September Song

26 February, 1994 | By Tony Purnell

Former comedy favourite Diane Keen lived up to her name when she was invited to join Russ Abbott and Michael Williams in their hit drama September Song.

“I told my agent I would crawl along on my hands and knees on broken glass for a part,” she says.

And it was not simply because she thought the first series was so wonderful. Diane, who was rarely off our screens in the 70s and 80s thanks to comedy hits such as The Cuckoo Waltz, Rings On Their Fingers, Foxy Lady and You Must Be The Husband, remembers only too well the heartache of being out of work. “I became typecast and found myself out in the wilderness. Most of the stuff being written at the time was for yuppie younger actors,” she says.

“Then I landed the Nescafe commercials and that seemed to kick-start everything. Lots of acting offers including The Ruth Rendell Mysteries followed.”

She joins Russ and Michael - back as retired teacher Ted Fenwick and boozy pal Billy Balsam - on an educational cruise around the Greek islands.

“I play an ex-dancer and singer who catches Billy’s eye. He is supposed to be recovering from a heart-attack but it does not prevent him from chasing after me,” says Diane.

© The Mirror, 1994