Question Time: Martina Laird - Comfprt & Joy

Who could fail to notice the chemistry between Comfort and fellow paramedic Fin? Is it true that things are set to get a whole lot steamier? I think you could say that. There is a very sexy locker room scene coming up in a couple of weeks where Comfort and Fin (played by Kwame Kwei-Armah) do get it together. Obviously, because it is before the 9pm watershed we can't show everything, but it should be obvious to the viewer what is happening.

Sounds saucy. But isn't Comfort normally a bit holier than thou (she's a devout Catholic) for that sort of carry on? Well, it does seem like that, but I can understand how she ends up in this situation. She's been happily married - so she thought - for eight years to Rob (Chad Shepherd), but she and Fin have gradually developed a strong mutual respect. And there's always been that dangerous spark of attraction between them. Every day she and Fin are facing life-or-death decisions and in those extreme situations people become very close, very fast. She thought her marriage was perfect, but if someone can get into your heart like Fin has, obviously it wasn't the complete love she thought.

Is that how you look at relationships? Absolutely. I think you constantly have to reassess things and challenge your beliefs and work at relationships. It is hard work, but worth it. I have been with (actor and playwright) Che Walker for 10 years and we give each other space to follow our careers. I would never want him to give up what he does to be by my side constantly and he wouldn't expect me to give up what I do for him.

Ten years - that's longer than most marriages. So you didn't fancy a wedding then? (Big laugh) Well... there was a split in the middle of the 10 years. In fact, we were apart for about a year and then we got back together again. Obviously, when you go through splitting- up, even though we have got back together, it is difficult and it takes a long time to mend and heal something like that. I always say I would like the excuse for a big party - that's the thing I would like about a wedding. But I don't think we are the marrying type - at least Che says he is not the marrying kind. But I am quite happy with the way things are at the moment.

So your family aren't trying to hustle you up the aisle then? No! Not at all. My family situation is actually a bit complicated.

Why? I'm not in touch with my biological mother. She is from St Kitts in the Caribbean. I lived with her there until I was three then I moved to Trinidad to live with my father and his family. He is British but had stayed in Trinidad after training as a Naval pilot there at the tail end of World War Two.

So things didn't work out between your parents... All I want to say about my father's relationship with my mother is that it was just one of those things that happens. He was married to a woman called Jeanette and when I went to live with them she said: "I am your mum" and I said: "I know". It has been like that ever since. I think I've become who I am by learning from Jeanette - the "mum" I grew up with. She is a very strong woman and I have great love and admiration from her. I have two (half-)sisters, who are teachers, and a (half-) brother who works in television in Trinidad. I could never imagine being part of any other family.

How did you end up acting in Britain? Because of my education. I did very well at school and won a scholarship with my A-level results and because my father is British I decided to come here. I studied French and drama at Canterbury. I loved taking part in the theatre productions there, so I went on to the Weber Douglas Drama School, where I met Che.

Did you find it easy to get work after drama school? No. I did all those jobs - temping, waitressing and signing-on the dole - that most actors do to make ends meet. Then in 1994 my nephew Kazakao was born with a normally-fatal bowel condition. He was only saved because his mother, a doctor in Trinidad, took him to America where they gave him life-saving surgery. It was touch-and-go for a long time. We didn't know if he would survive, but thankfully he did and it inspired Che and myself to start a theatre company named after him. Kazakao means "the dawn". We did a lot of fringe productions and Che is now concentrating more on writing and has just had one of his productions on at The Royal Court Theatre in London.

What did your family think about you wanting to act? Well, I think at first they hoped it was a phase. I always felt people expected big things of me back home because of doing so well at school. I felt a lot of pressure to be successful - I just don't think they expected me to end up doing something like this.

Do you and Che find yourself apart a lot because of work? Yes. It has been more difficult since getting Casualty, because it's filmed in Bristol and Che and I were based in London where we rent a flat. But I have been filming Casualty for a year now and we're still together so we're obviously managing. Also, I've bought my own place in Bristol, which makes me feel much more secure. I'm 30 and have wanted to buy somewhere of my own for a while now because the flat in London has really always been Che's place. I wanted somewhere so that if everything fell apart tomorrow, I would still have a roof over my head.

Sounds like you're keeping your options open? Well, maybe, but in fact having my own place here has been great for Che and me because he comes up to Bristol more and stays here and I pop down to London.

You're the one in a prime time show now, but wasn't it the other way around not long ago? Yes, Che was in 10 episodes of EastEnders last year. He played Ross, the tall, good-looking married man who Sharon (Letitia Dean) was involved with before she got off with Phil. He got recognised all over the place.

Was that strange for you? Well, about 10 months ago when he was in EastEnders we were at a birthday party for Jan Anderson, who plays Chloe in Casualty. But at one point I walked into the club to find him on the sofa surrounded by eight women kissing him (they were on a hen night). I just couldn't take it and walked out. I didn't have a row with him or anything - he didn't even know I had seen him. In a way I felt quite proud that so many other women found him attractive, but I thought I would leave him to it. I thought "Just you wait until Casualty comes out". But it's only people in Bristol that recognise me - they just pip their horns and wave at me.

Maybe that's because they fancy you and think you look gorgeous? (Much laughter) I don't think so. It always seems to be old couples that notice me.

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