Seventies heartthrob is a recluse

by MICHELLE MARTIN AND MATT NIXSON, Mail on Sunday

In his heyday he was one of television's cheekiest heartthrobs - but today Man About The House star Richard O'Sullivan is almost unrecognisable.

His flowing hair, lopsided grin and penchant for sharp suits and chest-baring shirts brought him a legion of female fans in the Seventies.

But even given the fact that he is now 56 years old, the most ardent of his admirers would have been hard-pressed to place him yesterday as he shuffled to the shops on crutches with a broken leg.

Sporting a grubby anorak, tracksuit and grey stubble, he looked far older than his years and clearly did not want to be reminded of the fact. 'I never talk about the old days any more,' he said crossly.

But then, with a hint of his old smile, he admitted that his two former co-stars, Sally Thomsett and Paula Wilcox, have aged rather better than he has. 'We still keep in touch - they still look terrific,' he said.

O'Sullivan now lives the life of a virtual recluse with his 21-year-old son Jamie in their small, two-bedroom flat in West London. Alcohol and depression have taken their toll on his looks and he is now virtually retired, taking the odd commercial voice-over to make ends meet.

Thirty years ago he was a sex symbol seemingly set for a life of fame after the producers of ITV's Man About The House cast the former child star as the bachelor sharing a flat with two attractive women - still relatively daring in those days.

As many as 16 million people tuned in each week to see him try to seduce Miss Wilcox as sensible Chrissy and blonde Sally Thomsett who played dizzy Jo - and with whom he was also having an off-screen relation-ship. More often than not, the joke was on him.

While all three became household names, it was O'Sullivan who found himself catapulted to stardom. He was even given his own show, Robin's Nest, playing a chef who opens a neighbour-hood bistro.

Everything seemed perfect when he fell in love with his co-star Tessa Wyatt and the pair had Jamie together.

But their relationship ended after he refused to marry her and their constant rows became too much. She walked out on him but the pair have remained friends.

He starred in other comedies, such as Me And My Girl, in the Eighties, but never recaptured his former success.

In 1994 he admitted that his divorce from his second wife, Christine Smart, had pushed him over the edge.

'I've had a really hard time,' he admitted then after it emerged that he had booked himself into a Berkshire clinic for treatment. 'I am a hard-drinking depressive.'

His former fans will no doubt be sad to see that he still seems to be fighting his demons.

Time has been decidedly kinder to O'Sullivan's 'women about the house'.

Paula Wilcox, 51, is currently starring in a West End revival of Neil Simon's comedy The Odd Couple and has been in constant demand for stage and screen work since the series finished.

Although she now sports a short blonde haircut for the role of a neurotic, recently-separated wife, her petite frame and wide brown eyes make her still instantly recognisable.

She lives in London, having married American businessman Skip Riddle after the tragic death of her first husband, Derek Seaton, in 1979.

Life took a more unexpected turn for Sally Thomsett, who played scatterbrained Jo in the comedy show.

After vowing never to have children, Thomsett discovered she was six months pregnant five years ago at the age of 46. After two failed marriages, she had settled down with landscape gardener Paul Agnew. She devotes most of her time to looking after their daughter, Charlotte.

She found fame in the 1970 film The Railway Children, playing eight-year-old Phyllis at the age of 20, but has found it difficult to land parts that reflect her real age.

Even at 51, Thomsett looks remarkably young. She says her secret is keeping to a rigid diet when she feels she is gaining weight.

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