‘I’m so
proud of my baby brother’ As the movie of Mrs Brown’s Boys is released we chat to actress Eilish O’Carroll, the real-life big sister of leading star Brendan, about the secret of the show’s success By Alison James here aren’t many TV comedies that leave you aching with laughter but BBC’s Mrs Brown’s Boys is one of them. It’s rude, lewd and a little bit crude but also hilariously funny. We Brits have always loved the Pantomine Dame/Stanley Baxter/Danny La Rue/Lily Savage idea of a man disguised as a woman on stage but Mrs Brown’s Boys is far more than a drag act. So what’s the secret of its phenomenal success? Eilish O’Carroll, who plays Agnes Brown’s dozy nextdoor neighbour and best friend Winnie McGoogan, says it’s a combination of things. “Brendan’s script is incredibly funny to begin with and it comes to life as soon as he becomes
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Agnes. The fact that so many of us appearing in the show are related in real life also gives it a unique charm. We know each other so well, there’s a kind of shorthand between us all, a natural rhythm to what we do. Personally, I can always sense when Brendan is about to say or do something – I can virtually smell it! Then there are the flaws in the show, which the viewers absolutely love – we film in front of a live audience
Brendan’s sister Eilish O’Carroll (inset) and above, in character with her brother
and when something goes wrong, Brendan incorporates it into the narrative. You have to be a comedy genius to ad-lib and think that quickly but that’s what Brendan is.” Not that he’ll have been able to do that kind of spontaneous thing in Mrs Brown’s Boys D’Movie, which sees Dublin market trader Agnes taking on the men in suits who want to close the market. “The film was great fun to make – I don’t know where Brendan gets all his ideas from,” says Eilish.
It’s a family affair - Mrs Brown’s world... Agnes Brown is played by Brendan O’Carroll. Winnie McGoogan (Agnes’ neighbour) is Eilish, Brendan’s sister. Cathy Brown (Agnes’ daughter) is Brendan’s wife, Jennifer Gibney. Sharon (Winnie’s daughter) is Jennifer’s sister, Fiona Gibney. Betty (Agnes’ daughter-in-law) is Brendan’s real life daughter-in-law Amanda Woods. Maria (another daughter-in-law) is Brendan’s daughter Fiona. Father Trevor (Agnes’ son) is Fiona’s husband Martin Delaney. Buster Brady is Brendan’s son, Danny. Bono Brown (Agnes’ grandson) is real life grandson Jamie.
❙ star chat ❙ children today. As soon as we were up and dressed, we’d be out on the street regardless of whether it was hailing, raining or snowing. It was the same with all the kids we knew. No one had anything much and what we did have, we shared. The first clothes I ever had that weren’t hand-medowns were my First Communion and Confirmation dresses. But our upbringing was really the making of us. Although Brendan’s very much the person in charge when
‘No one had anything much and what we did have, we shared’ we’re working, he’s still my baby brother. That’s the role he holds in my heart.” She laughs. “That’s not to say there aren’t times when I want to slap him! When we’re working together, though, and he’s Agnes Brown, she is all I see. When he’s Agnes, there are times when he’ll say something or have a certain look on his face, and I see our mother in him.” So what’s Brendan like when he’s not being Agnes Brown? “Extremely funny,” smiles Eilish. “When you’re in his company it’s impossible not to laugh. He sees the humour ✢ Mrs Brown’s in every situation.” She sounds immensely Boys D’Movie proud of him. “Oh I am – is released on June 27 so proud I could burst. We all are!” PICS: BBC PICTURES; UNIVERSAL; WENN.COM
Mrs Brown’s Boys started out as a stage show in the Nineties. The team are touring theatres across the UK from March 2015 and there’s the Christmas special to film. “I’m hoping we’ll get to do another series or two for the BBC as well,” Eilish continues, “although that’s yet to be confirmed.” With viewing figures of 9.4 million for the last Christmas special, we’d say that was a given. “I’ve been working with Brendan on the stage show of Mrs Brown’s Boys since 1999 but when the BBC came on board to make the first series in 2011, none of us anticipated just how big it would become. It was more like ‘let’s just enjoy this experience while it lasts’. Everyone was taking a risk but it’s a risk that’s paid off hugely. Thinking back, the timing was absolutely right; we’d gone into a global recession and everyone wanted to have a good belly laugh. They still do.” As the youngest two in a family of 12 children, Eilish, who was born in the early Fifties, and Brendan have always been close. “There was me, Brendan and our brother Michael who’s a year older than me,” Eilish reveals. “We were a gang of three. As we were such a big family with a wide range of ages, we all tended to break off into groups. The oldest of our siblings had left home by the time we were six or seven. We had a tough childhood compared with
Agnes Brown with her famous boys (and girl!)
