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As Teresa di Marco, Leila Birch was brought in, along with the rest of the restaurant-running di Marco clan, to add some spice to the Square.
Recently widowed Rosa, her Italian-stallion sons,. Beppe and Gianni, along with daughters, Teresa and Nicky arrived to run Guiseppi’s Italian eatery.
But although the di Marcos featured in several high-profile storylines, viewers tailed to take the family to their hearts. And so Walford said ‘pasta Ia vista’ to all the doomed di Marcos — except Beppe —when they were axed in a cast clear-out in August 2000 |
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“There was lots more mileage in the di Marcos,” laments Leila, almost four years on. “But unfortunately we were the casualties of a change in producers. The restaurant seemed to be going well, then suddenly a week later, we all moved to Leicester!” Leila insists she is not bitter about her on-screen family’s untimely exit and admits that she still has many fond memories of the show. |
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“I loved it when Teresa and Matthew Rose went on the run to Nottingham,” she recalls. “That was really fun to film. But my main memories from EastEnders are of being really tired! They were very long days. And I remember being so happy when we actually got a good storyline.” |
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However, Leila reveals that starring in the nation’s most-watched soap didn’t help her career after she left.
“After EastEnders I almost had to start from scratch,” Leila tells us. “It was as though I’d just left stage school, I had to prove to people that I could really act.”
That’s not to say Leila has been short of work. Since leaving the show, Leila has been busy starring in theatre productions around the country.
“The first thing I did was panto for three months in Canterbury,” she tells us. “Then I did a tour for seven months in an Agatha Christie play. So I was on the road solidly for 10 months after EastEnders. It was strange as it was the first time I’d ever been away from home. I had a gap of one day between the two shows. It was my first theatre performance — but I got through it!” |
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Last summer Leila did a season of Shakespeare outdoors in Stafford, starring alongside Matthew Kelly. But at the moment she is hoping her career might take another new direction — she’s taking singing lessons in the hope of one day securing a part in a West End musical.
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“I’d love to do a show in the West End, but I’m not sure I’m quite there yet,” laughs Leila. “I think by this time next year my voice will have improved so much. I just really enjoy it. And I can sing — I reckon I’d have definitely got through to the last 10 of Pop Idol!” Mick Chalmers |
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