The veteran EastEnders actress who's played chainsmoking Dot Cotton for more than three decades is still vigorous enough to turn up in Albert Square whenever she's needed and yet, like Dot, she still smokes (quite a lot) and drinks in real life. "I'm going to die of something fairly soon, so why not enjoy myself?" June says. "I love red wine and chocolate... and the Guinness helps me keep a bit of weight on." (June has always been cadaverously thin). "So," she adds, "I don't need to be careful about what I eat or drink."
There's something refreshing about June's acceptance that she'll die soon and might as well have a good time while she waits. Because these days we're all expected to live for ever and be as miserable as sin until the Grim Reaper arrives.
The latest knell of doom involves red meat. An Oxford University scientific report has found that eating red meat just once a day increases the risk of bowel cancer by a fifth.
Even those sticking to the Government's recommended limit of 70 grams a day - equivalent to one-third of an eight-ounce steak, or two rashers of bacon - still had a 20 per cent higher chance of developing colon cancer than those who only ate a pathetic 20 grams of meat a day.As we all live longer due to medical advances, we've become totally obsessed with prolonging our lifespans to the limit.
Various groups in the US already say that living to 150 is perfectly possible as long as you virtually starve yourself.We live in a new era of psychological prohibition, scared witless every week by health gurus who tell us how to live for ever. It would be a joyless immortality, deprived of all the small illicit treats that make us happy. And it's a lie. We can't live for ever.
I'm with Dot Cotton. Face the inevitable and enjoy life as much as you can.
Happy Easter - and I hope your Sunday lamb is scrumptious.
Veteran EastEnders actress June Brown (Image: Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
R - EVER been on a demo? No? You should try it - demos are really good fun, like going to a great big outdoor party. I went on a few in my salad days. I can't even remember what we were demonstrating against but I do recall the convivial atmosphere and the sense of shared daring.
There's nothing like a bit of mild rule-breaking, under the comfort blanket of safety in
