Nanette: "I had my 90th a few weeks ago. I woke up one morning and I didn’t feel 90 at all... I felt more like 104!

It was one of those awful mornings with bills and all those terrible things that come in the mail. One of the other things in the mail was a letter from Gyles saying I was going to get this award. I was thrilled. I’m a big fan of the magazine.

How should I say thank you… I thought of all those acceptance speeches on TV. People who say they have nothing prepared and then bring out 10 pages. Others who thank God, thank their family, thank their dog, thank EVERYONE.

I’m just going to say thank you to Gyles and to The Oldie magazine which I love.

This is an incredible, incredible treat.

Now I don’t feel 90. I feel 82 and a half."

John: "Ok right. No mother-in-law jokes.

The last thing in a million years I wanted was to be an actor. I wanted to be a painter. I came from a whole family of actors and it’s the last thing in the world I wanted to do.

I was a soldier for a couple of years, and then finally my mother said you can't be a painter, you must drop out of art school - you must be an actor.

I hadn't been to drama school or done any training but I learnt a bit of Shakespeare, flung myself on the ground at an audition in Stratford and got myself a position as spear thrower. That was of course in Titus Andronicus and the rest is history. I've been an actor for god knows how long, far too long really.

But anyway how wonderful to get an award from a magazine I’ve never read - the title always put me off!"

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Photos by Neil Spence Photography

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