Amanda Barrie has celebrated her 91st birthday this month, but the actress has no plans to slow down. In a candid interview, she reflected on the changes in life over the past two decades, the loss of close friends, and her enduring curiosity.
A career spanning seven decades
Barrie's career began in the 1950s with her screen debut in the 1954 sketch series Running Wild. She went on to appear in two early Carry On films—Cabby and Cleo—before becoming a household name as Coronation Street's Alma Sedgewick in 1981. She remained on the soap until 2001, and her later credits include Bad Girls, Benidorm, Casualty, and Celebrity Big Brother.
Reflecting on how life has changed, she said: "Life has changed enormously in the last 20 years. I don't know whether it's attitudes, or whether it's things that were part of one's everyday life seem to have vanished: the chemist, the doctor, personal little shops. That’s happened everywhere."
On health and staying positive
Barrie, who is married to crime writer Hilary Bonner, offered her views on health and ageing. "Health is something that you just have to have a bit of luck with," she said. "I sit here and I think about us spending a fortune on people losing weight and things. I just think they ought to dish out wartime rations!"
She added: "I think I'm very lucky to be still working at my age, to be quite honest. All you've got to do, darling, is carry on breathing, and be curious."
Last year, Barrie and Bonner teamed up for the memoir I’m Still Here. Barrie admitted that with age comes an appreciation for life after losing many loved ones. "I've lost so many friends. And I never delete people from my phone who've died," she said. "I've got a full phone. I just say ‘Oh, dear….’ I'm lucky to be here. I’m very lucky."
Life with Hilary and staying busy
Barrie described her home life with Bonner: "Hilary watches cricket all the time, I'm watching racing all the time. We also see a lot of friends, and I think seeing people and talking is good. You’ve just got to keep your fingers crossed because life is a fragile little bird."
She also reflected on her Carry On days, admitting: "When we did Carry On, we didn’t realise anything was blue or naughty or any of those things. I did see one film recently and thought ‘You’d never get away with that now!'"
Coronation Street memories
Real fame came when Barrie joined Coronation Street in 1981. During her time on the cobbles, Alma ran the cafe with Gail Tilsey (Helen Worth), married Ken Barlow’s rival Mike Baldwin (Johnny Briggs), and formed a lasting bond with Audrey Roberts (Sue Nicholls). Fans still remember her 25 years after Alma was killed off in a cancer storyline.
Barrie said: "It's quite an experience, and there's nothing like being in a soap. I really praise the kids that come into it now, because at least we had a bit of rehearsal. Now, they get it, learn it, do it." She added: "We need things like Coronation Street, because everything's so sort of isolated now. And I think things like Coronation Street really bring people together."
Asked why the soap has changed, she said: "It’s because the world has changed. That's why. You're not going to find the likes of Ena Sharples very often in Manchester now."
Personal struggles and new projects
Barrie also spoke about the pressure she felt to hide her sexuality at the height of her soap fame. She was married to theatre director and actor Robin Hunter in 1967; they separated in the mid-1980s but never divorced. Hunter passed away in 2004, and Barrie married Hilary Bonner in 2014.
She admitted: "I was terrified that people were going to out me at that time. I used to say [my bisexuality] isn’t catching!" She joked: "But things have definitely changed now, so, I think, ‘Well, maybe it was!'"
On nerves, Barrie said: "The harder you work, the less nervous you are, that's just a lesson to be learned for people. I would say to anybody that's doing it, honest to God, you waste so much time being nervous if you're an actor, so much time being anxious and thinking you can't do it."
Recently, Barrie teamed up with Irn-Bru to celebrate the soft drink’s 125th anniversary, riding around London on a bright orange scooter. When asked if there is anything she won’t do at her age, she said: "Anything that's offered up to a point, I'll still do, it keeps you going. Although, I don’t think I'd do another pantomime."
She quickly added: "Unless I was on a whizzy chair! I think that applies to everything really. You go, ‘No, I couldn't,' and then you realise, ‘Yes, I could! I can do that!’"
