| Rachel, Ross, Joey, Phoebe, Monica and Chandler. You'd have to have been hiding under a rock for the past four years not to know exactly who these six friends are. Now entering its fifth series on Sky One this month - a series that includes a special 100th episode Ftiends has confounded critics who predicted it would have a very limited future. Thanks to its identifiable characters, sharply-written scripts and fabulous hairstyles, the show is now an international phenomenon, topping the US sitcom chans and making millionaires of its hitheno unknown stars. Last season, Sky One viewers were left on a knife edge as palaeontologist Ross dropped a clanger louder than the peal of church bells by slipping exgirlfriend Rachel's name into his wedding vows. As the new series kicks off, Ross is in hot pursuit of his English bride Emily, while Rachel is left holding the honeymoon tickets.Meanwhile, dizzy masseuse and part-time singer Phoebe is heavily pregnant with her halfbrother's surrogate triplets. But the story line that left Ftiends aficionados agog was the simmering sexual tension that finally boiled over between office manager Chandler and neurotic chef Monica, played by Couneney Cox. 'Yeah, Chandler got a little obsessed with the fact that I won't go out with him. But I do think that Monica is ready for another relationship,' teases Couneney, who remains tightlipped about what the future holds for her screen alias and neighbourly beau.Her discretion comes as no surprise, given the fact that the TV star knows only too well that one loose tongue is all it takes to get the rest of the world talking. Early last year rumours were rife when the snake-hipped Couneney and Matthew Perry were snapped mid-kiss during their visit to the UK. But both stars have been linked with a roster of famous names. 'I've never been attracted to the poUshed kind of guy, who looks like he spends all his time in the gym,' says Couneney. 'For a long time, I was only attracted to men who were charismatic and funny. I found myself really wanting them to love me, and I was constantly afraid that, I'd be boring them. But I'm more attracted to the bad boy. I think it's the dark side of me - I just look in someone's eyes to see what lies behind them.' Since the break-up of her five-year relationship with Batman star Michael Keaton three years ago - the man she describes as the love of her life - Courteney's consorts have included Christian Slater, Scream co-star David Arquette and Scream 2's Liev Schreiber. Of Michael Keaton, Courteney admits: 'No matter how fed up I was, Michael could always just make a little face and crack me up. Humour is so important. I really did think our relationship was it.' More recently, old flame David Arquette has been back on the scene and rumour has it that wedding plans are afoot, according to the US Natonal Enquirer.But whatever the outcome, romance and passion are important parts of Courteney's life. 'In private, I am passionate about everything to do with love and sex,' she says. 'I'm a sexual person, but I don't think about it all the time.' And Courteney is optimistic about her future: 'You know, I'm from Alabama and I really thought that by the time I turned 30, I'd be married with two kids. But things change. 'I'm 33 now and all my friends from school are raising kids and I'm not. I'm sure one day I will, but not right now. There's a time for everything.' Thanks to her role as conniving TV hack GaiI Weathers in the slasher flicks Scream and the sequel Scream 2, Courteney has been the most successful of all the Friends cast in making the leap to the big screen. 'I knew Scream was a smart move for me, but at the end of the day, you never know what will do well. I loved the fact that Gail was so different from Monica,' says the star, whose only gripe about her Friends fame is that her character was once voted the least popular of the sextet. 'Everyone has an opinion; and they love to rate all the different characters in magazines. l've just got to remember that it's Monica they are talking about, not me.' Courteney is soon to star as Kenneth Branagh's 'alien' wife - who is really a man in Alien Love Triangle, directed by Trainspotting's Danny Boyle, so there has probably never been a better time for her to go for a permanent transition into the world of movies. Fortunately for Friends fans, however, a million dollar bonus and massive weekly pay hike should keep Courteney Cox shackled to the Ftiends set well into the next millennium. As to whether she will also be shackled to Chandler, we will just have to wait and see.Luckily, though, her co-star Matthew Perry is more than happy with the prospect. 'l'm all for it,' he reveals. 'Those two having a relationship could be very interesting because they're the most neurotic of the group. And, anyway, Courteney's pretty hot, and if I get that story line, I'll be able to kiss her a bunch of times.' |