Heralding the dawn of The Golden Age of Comedy, Rising Damp ran for four seasons in the mid 70’s and starred the comic genius of Leonard Rossiter as the sleazy landlord Rigsby. Co habiting with him in his rundown house of bed sits were an unlikely combination of tenants in the form of Frances De La Tour as the wistful Miss Jones, Don Warrington as the suave, debonair town planning clerk Philip and the late lamented Richard Beckinsale as the somewhat naïve, shy and often lazy medical student, Alan.

Storylines revolved primarily on the mainly unrequited love lives of these occupants. Even Rigsby himself was not immune as he struggled to attract the attentions of the spinster of the household Ruth Jones with his lecherous advances. However, her desires were firmly centred on the sophisticated Philip, also to no avail. With various other characters coming and going at regular intervals to add to the complexities of the relationships, chaos frequently ensued with hilarious results.

Judy made her debut in the series as Alan’s upper class girlfriend Caroline, in the episode Clunk Click. Believing Caroline to be from a highly respected, wealthy background and eager to impress, Alan tells her that Rigsby’s flashy sports car is in fact, his own. An unlikely plan that for once in his life succeeds. Having become engaged, he finally plucks up the courage to invite his young fiancé and her mother to his bed sit for cocktails in the episode entitled The Cocktail Hour where the young lady not only shows her true colours in a portrayal displaying the very epitome of a spoilt brat but also results in her mother being exposed as the daughter of a local rag and bone merchant.

Originally booked to appear in just one episode, Judy confesses to being a little nervous at the prospect of joining such a highly regarded and established cast but she needn’t have worried. “Working with Leonard was terrific,” she explains. “He was such a perfectionist and rehearsed every gesture.” When it was decided to give Alan another girlfriend in a second episode, it was Leonard who suggested continuity should be maintained with Judy. “I was absolutely thrilled,” she continues. “Richard was such a lovely person and everyone was so nice to me. With one episode under my belt, I was able to relax and enjoy the second more, mainly because I knew everyone.”

Although rehearsals took place in London, the cast travelled to Leeds for the recordings. For Judy, this provided a memorable highlight in the young actresses early career when, following the taping, the cast all adjourned to a Chinese restaurant to enjoy a meal together.