It is rare for a celebrity to live up to the high hopes and expectations of an adoring public, but Heather Peace is a rarity indeed.

Probably best known for playing characters such as Sally Fields in London’s Burning, Becca Gallagher in Ultimate Force and now as openly lesbian DS Sam Murray in BBC’s acclaimed drama Lip Service, Heather is no stranger to millions of people in the UK and beyond.

As well as being a hugely talented and respected actor, Heather is also a gifted and incredibly versatile musician.

Heather, who was born and raised in Bradford before moving over the Pennines to study drama in Manchester at the age of 18, is soon to make a triumphant return to the north of England as she embarks upon her first full UK tour. “I am really looking forward to performing in Leeds and Manchester” said Heather “It just feels so exciting to be coming home and I know that friends and family will be coming along to these gigs to cheer me on.”

Heather needs not have any fears about lack of people to cheer her on, currently one of the most famous women in the country and definitely the most famous lesbian; tickets for Heather’s tour are going incredibly fast. Asked what her musical style and influences are, Heather said, “It changes all of the time, I think I am somewhere between Eva Cassidy and Sheryl Crow in style but I am not set in that. A lot of what I write is very personal and close to the heart, sometimes it’s about getting through bad times or coming out of the other end of them. Some of the stuff I use now is what I wrote when I was 14 or 15, I have reworked the words but the sentiment is still the same.” Heather, who once signed for Simon Cowell’s label, will be performing songs from her new album ‘Sabotage’ whilst on tour and possibly one or two covers.

This year’s tour, which is fully funded by Heather and her team, is something that she has waited a long time to do; “I gigged for so long and I just can’t wait, I was getting quite scared about the tour but the last rehearsal was great and I am really excited now. I think Lip Service gave me a leg up in terms of visibility as a singer as well as an actor and now, more and more people see me as both. I remember performing ‘Thank God for You’ which I wrote for my partner and people in the crowd actually knew the words and started to sing along, it was just an amazing experience.”

 “The entire music scene is changing” continued Heather “whole new generations of musicians are coming through thanks to the internet. Anyone can put themselves on You Tube and be seen, I think this is fantastic and is helping real music come back.”

On the subject of the internet, Heather now has over 10,000 followers on Twitter, asked if this was a good thing, Heather said “Yes it’s great, 10,000 people following me is massive and I love to be able to connect with those who like my music and acting in this way.” But on the downside to this, Heather said “I did have some bad stuff earlier on and also some Twitter stalkers which was a bit scary but if anything like that goes on now it tends to get stamped out by the other followers which is really reassuring, they are great.”

In most of Heather’s major acting roles she has tended to play strong, almost iconic women when asked why this was, Heather laughed and said; “I have no idea!  It’s true that I generally say it how it is and am a fairly straightforward person but some of the characters I play sometimes may represent who I would like to be as opposed to who I actually am. My mum worries that I will get typecast in these roles, but I just enjoy them.”

Continuing on the theme of family, Heather said, “My Mum and Dad are really proud of me and my achievements and I have actually asked my Dad to drive the tour bus from the end of March, he is so happy about it that he can’t stop smiling.”

Discussing Heather’s current role in the fabulous BBC drama Lip Service Heather said, “I have never been happier in a job It is the best one I have done so far, there are no egos and there is a real buzz and a great sense of energy around when filming, we all love being there and Glasgow is such an amazing city. We will be filming over the summer and hopefully the show will be back on-air in the autumn.”

Heather appears to be the ‘face’ of Lip Service asked why she thinks this is she said, “I am a lesbian both on and off the show and also, I think people look for positive role models in life such as my character Sam portrays.”

As an attractive woman who is in the public eye, Heather obviously gets a lot of attention from women and asking how she and her girlfriend handle this Heather said “We are a solid couple and as in any relationship trust plays a big part of it. We trust each other completely, talk openly about what is happening in our lives and yes, sometimes we have a little giggle at some of the more outrageous propositions that I get.”

After her tour Heather has a busy summer ahead of her and as well as filming Lip Service, she is appearing at a whole host of summer festivals including the GOGO festival in Kent, L Beach in Germany and is one of this year’s stars at Manchester Pride.

Heather has an incredibly warm and engaging manner. The passion, dedication and sheer love of what she does just shines out of her and she is genuinely amazed and pleased that so many people, whether watching at home or seeing her on stage, share and enjoy this with her.

Heather’s tour dates are available here, but hurry up, tickets are going fast!

Heather Peace on Twitter

Heather Peace on Facebook  

A massive thanks to Heather for giving this interview and we look forward to seeing your show in Leeds on 7th April.

Sarah Carmody

editor@gayleeds.com

Photographs by Andrew Whitton