PIC:
Brendan and wife Jennifer Gibney, who plays his daughter in the show! Below: market day for Agnes and Winnie
Style notes
UPDATE your
summer lo o
Who needs a whole new wardrobe this summer, when you can brighten up your old one with these colourful purse-friendly buys? By Fashion Editor, Michelle Nightingale
✢ A bold print is perfect for teaming with neutral whites. Floral print top, £20, 8-26 and cream trouser, £38, 6-20, both Next; shoes, £23, 3-8, Bhs
✢ Look for a maxi dress with a waist tie detail, so it doesn’t look shapeless. Stripe maxi dress, £28, 6-26; silver sandals, £32, 3-8; bag, £28, all from Next
More quick fixes we love… ✢ Stripe skirt, £20, 6-18, Next
REGULAR PETITE & TALL
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✢ Sunglasses, £10, F&F at Tesco
✢ Kaftan, £14, 8-20, George at Asda
HOLIDAY MUST HAVE
EVERY FORTNIGHT
✢ Yellow point shoes, £22, 3-9, Next
✢ White sandals, £4, 3-8, Primark
✢ Pink stripe top, £8, 8-22, M&Co
from
o ok £4! ✢ This dress is sleeveless, so team with this pretty cardigan to hide less than perfect arms. It’s a steal too! Floral dress, £18, 10-24, George at Asda; cropped cardigan, £12.50, 8-22, Bhs
PHOTOGRAPHY ANGELA SPAIN; STYLIST JO WINCH; HAIR AND MAKE-UP SARAH JANE GREEN.
✢ Drop earrings, £6, M&Co
✢ Sleeveless print top, £20, 8-22, M&Co; linen mix white skirt, £25, 6-22, Marks & Spencer; earrings, £8.50, Next; bangle, £15, Jon Richard at Debenhams
FASHION EDITOR LOVES ✢ White satchel, £7, Primark
✢ Cork wedge shoe, £15, 3-8, Bhs ✢ Blue spot shirt, £14, 8-20, George at Asda
STOCKISTS: Bhs 0844 411 6000 www.bhs.co.uk; Debenhams 0844 561 6161 www.debenhams.com; F&F at Tesco 0800 505 555 www.clothingattesco.com; George at Asda 0800 952 0101 www.asda.com; M&Co 0800 031 7200 www.mandco.com; Marks & Spencer 0845 302 1234 www.marksandspencer.com; Next 0844 844 8000 www.next.co.uk; Primark 0118 9606 300. All details correct at time of going to press
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HEALTH &
vitality
Simple steps to
HEALTHY AGEING Inflammation, a hidden health risk inside all of us, contributes to a wide range of agerelated illnesses, but we can fight back! By Charlotte Haigh MacNeil
About inflammation
Meet the expert:
Professor Janet Lord is head of the School of Immunity and Infection at the University of Birmingham and also Director of the Medawar Centre for Healthy Ageing Research. Her research focuses on the causes of ageing and how health can be maintained into old age
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If you have arthritis you’re probably well acquainted with inflammation. But inflammation can also happen undetected inside your body and has been linked with a range of age-related health conditions such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer’s. “There are different levels,” explains Professor Janet Lord, Director of the Medawar Centre for Healthy Ageing Research. “Some, such as rheumatoid arthritis, cause obvious symptoms and can only be relieved with medical treatment. But scientists have also discovered that low-grade inflammation grumbles away in your body making you age faster, a condition that experts have called ‘inflamm-ageing’.” This generally starts to develop postmenopause when levels of protective oestrogen drop. “Your immune system can also become a bit more inflamed with age, making you susceptible to illness,” says Janet. Inflammation is part of your body’s immune response and helps fight infection and foreign substances such as bacteria and viruses, so it isn’t always a negative thing. “It’s long-term, inappropriate inflammation that causes problems. Trial data has shown it can raise your risk of dementia, and other research has linked it with cardiovascular disease. It has also been associated with osteoarthritis and Type 2 diabetes. But the good news is, chronic inflammation is treatable and there’s a lot you can do to help yourself.
