Actress Bonnie Langford on wintery walks, fairy dust and giant chocolate buttons

Originally published in Surrey Life magazine December 2011

Here, the West Byfleet resident chats to Sarah Peters about wintery walks, fairy dust and giant chocolate buttons: welcome to the world of West End and Broadway actress Bonnie Langford

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She may be only a dainty 5’1”, but Bonnie Langford, West End and Broadway legend, can light-up any stage with her vivacious smile, gregarious personality and massive talent.

Whether it’s singing in the original cast of Cats; leading the company in huge hit musicals like Sweet Charity and Me and My Girl; or wowing the London and New York audiences with her Roxie Hart in the fabulous Chicago, the drive and determination of this plucky lady is inspirational. Yet on meeting her, she is as chatty and as charming as ever.

“I suppose you could say I was ‘spiritually’ born on stage in Surrey,” she says with an impish grin. “My mother had, and still has, a dancing school in Richmond and I was first carried onto the stage at Richmond when I was a baby during one of her shows. I was hooked from there!”

Way to stardom
Born in 1964 as Bonita Melody Lysette Langford, Bonnie has been in the business for over 40 years. During that time, she has enjoyed a string of genuine successes in the world of theatre, television, film and radio. She even skated her way to the final of ITV1’s Dancing On Ice in 2006, which was an amazing achievement given that she had never tried ice skating before.

Bonnie’s first professional foray into acting was aged seven when she performed opposite Angela Lansbury in the Broadway production of Gypsy. Now when Bonnie goes to Broadway, she is the star and she spends quite a few months there each year. 

“I love New York but when I’m away I pine for my lovely, leafy Surrey home,” says the 47-year-old. “It is a perfect place to be living. I am definitely a Surrey girl through and through. I like the fact that I have lived here most of my life.”

Surrey upbringing
Born on the Surrey borders, near Twickenham, Bonnie has since lived in Guildford, Burpham and Pyrford. She currently resides in West Byfleet with her husband, actor Paul Grunert, and her 11-year-old daughter Biana. 

“We settled in this area partly because my husband studied at Guildford School of Acting and he lived in Guildford, so once we married we decided to stay,” she says. “He also has a daughter from his first marriage and we wanted to be close to her.”

The family love spending time in the countryside around the village and strolling along the local canals.

“Down by the canal at Pyrford is lovely; so calming and beautiful,” she continues. “There are often barges coming up and down, people strolling along the banks, dogs running about; it’s really pretty.” 

Having recently spent time living in New York, Bonnie appreciates the beautiful Surrey countryside even more.

Home sweet home
“I missed the rolling countryside when I was away and places like Newlands Corner,” she says. “We are so lucky where we live and you really take it for granted unless you leave and don’t have it for a while. I even missed Guildford High Street! It really is a wonderful place to shop and a tourist attraction in itself. I agree the cobblestones are a bit wobbly if you’re walking in high heels, but I love it!

“We can’t wait to bring over all our American friends to show them where we live. We’ll take them to places like Shere and other quaint little villages. They will just go nuts about it!”

Another thing Bonnie loves to do when she’s back at home is spending time with her daughter Biana (or Bibi for short). They used to often visit Bockett’s Farm to feed the lambs and tramp around muddy fields when Bibi was little. Now, they usually hit the shops.

“We especially adore going to Coco’s Chocolaterie together,” she says. “It’s a lovely independent shop in West Byfleet run by my friend Jeanie. Imagine a little chocolate shop that also sells stunning costume jewellery and other knick-knacks. It is wrong on so many levels because it sells sweetie things and sparkly things... it’s too good to be true!” 

When it comes to clothes shopping, Bonnie prefers to dress in a practical way – trainers rather than high heels – and she admits it’s often hard finding attractive, well-fitting clothes so she tends to shop in the same favourite places. 

“I love Weybridge for shopping actually; it’s rather sweet,” she says. “There is a lovely shop there called Cristina’s, where they sell gorgeous little designer jackets. I have about three of them!

“I try to be practical with clothes but sometimes I really wonder what I am thinking when I wear high heels and get sore feet. I am 5’1” and I won’t ever be any taller. So, wearing high heels is a bit silly because it doesn’t make a huge difference: it means I can’t walk and it just hurts.”

Panto in Guildford
Meanwhile, there isn’t going to be much time for shopping over the next few weeks, as Bonnie will be kept busy playing Fairy Fuchsia in this year’s Christmas panto at the Yvonne Arnaud in Guildford – where she can’t wait to don her wings and sprinkle her magic fairy dust.

“Panto is so much bigger and more spectacular nowadays,” she says. “Also, this is the first time that the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre has produced a panto themselves. They have got together a great group of people who really know what they are doing.” She pauses with a twinkle in her eye: “I don’t know why they asked me!?” 

