Sheila remembered she had spent the most happiest days of her childhood in her Auntie Bill and Uncle Roy’s minuscule flat on the Rue d’Amsterdam. Afterwards, the playwright was escorted to a car by his friend Sheila Hancock, three years his junior. I felt Old Rage was a gift from the universe, given its positivity, despite Hancock’s righteous rage about various aspects of life.

As raindrops plopped on Hancock’s umbrella, Pinter turned and asked her: “Are you still angry, Sheila? It all kicks off with an insight into her recent film “Edie”, where an old lady, her husband having passed away recently, decided to go and climb Suilven.I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and laughed out loud at her references to various politicians.

This is a lady who has seen World War, learned to use Zoom and WhatsApp, acted on stage with the greats and walks the deserted streets of London during the pandemic. Home alone, classified as 'extremely vulnerable', she finds herself yelling at the TV and talking to the pigeons.Sheila Hancock definitely isn't letting things pass her by if they frustrate her or, as a country, we haven't learnt from previous experiences. When Sheila Hancock first sat down to begin writing her new memoir in 2016, the volume in question was intended to be an inspiriting book on the subject of old age. Amidst all this Hancock perseveres and describes the ups and downs of her life with wit and humor and always honesty.

I was probably scared, disappointed it was considered a flop; feeling I hadn’t done good service to it because I’d suffered terrible stage fright. Sheila Hancock shares her story and unflinchingly examines her life and all that comes with it, flaws, mistakes and all.

Absolutely brilliant book and certainly reflects many of the feelings I and my friends felt (and are still feeling) during Covid and even now. An excellent book which is good therapy if you need a good rant along with some interesting stories and anecdotes about her past and present. And then there is the revelations of a personal life lived through family bereavement, illness and crisis. I am a fan of Sheila’s work, and the work of her late husband John Thaw, and she’s always been a presence on British screens, so I was excited to read this. However, her enquiring mind never ceases to scrutinise the after-effects of Covid-19 and Brexit while politics tops the list with shoddy government, weak politicians, inept prime ministers, poor decision making, and lack of support for the education system.

Don’t be daft, I tell her, when she claims not to know why she has been invited – at which point, clasping my hand, she gets on with asking me questions (tonight’s subject: social media trolls). There are references to the aches and pains of aging, falls and other illnesses, but above all this is the journal of a woman fiercely engaged with life.She doesn’t shy away from telling her own opinions and that’s missing in todays world when everyone is so scared of saying the wrong thing. As one of many who found cathartic comfort in Sheila’s book Just the Two of Us, this is another incredibly honest and heartfelt read. In December 2017 in the Diary entry Sheila’s Aunt Billie had been moved into a hospital and was apparently fading fast.