Scrooge was very close to his late sister, Fan. In fact, she was the only person in the whole world he was ever really close to. Unlike Ebenezer she was a sweet, gentle soul loved by all. We find out what she was like thanks to the Ghost of Christmas Past, who takes Ebenezer back to his childhood.

When they were children, Fan would always show great kindness to her brother. Scrooge senior sent Ebenezer away to a boarding school. In common with many boys at the time, the poor young lad found it a horrible, lonely experience. Fan knew that her brother would struggle there, and being such a kind, loving sister she pleaded repeatedly with her father to let Ebenezer return home, sadly to no avail.

As with many women in the nineteenth century, Fan tragically passed away in childbirth. But her only son Fred, Ebenezer's nephew, thankfully survived. When Scrooge has his change of heart on Christmas Day, he accepts Fred's offer to have dinner with his family, which he had previously turned down.