According to actress Miriam Margolyes, we need to be more frank about the afflictions faced by the elderly.
The 75 year old Cambridge-educated comedienne believes the physical challenges of getting older are rarely discussed. In fact, she said there was a conspiracy of silence about the elderly. ‘Nobody tells you that old age is going to be sh***y,’ she said in an interview. ‘It’s a kind of conspiracy.’
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Miss Margolyes said she often thinks about how and when she is going to die, cramming as much into each day as she can, while being remarkably up front about her physical shortcomings. The star, who played herbology teacher Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter films, said stress incontinence means she cannot venture too far from a toilet nor can she run up stairs thanks to a knee problem. She was also recently diagnosed with osteoporosis.
‘At 75, death can’t be far away,’ she said. ‘It’s made me busier. I try to pack a little bit too much into each day, because there might not be tomorrow. ‘I have to be near a toilet because if I cough or sneeze, I can p*** myself. I think it’s common among people my age, but nobody ever talks about it. I’ve got to talk about it. It’s on my mind.’
Miss Margolyes, whose father was a GP, recalled an incident on Hampstead Heath in London when she suddenly realized she urgently needed the toilet and knocked on the door of a nearby house. She said: ‘The owner looked at me for a minute and said: “I think I recognize you, are you Miriam Margolyes?” I said: “Yes, I am ... does that make it better or worse?”’
Her stress incontinence developed after an operation to remove a kidney stone and her difficulty with stairs has come after a knee operation. She told the Guardian: ‘It’s irritating. I have to say to a director: if you want me to run upstairs, you’ll have to get another actress.’ She also said she has to ask for a wheelchair at the airport and, describing how she is frequently bumped on public transport, decried the way young people ignore the challenges of old age.