Mary Cooper Mary Cooper was the mother of Gwen Cooper , the wife of Geraint Cooper , the mother - in - law of Rhys Williams and the maternal grandmother of Anwen Williams . Biography . Before Miracle Day . She was born some time prior to 1947 . ( TV : " Ghost Machine " ) Her daughter was born on 16 August 1978 . ( TV : " Children of Earth " ) In her encounter with the quantum transducer , Gwen instigated a flashback of her and Rhys leaving to attend Mary ' s 60th birthday party . ( TV : " Ghost Machine " ) Later that year , when Gwen took Emma - Louise Cowell into her and Rhys ' home claiming her to be her aunt ' s step - daughter , Rhys checked with Mary and discovered this to be the latest in a series of lies Gwen had been telling him . ( TV : " Out of Time " ) At the time of her daughter ' s wedding , Mary was living in Swansea . Mary attended Gwen ' s wedding . After seeing Gwen , who unbeknownst to Mary was actually impregnated by an alien Nostrovite , Mary was happy at the prospect of a grandchild — particularly because she believed it would shock Brenda . Although Mary was not privy to the nature of Gwen ' s job , she was caught up in the adventure when she was threatened by the Nostrovite who had assumed the guise of Brenda . Despite Gwen and Rhys proclaiming that they would not keep secrets from each other in their marriage , Mary ' s memories , as well as those of the other wedding guests , were erased by Jack Harkness using retcon . Mary forgot about the whole ordeal , which her daughter felt to be " for the best " . At the end of that day , she was seen sleeping against Brenda , perhaps an indication that the two would manage to put aside their differences . ( TV : " Something Borrowed " ) During the 21st century Dalek invasion , Gwen told Rhys to tell Mary to take her pills and go to sleep . ( TV : " The Stolen Earth " ) When investigating a man connected to the 456 going by the alias " Timothy White " , Gwen commented that her mother used to shop in the chain store of the same name . ( TV : " " ) At some point prior to Miracle Day , Gwen informed Mary of the true nature of her job with the Torchwood Institute . ( TV : " The New World " ) Miracle Day . On Miracle Day , Mary accompanied her husband to the hospital after he had had a heart attack , and met her daughter , son in law and her granddaughter Anwen for the first time since she was born . Mary asked Gwen for information about the Miracle , though she didn ' t get any answers as Gwen didn ' t know what had happened . ( TV : " The New World " ) After they were released from police custody , Mary shared her home in Swansea with son - in - law Rhys and granddaughter Anwen . When Geraint was taken to Cowbridge Overflow Camp , Mary encouraged Gwen ' s rescue mission with Gwen ' s Torchwood team , also collating all the information she could find about the camps . ( TV : " The Categories of Life " ) Shortly after Geraint was rescued , Mary was kidnapped along with the rest of Gwen ' s family , and used as leverage in an attempt to force Gwen to turn in Jack Harkness . ( TV : " The Middle Men " ) However , after Esther Drummond got in contact with Andy Davidson , Gwen ' s former colleague , he came to the family ' s rescue with a South Wales attack team . ( TV : " Immortal Sins " ) Mary ' s category - threatening experience resulted in her telling Gwen not to give up in her Torchwood quest , and to " go and get the bastards " responsible for the Miracle . ( TV : " End of the Road " ) Gwen was later deported from the USA , and , as her own home was partially destroyed , returned to her mother ' s home with the rest of her family . Two months later , Mary , still hiding her category 1 husband , had her house searched , Mary breaking down in tears after having been forced to physically restrain Geraint to prevent him making noise . When the house was searched a second time , Mary was refused entry . She later signed the forms releasing her legally dead husband , who was taken back to the Cowbridge overflow camp in preparation for incineration . ( TV : " The Gathering " ) After Gwen helped to reverse the Miracle , Mary had a final chance to say goodbye to her husband by telephone as her son - in - law Rhys gained a police visa . ( TV : " The Blood Line " ) After Miracle Day . She was shot and killed by Ng , an alien possessing the body of Gwen . ( AUDIO : " Aliens & Sex & Chips & Gravy " ) Mary ' s funeral was later attended by Ng and her son - in - law , Rhys . Ng allowed Gwen to say goodbye to her mother . ( AUDIO : " Orr " ) Personality . Gwen had a more frosty relationship with her mother than she did with her father Geraint . At her daughter ' s wedding Mary was seen to be somewhat of a snob , nagging her husband Geraint and taking pleasure in scoring points against Rhys ' mother Brenda Williams . ( TV : " Something Borrowed " ) After Mary met Gwen for the first time since her exile , she teased Gwen about her " frugal " lifestyle , asking if she ' d been feeding Anwen lard . ( TV : " The New World " ) Upon returning to Wales , and her mother , Gwen made a joke about America ' s superiority in allowing people to divorce their mothers , which evoked a sense of discord between the two . Mary liked to dress Anwen in a way that displeased Gwen , who saw the exclusively pink outfit as frivolous . ( TV : " The Categories of Life " ) When Gwen spoke to Rhys at the Colasanto residence , Mary told him to tell her daughter that she wasn ' t available to speak personally because she was watching TV even though she wasn ' t . ( TV : " End of the Road " ) Although the relationship between Gwen and Mary was at times strained , Mary actively encouraged her daughter ' s missions during Miracle Day . ( TV : " End of the Road " , " The Blood Line " ) She showed a softer side when she had to rely on her daughter for emotional support after restraining Geraint in the basement , sobbing onto her shoulder . ( TV : " The Gathering " ) When Gwen was in Shanghai attempting to put an end to Miracle Day , Mary told Gwen not let anything happen to herself . ( TV : " The Blood Line " ) Even when held hostage by an alien Nostrovite , Mary not only remained calm but actively encouraged her daughter not to give herself up , showing a willingness to sacrifice herself for Gwen . Gwen had no intention of submitting herself , however ; as soon as the alien released Mary , Gwen shot it several times with a gun hidden in her wedding bouquet and Mary hugged her daughter in thanks . ( TV : " Something Borrowed " ) She also enjoyed looking after Gwen ' s daughter Anwen . ( TV : " The New World " , " The Categories of Life " , " The Blood Line " )