Ten Things You Never Knew About Nicollette Sheridan

For five seasons, Nicollette Sheridan was an essential ingredient in the bitching and high-drama of Desperate Housewives, playing the curvy man-eater Edie Britt. Her departure from the show in 2009 left a hole, which many argue still hasn't been filled. She's been back in the headlines this week, due to some controversy about her exit from the ABC series, but how much do you really know about Miss Sheridan? Keep reading for ten fast facts about the actress.

1. Sheridan was born on November 21, 1963 in Worthing, West Sussex. Her mother was British actress Sally Sheridan.

2. Before landing the role of saucy man-eater Edie Britt in Desperate Housewives, Sheridan originally auditioned for the part of the rather more prim and proper Bree Van de Kamp. We doubt the ABC show would have been as successful if Sheridan and Marcia Cross, who plays Bree, had swapped roles.

3. According to a reliable source (the appropriately titled Celebrity Sleuth magazine), Sheridan's much talked about figure has the important statistics 34B-24-35.

4. Did you know that Sheridan was very close to landing the title role in much loved NBC sitcom Will & Grace. Unfortunately, she was pipped to the post by Debra Messing. There was no hard feelings from Sheridan, however, who turned up for a cameo appearance as Dr. Danielle Morty in 2003.

5. In 1997, there was yet another role that Sheridan missed out on. According to IMDB, it could have been Edie Britt we saw romping and sinking with Leo DiCaprio in Titanic. Luckily for Kate Winslet, she didn't get the part of Rose DeWitt.

6. One of Nicollete's many talents is apparently her ability to speak fluent Greek. The actress was apparently encouraged to learn the language by her godfather Telly Savalas - TV's Kojack!

7. While she was on Desperate Housewives, Sheridan said that she enjoyed all the rumours of bitchiness and backstabbing between the show's stars. "People love controversy," she said. "When you have five women interacting, they love to think that there's all sorts of jealousy and competitiveness going on. It isn't... but I think it helps the show."

8. Sheridan has had her fair share of romances down the years. Her most famous partners include singer and actor Leif Garrett, actor Harry Hamlin, Swedish trainer Nicklas Söderblom and long-haired crooner Michael Bolton.

9. During her romance with Bolton, Sheridan made her pop music debut. She duetted with the soft rock singer on 'The Second Time Around', which appeared on his Bolton Swings Sinatra LP. Not surprisingly, the pair's romance fell apart shortly after.

10. Nicollette's willingness to flash the flesh has occasionally got her in trouble. She showed us a bum cheek in an campaign for coat-makers London Fog and has admitted that she enjoys nothing more in the summer than laying out naked with a good book by the pool. However, her appearance in an NFL Monday Night Football skit in 2004 caused the biggest stir, as she appeared to run nude into the arms of sports star Terrell Owens. Not surprisingly, Housewives viewing figures went through the roof the following week.