Martine's TRANSFORMATION

Martine McCutcheon may be in her prime but her road to happiness has been hard-won. Here, we chart her highs and lows in the public eye

- CHLOE THOMAS

As the curtain goes up on the new production of My Fair Lady at the London Coliseum this week, a little waltz down memory lane is calling. For it has been 20 years since Martine McCutcheon stepped into the role of the cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, sparking a cacophony of both applause and criticism.

Much fuss was made about the authentic casting choice of ex-EastEnders star Martine, the only bona fide cockney actress ever to play the part in the West End. Her debut had theatreland on tenterhooks, drumming up around £5 million in advance ticket sales.

But the excitement soon soured as Martine’s star turn was overshadowed by a ‘mystery bug,’ as she struggled to keep up with the physical demands of eight shows a week.

Then, after three painful months, in which her understudy had mostly played the role, Martine, who as a child attended the Italia Conti stage school, finally bowed out, five months earlier than originally planned.

Controversially, she won the 2002 Olivier Award for best actress in a musical, and in her acceptance speech, she said, ‘Everyone knows I didn’t play the role for as long as I would have liked to. But this part changed my life and playing Eliza was the happiest time of my life.’ Indeed, the show’s director, Sir Trevor Nunn, praised Martine for bringing a fresh new audience to the theatre.

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