In its last season on the air, British actress Stephanie Beacham "was invited to recreate the character of Sable Colby on 'Dynasty.'"
The network promo trumpeted, "They're the faces (screen shots of John Forsythe, Joan Collins, Linda Evans, Jack Coleman, Heather Locklear and John James were shown) that have kept you in suspense week after week. This year (1988-89) Stephanie Beacham joins the intrigue. America's favorite - 'Dynasty.'"
Stephanie made her appearance on the bicentennial episode of 'Dynasty' appropriately labeled 'A Touch of Sable'. Of her English background, Stephanie believed, "I think that we have a very long history of playing some of the nastiest villains you're ever going to find anywhere. Look at Shakespeare, for example – villains everywhere, including his comedies." One commentator remarked, "Sable Colby is virtually unique to the world of night time soap opera characters: She's 3-dimensional."
Stephanie recounted, "I was imported...At first, when they pulled me over from England I thought I'd be playing a straight bitch. Sable is much more than that...I think that a French accent is automatically sexy and an English accent of a certain class comes over as a bitch. I think it is the articulation."
While "it's possible 'The Colbys' was born too late," Stephanie acknowledged, "(Charlton Heston) is easy to love from an acting view point. He's very considerate in front of a camera." She shared, "I was born with a hearing problem. You see, in order to speak properly we must hear ourselves as we speak ...A sound engineer solved the problem with another speaker that allowed me to hear my voice as I spoke...It's vital that a deaf child learns to communicate with others as soon as possible. When children see that we believe in their abilities, they won't be ashamed of their disability."
'Dynasty' ended its weekly run in May 1989 with a cliffhanger. At the time, Stephanie insisted, "It hasn’t been totally laid to rest. There is still a possibility." She elaborated, "I think the viewers being stranded is very bad, and I think there's a lot of resentment and there is talk of doing something in Europe in what would be everybody's hiatus (in March 1990). It would have to be in Europe, and when I asked Esther Shapiro 'why?', she said, because we haven't got any sets. So we're all going to have to go and visit Krystle (Linda Evans) in Switzerland, she said." The network reasoned, "Most shows don't really know for sure if they're being picked up again for the following season. But a show like 'Dynasty' didn't want to end without a cliffhanger, even if they were pretty sure it wouldn't be back. I know that Esther Sharpiro wanted to tie everything up next season with a TV movie, but I think the network felt it would cost too much. The sets have been dismantled and many of the stars have other commitments." Eventually 'The Reunion' was made and shown in October 1991. Esther emphasized, "This should be available to a person who's never seen 'Dynasty'. They should be able to see this, understand what went on and still have a full show."
Ten months before 'The Colbys' made its TV debut in 1985, 'Berrenger's' went on air. In all, 12 episodes were made. Jeff Conaway made known, "The producers put a lot of money and actors into it. You can't start a new show with 18 characters and 9 or 10 storylines and expect audiences to like it." Sam Wanamaker accepted the offer to play Simon Berrenger "partly because he's 3-dimensional. He's a man who's come up from circumstances typical of the self-made man. He's made the business into a success. He's a first–generation American, as I am. He struggled coming up and he expects his children to struggle, but they're raised in luxury. They're not the tough fighter he was and he can't understand it. I like him. I think he's a hell of a guy."
Jeff maintained, "My job is to express inner feelings, get the emotions flowing. I've spent 29 years (*) in the business. I know you have to change. This is a roller-coaster business." (*Jeff made his Broadway debut at the age of 10 in 'All the Way Home') He revealed, "I used to hold in a lot of feelings. I'd smile a lot but I was really miserable. I didn't know it at the time, but I've figured it out since. When I was on stage, I could make people laugh."
