Drescher starred on the popular show for six seasons in the ’90s.
The Nanny might never have come about if it weren’t for star Fran Drescher’s friendship with Twiggy.
“I was visiting Twiggy in London — I’d done that short-lived series with her — and she and her husband were working,” Drescher told PEOPLE, referring to 1991’s Princesses. (In that one, Drescher and the model/actress costarred with Julie Hagerty in the comedy about three women living together in Manhattan.)
“So I ended up with their 12-year-old daughter, schlepping her all over London with me so I would have a companion to go touring with,” Drescher continued. “And she all of a sudden says, ‘Hey, Fran, my new shoes are hurting me.’ And I’m thinking, ‘Why is she telling me? Does she want me to take her home? Because I’m not ready yet.'”
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Her reaction was not unlike one that Fran on the show would have.
“I said, ‘Oh, honey, just step on the backs of them.’ And she said innocently, ‘Won’t that break them?’ And I said, ‘Break them in.’ And I just couldn’t get this unorthodox relationship between an adult and a child out of my head because I wasn’t telling her what was good for her. I was telling her what was good for me. I didn’t want to sacrifice my afternoon for her. I wanted her to break her shoes in so I could keep touring London!”