June Brown has revealed she is going blind.
The 92-year-old EastEnders legend – who has played Dot Branning on the BBC soap for more than 30 years – has revealed she’s beginning to lose her eyesight and is already struggling to “go out socially” because of her vision.
June has suffered from macular degeneration for 10 years, and although she had a revolutionary operation in 2017 to fit extra lenses in her eyes, she’s revealed they haven’t been as effective as she’d hoped.
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The actress confessed that although the lenses help with her peripheral vision, she has no central vision and can’t read, drive or socialise.
Now, the iconic actress relies on her Amazon Alexa voice assistant to tell her the headlines in the newspapers, because she can no longer read them.
Speaking to the Daily Mirror newspaper she said: “I’ve got very poor sight.
“I haven’t driven for years and I can’t really go out socially due to my eyesight.”
June no longer attends award shows because she can’t “recognise” other people, and hasn’t been able to read or reply to any of her fan letters as she can’t personalise them in the way she would like.
She added: “I never go to soap awards or suchlike now. I don’t recognise people that I know and they would think I was snubbing them. And I have got loads of fan letters that I haven’t been able to read or reply to since it all started.”
Insisting that she likes to be more personal with her fan mail rather than just sending generic signed cast cards, June explained she liked to be more “meticulous” with her responses, but she she has nobody to help her do it.
And the actress says she wouldn’t wish her condition on anyone.
“I can’t tell you what it’s like, but you wouldn’t want it, dear. So just pray for your health and strength, hearing and eyesight, and an active mind.”
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Macular degeneration is a common condition and although it doesn’t cause total blindness, it can make everyday activities like reading, watching TV and recognising faces very difficult. Symptoms can become worse without treatment.
Symptoms can include seeing straight lines as wavy or crooked, objects looking smaller than normal and seeing things that are not there.
June is currently taking a break from EastEnders. After the death of her old friend Doctor Legg saw Dot become a millionaire, she has left Walford and gone to visit grandson Charlie in Ireland. It’s unclear when – or even if – she’ll return.
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