She appears awsomely competent and self assured now. Why not. She is an amazingly talented person, with a mass of pleasurable contradictions.

There are several clues which persuade us that she hasn't always been so confident and secure. Maureen told us that she totally identifies with the shy, bumbling, modest, Joyce Grenfell whilst  freely admitting that as a schoolgirl she, Maureen, produced a Grenfell like result in her maths "O Level" exam, of a stunningly unimpressive  8%.

Science and technology's loss was the artistic world's gain and she defends this paucity of result with  a Grenfellism "I was far too busy watching "how" her teachers said things - than to worry about "what" they actually said.

Apart from her writing, of  which more later, she has been blessed by the complete assurance that "entertaining"  was what she wanted to do. On the other hand, she describes her ideal scenario as being in a theatre company as an understudy, where she would be paid for being there, but would have nothing to do.

She would probably say that chatting to other members of the cast would be a special part of that ideal world. Indeed, at a formative stage in her developing career she described how well she remembers playing a role which required her to speak one line - and thereby gave her the opportunity to spent six months of her life, sitting on a bench talking to Paul Schofield.

A fantastic experience for her. Not speaking the one line - talking to her hero day after day.

You could say there are similarities in that with her present role of Aunt Eller in the RNT OKLAHOMA. She isn't required to carry the show but the enjoys the company of  the great company.

An incident, or should I say non-incident, in her early career might have caused things to  turn out differently. She was invited to audition to join Laurence Olivier's  Old Vic company. She categorically tells us now, in the fullness of life, that it was a major opportunity which she did not intend to miss. "I would have given anything  (long pause) - ANYTHING to become a member of that company."

Ah well, Olivier's loss was Rosenthal's gain you could say.

Maureen confesses to being a late starter in the dating game, but her marriage to Jack Rosenthal appears to have given everything else in life she might reasonably require. With his support - indeed active participation - she has produced two talented and much loved children, Amy and Adam.  She has developed a writing career of her own which encompasses monthly columns in Options, She and Good Housekeeping Magazine, and of course she is a best selling author of books including, How Was It For You,  Thank You For Having Me,  Something To Fall Back On and, her most recent, You Can Read Me Like A Book.

All of these are available at the RNT bookshop, together with the complete range of the Joyce Grenfell books, tapes and CD's.

Maureen confesses that she is not good at being bad at things. Fortunately we know she isn't often that. She is not known for her tact, but admits that writing rather than speaking from the hip, enables her to smooth out the wrinkles.

What we're seeing here is a still burgeoning, redoubtable, and talented lady who appears to have overcome the anguish of  her recent serious illness. Life seems to have much to offer for her.

And what of  Beattie her jewish alter ego of telephone fame.  "She changed me from being everybody's friend to becoming the woman with the money." As many other artists would testify - that's show business. Better in the money than out of it.

As if to complete the loop of identification  with Maureen Lipmann and Joyce Grenfell, I will remind myself  that they both aim  to come to  the attention of "middle England." In fact, Maureen Lipman questions why should we should even have to bother courting the "others".

That's my girl. Count me in.

John Timperley