I guess she understood it as such too, but just reversed things a bit, to mean that they expect to be kept happy, and satisfied at all costs.


This was, indeed, how I understood it, in your first post.

And I love your modernisations of the phrase!
May I suggest one that includes the same physical effort as the original, combining with the self-demial of your:

"She would travel Virgin from London to Edinburgh to get him a bap"