American-born actress Sandra Dickinson will be on familiar ground when she returns to the Lighthouse Theatre in Poole to star in the classic Francis Durbridge thriller A Touch of Danger.

For she will be performing of the same stage where she met her fiancé, locally based actor Mark Osmond.

The pair started a relationship while both were performing in pantomime at the theatre in 2002. They became engaged the following year and recently opened a school of acting in Shepperton called Close Up Theatre.

Sandra, who became famous for her squeaky voice and infectious giggle, starred and made her name in shows like Hitchikers' Guide to the Galaxy. She says he is thrilled to be back in Poole which she described as "such a stunning area."

The actress, who is the former wife of Doctor Who star Peter Davison, admits meeting Mark was a happy accident.

"I vowed I would never do another panto but my daughter had just had a baby at 17 and so needs must. Then I met Mark and it has been the most glorious five years.

"I will see a bit more of him in Poole and look forward to seeing his family too. It's very romantic in Dorset, it must be the heady scent of the pine needles!"

A Touch of Danger, which runs at Lighthouse from Tuesday January 22 until Saturday January 26, also stars Simon Ward and Neil Stacey.

Packed with red herrings, blind alleys and double crossings, it finds Dickinson playing the about-to-be-ex-wife of best-selling author Max Telligan (Simon Ward). She reads in the paper that he has been found dead but is amazed when he walks in, very much alive!