Just a few seconds of frenzied passion on the floor of the public bar and things would never be the same again for Michelle. It only took a few minutes to ruin her life. The end of all her hopes and dreams, her childhood and teenage innocence, all stripped away the first and only time she ever surrendered herself to a man. No one saw it happen, but the news spread fast it wasn't long before the whole of Britain knew what had happened in the Queen Victoria -- Dirty Den, the landlord, had done it again. Only this time he had gone too far. For the millions who have agonized with her, Michelle's pregnancy seems a terrible price to pay for one mistake -- a little youthful stupidity. Yet, with the increasing number of teenage single mums, it's not just a problem dreamed up for a soap opera -- as actress Susan Tully, who plays Michelle, has discovered from hundreds of letters: It's a dilemma many young girls face. As she talks about Michelle and her baby, it's easy to understand why Susan has been so successful in the role. Even though she's never had an experience like it herself, it's one she recognizes all too clearly from what happens to some of her contemporaries at school. Michelle might almost be her younger sister rather than a fictional part in Britain's most successful soap opera. Susan says that she never became involved with men during her school years because of her work. With her time being split equally between school and television studios, she was busy learning lines while her girlfriends were dating boys. While they went out to discos and parties in the evening she was desperately catching up on her schoolwork. 'I don't feel as though I've missed out on anything,' she insists. 'And unlike a lot of my friends, I've got plenty to look forward to. That's what's so nice about my boyfriend now. It's very comfortable and there's lots to find out about each other.' 'It's then that I feel sad for Michelle. When she should be going out and having fun, she's having to worry about whether she's going to breastfeed the baby. Sffe's had to say goodbye to being a teenager.' How did Susan avoid the dangers that many of her school friends faced?