Fleur Perkins: Last News

Former Coronation Street actor Ian Bartholomew, who played the evil Geoff Metcalfe, looked unrecognisable as he appeared in ITV's Midsomer Murders. In the ITV soap, Ian played the controlling Geoff, who destroyed his wife Yasmeen Nazir and his ex-partner Elaine Jones.

Annette Badland, 72, has revealed why she thinks Midsomer Murders has stood the test of time in an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk. Last year the Fleur Perkins actress gave a behind-the-scenes insight into why the show has been going strong for 25 years - and why her character is here to stay.Annette joined Midsomer Murders back in 2019 as motorbike-riding chief pathologist Fleur Perkins.While Annette only became a part of the show in its 20th season, the ITV hit has now been running for a quarter of a century.Asked why Midsomer Murders has lasted a full 25 years on ITV, Annette gave a considered response.

odds continue to change over who could play the next 007, with the latest list of likely James Bond actors including Henry Cavill, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Rege-Jean Page. However, one name that has consistently arisen over the years is that of Idris Elba, 50.Idris has certainly proved he has the acting chops for the role, previously earning a Golden Globe and five Primetime Emmy nominations for his television work. The actor has appeared as the iconic Stringer Bell in HBO series The Wire, as well as DCI John Luther in the BBC One series Luther.While Idris makes for a fantastic action man, he would also be the oldest Bond of all time if he were to take on the part in his 50s.The title is currently held by Roger Moore, who played the character from ages 45 to 57 between 1973 and 1985.Annette Badland, 72, revealed that she felt Idris’ casting as the new Bond wasn’t likely in an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk earlier this year.The Midsomer Murders star, who joined the cast as motorbike-riding chief pathologist Fleur Perkins back in 2019, brought up Idris whilst speculating who might be the new Doctor in Doctor Who.“Idris Elba wouldn’t do it I don’t think,” she said at the time, although it has now been announced that Sex Education’s Ncuti Gatwa will be the latest actor to portray the timelord. “The fans don’t like them to begin with,” Annette said of the ever-changing role, “...

Fleur Perkins could “never be replaced” in an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk.The Midsomer Murders star gave a behind-the-scenes insight into why she believes Fleur is here to stay.Annette joined Midsomer Murders back in 2019 as motorbike-riding chief pathologist Fleur Perkins.While Annette only became a part of the show in its 20th season, the ITV hit has now been running for 25 years. Opening up about how her character Fleur was conceptualised, Annette gave an interesting reason for why she thinks she “won’t be replaced”.“It’s brilliant to play an older woman who’s got a very interesting private life and who is very good at her job and can send the blokes up and intrigue them and things,” Annette reflected. “It’s terrific, you know, and there should be more - and they exist in real life - characters like that, really.”Fleur went on to describe how the producers arrived at the character of Fleur after coming to a surprising conclusion.“When the producer asked me to do it, they said that one time the person playing the pathologist had been ill and they didn’t know how to get around it when they were filming,” Annette remembered. “Then they said, ‘Oh, I know, we’ll have them send a fax through with the details and Barnaby can read it out’.“And he said, ‘I wanted a new character who could not be replaced by a fax machine.’ “So Fleur certainly can’t be replaced by a fax machine!” Annette concluded gleefully. Annette often acts opposite the likes of DCI John Barnaby star Neil Dudgeon and admitted she had a lot of fun in the role. Asked why Midsomer Murders has lasted a full 25 years on ITV, Annette gave a considered response. “I think it’s quite quirky and English because the deaths are often extraordinary and the

EastEnders actress Annette Badland, who used to play Babe Smith on the popular BBC One show, opened up about the death threats she used to receive in an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk.The star, who has since gone on to portray the hit character Fleur Perkins in Midsomer Murders, admitted she found the ordeal “very upsetting”.Annette, 71, played Babe Smith on EastEnders for three years after being cast in December 2013.Babe was involved in some controversial storylines, including one about baby farming.The character also blackmailed Les Coker (Roger Sloman) during her time on the show and even encouraged Abit Branning (Lorna Fitzgerald) to fake a pregnancy.Annette explained how some viewers who had been watching the soap for years were unable to separate the actress from the character, revealing that she even got death threats.“With EastEnders, some people think that’s real!” she said.“It was the first part I played where people didn’t stop me in the street and say, ‘I can’t remember your name but I liked what you did last night’. “Instead, they would call out, ‘Babe! It’s Babe isn’t it?’”“And you just think, ‘Wow, they really think…’“Because you’re in their home so much, they think it’s reality and towards the end I had death threats.”She went on to suggest that the reason people sent her such horrible messages was “because people really believe” the storylines in the show. “They invest so much in the characters because they’re in their homes all the time,” Annette explained. When asked how the threat made her feel she replied: “Yeah, it was very upsetting.”However, Annette is now delighted to be in her new role as Fleur in Midsomer Murders, who she began playing back in 2019.She also expressed her fondness for

Express.co.uk.The Midsomer Murders star admitted that she had experienced a rather “naughty tempation” before while on set as her character Fleur, acting opposite DCI John Barnaby star Neil Dudgeon.Annette joined Midsomer Murders back in 2019 as motorbike-riding chief pathologist Fleur Perkins.While Annette only became a part of the show in its 20th season, the ITV hit has now been running for 25 years. When asked what she thinks makes it stand the test of time, Annette replied: “I think it’s quite quirky and English because the deaths are often extraordinary and the fans like that.”Opening up about one particular murder scene featuring “naughty” Fleur, Annette admitted she got an inappropriate temptation during filming.  “One death I’ve had is by chocolate,” Annette recalled, as she referred to the season 20 episode The Lions of Causton.“It was as much as I could do not to break a bit off and eat it,” the actress admitted.She went on to explain that she felt it was “something Fleur might do” but decided against it for a rather peculiar reason.“I thought Fleur might do, but then I had to think, ‘No - of course she’d like dark chocolate.’“‘This person’s been smothered in milk chocolate and she’d prefer dark.’”Reflecting on her mischievous character, she added: “It’s the sort of naughty thing where, if it wasn’t near the body, I thought Fleur might just have a little.”When asked what it was like to be given such a fun role, Annette responded: “It’s brilliant to play an older woman who’s got a very interesting private life and who is very good at her job and can send the blokes up and intrigue them and things. “It’s terrific, you know, and there should be more - and they do exist in real life - characters like that