl (Mark Ferguson) was the real father, though Marj never discovered this, Tom had his suspicions.

Causing controversy within the clinic by ostracising Jaki Manu (Nancy Brunning) due to an HIV scare, and speculating on Meredith (Stephanie Wilkin) and Hone (Temuera Morrison) dating despite being in relationships, the staff realised Marj was an efficient way to spread information to their colleagues.

In late 1992, Marj's illegitimate daughter Jane (Katherine McRae) who she adopted out at birth, made contact, infuriating Tom that the lie had been kept for 30 years.

Advocating for the community whilst still working part-time behind the desk, Marj fell into political scandal when she funded Nick's (Karl Burnett) dodgy cleaning materials business.

Soon after, a vacancy opened in the area for the 1996 general election; Marj ran and won the majority vote to sit for Ferndale in the New Zealand parliament, quitting Shortland Street.

Marj returned to Ferndale for Chris' 50th birthday but was hospitalised for an aortic aneurysm, leading to Stuart arriving to visit her.

A volcanic eruption saw Marj step in and return to the front desk of the hospital before suffering an angina attack whilst stuck in the elevator.

Following words of advice to Nick and Waverley on being parents for the 6th time, Marj fell into cardiac arrest in the hospital reception and died.

Instantly upon introduction, Marj was shown to be a stern Catholic mother busybody, who loved to gossip and cares deeply for her family.

In 1994 Marj was heavily against the hiring of lesbian nurse – Annie Flynn (Rebecca Hobbs) but soon came adjusted to it, with the character saying: "I was very close to a girl once ...

[17] McRae enjoyed the characterisation but acknowledged Marj had her flaws, stating; "She stands up for family and is quite perceptive and forgiving.

"[19] Upon her return in 2012 it became apparent that Marj's "no nonsense" attitude had not diminished with age when she gave Yvonne Jeffries (Alison Quigan) and Bella Cooper (Amelia Reid) advice on working reception.

The at-times socially conservative Marj was shown to resist the move but soon came round to embracing Te Reo and "mangled the phrase with ...

[17] The use of a Conservative Pakeha woman coming round to appreciating the language was said to help bridge the cultural gap in New Zealand by incorporating te reo Māori.

The character received a positive response with a review of the first episode saying the reception desk was; "about the only place where the makers of Shortland Street have got it right".

[26] When filming her final scenes at parliament, McRae remembered realising the impact Marj had made by the amount of MP's approaching her for photos.

and her silliest scene, being when Marj nearly died when her scarf got caught in the paper shredder, only to be saved by Nick Harrison (Karl Burnett) who was washing the windows outside.

[17] TV reviewer, John T. Forde, listed Marj as his second favourite character and highlighted her phrase: "Kia ora, Shortland Street Accident and Emergency centre!

"[32] During a speech at the show's 15th anniversary, the Prime Minister Helen Clark, noted the "fun" she had filming Marj's final scenes at parliament.

[35] McRae later went on to state that playing Marj was a highlight of her 50-year-long career, saying; "It was quite a privilege to be in that initial cast because it was a breakthrough that there was at last a New Zealand soap opera that wasn't full of Australians or Americans or English.

[39] The soap's longest serving star, Michael Galvin (Chris Warner) praised and admired McRae for her portrayal of Marj as she taught him to "take the work seriously, but don't take yourself too seriously".

"[49] When Amelia Reid was cast in the role of Bella Cooper in 2010, she stated her hope to live up to the reputation of Marj on the front desk.

[50] When Jennifer Ludlam (Receptionist Leanne Miller) filmed her first scenes behind the desk, she felt it was an iconic position to hold having previously worked with McRae on stage.

[15] The song One Day by Opshop featured as a backing track during Marj's death and subsequently reentered the New Zealand iTunes charts.