Birds Of A Feather cast now – booze battle, feud rumours and very famous family

Birds Of A Feather was staple viewing for more than 30 years, with one of the most recognisable theme tunes in TV history.

Starring Loose Women’s Linda Robson and TV legend Pauline Quirke, the series followed two neighbours who are brought together when their husbands are sent to jail.

Along with Lesley Joseph as their flirtatious neighbour, and appearances from an Emmerdale icon, Birds Of A Feather delighted generations of fans on both ITV and BBC.

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On the 33rd anniversary of the series first broadcast (October 16, 1989), Daily Star takes a look at where the cast are now.

Linda Robson (Tracey Stubbs)

Long before she was one of the Loose Women, Linda Robson was famous for playing Tracey Stubbs in Birds of a Feather.

Linda’s 50 year career has seen her star in TV series including The Likely Lads, The Tomorrow People, Going Out, L For Lester and The Bill.

She also made a cameo appearance as herself on Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks in 2018, before most recently appearing in the film Mohan Arms, which is currently in pre-production.

However, many fans will know Linda as a panelist on the popular ITV daytime talk show Loose Women, where she appears alongside stars including Nadia Sawalha.

During her time on the programme, Linda has opened up about her battle with alcohol and depression, revealing that she became dependent on alcohol after being prescribed a drug for depression.

“I went through a really tough time, I was depressed and I turned to alcohol and had cleaning OCD,” said Linda.

She added: “I got put on a certain drug which was supposed to help the depression but it didn’t it just heightened it, so I had to go into three different establishments and it was the worst time in my life, I completely ruined my family’s lives.”

Linda explained that she has not had a drink of alcohol in three years and that she has now recovered, saying that she also keeps herself busy to take her mind off her OCD.

In another Loose Women appearance, Linda also revealed that she met her celebrity crush Russell Brand during an appearance on the Jonathan Ross show.

Speaking about their encounter, the star said: “I love Russell Brand. Pauline (Quirke) had worked with him and got him to send me a photo.

“I was on Jonathan Ross with him. He put my head on his lap and was rubbing my hair. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven!”

Away from the limelight, Linda has two children and has been married to Mark Dunford since 1990.

Pauline Quirke (Sharon Theodopolopodous)

Pauline Quirke already had a long and successful acting career by the time she joined Birds of A Feather in 1989 as Sharon Theodopolopodous.

After landing roles in The Tomorrow People, Play For Today, The Story Of The Treasure Seekers and Angels, Pauline has become a TV icon – with the star more recently appearing in Broadchurch and You, Me And The Apocalypse.

Between 2010 to 2012, she also found soap fame as Hazel Rhodes in ITV’s Emmerdale.

Pauline has also turned her talents to inspiring the generation, after setting up the Pauline Quirke Academy for Performing Arts.

In recognition of her services to entertainment, charity and young people, Pauline was also made an MBE in the 2022 Birthday Honours.

However, when Pauline chose not to appear in the final series of Birds Of A Feather in 2020, it was reported that there was a feud between her and co-star Linda Robson.

Linda has blasted these claims and the two have been snapped together since, with Linda telling The Mirror: “People say Pauline and I have fallen out.

“Obviously I couldn’t see her during lockdown but I’ve seen her since.

“She just doesn’t want to act anymore. She’s had enough – it’s long hours. She’s concentrating on her drama academies. She’s very hands on, going to classes and all that.”

Away from the limelight, Pauline is married to executive producer Steve Sheen, who also worked on Birds Of A Feather.

The couple married in 1996 and have two children together called Emily and Charlie.

A talent for performance certainly runs in the family too, as Charlie is a talented actor and not only appeared as Travis Stubbs in Birds Of Feather from 2014 to 2017, but has since starred in the film Brighton.

Lesley Joseph (Dorien Green)

More than 20 years after landing her first TV role, Lesley Joseph played one of her most famous roles as neighbour Dorien Green in Birds Of A Feather.

Lesley’s long career has featured appearances in series including Minder, Ruth Rendall Mysteries, Night And Day and The Secret Of Eel Island.

Lesley also became a familiar face on our TV screens during the nineties, when she appeared in a series of adverts for supermarket chain Gateway and Somerfield.

That’s not all, as she also recently appeared in film Emily The Little Match Girl, as well as lending her voice to children’s TV series Hey Duggee.

She was also paired with Anton Du Beke on the 2016 series of Strictly Come Dancing, before becoming the fourth couple to be eliminated – and recently competed in the 2022 series of Celebrity Masterchef.

Lesley tends to keep her personal life private, but it is known that she has two children called Elizabeth and Andrew.

The star also opened up to The Mirror in 2016 about the death of her mother, saying: “Losing a mother when you are very young, that is incredibly difficult because they don’t grow old with you.

“But if you lose them when they are older, you’ve had them all your life. “I had a very close relationship with my mother.

“She was one of 12, and she was the last of them to die. I talk to her every day, in my head.

“I don’t think you ever lose that – she had a thirst for life Hopefully, touch wood, I’ve got her genes.”

Alun Lewis (Daryll Stubbs)

Actor Alun Lewis was already a huge name in British television by the time he joined Birds Of A Feather, after appearing in TV series including Boon, Minder, Rising Damp and The Professionals.

As well as playing Linda Robson’s on-screen husband Daryll Stubbs in Birds Of A Feather from 1989 to 1994, he is also fondly remembered by soap fans as Vic Hope in Emmerdale.

Alun appeared on Emmerdale between 1993 to 1998, and also had chart-topping success as part of Emmerdale country group The Woolpackers, who scored a top ten hit called Hillbilly Rock, Hillbilly Roll, during the nineties.

After leaving Emmerdale, the actor has continued to act in short films, with his last credited role listed in the 2017 TV film The Watcher In The Woods.

In his personal life, Alun was married to actress Anette Ekblom, and they had one daughter together.

A talent for performance certainly runs in the family, as his daughter is the Hollywood actress Amelia Warner, who has starred in blockbuster films including Aeon Flux and Gone, as well as TV series Waking The Dead.

Alun also has a very famous son-in-law, as his daughter is married to none other than 50 Shades of Grey, The Tourist and Belfast Actor Jamie Dornan.

Peter Polycarpou (Chris Theodopolopodous)

Peter Polycarpou starred as Chris Theodopolopodous, the husband of Pauline Quirke’s character Sharon, in Birds Of A Feather between 1990 to 1994.

Since then, Peter has landed major Hollywood film roles, including starring in Evita opposite Madonna in the 1996 film, as well as appearing in TV series including Waking The Dead, The Bill and Holby City.

He also landed the role of Yanis in BBC soap EastEnders in 2006, and has most recently appeared in comedy series Stath Lets Flats in 2021.

It is also reported that Peter works as a drama teacher.

However, it appears that Peter tends to keep his personal life private and it is not known if the star is in a relationship.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk