Articles
WHY SIMONE IS LEAVING MONARCH OF THE GLEN
Mar 7 2005
By Nina Myskow
It should be the happiest time of Simone Lahbib's life. The beautiful star of the BBC hit series Monarch Of The Glen is finally pregnant, at the age of 40.
She and her husband, Hollywood actor Raffaello Degruttola, had despaired of becoming parents.
Long separations, not helped by her filming schedule in the Scottish Highlands, meant that there was little chance of fulfilling their dream.
Just six months ago, Simone, who plays feisty Isobel, told the Daily Mirror: "I can feel my body clock ticking but we don't see as much of each other as we'd like. Raff is often away filming in LA and it just hasn't happened yet. It's really tough."
So they're thrilled that she is now 10 weeks pregnant. But her happiness is tinged with disappointment - because her pregnancy means that Simone won't be appearing in the seventh - and final - series.
"It's true," the Scots star tells me from her parents' home in Stirling. "I won't be returning.
"It's a shame because I enjoyed playing Isobel and had been looking forward to the next series. But I had lunch last week with the producer, Rob Bulloch, and we decided, amicably, that it was for the best if I didn't continue."
After quitting her role as governor Helen Stewart in ITV's Bad Girls, Simone signed a two-option deal last year when she joined Monarch. And many other actresses in a similar situation might have been tempted to contemplate legal action on the grounds of sexual discrimination. Simone is more philosophical...
"When I discovered I was pregnant, I thought it would work out, because I'm very fit," she says. "And until we had the lunch, I hadn't considered not doing it.
"We started off discussing whether we'd make Isobel pregnant. Then we talked about how difficult it would be being up there for that long.
"Another actress had been up there filming while she was pregnant and found it very tough - and she wasn't as far on as I'd have been. Basically, it would have taken me up to a month off my due date, in September.
"I was worried about spending so much time away from Raff again and being in such an isolated place - the hospital in Inverness is 45 minutes away. The more I thought about the logistics, it dawned on me how difficult it would be.
"So we decided that the best thing was not to do it this time. Rob said he'd look out for projects for me once the baby arrives and we'd work together on something else. It was best just to let this one go."
Had she no thought of waving a flag for feminism? "The conversation was very mutual," she says. "Maybe if I'd said I was really peeved, I'd still be doing it. But I had concerns about it as well, so it went a different way.
"I came back from the lunch with mixed emotions. In your head you're planning to do something and suddenly you're not. But at the same time, there was a sense of relief.
"When I told Raff, he was glad about it because he's protective. He was worried in case anything happened and the effect that would have on me."
Lloyd Owen, who plays the new Laird, Paul - her love interest in the series - rang Simone when he heard.
"He called to say how sorry he was," she says fondly. "But he was telling me about the other actress who was pregnant and how difficult she'd found it. He said: 'I think it's for the best but we'll miss you.'
"Before the decision was made, the ambitious part of me thought I'd work right up until the birth. But as the hormones kick in, I'm not feeling as ambitious... The thought of having a relaxed pregnancy, being in LA with Raff, fixing up the nursery at home in London, really appeals to me."
Simone, whose sultry beauty has seen her compared to Hollywood siren Ava Gardner, comes from a large family. She is the eldest of five, her mother is one of six. Raff, who was in Saving Private Ryan, is from a big Italian family.
"My parents are beside themselves," she laughs. "My sister Sophie has just gone into labour today - her seventh, amazingly - and my other sister, Nicole, has three kids. I was always so pleased they took the family pressure off me.
"But Raff and I have been married for two years and nothing had happened. I hadn't given up but I was worried about my age. Recently, I even asked Raff if he'd consider adoption, if it came to it.
"When Monarch finished filming in September, I went straight on to a romantic comedy called Heartless, which we filmed on Skye. Since then, Raff and I have had the whole of the time together and it just happened! But I still didn't quite believe it until I had my first scan.
"We brought it forward because Raff had to go away and he wanted to be with me. I was bracing myself for disappointment before I went in but it was: 'Yep, that's a heartbeat and that's the shape of a baby.'
"The two of us were beaming but Raff makes me laugh anyway. He's full of fun.
"He's also very energised, very fit. I think he's gorgeous. He's in LA now and we were having a joke on the phone the other night.
"I'm obsessed with baby books and said: 'Guess what? The baby's just forming its ears.' He said: 'Oh, my God. Let's hope it doesn't have ears like yours!' And I said: 'Let's hope he doesn't get a nose like yours..."
"But Raff also said something lovely. There's a photo I have with my mum and dad when I was just under one year old. He said that ever since he saw it, he knew he wanted to have babies with me."
S IMONE hasn't had problems with morning sickness and says she is really well. "I've been sleeping like a log. Sometimes when I'm working I get insomnia and stressed out.
"It's a terrible spiral. Awake at 1am and getting up at 5am. But I'm sleeping brilliantly at the moment."
Heartless, in which she stars with Angus Deayton, will be screened over Easter. Loyally, she glosses over his past indiscretions - he lost Have I Got News For You amid sex and drug allegations. "Angus was fantastic," says Simone. "He was shy to start with but came out of his shell and enjoyed himself - and it showed in his work. It's a lovely, charming story. We had a lot of fun and we've become good friends. I'm very fond of him."
She is looking forward to joining Raff in LA next week and life looks good. "It's so much better than at the start of the year, when we had a break-in at our London home," she says. "We disturbed the thieves but they'd put the door on the latch so they had time to flee.
"I wanted to kick the door down but Raff pulled me back and phoned the police. They got away with so much, including my wedding and engagement ring.
"Then just a week later, I found out about the baby. It has been like the sun breaking through the clouds. You get things in perspective. Raff said: 'They're only material things - the two of us are safe.'"
And then she laughs and says: "It's the three of us now."