Britain's best-loved waitress, Crossroads Miss Diane, is quitting the series.  But Diane - actress Susan Hanson - is handing in her apron for the happiest of reasons.  She's expecting her first baby.

 

And, after nearly 20 years service on the motel set, she's delighted to trade her soap role for baby lotion.

 

Sue, a mature mum-to-be at 39, said: "I decided a couple of years ago that I really wanted a child.  But I was determined not to let it become the be-all and end-all because my Crossroads commitments kept my husband Carl and I apart during the week.  If it happened, it would be wonderful.  If it didn't, I would still be perfectly happy."

  

It happened.  At Easter, Sue took a fortnight's holiday...and the baby is due in January.  But with one miscarriage behind her, she is playing safe by leaving the series in September.

 

Miss Diane fans can take heart from the fact that Sue, as one of the cast's longest serving members, will be welcomed back whenever she wants.  And her husband, Sixties pop star Carl Wayne, has a nicely laidback approach to future events.  "I've done my bit - the rest is up to Sue," he said.

 

Meanwhile, producer Jack Barton is frantically searching for a way to write Diane - currently pining with unrequited love for the motel's doctor - out of the series.  It needs careful handling.  When bolt-brained Benny returns to find his beloved waitress missing he could go walkabout again.