Writing yourself into a lesbian love scene with Abi Titmuss is quite a bold statement to make but then St Albans actress and playwright, Vicki McKellar admits she set up her own theatre company in order to produce original plays and work with independent actors and directors.

Vicki set up the Tapestry Theatre Company in 2007 and made her company debut playing a prostitute in Nicky Silver’s The Maiden’s Prayer, which had a successful run at The Lion and Unicorn Theatre in London.

Her new play, Paradise Lost, focuses on six individuals, bound together through partnerships, secrets and scandal. It revolves around the complex relationships that people develop - sisterly rivalry, unrequited love, troubled marriages and infidelity. Destruction strikes when all is revealed as the group gather around a Ouija board.

Vicki takes on the role of a woman stuck in a failing marriage who finds herself tempted by someone of the same sex.

“She poaches me really,” says Vicki, who consulted with several lesbian friends to get the relationship right. “I’m actually with a male partner in this play and she comes and steals me away. My partner and I have been living together for six years and then I meet Abi’s character Suzie through work and that’s how our lesbian relationship has come about but it’s more off-stage and suggestive rather than in-your-face.”

Although adultery is discussed in the play, Vicki is keen to point out she’s not taking a moral stance.

“It’s just showing the basic different human relationships people have and how and why can get themselves sucked into infidelity.

“These are people who at one point thought they had everything: the perfect marriage, children, happiness and good jobs. Then in the course of the play there are two affairs and a death and everything is just lost.”

Vicki has lived in St Albans all her life and attended Cunningham Hill Infants and Junior School before going on to St Albans Girls School and Italia Conti as a teenager.

“When left Italia Conti I actually wanted to be a singer. I did various bits and pieces including a small role in Our Friends in The North with Gina McKee and Daniel Craig. Then I ended up going back to drama school at the London Centre of Theatre Studies where we did a lot Stanislavski method acting and I went to New York to the Lee Strasberg Institute and did an off Broadway show for seven months.”

As well as acting, writing and producing, Vicki also has a film project currently in production that was filmed on location in Tring.

“I’ve written a short screenplay called Prediction and it’s doing the rounds at film festivals at the moment. I play a psychic and meet with six strangers. One woman wants to have a reading and I make a prediction on her husband that comes true.”

For now, Vicki is looking forward to playing alongside Abi, who achieved critical acclaim in her performances at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year.

Vicki says: “I’m thrilled to put on my first show in the West End, with an accomplished actress like Abi Titmuss performing on stage alongside me. I wanted somebody very dedicated to acting and before Abi was famous she studied drama. I wanted someone who could bring a down to earth quality to the part and be quite sexy without being over the top.”

Paradise Lost runs from October 19-23 at the Leicester Square Theatre. Details: www.leicestersquarethe