My phone interview with Emily Lloyd is supposed to take place at about 6pm. I wait an hour but it's the publicist who finally gets in touch to say Emily will call me at 8pm.

The fact I'm at home makes waiting more bearable but by 9pm I've given up.

Eventually, Emily's mother calls at 10.15pm and leaves a message and a phone number.

When I speak to Emily, she doesn't say sorry for keeping me waiting for almost four-and-a-half hours. "I only have ten minutes," she says, "so shoot."

Emily is coming to Brighton to play Ophelia in Hamlet.

It is made by The RJ Williamson Company, credited with being the biggest open-air Shakespeare company in Britain.

The second play on the bill is romantic comedy As You Like It, which stars Coronation Street's Tracy Shaw as Celia.

Emily first hit the silver screen aged 16 in David Leland's celebrated 1987 coming-of-age drama, Wish You Were Here.

Set in a post-war British seaside town and filmed on location in Worthing and Bognor, she played the part of Lynda, a sassy, outspoken teenager who discovers the effect of her burgeoning sexuality on men.

Her winning performance was a painful balance of the knowing and the naive and her oft-repeated phrase "Up yer bum!" quickly became the film's trademark.

The daughter of Roger Lloyd Pack, most famous for his role as Trigger in Only Fools And Horses, Emily was no stranger to acting and, capitalising on her rave reviews, departed for Hollywood.

Despite good performances in biggish films, including Welcome To Sarajevo and A River Runs Through It opposite Brad Pitt, she is remembered by most for Wish You Were Here.

Emily begins by filling me in on why she came back from Los Angeles eight years ago, prompted partly by a split with her American boyfriend.

"I'm English and I'm incredibly loyal to England. I like it here and you can trust people. I had a lot of friends in LA that worked on a superficial level and that was right for me at the time.

"But I made a conscious decision to come back here to live. I'd had enough of it all really and there was nothing keeping me there apart from the work."

Since returning, Emily has been in a number of films which haven't really gone anywhere.

She says: "It is appealing to do theatre as opposed to film. Not that I don't love film. "But for an actress, it's much the same whether behind the camera or treading the boards but I've always dreamed of playing Ophelia and I am very, very excited about doing this play."

Emily has also taken up a role in a British version of Sex And The City alongside Rachel Hunter and Frances Barber.

But we don't get to talk about this because time is already running out.

Before she goes, Emily does volunteer a smidgen more information.

"I spent a lot of time in Brighton as a young child because my grandmother lived there. I remember Seven Dials."

She doesn't, however, want to impart what she remembers about Seven Dials or Brighton on her visits there as an adult. "I've given you enough," she says.

The clock shows she has given me about five minutes.

She says: "I've got to go now and learn the rest of my lines."

All shows take place in the Pavilion Gardens with live music and open-air seating. Picnics are also allowed.

As You Like It is on Tuesday and Wednesday, Saturday July 5, Sunday, July 6, Thursday, July 10, Friday, July 11 and Sunday, July 13.

Hamlet is on Thursday and Friday, Tuesday, July 8, Wednesday, July 9 and Saturday, July 12.

There are various start times, see listings on page 42. Tickets from £10 to £17. Call 01273 709709 for further information.