Has the panto coincided with a natural break in filming for you this year?
Yes, it always does, although having said that I always have to take some extra time off. Home and Away breaks for four weeks, but I have an extra four weeks off this year.
And what is the excuse for Irene not being on screen this year?
(Laughs) Oh, I think Irene wins a prize to go overseas or something, but it isn't a hugely vital plot line.
Not in hospital in a coma like last time then?
No, not a coma or anything like that! I think Irene just goes overseas!
In the scenes we're watching, Irene is battling with Amanda over Belle. Are those scenes fun to do?
Oh yes. We all love a baddie, don't we? Especially glamorous baddies, I remember Angie and Josie and those sort of characters. Holly (Brisley) is just the most delightful girl, she's a real sweetheart, and the character she plays is the complete opposite to what she's really like, and of course she's not the plainest person in the world either! We have a lot of fun and the poor love, sometimes it's really anathema to her to play that kind of role because she is a sweetheart and she doesn't like being nasty. We always say to her, you mustn't judge your character – obviously Amanda has a reason for behaving like this. And Jessie (Tovey) who plays Belle is caught in the crossfire – they are all a great time, a lovely bunch of people.
The Christmas cliffhanger has Sally stabbed and people are not sure if she's coming back. If she didn't that would make Irene the second longest running character on the show wouldn't it?
Yes, I always say I'm waiting for Sally and Alf to fall under a tram! (laughs). So if Sally leaves I would be second in line to the throne and then of course all I've got to do then is get rid of Alf and I would be the longest serving person on Home and Away! So, I'm trying to come up with storylines that would bump them both off!
Is it a nice claim to fame to have been on the show so long?
I've just been talking to some of the dancers here in the panto and they asked me how long I've been in the show. I think when you are fifteen, thirteen and a half years seems like an eternity, but for me it has gone in the blink of an eye. My daughter was twenty months old when I started and now she is nearly sixteen. When I have that sort of a yardstick, that's when I go “Heavens above”, that's been a huge chunk out of my life. But, do you know what, I wouldn't have changed it for the world. I love my job and Home and Away has been amazing, and if it wasn't for Home and Away I wouldn't be in England doing pantomime and talking to you now!
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