8:36am Friday 20th November 2009
PANTO villain Lorraine Chase admitted to sharing a love of Swindon with TV star Matthew Kelly when she switched on the town’s Christmas lights last night.
The former Emmerdale actress, who is playing the wicked queen Carabosse in the Wyvern Theatre’s production of Sleeping Beauty, was the star of the show as she flipped the switch in Wharf Green before hundreds of people.
Lorraine, who shot to fame in the 1970s when she starred in a TV advert for Campari, said: “I love Christmas but I won’t get much time because of the panto but it will keep me out of trouble and from eating too much.
“I love switching on the Christmas lights because it is such a great atmosphere and I would have come along even if I was not switching the lights on.
“The crowd were so enthusiastic and it was lovely to see all the children smiling.
“I bumped into Matthew Kelly at The Globe Theatre in London last week and told him I was turning on Swindon’s lights and he said it was a wonderful town and said he loves it here and I agree.
“My favourite Christmas present was probably a drop diamond on a necklace around a teddy bear only I didn’t realise for days that the teddy had the jewel on it and it was just sat there with it on,” she said.
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