Deirdre Barlow: how low can she go?

spoiler alert: this post makes reference to the April 11 episode on CBC

It's a question that's probably foremost on your mind. (Why is Natasha forking over three grand to Nick Tilsley? ed). No, not that. (Why is Charlotte chasing John Stape at a teacher's conference? - ed). No not that either. The big question is: Is it my imagination or is Deirdre's voice dropping an octave every two weeks? She's so husky, I half expect her to break into 'Ol' Man River' at any minute.

So how low can she go?

Well, folks, let's take a look at the Deep Voice Advisory Scale (DVAS), a 10-level celebrity gauge which helps us determine the depth of a voice in relation to celebrity benchmarks where Number 1 is deep and husky.. and Number 10 is dangerously low and can cause sub-woofers of stereo systems to crack:

1. Whoopi Goldberg
2. Bonnie Tyler
3. Kathleen Turner
4. Suzanne Pleshette
5. Patti & Selma Simpson
6. Eartha Kitt
7. Robert Goulet
8. Marianne Faithful
9. Donatella Versace
10 Barry White

Now, a month ago, Deirdre was on par with Patti & Selma Simpson at about a 5. But, right now, I'd say Deirdre is about a 7.5 on the DVAS, or midway between Robert Goulet and Marianne Faithful -- but she is definitely heading into Donatella Versace territory.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.  But if I hear her breaking into 'Can't Get Enough Of Your Love, Babe', I'll start to worry...