Su Pollard can talk the hind legs off a donkey, but she's more concerned with seagulls at the moment.

As we talk the New Shakespeare Company's tour of Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance, in which she plays Ruth, is in Plymouth.

"There are seagulls everywhere!" she says excitedly, sounding exactly like her best-known alter-ego, Peggy from Hi-De-Hi. "We've got seagulls as part of the soundtrack indoors, and then when you go outside there are seagulls there as well!

"It's really adding to the atmosphere. We're in the heart of pirate country, and we've had navy people at the shows. It makes a change from parrots, anyway. When we were doing the show in Regent's Park people would come along with plastic parrots on their shoulders!"

There won't be many seagulls or parrots when the show comes to Richmond Theatre on Monday (November 19), but Su's got another reason to look forward to her visit.

"A few years ago I was in Richmond doing Dick Whittington," she recalls, "and that's when they 'got' me for This Is Your Life. Everyone else was in on it, and I didn't cotton on at all!

"I should have been suspicious you always think the subject must know, don't you? because there was a TV van outside and everything. But they told me it was for TV coverage of the panto and I fell for it!

"They asked me to do a curtain call at the end of the show to ask people to put some money in the bucket for charity and that's when Michael Aspel came on!"

That edition of This Is Your Life certainly had plenty to cover. Since coming second to a singing dog in a talent show in Nottingham, she's become best known for her long-running TV roles in Hi-De-Hi and You Rang M'Lord. She has also toured with some of the biggest musicals including Godspell and Grease and starred in numerous pantos, plays and radio shows, as well as launching her own cabaret shows. She's also the voice behind popular children's character Penny Crayon and has released a hit single, Starting Together, a keep-fit video and even a book, Hearts and Showers.

She must work as fast as she talks to fit all that in, but true to form she's only concerned with the present and loving every minute of her role alongside Gary Wilmot as tomboy pirate Ruth in the ever-popular operetta.

"It's a fabulous show. It only seems to last 10 minutes I could never, ever get bored with it. I've had people saying to me, 'I can't believe it's over so soon', which is great, because people don't want to be hanging about all night, do they?" says the down-to-earth star.

"It's great for people who aren't familiar with Gilbert and Sullivan because although it's a comedy already we've brought in some extra fun elements it's a bit like a pantomime in that we spilt the audience to join in with some songs.

"It's great for kids too and the greatest compliment I've had so far is from a boy who said he chose between coming to see the show and watching England play Greece and he was glad he came!"

After the tour, which will continue after Christmas following a break for Su's ubiquitous appearance in panto in Wales, she's back on the small screen again in a role which will make even Peggy look normal as Tom's singing teacher in BBC2 comedy Gimme Gimme Gimme!

The Pirates of Penzance is at Richmond Theatre, The Green from Monday (November 19) until Saturday November 24.

Performances are at 7.45pm Monday to Saturday with matinees on Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm.

Call the box office on 8940 0088 to book tickets, which are £10-£23.

By.Vienna Leigh