´óÏó´«Ã½

PA to... Iain Ebelthite (Mark Benton)
Take Note... Beauty and brains
Most likely to... Make you a millionaire
Strengths... Making rich people even richer
Weaknesses... Crippling lack of self-belief

Freakishly gifted at making rich people even richer, Lucy has no formal education but possesses a phenomenal talent with figures and a natural instinct for wise investments. But, despite her knack for financial wizardry, Lucy has a crippling lack of self-belief and is convinced she's not good enough to be the boss.

Confident in every other aspect of her life, as soon as a manager walks into the office all Lucy's business brilliance gets buried beneath a facade of "Miss Friendly Bubbly Efficient PA of the Year".

But her friends know she's got what it takes to move up the career ladder, trouble is so does her incompetent (and often drunk) boss Iain (Mark Benton) and he doesn't want to lose her.

So while Lucy spends her days making millions for Iain's clients, he spends his days taking credit for all of her hard work.

"It's frustrating for Lucy that she's not getting on because she wants it desperately. But unfortunately she's her own worst enemy as she's the one who isn't pushing herself forward," explains Laura.

"She essentially already does her boss's job for him but never gets any recognition because he's always p***ed or out of the office on a jolly.

"In many ways Iain is the boss from hell but at the same time his incompetence has allowed Lucy to learn so much, which would never have happened if he was actually doing his job properly. So in a way it has been a blessing in disguise."

Lucy mothers Midge (Annabel Scholey) even though she's a year older than her. She's incredibly fond of her PA pal but it's Nicole (Maimie McCoy) who is her best friend at work.

Nicole loves Lucy's openness and warmth while Lucy admires Nicole's confidence and control.

Initially there's a real tension between Lucy and Sid (Ruth Negga) who represents all the things Lucy hates – arrogant snobs.

However off-screen all the young Personal Affairs actresses have formed firm friendships, which Laura admits is a huge relief.

"You do worry beforehand about whether you will get on, especially when you're playing a group of friends. I think the first time we all had a proper chat was at the read through and then we had a week's rehearsal so we tried to get to know each other a little bit there and told each other far too much in-depth information about ourselves.

"Lots of artificial bonding went on but it worked. It's great to be part of such a young cast and we get on brilliantly even though, like our characters, we are all so different."

Lucy is married to her childhood sweetheart Bob (Joe Absolom), an unambitious builder.

What started off as true love teenage-style has become bumpy in adult life. Lucy is Bob's trophy wife but lately she's not fitting into that mould and he blames her burgeoning career.

Laura says: "I was really excited when I saw Joe Absolom was playing my husband but we didn't meet properly until we had our first day on set. Obviously someone you are married to you are very physical with very naturally so I had to say, 'I may touch you a little bit in this scene, don't be offended and I'll try not to be inappropriate'.

"Obviously I tried to hold myself back from touching Joe Absolom, but sometimes it's difficult. I think it got to day two before I had to cop a quick feel!"

When an opportunity for promotion at work unexpectedly comes along for Lucy, things start to look up.

But there's shock in store for the ambitious personal assistant...

"By the end of the first couple of episodes Lucy's head is all over the place – she's utterly confused," admits Laura.

"I can't wait to see how it all comes across on screen and everyone else I know is really looking forward to seeing it, especially my girlfriends, because I haven't done anything that's been highly girly in the past.

"This has got that Sex And The City and Friends vibe about it and the costumes are fab too – especially the shoes!"

The actress, who starred in Teenage Kicks and ´óÏó´«Ã½ Three drama Dis/Connected, will also be a familiar face to younger viewers having starred in the title role of the hugely popular ´óÏó´«Ã½ children's drama The Mysti Show, playing a half-human/half-fairy who is torn between her two worlds.

Laura rolls her eyes and laughs at the mention of Mysti.

"I still get recognised a lot by children. Kids are amazing – whereas adults are more likely to be discreet or can't quite place you, kids know exactly who you are and they think you really are that person.

"I did Mysti four years ago but it must be on C´óÏó´«Ã½ now because I still get mobs of kids shouting 'Oi Mysti!' at me. I just run in the opposite direction!"