Masterchef’s Lesley Joseph insists she has no plans to retire aged 76

ok.co.uk:

By the age of 76, most people are putting their feet up and enjoying retirement, but that’s definitely not the case for Lesley Joseph.The much-loved actress is busier than ever – and that’s exactly the way she likes it. “Sometimes I can’t believe how old I am because I’ve got so much energy,” says Lesley, whose own mum lived to the age of 103. “There’s nothing I can’t do now that I could do when I was in my forties.

I’m fit as a flea, to be honest, and I love doing yoga. Retirement just isn’t in my plans – learning lines keeps my brain young and performing keeps my body fit.There are also a few other things I would like to do before I retire.” Right now, Lesley is in a new production of Sister Act: The Musical , based on the 1992 film of the same name starring Whoopi Goldberg, which opened last month at London’s Eventim Apollo.The show, which also stars Beverley Knight and Jennifer Saunders, sees her character Sister Mary Lazarus attempting a rap in one particularly amusing scene. “Doing my first ever rap was so much fun,” says Lesley, who will also head out on tour when the West End run finishes at the end of the month. “I’ve never had such a great reaction from an audience.

I get to sing a lot and working with Jennifer Saunders and Beverley Knight is amazing. It’s very much an uplifting show.” Of course, wearing a flowing nun’s robe makes quite a change for Lesley, who, for many people, will always be best known as snobbish but endearing man-eater Dorien Green in comedy series Birds Of A Feather –a character who was known for strutting her stuff in miniskirts and stilettos.

The series, which started in 1989 and ran on and off until December 2020, was one of TV’s most successful sitcoms, regularly drawing audiences of.