Broadcaster Gloria Hunniford has praised film set make-up for enabling her to return to work after breaking her eye socket in a fall.
The Loose Woman star said she did not leave the house for three weeks after tripping over a rug on to a wooden floor and cracking the bone under her eye.
Appearing on the September cover of Prima magazine, she said: “My eye was full of blood and I was black, blue and yellow.
“I’ve had nightmares about the impact, I’ll never forget the slap of my face on the ground. I didn’t want to see anyone for a while, I thought I’d terrify the neighbours.
“Then, one of my make-up artist friends brought me this magic make-up, which they use to cover tattoos on film sets.
“It’s allowed me to get back to work, which is lucky because I’m not good at taking time off. I’m fortunate that I have a job I truly love, which stimulates me.”
The 82-year-old started her career in television in her native Northern Ireland before going to London to work on We Love TV and Open House With Gloria Hunniford.
Since then she has been a continuous presence in living rooms around the country, on Loose Women, This Morning, Rip Off Britain, Home Away From Home and Food: Truth Or Scare.
Having spent more than 70 years in showbusiness, Hunniford said she has no plans to retire.
“I’d love to have my own chat show again. I hope to God I can continue working, I don’t want to just sit around reading.
“As long as I have the energy and will to work, I’ll continue doing so, because I love it so much and it feeds my system. I just love a challenge.
“Some people will say, ‘I can’t do that’. I say, ‘What do I have to lose? I might as well give it a shot’.”
Hunniford’s daughter Caron Keating, also a TV presenter, died of breast cancer in 2004.
She was made an OBE in the 2017 Queen’s Birthday Honours for her contribution to cancer charities through breast screening services and cancer support.
Hunniford said: “When you hear that your child has cancer, it’s one of the worst days of your life – the other being the day she died.
“Caron was so determined and positive. She fought her seven-year battle in secrecy – she never wanted anyone to know.
“There’s a phrase that’s really important to me: ‘People never die if they live on the lips of the living’. Therefore, I always talk about Caron, especially to her two boys, Charlie and Gabriel, who are now 28 and 25.
“As a family, we celebrate everything, whether it’s her passing, her birthday, Mother’s Day or Christmas, we raise a glass to her all the time.
“We try not to get too morbid, but we celebrate her and talk about her openly. I think about her a million times a day.”
The September issue of Prima is on sale from August 11.