Ways to calm inflammation
✢ Guard against weight gain
“Obesity leads to low-level chronic inflammation, and is one reason why being overweight increases your risk of a range of age-related diseases including heart disease,” says Janet. Even middle-aged spread is a risk. “Fat not only builds up around your middle, it also infiltrates your muscles, where it releases inflammatory substances called cytokines. Pay attention to your waist-hip ratio more than your overall weight. Even if you haven’t gained pounds, putting on inches around your waist can be a problem.” Aim for a waist measurement of less than 80cm (31½in) if you’re a woman and 94cm (37in) if you’re a man. For help losing weight, visit www. yoursdietclub.co.uk
Pay attention to your waist-hip ratio more than your ove rall weight ✢ Get moving “Being active helps keep fat levels down, plus your muscles make hormones that dampen inflammation,” says Janet. “You don’t have to go to the gym or run – fitting activity into your daily life is ideal. Take a brisk 20-minute walk every day and take the stairs wherever possible – going up and down stairs is wonderful exercise.” If you have trouble getting up and out why not try some chair-based exercises? You can get a DVD of simple chair-based exercises from www. moveitorloseit.co.uk or call 0800 612 0450.
✢ Eat more fruit and vegetables Fruit and vegetables are packed with antioxidants, and research published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found they are beneficial for reducing inflammation. This could explain why eating plenty of fruit and veg helps reduce your risk of heart disease and dementia. Aim for at least five portions of fruit and veg a day.
✢ Stand up Exercise alone isn’t enough – you also need to avoid sitting too much. “Even if you walk in the morning, if you spend the rest of the day sitting, you’re undoing the good you’ve done,” says Janet. As you sit, your muscles start to break down and you lose the benefits of the anti-inflammatory substances they make. Don’t sit still too long; get up once an hour to make a cup of tea or do some housework. Do the ironing while watching TV and try to stand when on public transport.
✢ Choose the right fats Eating too much saturated fat could increase your risk of inflammation. Try to have fewer portions of cheese, butter, cream, cakes, biscuits and red meat. “Instead, increase your intake of polyunsaturated fat from vegetable oils,” says Janet. Try olive oil and safflower oil, nuts, seeds and avocadoes. Olive oil contains an anti-inflammatory compound called oleocanthal, which has a similar action to ibuprofen, a common antiinflammatory drug.
Olive oil contains an anti-inflammatory compound that is similar to ibuprofen
Turn the page for more advice to help beat inflammation YOURS
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Time of my
life
Welcome to
Majorca...
on’t you know any other jokes?” a young boy said to me as he got off the coach. “Do what?” I asked. “You told the same ones last year.” Oops. I had just discovered the problem comedians had when changing from ‘doing the clubs’ to working on television. We had just arrived at the ‘Barbecue’ somewhere north of Palma, Mallorca. This was way back in the Seventies and I was a hotel-rep-cum-tour-guide. During the summer it seemed that we spent all of our time working and, yes, we loved it! Of course many of our clients at the hotels assumed we only worked when they saw us at their hotels. I’m sure they would have been shocked to know that, on average, most of us worked ten hours a day, seven days a week. One summer, the tour operator I worked for decided to offer holidays starting on four different days a week. During the six weeks of high season I think I managed to get to bed five nights a week! Some days I would do an afternoon/evening airport transfer, then change coaches in Palma to guide a coach to the barbecue or Medieval Night. By
D
Barbara Bothwell recalls mislaid passports, long hours and endless entertainment as a Seventies tour rep
the time I had delivered clients back to their hotels and got home it would be about 2am. Then I had to do a hotel visit at 8am, followed by a welcome meeting, dash home to do some laundry, back to the hotel for midday and stay until 3pm. As I didn’t have a phone in the flat I rented there was no time for a siesta as I had to call the office at 4pm to give them my numbers for the next day’s excursion. Then back to the hotel at 6pm until 9pm – if I was lucky. Some evenings there would be a nightclub excursion after which I would get home at about 3am. If I was really lucky I would then have to meet a coach at 5am to start an airport transfer. The most unpopular part of
