Working keeps my mind off dying, says Coronation Street legend Amanda Barrie

CORONATION STREET legend Amanda Barrie has never paid heed to age.

The glamorous 82-year-old has been on stage and TV since 1959, notching up roles in two Carry On films as well as her long-running stint on the Corrie cobbles.

Last year, she also took part in BBC One’s travel series The Real Marigold Hotel, and More 4’s The Baby Boomers’ Guide To Growing Old.

And in January, she became one of the oldest housemates to take part in Celebrity Big Brother, and won over her housemates and viewers with her humour, charm and outspokenness.

But few were aware that Lancashire-born Amanda, who’s married to crime author Hilary Bonner, was struggling to hear, and dealing with grief after the death of her sister-in-law.

“I’ve worn hearing aids since last summer, as I have age-related hearing loss,” says Amanda. “But I discovered how much I needed them when I went into the Celebrity Big Brother house.

“I didn’t take them with me because they’re so tiny, I worried I might lose them, which was a big mistake.

“I couldn’t hear announcements on the outside Tannoys from Big Brother telling us the tasks we had to do.

“It was a nightmare. I was so worried my housemates would get punished as I couldn’t understand what I had to do.

“I’m not at all embarrassed about having hearing aids.

“They barely show and they’re quite pretty, although I’d like them to find a way of attaching drop earrings to them to give them a bit of glamour and glitter!

“You don’t wait until your eyesight has gone to get your eyes tested. It should be the same with your hearing.”

Hearing aside, Amanda is the picture of health.

“If I owe my health and fitness to anything, it’s the fact I was a professional dancer for 17 years,” she says. “I started in the chorus line and went on to revue and West End shows.

“I was in the musical Stepping Out for two and a half years in my 50s. Muscles have a memory and I think mine have a long one, because I’m still pretty loose. I could probably still do the splits — though it wouldn’t be wise to try!”

So what made Amanda decide to take part in Celebrity Big Brother?

“I’d been asked before and refused, but this year they said they were looking for strong, intelligent women with views,” she says. “How could I refuse?

“I didn’t feel like the oldest housemate. I don’t feel any age or any sex — I am who I am. Frankly, I believe working keeps your mind off dying.

“You have to live minute-by-minute on a show like Big Brother. I love being thrown in with a bunch of people I’ve never met before and going through a scary situation with them.

“You really get to know people when they’re unsettled and a bit scared.

“Big Brother was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

“I wasn’t in a good state when I went in. I had bronchitis — on the first night, I had to be rushed off for urgent medical attention — and my sister-in-law had just died, which was hugely upsetting.

“Over the last couple of years, we’ve also lost my nephew, aged 42, and his wife, aged 38, so it’s been a tough time. That gave me a perspective.

“If it got hard in the house, I’d think: ‘Well, my sister-in-law would have loved to have this time and opportunity.’ It also reminded me that Big Brother wasn’t of cosmic importance.

“But you’re in a dimension you’ve never been in — unless you’ve been a hostage! Your free will is taken away.

“Despite that, I’d do it again. It’s good to fend for yourself every so often.”

Amanda is supporting the Specsavers Audiologists Listen Up! Campaign to encourage regular hearing checks. For more information or to book a free test, visit specsavers.co.uk/hearing