Naughty Forty...I'll keep you posted.

I turned forty a couple of months ago and it wasn’t so bad. Thirty was much worse and I wasted far too much of my late twenties dreading the oncoming birthday milestone. At thirty I was unsure of who I was, where I was going and what was important in my life. I was wishing I was twenty-five again but not realising what that really meant.

 At forty I looked around and realised that to wish away even one year would delete people, experiences and relationships that I cherish.

The dirty thirties were good to me as a decade with marriage, stability and two beautiful little boys who make my life deeply satisfying every day. I’m not saying my life thus far has panned out as I imagined but it's pretty good.  I have my boys including the adult one, my health, good friends and a supportive loving family.

I haven’t been nominated for a BAFTA or shared the stage with Judy Dench* but I’m okay with that. You move on. You grow up and you become thankful of what you have achieved.

I’ve spent years lying about my age and it is common in the acting business where age defines you.  I’ve always looked younger so I blatantly lied on my CV for acting roles and my age was never questioned.  I then moved to Australia and thought I could do the same not realising that you have to give your employer a tax declaration form before a job starts. In the UK you do your own tax and those producers who can’t see beyond the number written on your CV are no more the wiser.

Luckily I never got a paid job through my useless agent so an embarrassing situation was avoided!

 How ironic that we spend years pretending that we are older to get in to dodgy establishments. Spending hours memorising false dates of birth and star signs fearing a lack of preparation would reveal our not quite so legal selves.

I was asked for ID until I was twenty- three and generally I was flattered but on some occasions I was incredulous at the person’s obvious stupidity or concerned about their optical health!

People thinking you look younger is flattering and a boost to the ego. I myself don’t like to guess peoples’ age, as I am generally wrong. There is nothing worse than somebody estimating you are older than you are. Let’s face it we all have our good days and we all have those days where we look every sleep deprived minute of our actual age.

Age is really a number; it just happens that my number is increasing at an alarming speed. It really does seem two minutes since I was graduating from University, inhaling five pints of lager in London town and doing twelve-hour shifts at Heathrow airport dressed in a Hawaiian skirt!

So I am embracing the fabulous forties. Many amazing people don’t get to celebrate this milestone because they leave this world far too soon. I am one of the lucky ones so middle age come on down! I’d say do your worse but I’m far too vain so please be sparing with the wrinkles for a few more years.

* I did meet her once and she wasn’t very nice to me but I don’t think this counts.  Even though you snapped at me I still love you Judy!