Six months after leaving behind her role as EastEnders matriarch Pauline Fowler, Wendy Richard is to star in her own sitcom. Here Comes The Queen, a series about a long lost royal family, is the brainchild of Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft, the same writers who penned Are You Being Served?, the Seventies TV show which won Wendy legions of fans.
The actress starred as leggy shop girl Shirley Brahms in hit series, which ran from 1972 to 1985.
Speaking in the Mirror, the small screen favourite said she would draw on aspects of Shirley for the new show. "My character won't be glamorous because she is a lady of a certain age, but she will be smart. She is Miss Brahms a few years down the line."
Life after Albert Square has given Wendy a chance to ditch Pauline's dowdy cardigan and grim personality, and she's looking forward to getting to grips with comedy again.
At the end of last year the popular actress received a text from Natalie Cassidy, who played her one-time daughter-in-law Sonia, complaining about filming Pauline's funeral scene in the freezing cold.
Wendy's reply showed just how she is enjoying her post-Walford existence. "I sent a text back saying: 'I finished work at 11.05am and had a nap. Now I am out having a drink before lunch. Enjoy your day!'."
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
