JENNIFER ANISTON - 9/11 HEARTACHE TURNS TO JOY FOR ANISTON

JENNIFER ANISTON realised just how special FRIENDS was when fans wrote thanking her and her castmates for bringing back the laughs after the tragedy of 9/11.

The actress admits in new book FRIENDS TO THE END that she wasn't sure if it was right to be making a comedy after the horror of the terrorist attacks on America in September 2001 - but she soon realised the TV comedy was providing much needed light relief.

Aniston says, "It was hard to come back to work and do a sitcom when the world was falling apart. I remember feeling very helpless and not knowing what our place was anymore. It all felt very trite.

"Then, little by little, that first show we did, there was so much energy in the audience and I realised people just desperately needed that release. And the laughter was harder than ever.

"People came up to me after 9/11 and said, 'Thank you for a half hour of escape.' It brings me to tears thinking about that time."