I merely said, "Oh, I see", and left it at that. The next day we were doing the matinee, and I was playing the fairy. There's a fight between King Rat and Dick Whittington and the fairy organises it, and she says, "Go to your corners and when you hear the bell you come out fighting." So when we got to that point that day I said exactly that, except I did it as Margaret Thatcher. I got the job.I think the reason why I like Roy so much is that I'd much rather make people laugh than make them cry, and I think he's the same. We do have tremendous fun on The Huddlines - there have been times when we've all been quite convulsed in laughter and unable to carry on.

But we have to be jolly careful because Steve, our producer, is very inclined to leave it in.Roy's a very enthusiastic person; enthusiastic about his work and enthusiastic about life. I miss him desperately if we don't see each other over the summer; I'm always delighted to see him in September when the new series of The Huddlines starts. I think it's because of his enthusiasm for what's going on, and for life in general. We always catch up on what the other's doing, and at the first session we'll usually all go round to the pub afterwards - it's just a fun time.Our relationship is very much based on work but we do go away occasionally together as a foursome: Roy and his wife, Debbie, and Tim and I. We all went down to Somerset together recently for a "Huddlines day out", with Chris Emmett, who is the other part of The Huddlines. Roy's great love is music hall; he has a fund of old music-hall stories and can talk for hours about those days and the people in it; he's very entertaining. We were going to a lunch at the Somerset and Western Music Hall Society, and we did a Huddlines sketch for them, which they absolutely adored.

Afterwards we wandered round the endless mudflats of Western Super Mare - it was great fun.Roy's certainly in the thick of things when he's working. I think you could say he is the life and soul of the party, but if he goes away he likes to be fairly quiet and take books. I had a "50 years in showbiz" party some time ago, and Roy came and made such a funny speech, which, of course, I can't remember. I keep asking him to give me a draft of it, but he's probably lost it now. But that's the sort of thing Roy will do: he's wonderfully spontaneous.We never have any deep, meaningful conversations: there's just no time We meet at nine for The Huddlines and we're gone by 12. I just look on him as a very good mate, and I certainly look up to him You know where you are with him If he says he'll do something, he'll do it.