It was amazing how many people packed their passports – despite having been told not to do so 68
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the job was these airport transfers, especially on Saturdays, with hundreds of people milling about Barbara didn’t get much with their sleep – but she loved her job! luggage, stray children, possible flight delays and various other problems. It was amazing how many people packed their passports – despite having been told not to do so. There was always someone unpacking at the airport to find these precious documents! One of my most memorable ‘arrival’ comments was from a lady who was en route to Ibiza. I told her where to wait so that she (and others) could be taken to that flight. “Don’t worry, love, point me in the right direction and I’ll walk.” Obviously, she was under the impression that she was
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the day trips around Mallorca to places such as Valldemossa, Caves of Drach, Palma, Inca Market, and Puerto de Pollensa and had learned the history and topography of the island. Of course on the evening trips there wasn’t much chance of proper guiding (except when driving through Palma) so I created other forms of entertainment, such as monologues and stale jokes. Following the death of General Franco, life became more relaxed and cabaret entertainment changed quite radically. Unfortunately we guides weren’t always forewarned. One nightclub excursion
To our surprise, the ‘comic turn’ turned out to be a striptease! was advertised as consisting of Flamenco and ‘a comic turn’. Imagine our surprise when the comic turned out to be a striptease! It was the first time I’d ever seen it and it really wasn’t very good. Once it began myself and the other on-duty guide immediately left the auditorium to find the manager – the other woman was actually crying. I then suggested to my fellow rep that we should apologise to our clients and explain that we hadn’t been forewarned, then simply continue with our onward journeys to the hotels. As soon as I apologised a huge cheer went up – my coachload had loved it and thought it was a comic turn in itself. Whew! No matter how busy I was during those years I loved the job and all of the people I met.
Have you got an amazing story to tell? We’ll pay up to £100 for every story we print. Send your story (no more than 1,000 words) and pictures to: ‘Your Memories’, Yours magazine, Media House, Peterborough Business Park, Peterborough PE2 6EA. Or you can email your stories and pictures to valery.mcconnell@bauermedia.co.uk
Quirky connections
The Worried Men were talent spotted while playing Soho’s 2 I’s coffee bar by producer of the TV show, Six-Five Special, presented by Pete Murray (left). Singer, Terry Nelhams-Wright, got a solo contract and a name change to...
Adam Faith (right). After a few flops he had a number one hit with What Do You Want, in 1959. It was written by Les Vandyke, also known as John Worsley, who, under many different names, wrote numerous hits through the Sixties and Seventies including...
Jack in the Box for Clodagh Rodgers (left) in 1971 to sing at Eurovision. Although it was her biggest UK chart hit, it only came fourth – our lowest ranking since 1966. A failed Eurovision song contender that year, Another Time, Another Place, was a hit for Englebert Humperdinck... PICS: ALAMY, REX FEATURES; GETTY IMAGES
already in Ibiza. What was so fascinating about the job was the variety of tourists – all (with a few exceptions) – fantastic people to meet. I certainly found that people loved to tell me their life stories, most of which were very similar, but I did meet the most unexpected people, too. For several winters a couple would spend their holiday at whichever hotel I was staying in – he was at the time Chief Scout. One summer we had a large family staying at the hotel where I was based and I was told that four of their daughters were staying at a hotel in Palma Nova. Turns out their name was Nolan. Another winter I met a gentleman, his partner and their daughter. He looked faintly familiar and then I checked his name... Derek Roy; the comedian whom I remembered listening to on the radio in the Forties and Fifties. We remained friends for a couple of years until his sad death from cancer in 1981. I really loved guiding the tours. What was rewarding after an excursion was being told that I was more interesting and informative than the professional guides. I did have an advantage over some other reps in that during my first summer I had been a guide on
Who in 2012 represented Britain in Eurovision singing Love Will Set You Free. Englebert (right) would have been delighted with fourth place – he came 25th, which was second to last. Sweden’s Loreen was the winner...
