Oscar-winning actor Brenda Fricker has spoken about her declining health, describing her current state as “a dreadful death”. The 80-year-old Irish star, who won Best Supporting Actress for My Left Foot in 1990, is confined to her bed in Dublin and experiences daily pain.
In a rare interview with The Guardian, Fricker said she gets out of breath just talking and has never known such tiredness. “I’m having a dreadful death,” she said. “I’m just dying – every day in pain,” adding wryly: “I’ll probably live to be 100.”
The former Coronation Street and Casualty star, also known for playing the pigeon lady in Home Alone 2, revealed she watches The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills to pass sleepless nights. “It’s better than sex. It’s better than getting drunk. I just love it,” she said.
Fricker, who retired from acting in 2014 but returned for roles in Holding and The Catch, said she occasionally receives phone calls from Daniel Day-Lewis, her co-star in My Left Foot. She previously described Christmas as “very dark” and said she turns off her phone and lowers the blinds to cope.
