INTERVIEW WITH DENISE WELCH WHO PLAYS DIANE

How was the approach made to you about playing Diane in Tip Toe?

I’d heard that Tip Toe was happening. I had always been, like most people, a huge fan of Russell T Davies, but we had never actually worked together. I had known him socially. We bumped into one another. I’d first met him because my ex-husband worked on his show The Grand, and I was always popping onto the set when I was on Coronation Street as they were near each other at Granada. I heard that Russell had written this show, about the LGBTQIA+ community, asking how is it that in 2026 we seem to have gone backwards? I knew that was the premise of it. My agent called and said there’s a part in one episode of it for you. I immediately wanted to be a part of it.

Did you audition?

Yes I did! My agent said they’d like you to go in and read for it. I went in first and read with the casting director. They then called me back because I’d told them so many stories when I went in that they hadn’t really been able to concentrate first time round. Then I did another read, almost like a mini screen test. I knew how stringent the casting process had been.

How was the first table read?

I hadn’t done anything like this for a while and so I walked into the read through and it was just magical. I thought I’d fallen out of love with a lot of things. Our industry has changed so much in the last few years. Everything is self-tape. People in the room together is so rare. We’ve lost a lot of that. So I walked in and it were like there were hundreds of people in there. They’d included every single character. The heads of wardrobe, makeup, press. I see David Morrissey and Alan Cumming and Paul Rhys. My friend Stephen Bailey, the comedian. This whole cauldron of talent. Everybody was so pleased to see me and I felt very honoured to be there. So even though Diane is a small part, you immediately know that she’s a small part of something very special.

Who Is Diane? She’s quite straightforward in her approach to Clive…

Well, I think that was what I was like when I was dating. I’ve always been quite blunt about my needs. Diane and Clive are both quite lonely people but in different ways. You can be lonely within a marriage, like Clive. You don’t have to be separated or divorced to have that acrimony. Diane finds herself on her own at 67, but still with her needs and her desires. It’s so important to see women in that way. We’re so used to seeing the nana roles, forgetting that we still want to remain sexually active.

She turns up for the date, in her little camisole top…

She’s going for it! It makes it all the more heartbreaking. Although she has this bravado, putting on the camisole or whatever, she knows in her head that she’s a woman nearing 70, and that it is much harder finding the right person at that age. The fact is, when she discovers he’s been lying she’s not that interested anymore. She wants someone who tells the truth. She’s no nonsense. 

How was working with David Morrissey?

So lovely. The performance is amazing and what’s so amazing about it is that he hardly does anything. That’s what I love. It’s just she talks, he talks. The atmosphere on set was great. I didn’t want it to be over. But I feel so proud to be any part of this project. The whole premise, of how we’ve move backwards is so interesting.

Why do you think that is?

Well, you can’t help but blame social media for a lot of it. When Queer As Folk happened, I was in Coronation Street and I was so invested in the whole gay community. My dad was a drag act, of course. That was a world that I fell into without question. The gay village was my go-to place. I saw the shift in the Village after Queer As Folk. Everything opened up more. Everything got a little bit bigger and moved on. Then social media happens and everything seems to contract in a way, because of the bigotry on all sides. There’s a lot of blame, not a lot of discussion. Talking to my trans friends, they were just living life. Nobody bothered them. I can’t remember a single time I’ve been in a toilet and even been aware of a trans person being in there and yet the amount of time that takes up as part of current discourse. I’m 67. I’ve lived a lot of life. Not seen it once. Yet it feels like it is driving certain communities underground again. What a damn shame. So I think the timing of Tip Toe – and I know Russell has been trying so hard to get it out now, because things will have changed in a year from now – is about where we are now. It’s a very important show at this very crucial time.

Who would you most like to see it?

You could call it a gay drama but I don’t think it is a gay drama. That’s part of it. But the show is about marriage and parenting too. Parenting is hard. Clive is set in his own ways. It’s very much, on so many layers. People should approach it as a powerful drama, enjoy it on that level, but take away so much more. It will leave people with a lot of questions. It will make people think. It’s wonderful to be a part of something so important.