London - Tottering in heels while wearing yet another outrageous outfit, her Absolutely Fabulous alter ego scorned every opportunity to dress her age.
And now 65-year-old Joanna Lumley, who played drunken fashionista Patsy Stone in the comedy series, is calling on older women to throw out the rule book when it comes to growing old gracefully.
She has called on the over-40s to embrace high street style and not be held back by their age.
The grandmother of two advocated “mutton dressed as lamb” shops, encouraging middle-aged women to buy in Topshop (the British equivalent of YDE), wear short skirts, and grow their hair if they want.
“I think it’s important for women to be daring and not worry what people say,” she told a magazine.
“People often say you can’t have long hair over 40. B******* to that! I want long hair and I’m going to keep my long hair. And there’s no reason we shouldn’t go in to Topshop because of our age. You can always find something to go with what you’ve got in there.
“When it comes to fashion, I look good in cheap clothes. I suit the high street, not designer fashion. I love what people might call mutton dressed as lamb shops - I love layering clothes, like young girls wear.”
She added: “I like shape and colour, and being experimental with fashion. “The other day I put on a pair of old Jean Muir shorts I found at the back of the wardrobe. “I put on a long coaty thing over the top and a top with a big belt. And I felt fabulous.
“Mind you, nobody said anything about how I looked - not a compliment in sight - so maybe I didn’t look that great. “But, gosh, I felt marvellous.”
Lumley confessed that she maintains her figure with a hectic lifestyle and, instead of the gym, “runs up and down stairs”.
The veteran actress credited her health and enviable complexion with an array of vitamins and supplements, including flaxseed oil.
And Astral cream - which she has used for 35 years and costs just £3 a pot - works better for her than expensive anti-wrinkle and face-firming products.
Lumley, who is married to musician Stephen Barlow, also used the magazine interview to call for more support for women who look after elderly relatives as well as children.
“For young mothers, we need to offer real, responsible childcare,” she said.
“There’s too much emphasis now on getting back to work as soon as possible.
“At the other end of life, women often end up as the carers for elderly relatives, and I’d like to crack a few whips in order to better help them too. We should give a proper status to what they do and put in place facilities to give them a break.”
Three new episodes of Absolutely Fabulous will be broadcast later this year - eight years after the last series.
The full interview is in the November UK issue of Woman & Home magazine. - Daily Mail