River City's Jo reveals plot to put her crooked stepdad back behind bars

Apr 13 2008 By Steve Hendry

Exclusive River City Lisa Reveals Jo's Plot To Put Her Crooked Stepdad Back Behind Bars

SIX months ago Lisa Gardner was watching River City from her sofa, totally gripped as rogue lawyer Archie Buchanan was 'murdered' and thrown off a cliff.

Now she is the new star of the show and secretly drugging the back-from-the-dead victim - now calling himself Douglas and suffering from a severe bout of amnesia - in a bid to get rid of him once more.

It is a remarkable turnaround in the fortunes of the 27-year-old who was plucked from nowhere to take over as Shieldinch maneater Joanne Rossi from original star Allison McKenzie.

And Lisa hopes she has done enough since joining the cast last October to make fans as forgetful as Archie/Douglas and erase their memories of her predecessor.

She said: "It's funny doing these scenes because I do remember watching as a fan and thinking, 'oh my God, they've really done it now, pushing him off a cliff!' My life has changed a lot.

"I'm sure people have thought Allison wouldn't do it this way or that way. There will be critics.

"But I've never thought of how Allison would do it. That's unhealthy. I don't think you can do your job if you think that way.

"There's not enough time to learn your own lines never mind trying to work out how somebody else would play them."

The actress, originally from Largs in Ayrshire and now living in Glasgow with her partner, has been helped to settle in by her screen family.

Libby McArthur, Morag Calder, Deirdre Davis and Johnny Beattie - who play mum Gina, sister Ruth, aunt Eileen and grandad Malcolm - welcomed her into their Shieldinch family with open arms.

And she is grateful for the support as she comes to terms with a full-on soap schedule.

She said: "I didn't go to the audition thinking I'd get the job so didn't have any expectations.

"It's a bit like theatre in that the hours can be really long but it doesn't make it any less enjoyable.

"The odd morning you get up at 5.30am but then you remember it's the best job in the world.

"I feel like one of the family now. Morag and I get on extremely well off screen so know we can be as nasty as we like when the cameras are running.

"I knew Libby before I started then there's Johnny Beattie as your grandad - you can't go wrong with that."

Lisa has enjoyed catching up on Jo's colourful soap past and the experience of being a single mum to her sons Franco - Adam Khan, six - and Romeo - 18-month-old Jamie Blyth.

But it has made her anything but broody.

She laughed: "Oh no! I'm far too busy being Jo Rossi and dealing with her kids.

Maybe some way down the line. I wouldn't be taking tips from her, anyway. It's not like she's the best mother in the world. She's always palming them off on somebody."

Lisa is delighted to be getting her hands dirty drugging Archie/Douglas - played by Gilly Gilchrist - as she and her aunt Eileen plot to get him out of Gina's life for good.

They lure him to Jo's house and she slips drugs into his drink. It means he will break bail by missing his daily check-in at the police station - and lead to a spell in jail until his trial date. She said: "When I read the script I thought it was brilliant.

"Jo is freaking out the whole time she's doing it but her aunt is on side and she doesn't think Archie/Douglas deserves a second chance anyway."

Lisa is hard at work on River City but she can be heard this week - with co-star Tony Kearney who plays Scott - on BBC Radio play Frozen, as a Skye stonemason.

But mainly she is setting her sights on River City and looking forward to discovering a new side to Jo. Well, kind of.

She said: "I'm looking forward to exploring the softer parts of her character.

"She is eventually going to have to face up to the fact she is a mum-oftwo and doesn't have any security.

"But she is never going to become nicey nice. She would step over someone's dead body to get what she wants."

River City is on BBC1, Tuesday at 8pm. Frozen is on BBC Radio Scotland tomorrow at 3.30pm.

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