Former Coronation Street actress Liz Dawn has admitted that she wishes she had left the soap sooner.
Following the waxwork unveiling of her character Vera Duckworth and on-screen husband Jack at Madame Tussauds, the 74-year-old said that her health problems made working on the soap a challenge.
"I wish I had left before," the retired actress told the
Daily Mirror. "It was a bit of a struggle. Some days I would have to sit in the car for about ten minutes before I had the energy to even start the engine."
Dawn was diagnosed with the lung disease emphysema in mid-2004 and carried on playing the iconic Weatherfield favourite until early 2008.
The actress admitted that remembering lines also became an issue for her.
"I used to have more and more notes on that table in the Duckworths' living room. The cameramen used to tell me to move my notes off the sauce bottle or from under the sugar basin," she added.
Dawn also spoke about the late Bill Tarmey, who passed away in November 2012.
"Ah Bill, I miss him you know. I have him in my purse, I carry a picture of him with me always," she said.
"Every scene I filmed with Bill was a treat. We got on so well - we never argued once in over 30 years."
Despite retiring from the show in 2008, Dawn revealed that she is still recognised.
She added: "I've been left eight years now and I've been going on a lot of cruises. Everywhere I go people make a fuss. They say, 'Oh Vera , we do miss you'. And I think, 'Good God, I've been dead eight years!'"
