Felicity Kendal's secrets to youthfulness revealed

She's had an illustrious seven-decade career that shows no sign of slowing down. 

Yet Felicity Kendal's most iconic role is undoubtedly that of Barbara Good in the television series The Good Life, which has remained one of Britain's most beloved sitcoms, despite running for just four seasons in the Seventies. 

This week, Felicity became the last surviving star of the hit show following the tragic death of Penelope Keith, who passed away at the age of 86 following a battle with cancer.  

The pair starred as clashing neighbours in the show, with Felicity and late co-star  Richard Briers playing a husband and wife on a mission to quit the rat race and become fully self-sufficient, much to the chagrin of the couple next door, played by Penelope and the late Paul Eddington.

Yet while Felicity is best known for playing the part of a woman who wants to slow down and take things back to basics, in reality, her life couldn't be more different. 

In fact, Felicity has vowed never to retire, insisting her passion for acting keeps her young. 

Speaking to The Lady Magazine in 2021, Felicity took umbrage when asked if she planned to slow down, responding: 'Not at all! There’s a kind of relaxation in doing the work you like doing simply for the work itself. You're judged only on how you do it.' 

Felicity Kendal, 79, has credited thrice-weekly workouts, refusing to retire and 'not caring' what she looks like with her youthful vigour (pictured last month) 

Felicity's most iconic role is undoubtedly that of Barbara Good in the television series The Good Life, which has remained one of Britain's most beloved sitcoms

Felicity has vowed never to retire, insisting her passion for acting keeps her young. She can currently be seen in a new adaptation of High Society alongside Helen George and Freddie Fox

She continued: 'When you're younger the competition is much greater. That's quite stressful. When you get to my age there aren't so many people left, so there's less pressure.

'You've passed from ingenue to leading lady and beyond. If you can be working at 17 and still working at 70-something, you've made it through.'

Indeed, Felicity has continued taking on new projects, and can currently be seen on stage at the Barbican Theatre starring in a new adaptation of High Society alongside Helen George and Freddie Fox. 

On how she stays mobile enough to continue working in her seventies, Felicity added: 'I work out three times a week, a mixture of stretching, yoga and weights. I've also mastered press-ups. I'm so pleased. Now, if I could only stand on my head.'

That same year Felicity made headlines with her noticeably smooth visage, having shared her affiliation for filler and other anti-aging techniques.

She made no secret of her love of Botox, admitting: 'I do it every six months, then you don't get the terrible little frown line.' 

Yet her incredibly wrinkle-free look caught fans' attention during an appearance on The Graham Norton Show, sparking concerns she had taken things too far.

In 2023, Felicity hit back at critics of her look, insisting she cares more about looking 'presentable' than appearing younger than her years.

The Rosemary & Thyme star told The Times: 'Do I care about what I look like at 76? Not really. I like to look presentable, as my mother used to say, but that’s good manners not vanity.

'Humans have been preening themselves for thousands of years: tattoos, corsets, the dandies with their powdered wigs.'

Felicity added that she feels modern times are 'quite tame' when it comes to women's looks, noting that in the Seventies they were 'not afraid' of dressing up.

However, the grandmother-of-two revealed she had since decided to give upon  Botox and instead relied on yoga, Pilates and weightlifting to stay youthful.

She told Good Housekeeping magazine: 'There comes a point where you have to match bits of you with the other bits.

'Then there was a time when you'd think, I'm over 60, I can't possibly wear a short skirt again because of my crinkly knees.

'Then you come out the other end and say, f*** it, I've got good legs, I'm going to put on tights and a short skirt.'

In 2023, Felicity hit back at critics of her look, insisting she cares more about looking 'presentable' than appearing younger than her years (pictured in 2021) 

Felicity will no doubt be reminiscing about her youth following the tragic death of her The Good Life co-star Penelope this week (L-R Felicity, Richard Briers, Penelope and Paul Eddington) 

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Felicity will no doubt be reminiscing about her youth following the tragic death of her The Good Life co-star Penelope this week. 

The actress, who married former policeman Roger Timson in 1978 and had two adopted sons, died at her 17th-century home in Milford, Surrey, on Monday. 

Paying tribute to her former co-star, Felicity shared: 'I am deeply saddened to hear of my friend Penelope's death. The shows I worked on with her were such special times in our lives and demonstrated her comic genius.

'My heart goes out to her beloved Rodney at this time, theirs was a great love story and partnership. She was a joy to know and work with, and she will be much missed.'

The Good Life ran from 1975 to 1978. 

While it's first season only attracted a modest audience of five million, it quickly grew in popularity, and by series two, 17 million people were tuning in.

Among them was the Queen, who was such a huge fan of the show that Buckingham Palace wrote to the BBC and asked if she could come for a taping.

While the series had ended the year before, the programme was intentionally commissioned in 1978 as the late Queen had been unable to attend a recording at the BBC's television centre due to her hectic schedule during her Jubilee year. 

Yet while the show captured the nation's hearts, in recent years it has also come under fire, with the main character Tom Good named as an example of 'toxic masculinity'.

Richard Briers, the actor who played Tom, admitted before his death in 2013 that he didn't like the character, calling him 'a bully' and 'obsessive'. 

But last year, Felicity defended the show, saying Tom never dragged his wife along against her will.     

'I think that sometimes these days, because the show has endured for so long and become part of the folklore, people look back on it mistakenly, and slightly narrow-mindedly,' she told the i paper. 

'It wasn't a documentary, it was a comedy, and Tom did not drag Barbara along unwillingly. Barbara was positive, and practical, and totally in love with her partner.  I loved Tom.'