I THOUGHT I'D NEVER BE A MUM Feb 23 2005

Simone Lahbib
By Rick Fulton

GORGEOUS actress Simone Lahbib is ecstatic at finding out she's pregnant and admitted she thought it might never happen.

The Scots star of Monarch of the Glen and Bad Girls and Italian husband Raffaello Degruttola have been together for eight years and married for two.

And having just celebrated her 40th birthday earlier this month, she felt time was running out for her and motherhood.
But now she's making plans for their first child in September this year.

The Stirling-born star said: 'I'm so excited. I've been wanting to start a family since we've been married, but we've spent lots of time apart.

'We've been together for eight years and you do start to get worried and I did think it wasn't going to happen.
'It hasn't helped that since I got married it's the question all journalists ask.
Finally I can say: 'We've done it'.
'I'm nine and a half weeks gone and all I can think about is that everything goes well.
'I don't mind if it's a boy or a girl just as long as it is healthy.'

Simone and actor Raffaello, 34, met on the set of Thief Takers.
He later acted in Saving Private Ryan and has been in American films which have kept the pair apart for long stretches of time.

When she got the job as Isobel Anderson on Monarch of the Glen he stayed at their London home while she had to film the series in Kingussie, Inverness-shire. And she admitted to phoning him 12 times a day.
She said: 'Of course it's hard to think about starting a family when you never see someone. But we've been together all the time since November last year and it's been wonderful.'

The baby was conceived in late December, and Simone is currently at her parent's home in Stirling revelling in her condition.
She claimed she knew that she was pregnant. Simone said: 'I sensed it. I knew. I did the pregnancy test and then went to the doctor's and hadone and hadI did the pregnancy test and then went to the doctor's and had it confirmed.We were both so excited.

'When I thought I was pregnant and said it to him his face just lit up and he said: 'Do you think so? Are you going to get a test?' It's really nice when your husband is excited as well.
'Raffaello wasn't with me when I did the test. I was on my own at our home in London because he was busy, but I phoned him to tell him the good news.
'His family came round that day. Hearing everyone so excited when I phoned them was amazing. My family were over the moon and so were his.'

As the eldest of five children she's always known the benefit and love of a close family.
Because her father Joseph was a French- Algerian cook w home t Simone's Scots mum Jean while he was head chef at Gleneagles Hotel, she was picked on at school, but found the strength to beat the bullies from her home life. She's also watched her sister Sophie have six children - with a seventh due to be induced today.

Simone said: 'It's amazing, as we will have children that are only a few months apart.
Although she's way ahead of me.This is her seventh and she looks at me like I'm a complete novice. But at least I've got expert advice at hand and it'll be lovely to share everything with someone so close.
'We've been flicking through magazines looking at baby names.'

She's definitely ruled out Monarch, Glen or Bad Girl for the new arrival and jokes that she's had to score Cruz off her list because Victoria and David Beckham have named their third son that - she admits it's hard because of all the family nationalities.
She said: 'The choice is huge. My husband is Italian. My family are French and Scottish. It makes the choice even more difficult.

'But we've still got seven months to think of a name.' Everyone is already acting differently around her - not that she's complaining. She laughed: 'When I arrived at the airport on Sunday my dad was like 'Let me take your case'. It was great and it's lovely being at home.Everyone's looking after me.'

True to form her mum arrives asking what she wants for dinner.
Laughing, Simone said: 'See. I love being home.And the hubby is being very protective. I love it.'
Raffaello flew to Los Angeles last week to try to sell his first film script and Simone is missing him.
She said: 'It's lovely to see my family but I'm missing him. I'm going over to meet up with him and staying for three weeks.'

But she's not ready to be wrapped in cotton wool just yet. She's made a two-hour family drama called Heartless with Angus Deayton which is set to be screened on ITV at Easter.
And she's just finished a movie called Red Mercury with Pete Postlethwaite, Juliet Stevenson and Stockard Channing.
It's set to go to Cannes, which Simone is excited about, but perhaps not for the reasons you'd first think of.

She said: 'My grandmother lives in Cannes. It would be perfect. If I can go I'll go. It's a great film about terrorism and has an amazing cast. I play a hostage.'
But she's still in the dark about coming back to Monarch for the last ever series.
She said: 'I don't know what they are planning and I've no idea what's going on. I'm still waiting to hear.'

Simone has become one of the UK's best television stars in a series of highlights, including the wonderful Fallen last year, Family a gangster series with Martin Kemp, and The Young Person's Guide To Becoming a Rock Star in 1998.
But it was as Helen Stewart, the bisexual governor in Bad Girls, that she became a household name and a lesbian pin-up.

She'll be back again on our television screens with Heartless and sounds proud of the comedy drama in which Angus Deayton plays a cold and calculating divorce lawyer who, after a near fatal heart attack, is given a transplant and becomes a nicer person.

He decides to find the donor and journeys to Scotland where he meets the man's widow, played by Simone.
Simone said: 'It's hopefully coming out around the Easter weekend. It's very charming and Skye looked amazing.'
She laughs off the rumours that Angus collapsed with nerves before a sex scene.

She said: 'It's a family film.There's a kiss and that's it. We were laughing before the scene. It's rubbish to say he was scared about a kiss.'
She's full of praise for Angus who was shamed and lost his job as the host of Have I Got News For You amid sex and drug allegations. She said: 'Angus is great. He was really committed to his character and great to work with. He's very funny with that dry sense of humour.'

While she still can travel, Simone is off to be with Raffaello who, as well as his film script, is also promoting a short film Call Me, which stars them both. It's already set to be shown in film festivals in Miami, California and Mexico.
It seems 2005 is going to be a happy year for them both - good news after the break-in at their London home which saw the thieves stealing Simone's engagement ring - a £20,000 family heirloom of Raffaello.

Simone said: 'That was awful. Our house is like Fort Knox now but it's after the event.
'Sarah Heaney's fiance Ed Lyons is a jewellery maker and one of his staff is going to make a copy of the ring.
'But it's never quite the same.' It hasn't made them want to move.They've got a room earmarked for the nursery and the house has a nice big garden.

And as much as she loves working in Scotland - having filmed Monarch of the Glen and Heartless up here - she's happy to stay where she is in London.
Simone added: 'I'm looking forward when the baby arrives. I'm going to see the family in Scotland, in Italy and in France. It'll bean excuse to travel.'

It seems Simone is already planning on being a jet set mum.

'I've been wanting to start a family since we've been married, but we've spent lots of time apart. It's hard to think of starting a family when you never see someone, but we've been together since November last year and it's been absolutely wonderful'