ट्रिविया

She had her scenes from Love, Actually (2003) deleted from the final film, they feature in the DVD extras. She played the school headmistress, whose lesbian lover was played by Frances de la Tour.

She chose to leave Coronation Street (1960) at the end of 1970 because she didn't want to spend the rest of her career playing the same role. Shortly afterwards, she gave birth to her son, her husband was sick and she looked after her mother. As a consequence, she didn't work much for the next 12 years.

She turned down a role in Calendar Girls (2003) so she could star in The Mother (2003).

She gave up smoking in 1978 and smoked herbal cigarettes to play Mrs. Thackeray in the revival of Upstairs Downstairs (2010).

She comes from a family connected with journalism and newspapers.

She was named Oldie Pin-Up of the Year at the 2014 Oldie Magazine Awards.

She underwent hip replacement surgery. (2019)

She is one of only 31 performers to have acted in both Doctor Who (1963) and Doctor Who (2005). She played Nurse Crane in The Curse of Fenric: Part One (1989) and Florence Finnegan in Smith and Jones (2007).

She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) in London, England.

She also performs in cabaret, singing songs and telling stories about her life and career.

She received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from the University of Sunderland. (जुलाई 2015)

She acted in two BBC television adaptations of Charles Dickens' classic story "Bleak House": Bleak House (1985) and Bleak House (2005).

Her favourite movie star when she was growing up was William Holden.

She auditioned for a role in You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010) directed by Woody Allen but was unsuccessful. Pauline Collins was cast instead.

She twice played the daughter in a mother and daughter role with Dora Bryan, both times for Victoria Wood and despite being only 12 years younger than Bryan. The first time was in 1986 in a sketch for an episode of Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV (1985). The second time was in 1998 in an episode of dinnerladies (1998).

Her three brothers all worked on the Newcastle Journal, while one of her grandfathers worked on the Bolton Evening News.

Gave birth to her only child at age 36, a son Mark Eckersley on November 13, 1971. Child's father was her husband, Peter Eckersley.

She admitted on BBC1's Breakfast Show on November 18, 2013 that she suffers from vertigo.

Attended Whitehouse Primary School, Redcar where a fellow student was June Laverick and together they appeared in a school production of "Romeo and Juliet".

She is the daughter of Colin Reid (born Colin Norman Reid 1896, died 1970), who was a journalist on The Daily Telegraph, and Annie Elizabeth Reid (born Annie Eliza Weetman 1896, died 22 September 1980).

Her Coronation Street (1960) character Valerie Barlow became the third woman in the soap opera to give birth. Valerie had twins Susan (played originally by Katie Heannau and later Joanna Foster) and Peter (played by originally by Robert Heanue and later Chris Gascoyne), born on 5 April 1965.

She is the younger sister of Thomas Reid (b. 1921) and Colin Reid (b. 1923).

Her father was a journalist in Newcastle and later became a Foreign Correspondent with The Daily Telegraph.

She was cast in The Mother (2003) after being seen in a play at the Royal Court Theatre in London.

Best friends with Thelma Barlow; they frequently holiday together.

Resided for many years in Bramhall, Cheshire before returning to London circa 2002.

She was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2010 Queen's Birthday Honours List and the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2025 King's New Years Honours List for her services to Drama. She is an actress in London, England.