Crime definitely pays for Simone Lahbib. The stunning Scot’s star found fame as a bisexual prison governor in Bad Girls and has flirted on both sides of the law in high profile crime shows Thieftakers and Family.

Now she has taken on the role of tough detective chief inspector Kate Gunning in new drama Fallen – and is loving every minute of it.

She said: “I really enjoy television that makes your brain work and the crime genre lends itself to good stories where you have to work out what is going on.
It’s also fun to among explosions and getting your gun out playing at being an action hero . . . Like La femme Nikita. As long as it’s not real, its great fun.”

Fallen follows the fortunes of amnesiac Jason Shepherd (Jonathon Cake), who wakes up in a hospital to discover he’s a police detective with an estranged wife and family.

He is implicated in a series of brutal murders, may be a threat to national security and has people trying to kill him.

DCI Gunning is one of the few people who likes and trusts him – which may or may not have something to do with the electricity charging between them.

Simone says: “He is not a popular guy. He comes out of a coma and discovers this dark side about his life. Gunning is a senior officer in the Special Operations Unit who, despite suspecting him of being a corrupt cop, is his main ally.
It’s gripping stuff. It’s a sexy show, very fresh and stylish, and I think it’s good.”

Simone, originally from Stirling, has lived in London for eight years but is in the Highlands filming the new series of Monarch of the Glen.
It’s the first time she has filmed North of the border since she appeared in The Young Person’s guide to being a rock star six years ago.

But Simone is thrilled to be back in Scotland shooting on the fictional Glenbogle estate as it means she is closer to her family. But it also means she is miles away from her husband, actor Raffaello Degruttola.

She says: “We’re in that situation where we got married not that long ago and are already having a typical showbiz marriage where we are on different sides of the world. He’s in L.A. at the moment. He’s the lead in three American films and one is coming out now, so he has to be there.”

“It’s tough. I miss him terribly. We’ve got huge phone bills and have to make sure we get time together. But it suits us.”

“I don’t think we’ve got the personalities that could do nine to five jobs, get the tea ready and watch telly the rest of the night. I’m really pleased because he’s an amazing actor and after a few years of struggle things have gone fantastically well for him.
I would like to have a family over the next few years. It’s difficult when we are so far apart but maybe we could arrange something in the post?”

The End.

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