AWARD WINNING ACTRESS 59-year-old Denise Welch first appeared on the nation’s TV screens almost three decades ago, playing alongside Ant and Dec in Biker Grove.
She became a household name in 1993, when she appeared as Marsha Stubbs in the ITV drama Soldier Soldier, with Robson Green and Jerome Flynn. She even outsold Cher in the charts with a hit cover version of Cry Me a River. In 1997 she burst onto the screen as femme fatale Natalie Horrocks in the nation’s favorite soap, Coronation Street.
In her personal life, Denise is a tireless advocate for mental health and a champion of the LGBTQ community. She was recently voted Ally of the Year by Diva Magazine.
Her first short film, Black Eyed Susan, deals with the issue of depression, which Denise has spoken openly about over the past year. The film has just won a prestigious award at the Silicon Beach Film Festival in Los Angeles and has been nominated for many more.
The film also stars her 16-year-old son, Louie Healy, who is also winning rave reviews. Denise’s other son is 28-year-old rock star Matt Healy, who fronts the band, The 1975.
Denise has been married to celebrity artist Lincoln Townley for four years. She’s talked openly about her battle with alcohol and both she and Lincoln have been free from drugs and alcohol for over five years.
She’s been a constant presence on UK television, with hit shows like Boy Meets Girl, and she won rave reviews for her one-off in EastEnders last year.
You are about to play Mrs. Otter in The Wind in the Willows. If you came back as an animal, which one would it be?
It would have to be a sloth, not because of being lazy; in fact it’s the opposite as my life can be manic. But when I do get home and have the time there is nothing better than getting the make -up off, slipping into the old sweat pants and curling up on the sofa to watch a box set. The kids and my husband laugh when they see me and say I look a bit like a sloth on the couch.
What was your favorite story as a child?
Funny you should ask, but truly my parents used to read Wind in the Willows to me. It was just magical and I would imagine the characters as if they were real. For those old enough to remember, I used to love Watch With Mother and as well as Andy Pandy, the Wooden Tops, and I adored Tales From The River Bank. Of course, I read Wind in the Willows to my children too.
This year sees her fulfill a childhood dream by appearing at The London Palladium in the musical The Wind in the Willows.