People say I try to be the centre of attention, but I think I just try to make people laugh.

I know I'm getting something out of it (counseling), Pat is getting something, even my daughter is getting something out of it. We don't like coming, but it is really helping, and it gives us some place to go together.

People say I try to be the centre of attention, but I think I just try to make people laugh.

When I was about 17, I didn't speak. English was like a foreign language. I'd just grunt. The only time I talked was when I said my lines on set. I didn't speak to any of the actors or anything. Then one day Alison from the Corrie press office started talking to me in the green room and I just decided to talk back. She ran upstairs to tell everyone that she'd just had a 10-minute conversation with me like it was the most unbelievable thing in the world. I just woke up one day and thought, 'I'm going to talk today'. I've really made up for lost time since.

I won't deny that I'm in touch with my feminine side. If I'm in a lift and there's no one in there, I'll have a glance and check my hair. And if there's someone in there, I'll still check it.