Famous as the man-eating Dorien in the TV comedy Birds of a Feather, actress Lesley Joseph has now taken on a very different role. She spoke to JENNY SCOTT. . .

IT'S certainly not a subject they used to discuss in Birds Of A Feather. But Lesley Joseph and Linda Robson have moved on since their sitcom heyday and, together with singer Mica Paris, feel quite ready to verbally dissect the female anatomy in the smash-hit stage show The Vagina Monologues.

"Doing this show with Linda will be just wonderful," said Lesley, better known as the man-eating Dorien from the hit BBC series.

"In fact, we'll probably end up laughing too much. We know each other backwards, so it's just lovely."

Orgasms, childbirth and even rape are just some of the diverse subjects discussed in the eight monologues which the stars perform.

The readings are by turn comedic and harrowing -- a whole different territory to Birds Of A Feather which usually steered clear of feminist bonding and instead focused on the sniping between the central characters.

"People don't really know what to expect when they come to see Vagina Monologues for the first time," said Lesley.

"I think they feel a bit worried. But it's an extraordinary evening -- like a pop concert. We get hen parties along, sitting in the audience and calling things out."

Performing the monologues is just one way Lesley has managed to branch out with her acting career since she took flight from Birds six years ago. That's not to say she regrets her stint as Dorien in the celebrated show.

"Everybody loved her -- she was such a wonderful character," she said.

"She was a great life force and so outrageous. I used to get men coming up to me on the street and telling me she reminded them of their wives."

So would she, Linda and their co-star Pauline Quirke consider a return to Birds Of A Feather?

"Society has changed a lot now," said Lesley. "In the '80s and '90s, when the programme first aired, the Essex man was coming to the fore and everybody loved the series.

"But I still think there's room for Birds somewhere. I wouldn't mind doing a one-off to find out where they have got to."

However, since Birds ended, Lesley has been careful to avoid some of the Dorien-type roles she has been offered.

Instead she has won acclaim as Miss Hannigan in a West End production of Annie and worked on soap opera Night And Day.

"I'm trying to be taken more seriously as a theatre actor," she explained

"Television is quite a hard taskmaster and, one-off specials aside, I don't think I'd play another Dorien-esque character again."

Catch Lesley in The Vagina Monologues at the Palace Theatre from September 6 to 11. For tickets call (0870) 401 6000.