TO soap fans she's known as a Lottery winning gambling addict.

And so convincing was Susan Twist during her three years as money-mad Rosie Banks in TV's Brookside, she still gets suspicious looks from fellow shoppers when she pops out to buy a Lottery ticket.

But now the 47-year-old actress is winning acclaim in a completely different role -- as a big-hearted Jewish matriarch living in 1930s New York.

Susan is one of the stars of Brighton Beach Memoirs, an autobiographical piece by Neil Simon, who penned The Odd Couple, which is running at the Oldham Coliseum until October 4.

She said: "It's a brilliant piece of writing. You can't go wrong with Neil Simon -- the man's a genius. It's one of those plays where, the more you do it, the more brilliant you realise it is."

Liverpool-born Susan has over 25 years' experience in the theatre but her face is probably best known for her stint in Brookside.

As well as having to deal with her two troublesome sons and her husband's dramatic affair, Susan's character faced the trauma of digging up Trevor Jordache from where he'd been buried under the patio in the soap's most famous storyline.

And, despite the stark differences between Rosie Banks and her new part as 1930s Jewish momma Kate Jerome, Susan admits there are a few similarities.

"I seem to specialise in playing mums with teenage sons," she said. "Both Kate and Rosie had boys and they live with very big families, all in the same home."

But that's where the similarities end. As Susan said: "Kate is struggling through the depression in 1930s America. She rules the whole household. She's not an ogre, but she's a practical, strong-willed woman who copes with everybody's problems.

"The play is about family life and we've had people of all ages coming to see it. It's full of very quick-witted Jewish humour, but it's also got a few emotional scenes. I'd recommend people bring a couple of hankies!"

For tickets to see Brighton Beach Memoirs, call (0161) 624 2829.