Am I really going to BE 80?!'

Choreographer Arlene Phillips reveals how she stays young ahead of her milestone birthday

- VICKI POWER

Arlene Phillips is a human dynamo. In May, she’ll turn 80, but is still working flat out on prestige projects close to her heart. Currently, the renowned choreographer and former Strictly judge is putting the talented cast of a new London production of Guys & Dolls through their paces. In the past, she’s worked with Sir Elton John, Whitney Houston and Freddie Mercury. Arlene is showbiz royalty, confirmed by her elevation to Damehood in 2021.

Even more impressive is that while working with the energy of a person half her age, Arlene has also been battling the after- effects of a bout of COVID-19 last April. ‘I had recovered quite quickly,’ says Arlene when we chat over Zoom. She looks in the peak of health in her training outfit, ready for work.

‘And then the back of my right leg was burning constantly. It felt like it was on fire, right down to my foot. And that has, finally, mostly disappeared, but it will come back if I’m spending hours on it or if I’ve been for a long, long walk.

‘As a choreographer, you are you dancing throughout the day,’ she continues. ‘If I go really hard at it, that burning comes back and that’s the strangest thing. The doctors don’t know what it is, but they’ve said that COVID-19 can leave behind nerve damage. ‘It’s largely gone now, but for months it was almost like I didn’t know how to walk. Both legs felt different to each other, but I don’t get that now at all. It’s fine and I wasn’t worried about it. I never worry about things.’