CONSIDERING a gang of terrorists once tried to blow her up when she was playing Bournemouth's Pier Theatre, actress Vicki Michelle seems remarkably fond of the place.
Eleven years ago, when she was appearing there with Lionel Blair, Su Pollard and Les Dennis in the farce Don't Dress For Dinner, an IRA bomb was discovered clamped beneath the 800-seat theatre.
Fortunately the detonator had dropped into the sea but Vicki, best remembered as French waitress Yvette in the BBC sitcom 'Allo 'Allo, admits the episode - in the midst of an incendiary bomb attack on the town - was "terrifying".
"We made all the jokes about giving an explosive performance but it was frightening," she says.
"I found myself thinking, 'Oh my God - we might not be here if things hadn't gone the way they did'," she recalls.
"We were only entertaining people, we were just doing a job. Why target us? It puts your life into perspective."
Happily, that incident is long in the past and Vicki, who has played the theatre on three occasions since - once with 'Allo, 'Allo the stage show, once with another producton of Don't Dress For Dinner last year and now with the Ray Cooney political farce Out of Order - says she loves appearing there.
She is particularly fond of the sweeping views of Poole Bay and the beautiful Dorset coastline, always there to be enjoyed just a few steps from her dressing room door.
"It is in such a fantastic location, absolutely beautiful. And when the weather's a bit rough it can be really exciting."
She remembers one day when it was so windy that Sue Hodge (her diminutive 'Allo 'Allo co-star), clutching an umbrella and struggling to get to the stage door, nearly took off.
Best of all though, she says the theatre is perfect for plays like Out of Order, which is currently two- thirds of the way through a three-week summer run on the pier.
"It couldn't be better. It has that intimate atmosphere where the audience react back to what's happening on stage. And because they're on holiday and want to come out and have a good time, the audience always seem to be in the right mood, really up for it.
"Basically we're having a great time here. Out of Order is a fantastic play, we've got a super cast and the audience love it. It doesn't get much better than that."
Appearing alongside Vicki in Out of Order are Paul Shane (Hi de Hi), Giles Watling (Bread), Scott Wright (Coronation Street), Tina Hall (Family Affairs) and other great farceurs like David Callister, Patric Kearns, Terry O'Sullivan, Samantha Hughes and Kerry Wotton.
A classic piece of Cooney farce, it focuses on a junior government minister, one Richard Willey, using the excuse of an all-night sitting in the House to slip away to a Westminster hotel for a night of passion with one of Michael Howard's secretary's.
His ardour, however, is somewhat dampened by the discovery of a body in the room. Being a politician he embarks on a cover-up but every attempt at damage limitation creates more and more chaos.
The production plays the Pier Theatre until Saturday August 28. Telephone 0870 111 3000.
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