Those who are familiar with the actress' personal life are well aware that she and her mother (Fiona's father had died) were closer thanthis, and the recent death of her mother saddened her deeply.  Add to that disappointment of having to depart her beloved role of Gabrielle due to contractual snags and her divorce from husband Sea and you'd have to admit that finding love with ex-co-star John Viscardi (ex-Tony, OLTL) and landing the role of Jenna on Guiding Light added greatly to her sanity and happiness.

    Interestedly, the role of Jenna was originally supposed to be a three month gig.  I questioned Fiona on the possibility that the network wasn't willing to take a chance with a three-year-contract on an actress who'd been deemed a troublemaker by some ABC Network brass, for bringing her contract grievances before the boards of SAG and AFTRA.  And while she doesn't doubt that might have been a consideration, Fiona is pleased as punch that she's working on the show and playing a role far different and much lighter (remember Gabrielle's courtroom scenes?) than any before.

    "[Executive Producer] Jill [Farren Phelps] sat me down and asked me if I'd be interested in playing an international jewel thief with a sense of humor," Fiona recollects.  "And that's basically what we've been doing.  Because it was only meant ot be three months, there was no need to go into background.  And to be quite honest I don't think they had a background.  Four weeks into being there, they started to talk to me about staying longer.  I guess they liked it and decided that they wanted the character around.  You see, I didn't audition for it.  Jill just hired me, so I don't know if Proctor & Gamble or CBS and all of them were necessarily aware of what they were getting.  I give Jill credit.  She had an idea, and rather than put it before the board of ten people for a decision, she exercises her right to hire a short-term character...and as it turned out, they wanted to extend it."

    Before the final kinks in her long-term contract were ironed out, Fiona made sure that several projects that she had in the works could be adhered to--one of which possibly being a made-for-TV movie that co-star Eddie Mekka (Grady) wrote with both of them in mind.

    It's at this point that I bring up the fact that it was after that initial three months that Jenna had her memorable "elevator scene" with Michelle (Rachel Miner), thus leaving no doubt that Fiona was here to stay.  The actress agrees.

    The elevator scene ws the turning point for Jenna.... The deal (to stay longer) was struck just before that scene was shot.  I was very proud of that scene.  I haven't seen it, but the reason why I feel proud of it is because I enjoyed that day.  I think probably because the character had been rewarded with a background.  Even though you really didn't get the details, you certainly knew that something was back there.  And the character was beginning to have dimension.  And that's always fun to play...when you've got dimension.

    Wait a second!  Wait a second!  Fiona never saw that brilliant scene?  As it turns out, she hasn't seen any of her work on Guiding Light,

    "I'm still trying to work out why actually," the beautiful actress tried to explain.  I have no desire to.  It could be that I don't want to censor myself.  It could be that I don't want to know. 'Oh that's how that came out.'  There's a sort of view that i have in my mind of how i think it's coming out.  And many time, you see something and it's not exactly what you had in mind, and it can be very disappointing.  And playing a role that is very flamboyant and very sexy and very out there--she's much more out there than Gabrielle; the clothes that she wears alone, the type of bubble bath scenes that I've done now with Michael Zaslow (Roger)...they were risqué, but she put herself on the line.  Now gabrielle did too, but Gabrielle always did it out of a sense of fear and insecurity.  Jenna doesn't do anything from fear and insecurity.  And maybe I, as the actress, don't want to see something that throws me off.  If it's not working, I don't want to know....'

    So while she watched her work as gabrielle, she chooses not to watch as Jenna.  Is she less assured now?  Maybe.  Is she different now?  She'll tell you that she is.  Or rather she'll tell you that some people on the set believe so as well.

    "A couple of the cameramen over at Guiding Light used to work at One Life to Live; lovely lovely guys.  And one of them said to me, "We're so happy that you're here.' And I said, 'Well I'm happy to be here.'  And he said, 'You know, you're so different here.' And I said, 'In what way?' And he said, 'Well I was intimidated by you at One Life to Live.'  And I said 'Oh, why?  He said, 'Well you were very stand offish; you were very cold.'  And I've heard other people say that.

    "I don't feel that I, inside, am different.  I just think that it's very true--I got unhappy at One Life to Live.  And when I'm unhappy, I clam up.  I get very introverted.  And you start to shield yourself because you're scared or you're uncomfortable.  And you don't have enough energy to say, 'Oh hi, how are you?  It's just too much energy.  You're so busy fighting your problems at home or you're fighting your problems at work, that you don't have that extra give.  I never meant to be rude or cold or to hurt anyone's feelings.  I never intended to."

    And as Fiona Hutchison sees changes in her life, does she see the same for her character?  In other words, I get straight to the point.  Does she ever see the day Jenna Bradshaw will steal another jewel?

    "Old habits are hard to break, aren't they?' Fiona deviously laughs.  "And if she does, I would like to think that there's probably a very good reason behind it,  I don't think that it's just going to be just for the sake of getting money.  It'll be because somebody somewhere needs it desperately. I think it's possible.  The characters that I end up playing usually are very...what's the word?...let's just say they're not very bright, are they?  They keep making the same mistakes over and over.  But they always do it out of love.
        "I'm like that a little bit actually."  .