Making it the fifth time they have been Eurovision champions. The first time was in 1974, when ABBA (right) took the title with Waterloo. YOURS
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0 1 BEST... of the
LIDOS
We’ve found ten outdoor pools where it’s worth taking the plunge this summer – if you are brave enough!
✢The Rock Pool
VIEWS OVER THE SOLENT
✢ Lymington Sea Water Baths NR SOUTHAMPTON, HAMPSHIRE The picturesque seawater pools at Lymington date back to the early 19th Century, boasting views over the Solent to the Isle of Wight. It’s one of the oldest open-air pools in the UK, and in the early days “a male guide kept bathers afloat with the use of a rope”! ✢ Open 7.30-9.30am and 2-6pm weekdays, and10am-6pm at weekends. Call 01590 678 882 or visit www. lymingtonseawaterbaths.org.uk
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NEWCASTLE, CO DOWN The Rock Pool opened more than 80 years ago, and many enjoyed a leisurely seawater swim, with the Irish Sea in view. These days the pool has gone from strength to strength, and has been used to help train almost double the number of lifeguards than any other pool in the area – you’re in safe hands! ✢ Call 0284 372 5034 or visit www.therockpool.co.uk
✢ Pells Pool
TRY AN EARLY SWIM
LEWES, EAST SUSSEX This year Pells is trialling early morning swims on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 7-9am, so get your cossies on and show everyone what you’re made of! They’re also running a Lido Challenge for Macmillan Cancer Support on September 20, where your training can be put to good use.
✢ Open12-7pm daily;10am-7pm at weekends. Call 01273 472334 or visit www.pellspool.org.uk
✢ Ilkley Lido ILKLEY, WEST YORKS Sunny days are best spent lazing by this unheated freshwater pool close to the Wharfe (there’s an indoor pool, too, if the sky suddenly turns grey!). The grassy sunbathing and picnic area is ideally situated next to the cricket club, and there’s plenty of woodland nearby too. ✢ Open12-7.30pm weekdays,10.30am5.30pm weekends. Call 01943 600453 or visit www.bradford.gov.uk and www.ilkleylido.co.uk
✢ Nantwich Outdoor Brine Pool
✢ Open11am-7pm weekdays, 9.30am5pm Sat, and10am-5pm Sun. Call 01270 685590 or visit www.everybody.org.uk/ centres/nsp
✢ Stonehaven Pool QUEEN ELIZABETH PARK, NR ABERDEEN Dug in the Thirties, this Olympicsize attraction might be awash with seawater, but it’s fully heated and popular with locals and tourists. On Wednesday nights in peak season you can also take a ‘midnight swim’ from 10pm until midnight! ✢ Open Mon, Weds, Thurs10am7.30pm, Tues and Fri 6.30am-7.30pm and10am-6pm at weekends. Tickets required for Midnight Swims. Call 01569 762134 or visit www. stonehavenopenairpool.co.uk
RETAINS ORIGINAL FEATURES
✢ Jesus Green Swimming Pool CAMBRIDGE There aren’t many lidos left that were built in the Twenties. Thankfully, the pool at Jesus Green has been open since 1923 – and as well as the separate showering and changing facilities, there’s still a traditional ‘basket room’ for your clothes! ✢ Open Mon, Tues and Fri 7.30am-7.30pm, Weds and Thurs 12-7.30pm, and11am-7.30pm weekends. Call 01223 302579 or visit www.cambridge.gov.uk/jesus-green-outdoor-pool
✢ Gourock Outdoor Pool
✢ Sandford Parks Lido CHELTENHAM,
NR PORT GLASGOW, RENFREWSHIRE The oldest saltwater lido in Scotland has been open since 1909. Nowadays it heats water from the River Clyde, before it escapes into the Firth of Clyde. Recently refurbished, the patio views of the estuary are beautiful.
GLOUCESTERSHIRE For Sandford’s opening day this season, staff dressed up in traditional ‘navy whites’ and the entrance fee was the 1935 price of 2p (roughly sixpence). Sounds like our sort of place! The lido also welcomes personal memories and documents relating to its history – please contact them directly if you can help.
