Miriam Margoyles, 83, fears she will run out of money to pay carers amid health woes and continues working to ‘save cash’

Miriam Margoyles continues to work in her 80s because she fears future health care bills will leave her destitute.

The 83-year-old actress, who suffers from spinal stenosis, told Radio Times:”I’m afraid I won’t have enough money to pay for caregivers when I eventually become paralyzed or whatever happens to me.”

Spinal stenosis occurs when the space around the spinal cord becomes too narrow, compressing the nerves.

Margoyles’ main source of income is her work in television. She plays the role of Mother Mildred in Call the midwifehas been the host of numerous documentaries and is also a regular storyteller on the talk show circuit, sharing Graham NortonWill.i.am’s couch with the likes of musician Will.i.am and the late Friends star Matthew Perry.

She also has a lucrative side hustle making videos for fans on the website Cameo, where she charges £100 for a special greeting clip from her, and estimates that it has earned her a whopping £365,000 since 2020. Last year, she won £250,000 for his memoir Oh Miriam!

Discussing her financial difficulties, the Harry Potter The star added: “I’m saving money so I can pay people to look after me and my partner. We don’t have children so I need to make sure I’m looked after in the way I’ve become accustomed to.”

Margoyles, who has been with his partner Heather since 1968, lives in Clapham, south London.

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Her latest TV project, a three-part BBC travel series called Miriam Margolyes: A New Australian Adventure, due out in August, will see the intrepid actress travel to a mobility school.

Although at first she was reluctant to let herself be filmed by the cameras, today she has become a role model for older people.

She said: “When I started having physical problems, I remember saying to directors and producers, ‘Please don’t show me getting out of a car or crawling up stairs. I didn’t want people to see that because I was embarrassed to see myself looking so pathetic.’

“But then I met a lot of people who told me that I gave them the courage to do things they never thought they could do. So I’m very happy about that.”

Last year, Margoyles underwent major heart surgery to replace her aortic valve, which led her to reflect on her own mortality. She said: “I always quote William Saroyan, who said, ‘I know everyone has to die, but I thought an exception could be made in my case.’ I know now that’s absolutely not true.”

It comes after she spoke out about her cameo appearance on Loose Women earlier this month, before causing chaos again by swearing.

Miriam charges a whopping $170 (£135) extra for each video, which can be a birthday message, a pep talk, a joke, a piece of advice or an answer to a question. The average length of her video is two minutes.

While discuss his side job that allows him to earn moneyMiriam, known for her foul language, immediately let out a swear word during the lunch show.

She is known for her outspokenness and has let slip many swear words and X-rated comments during her television appearances over the years.

She said: “Since Covid I have made £365,000 from cameos and personalised videos.

“One day I will need caregivers. I want to be comfortable and I want them to be paid properly.

“It’s really because I want to make money and they pay me to do it.”

Kaye jokingly asked, “Is there anything you wouldn’t do for money?”

She replied, “I wouldn’t eat shit. Am I allowed to say that?”

“No,” Kaye replied.

“Oh okay, I wouldn’t eat feces,” she added.

Read Miriam’s interview in Radio Times now.