TWO decades after she left Liverpool for the life of a country lady, one of the city’s most successful comedy writers is back.

Although a little part of Carla Lane’s heart will always be at the rambling Tudor mansion which was her home in West Sussex, after just eight weeks back in her native city she is feeling the buzz once again.

She said: “I am so delighted with Liverpool. Everywhere I go I can see progress and improvement – the place is magic.”

Home for the writer who created hit TV series such as The Liver Birds and Bread is now a substantial cottage in the leafier suburbs of south Liverpool.

Broadhurst Manor, in Sussex, had its attractions and was home to Carla’s famous animal sanctuary, but the figures just did not add up.

She said: “I woke up one morning and thought ‘face facts, Carla, you cannot keep this place going any longer’.

“The sanctuary, yes, but this big house took five people to work there. I knew I just could not do it any more.”

It took a couple of years of effort to find a buyer, but earlier this year Carla finally sold up and headed back north.

The sanctuary is in the hands of the staff – “I have a wonderful manageress and wonderful, devoted staff” – and still looking for a new home, while Carla and her own animals moved on.

At a rough count, there are a couple of gentle dogs, devoted to their mistress; a pair of cats who with unerring feline instinct have hunted out the most comfortable parts of the house; two tortoises with the run of the ground floor and an eye for a sunny spot; and an aviary full of parrots and smaller birds.

Carla said they have adapted to their move well, with a couple of exceptions.

She fears two African Grey parrots, always among the most boisterous of the bird world, have developed a taste for blood.

On one hand she bears the distinctive triangular graze any parrot-keeper will recognise – but they were not always like that.

In the end she took professional advice and was told parrots are birds of habit and can often take exception to a change in their environment.

The greys may well wish they were back in Sussex – and maybe just a little bit of Carla agrees with them.

She said: “I could not afford the manor house any longer. Now I have sold the manor house, I have lots of money, but I am not where I want to be.

“Whereas when I was there, I was where I wanted to be but the money was running out fast. But you cannot have everything and I accept that.”