✢ Open Mon 7.30am-7pm, Tues and Thurs 9am-8pm, Weds and Fri 7.30am-7pm and10am-4.30pm at weekends. Call 01475 715670, www.inverclydeleisure.com
TAKE A MIDNIGHT DIP
✢ Open Mon, Weds, Fri 6.30am-7.30pm, Tues 9.30am-7.30pm, Sat11am-7.30pm, and Sun 8am-7.30pm. Call 01242 524430 or visit www.sandfordparkslido.org.uk
✢ Chagford Pool DARTMOOR NATIONAL PARK, DEVON Locals dug this freshwater lido in the Thirties, filling it with water from the nearby River Dart. It’s the perfect place to cool off after a pleasant moors’ walk. The water is warmed by solar panels in the mornings, but hardy swimmers might like to try a Dawn Dip, from 8am on Mondays! ✢ Open 2-6pm daily. Over 50s only,1-2pm Friday. Call 01647 432929 or visit www.chagfordpool.co.uk
✢ We’re also thrilled to mention that the only Grade Two listed lido in Wales is currently undergoing refurbishment. Ynysangharad Park lido was built in 1927 and should be ready for Pontypridd’s public by next summer. Hurrah! ✢ NEXT ISSUE The top ten British beaches
Ten of the best
places to try someth ing new
to a fun Turn your handthis summer activity or two
Missed our feature on... new hobbies to try?
Visit
www.yours.co.uk
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WORDS: ALEX FRISBY; PICS: ALAMY; SHUTTERSTOCK
NR CREWE, CHESHIRE One of the last few inland brine pools in the country, the pool exists thanks to a nearby ‘salt pit’, or brine spring. It was a popular spot for soldiers recovering after the First World War, and some of the older swimmers even remember school days there when the water was usually close to freezing! Happily it is now maintained at a balmy 22°C/74°F.
mfrom y lessons life… Best-selling author Josephine Cox shares her writing secrets and chats about life growing up as one of ten Whether one of my characters is giving birth or committing murder, I have to become them in my head. So, if I have 12 characters in a book, I have to be 12 different people. And if I can’t feel the relevant emotions for a particular character, then that character is dead and must be dispatched!
✢ There was lots of love when I was growing up However, times were very hard. I’m one of ten children and there was never enough money to go round. There were seven boys and three girls. So I can fight, I can play football, I can climb trees. I learnt early the art of survival. Dad worked in the quarries and then on the roads. Mum worked full-time in the cotton mill.
✢ Friendships can change your life Mum left Dad when I was 14. Five of us children, me included, moved south from Blackburn with her. I married at 16, had 138
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two sons and became a a secondary school teacher. In my late Thirties, I had surgery that kept me in bed for six weeks. I’d always hankered after writing fiction and a friend gave me a pile of notebooks and pens and challenged me to realise my dream while I was laid up. That’s how my first book, Her Father’s Sins, came about.
✢ Amazing things happen Five months after my manuscript arrived at the publisher Futura, I got a call from a lovely lady, Susan Watts, who invited me to meet her boss. He said something I’ll never forget: he wanted to publish my book and everything else, he said, that I ever wrote. Talk about music to my ears! This was the end of the Eighties and I’ve written an average of two books a year ever since.
✢ My husband was a rock My husband, Ken, whom I lost a few years ago, couldn’t have been more proud.
We travelled three times across the world – to Australia and back – on book tours together. I’m told I’ve now sold about 20 million books. Unbelievable!
✢ Be prepared for the unexpected If I could speak to the 16-year-old Josephine today, I’d tell her to work hard, be determined and follow your heart. But life has shown me that, however much you feel you’re in charge of your own destiny, you never know what’s round the corner.
✢ Life can change in a moment My 50th book The Runaway Woman, is about a woman who discovers her husband in bed with her sister. That’s the trigger for propelling her into a new life. ✢ The Runaway Woman by Josephine Cox (HarperCollins, £14.99) is out now. For all the latest news on Josephine visit www.josephinecox.com ✢ She was talking to Richard Barber
WHAT MADE YOU WHO YOU ARE TODAY? Two people. Grandpa Harrison, Mum’s father, who wore a flat cap and always had a Terrier running by his side. I think I was his favourite. Certainly I was the one most receptive to the stories he’d tell. Then there was my teacher, Miss Jackson, who read Oliver Twist to my class when I was eight. I’ve been hooked on Dickens ever since.
PICS: SHUTTERSTOCK
✢ I become my characters