DANIELA Nardini will always be remembered as feisty Anna in the cult 1990s TV show This Life.

But as Marguerite Gautier in Camille, which runs at Malvern Theatres from Tuesday, May 6 to Saturday, May 10, she gets to show off her repertoire.

"She does a little bit of everything. She's dying, she drinks, she dances. It's a real challenge for me," said Daniela.

The play is an adaptation of La Dame aux Camelias, a novel by Alexandre Dumas jnr, son to the more famous author of The Three Musket-eers and The Count of Monte Cristo.

The play follows Gautier, a prostitute, who falls in love but is tragically struck down at the same time by illness. It comes to Malvern as part of a national tour and Daniela has found the work exhausting.

"I'm enjoying it but I find all the travelling - the different hotels, different digs - tiring," she said. "I like to see my friends and things like that and I can't really do that on the road."

Despite the journeying, she remains committed to continue treading the boards.

"I haven't been on the stage for a long time and like to do it as well as TV work. I wouldn't want to stick with one or the other."

As well as representing a return to the stage for the Scottish actress, the play also re-unites her with director David McVicar, with whom she invariably works on stage - half of her theatre appearances have been with McVicar as director.

She said: "He's very passionate about his work, quite an outrageous sort of person. He has quite a large approach to his work and he's very vivacious and I like that about him.

"We went to college together and I've known him for over ten years."

As for This Life, she is happy to be remembered for the role. "I don't see the point of making a big deal about people knowing me for Anna in particular. She did a lot of favours for me."

Tickets for the shows, which start at 8pm with Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm, are from £18 to £10 from the box office on 01684 89227.