Su Pollard, known for playing chalet maid Peggy Ollerenshaw in the BBC1 comedy Hi-De-Hi!, has spoken publicly about her ex-husband Peter Keogh, who was outed as gay soon after their honeymoon. The actress, who was married to the author from 1984 to 1992, said she holds no ill will towards him and is glad he can be his true self.
Rare comments on her ex-husband
Keogh's sexuality became public during a highly publicised court trial in which he was acquitted of theft shortly after their wedding. Pollard, who remains close friends with Keogh and his partner, explained that she "sort of" knew he was gay during their marriage.
Discussing the situation, she said: "For those that might not know if you're younger - he was gay, still is and has got a fabulous husband and we get on very well together. I sort of [knew he was gay]. Things he might have said and he always used to say 'I didn't expect to fall in love with you, Su' and that's it."
Staying tight-lipped during marriage
Pollard added: "You can't handle what you're not in life, there's no point. You've got to be true to yourself and I think he realised that perhaps it's difficult to live the sort of life you're not wanting to."
At the time, rumours constantly swirled about Keogh's sexuality, but Pollard refused to comment. "The thing is...if I'd said something then, that's why I was very tight-lipped. I said nothing. I didn't add fuel to the fire. Everything that happened and that we discussed between us, it was never talked about. I wanted to be that woman that 40 years later wouldn't have been destroyed by something like that," she said on At Home With Vanessa.
Peter Keogh's later marriage
In 2018, Keogh and his partner of three decades, Sacha Mahboub, finally got legally married. Writing about their experience, he said: "On March 31, my partner of 30 years, Sacha Mahboub, and I were finally legally married. The ceremony itself was on the mezzanine floor of the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre and we exchanged vows as the sun set behind us. After the vows we moved into the theatre for the reception where the stage was decorated lavishly as a surprise for me from my partner. It was without doubt the happiest day of our lives."
He continued: "However, it has been a long journey to actually reach this point in our lives ... We are now happily [legally married] and have a group of friends who are so special that having them in our lives is like being embraced by a warm blanket of love."
