Where are they now?
Actress Vicki Michelle (70), who played saucy waitress Yvette Carte-Blanche in the Eighties sitcom ’Allo, ’Allo!, chats about the fun they had filming and what’s she’s up to now
‘Good moaning!’, ‘Oooh René’, ‘Listen very carefully, I shall say zis only once…’ When a sitcom produces catchphrases that make it instantly recognisable, you know you’re looking at a classic.
Running from 19821992, ‘Allo ‘Allo!, the BBC comedy set in a café in German-occupied France during the Second World War, was, without doubt, one such sitcom. The characters were as memorable as the catchphrases – not least ‘femme fatale’ Yvette, played by actress Vicki Michelle.
“It all began when my sister Ann and I went for a role in a new TV show called Come Back Mrs Noah, written by David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd, who went on to write ’Allo ‘Allo!,” explains Vicki. “Ann got the part but there was also a role for a French maid who was a robot and Ann suggested that I should play her, which I did. It was a good show but sadly it didn’t last long.
“Then I got a call about a new series where they needed someone with a French accent, which of course was for ’Allo ‘Allo!’. I went along and read for the part of Yvette. I didn’t hear anything for six months but then suddenly
“People still come up to me and say ‘I shall say zis only once!’ ”
they got in touch and offered it to me. The rest is history.”
Vicki has nothing but happy memories of ‘Allo ‘Allo!. “We had such fun filming. We were always dressing up as men and the men were dressing up as women. I remember we were on a break in filming and I was chatting to someone while I was wearing my fake moustache. We suddenly realised that to anybody else we would look ridiculous and fell about laughing.
“I was quite young when I got the part of Yvette and I didn’t realise it would affect my life so much. I still get people coming up to me and saying, ‘Listen very carefully, I shall say zis only once’.”
‘Allo ‘Allo! made Vicki a household name, but she’d been working with the stars since leaving stage school. One of her first professional roles was in the
West End in Play It Again, Sam opposite Dudley Moore and she appeared in classic TV series Dixon of Dock Green, Softly Softly, The Professionals and Minder.
In recent years Vicki, who lives in Essex with husband Graham, has worked tirelessly for charity and was awarded an MBE by the Queen in 2010. “A very proud moment,” she says.
She also presents a weekly radio show – Vix Mix on Phoenix FM where she blends chat, music, comedy, fun facts and special guests.
“I really love my radio show – I play funky upbeat music which gets everyone going and once the music starts, I just can’t sit down!” she laughs.