I'm going to be optimistic about these new committments. Her video is still doing really well, and probably far better than anyone imagined. She really is right up there with Tracy Shaw and Patsy Palmer, which shows how much the public still love her. That will have proven to cynical tv people that Helen's bubble has by no means burst. After all, people are willing to spend actual money to see her, so they're bound to be willing to switch the tv on.
The point I'm meandering towards is that it's quite likely she will have been approached to take part in new, more adventurous projects. It could all be in the early, discussion stages, so we shouldn't get too excited, nor expect any announcements too soon. After all, they only announced Brian would be doing smtv right at the last minute, even though it had obviously been in the pipeline for months.
ROB - I have another theory especially for you, but it's RESTRICTED, so I sent you a U2U.