Millions of viewers have joined Yvette Fielding in search of the supernatural since she became TV’s ghost hunter in chief. Eight years and nine series on, is the Most Haunted star slowing down? Far from it, she tells Digital Spy. When Most Haunted‘s tenth outing is finished she’ll be taking Paul O’Grady to Rome and preparing for her first film role, along with more of the traditional hanging about in darkened rooms.

How is the new series going?
“It’s going well. I’ve just had my hair cut, it’s all blonde and sticking up like a punk rocker. Now we’re in the car on the way to do some camping in the haunted woods – a bit of Blair Witching.”

Have there been any highlights so far?
“We’ve done two shows at Morecambe Winter Gardens, which used to be a massive variety theatre. It’s all derelict and run down now and there’s a massive basement underneath it. Apparently there’s a good side and a bad side to the ghosts, [so] we decided to do the nice ghosts on the first night, as you do. On both nights there was lot of screaming and a lot of tears and hysteria so it will be a very good show. After the first night I thought, ‘If this is the good side, what’s the evil side going to be like?!'”

Ten series is pretty impressive and Most Haunted is Living’s top performing show – what gets people watching?
“I think for me it’s because you’ve got the camera crew, make-up artist… take out me and the experts and you’ve got all those people that are doing a normal job and you are giving them a camera and you’re sending them into the most horrendous places. When people watch it they think, ‘That could be me, I could do that.’ When we started eight years ago there were hardly any ghost groups. Now there are hundreds and hundreds. We have made it something that’s accessible, that you could go out and do. It became a hobby and they really enjoy it.”

Do you have to change things much?
“I think so. It’s really good to change mediums – I think that’s very important so that you keep things fresh. If you’re a medium, seeing dead people all the time and going into castles and stately homes, there’s always a lady in white, it’s very hard to make that interesting for people at home. It’s good for us to rotate. We’ve used three mediums (during series ten) and we’re going to be using more. We’ll always keep trying different things. The historian who was in studio is now on location. She can speak in old English. When we’re sat around the ouija board, who is to say a ghost would have used the same language we use today? It’s like having another tool with us. And she’s another screamer which also helps!”

Are you a big screamer?
“I’ve kind of calmed down with the screaming now – I’m more of a bossy cow! I’m mostly saying, ‘Shut up and calm down.'”

You run the show with your cameraman husband Karl Beattie – does that help?
“My husband and also my cousin works on it. It is important. People say, ‘How do you cope?,’ but our relationship has become even stronger. I couldn’t imagine my life working without him.”

Is there anything particular planned for the future?
“I’m due to fly out next week to do Ghost Hunting With… for ITV. I’m taking Paul O’Grady and his friends out to Italy. I had nightmares about it last night actually. I’ve got to be very bossy and evil for this one and I keep thinking about the location. We’re going to be working as a team and we’re going to concoct evil ideas about what we can do with his friends. We’re going to carry on and get our black haunted taxi in the most bizarre places. I want to do one in Egypt – I want to see the taxi coming over the dunes. We’ve got other projects going too. I’ve been asked to do a film which I’m very excited about. It’s a horror but I can’t say any more at the moment. I’m very flattered but I’m going to have to go to acting classes!”