While being on stage is quite literally her second home, she admits her favourite way to spend her free time is just to relax; curling up on the sofa with her daughter, watching movies with her husband and munching through a bag of giant chocolate buttons...

“The simple things in life are the best,” she says. “I am lucky that I have the best of both worlds: the thrill of the theatre and the comfort and security of my home, family and friends. Who could ask for anything more!?”

• Bonnie Langford stars as Fairy Fuchsia in Jack and the Beanstalk at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford, from Friday December 2 to Sunday January 8. For ticket information or to book, call 01483 440000 or visit the website at www.yvonne-arnaud.co.uk.

My Favourite Surrey...

Restaurant: A lovely Italian, That’s Amore, which is in Old Woking Road, West Byfleet.

Shop: Coco’s Chocolaterie in Station Approach, West Byfleet.

View: The Mount at Guildford, looking towards the Downs. 

Place to visit: It would have to be RHS Garden Wisley, near Woking. 

Pub: The Anchor at Pyrford Lock where we always have a really fabulous pub lunch.

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Originally published in Surrey Life magazine November 2008

When Bonnie Langford risked life and limb in ITV's Dancing on Ice, she gained a new-found respect. Now the popular actress, who lives near Weybridge, is set to take to the air again playing Peter Pan at Richmond Theatre. Victoria Kingston went to meet her

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Flame-haired and vivacious, Bonnie Langford is every bit as friendly as you'd expect. Chatting over a coffee at Richmond Theatre, where she will fly through the air in Peter Pan this Christmas, it strikes me how untouched she is by the glitz that's been part of her life since she was seven.

As if to underline this, she greets me warmly and says with a smile, "I'm okay for time till 3.30pm. Then I have to dash. Can't be late for the school run!"

Before we even begin talking about the panto, however, I have to ask her about that now famous, terrifying routine she performed on ITV's Dancing On Ice in 2006 - when she spun through the air, her head only millimetres from the ice. A nation watched, fingers in front of eyes, spellbound by something so dangerous and utterly skilful.

Breaking the ice
"No, no, that bit was all right - it was the skating itself that was difficult," chuckles Bonnie, who ended up coming third in the competition with partner Matt Evers. "It was all different muscles from the ones I'd trained in dancing.

"In ice-skating, you bend your knees and flex your feet in order to keep your blade flat on the ice. With ballet, you point your feet and stretch your knees. So I had a lot of trouble adjusting to different techniques.

"It was a mad time and it was fun. I was so lucky to be in the first series, to be taught by Torvill and Dean! I've only just finished really - in May - because I've been touring with the show. To be honest, I wouldn't be thrilled about going back. It started to get painful."

Though Bonnie is obviously very supple, I wonder if age makes ice-skating more difficult and therefore possibly more hazardous?

"Age makes recovery time longer when you're injured," she concedes. "Also, you think about the consequences more. When you're young, you're fearless. When you're older, you might still choose to do it, and embrace your fear, but it takes effort and those mind games become exhausting after a while.

"In the last tour, I dislocated two ribs and it was really painful. I'm not a masochist. I don't want to put myself in the way of physical pain if I don't have to.

"I am fit and supple, yes, but I'm only able to do it if I keep at it. So it does take over your life. If you want to at least try to do well when you step on to the ice, you have to give it every hour of the day.

"I watch it on TV now and I'm a big fan - and I used to go to the Spectrum in Guildford because the people there are lovely - but I'm letting it all lie for a while."

Life in Weybridge
Now in her mid forties, Bonnie is a beautiful woman - graceful and petite, with a shock of lustrous red hair.

A big star in every sense, she has appeared in countless West End shows, and her TV credits including everything from the unforgettable Just William to Dr Who and even, just recently, Marple, but the things that matter to her most are very down-to-earth.

She lives happily in a house just outside Weybridge with her husband, actor Paul Grunert, and their daughter Biana (Bibi), who is eight, and step-daughter Natasha there much of the time.

She is also close to her mother, sisters and nieces (it's a very female family group) and they are all dancers. One sister, Petrina, lives in Florida. The eldest, Cherida, a dancer-choreographer, has daughters Scarlett, Summer and Zizi Strallen - all performing in shows at the moment.

"They're all working over Christmas," says Bonnie. "Scarlett is on Broadway in Mary Poppins, Summer is in The Sound of Music and Zizi is in Dirty Dancing - and the youngest is only 14, so she's still normal!"

Bonnie laughs at her own description. And what about Bibi? Is she showing signs of joining the family business? Bonnie smiles. "Oh sure, she's showing signs. She goes to the local dance school and she loves it. She has a lot of creativity around her. But I hope she has a good balance of things in her life. She swims - she's a very active little girl. Exhausting actually..."

With her usual enthusiasm for projects, Bonnie says she is looking forward to performing in panto - especially at such a beautiful and historic theatre.

"I'm working with Simon Callow - who wouldn't love that?" she says. "It's also a brand-new set, very beautiful - and I love Richmond Theatre. Not only because I can go home each day, but also because it's a really old, lovely theatre."

However, she admits that it does wreak havoc with getting organised for Christmas. If you thought your lead-up to the festivities was busy, just imagine having to squeeze in panto rehearsals, too! So how does she manage to combine her hectic schedule with everything else that needs to be done?

"Well, yes, Christmas is tricky," she smiles. "There are lots of things at Bibi's school - she's a junior now - and with my husband in The Sound of Music... No, we managed it last year, when I was in Chicago. We should be okay. We might have to arrange a few bits of childcare!"

So where will she be doing her Christmas shopping? "You're joking, aren't you!" she laughs. "I don't know - a bit in Guildford, a bit in Richmond during a break. Can't think about that yet!"

Plans for Christmas
She says Christmas day itself, however, is a quiet family affair spent relaxing at home.

"Paul is a great cook, and because he's in the West End, he gets more time off than I do, so he'll do a lovely meal and then we'll all relax and watch the telly," she says. "Then I go to work the next day. I enjoy Christmas - just being with the family. I suppose they keep me grounded.

"Show business is what we all do for a living - we don't spend our free time showing off! We enjoy being a real family - and in Surrey we can be.

"I couldn't live in London now. It's far too crazy and busy. Here, it's very convenient for London, because the train service is fantastic, but it's also so peaceful. You can breathe. We do the whole suburban family thing and we love it. Bibi and I cycle to her school in the mornings."

I wonder whether fame ever intrudes into her Surrey life, when she's riding to school, skating at the Spectrum or just strolling along Guildford High Street?

"Well, sometimes it's a bit of a balancing act if I'm with Bibi and someone recognises me. But that's fine. It's part of the job. And it's lovely when people enjoy your work. I like going about locally. There are people who can live in an ivory tower, but not me."

As for what's next, no sooner has she finished panto than she hopes to get cracking on her autobiography - so can we look forward to any bombshells?

"There won't be any scandals in it," she laughs, "but I find it interesting looking at where I am now, in terms of where I've come from. I realise my own childhood was very balanced and so is Bibi's - and that's everything to me.

"Sometimes, I go down the High Street in Guildford and see all the students from the Guildford School of Acting and they're all in their black dance costumes and they're performing songs in the street. I want to say to them, 'Chill out, shut up and save it for when you're being paid!'"

• Peter Pan is at Richmond Theatre from December 5 to January 11. Tel: 0870 060 6651

My Favourite Surrey

Restaurant: I'm not that much of a fish fan, but oddly, my two favourites are Loch Fyne in Cobham, which is a lovely place to go for Sunday lunch, and Superfish on the Old Woking Road for a really basic, old-fashioned fish and chip meal. Very different - both gorgeous.

Shop: Coco's Chocolaterie in West Byfleet. They sell gorgeous Belgian chocolate and jewellery - I mean, what a combination! I love it.

View: From Newlands Corner, near Guildford, where you can see the Downs. If you've never been there, it's really worth a visit.

Place to Chill: David Lloyd in Brooklands. I go there to work out, but also to have a cappuccino. Good coffee is very important to me.

Place to Visit: Painshill Park. It's such a wonderful place to spend the day. I went there a few weeks ago with my daughter and her little friend. We walked for three-and-a-half hours, which was hard work, but we took a picnic and it was absolutely delightful.

Career Highlights

• Bonnie is the daughter of Babette Langford, who ran a dance school and still takes an active interest in young performers.
• Her West End debut came at the age of just seven in Gone with the Wind and she had a starring role in Gypsy the following year.
• She found TV stardom as Violet Elizabeth in Just William at age 12.
• Later, she went on to play assistant Melanie alongside Colin Baker in Doctor Who.
• She achieved film stardom in Bugsy Malone.
• One of her defining roles came in the West End show Cats at the age of 16.
• Other theatrical highlights include: Me and My Girl, The Pirates of Penzance, 42nd Street, Oklahoma, Sweet Charity, and in 2005, she returned to the West End to play Roxie in Chicago.
• In 2002, she toured with her one-woman show, My West End and More, and released a CD, Bonnie Langford Now.
• Much sought after for pantomime, she starred at Richmond Theatre as Aladdin in 1996 and as the boy who never grew up in 2002 - a role she reprises this Christmas.
• In 2006, at age 41, she competed in TV's Dancing On Ice in which she partnered US figure skating champion Matt Evers and was coached by Torvill and Dean.

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