The indomitable Stephanie Cole is an institution, like the NHS which her latest play examines. But Katherine MacAlister finds her patient and calming

You’re not going to labour the point, are you? Not with someone like Stephanie Cole, the doyenne of theatre, acting royalty and that awful phrase ‘national treasure’. Because aside from her plaudits and unfeasible body of work, you wouldn’t mess, would you? It’s that indomitable combination of pragmatism, stoicism, calmness and implacability, the patient headteacher humouring us all.

Yet when I ask about her current role in This May Hurt A Bit, Stephanie sums herself up so succinctly it’s hard not to react: “My character is a bit of everything — matriarchal, feisty, a bit wobbly on her pins, with a great sense of humour, but she can be sharp. A great part,” she tells me. Biting the side of my cheek, I ask if this was a far stretch for her to play but Stephanie doesn’t pick up on the irony, “some moments are a stretch and some aren’t,” she says blithely.

Much of the respect she accords is down to her iconic parts; from groundbreaking drama with Tenko to the infamous comedy Open All Hours, the beloved sitcom Waiting For God and soap institution Coronation Street.

We have grown up with her, and the 72-year-old is utterly convincing in every part she takes on. Nothing seeming to faze her, and she remains impossible to pigeon-hole.

Yet it’s theatre, not TV, Stephanie wants to talk about, in particular her latest role as Iris in Max Stafford-Clark’s satirical and moving new play about the NHS, something she is utterly passionate about: “It’s a massive subject but we make it entertaining, palatable and interesting. But more than that, the story is really a family saga seen through the eyes of the NHS. So when asked if I’d star in it. I said ‘absolutely, like a shot’.”

The subject of the NHS is close to Stephanie’s heart because she remembers it coming into being in 1948. “I was number six of seven children in a one-parent family — so, for my mother the NHS was a godsend. If you needed a doctor from then on you didn’t need to worry about the pennies. So I have always felt very strongly about the NHS: it’s the most extraordinary thing and such a leap of faith. If I get a bit tired, I just remember how wonderful it is to be invited,” she says.

Wait a minute, surely not a chink in the armour, an admission of vulnerability? Because Stephanie Cole still works like a Trojan, having recently completed a two-year stint in Coronation Street, as well as the recent comeback of Still Open All Hours. “I wish I had the same energy,” she groans. “I have the same zest though and I think, if anything, I love acting more now.

“So there’s another Still Open All Hours in the autumn because the Christmas special was such a success, and after that I don’t know and don’t mind because it’s like opening presents at Christmas.”

But back to the beginning. How easy was it to get into acting in Solihull? “My mother was always very supportive because I wasn’t the easiest of children. I was going to go my own way anyway and she thought she might as well go along for the ride. Nothing was going to stop me doing what I wanted to do.

“So I always advise people who want to be an actor that there are some wonderful amateur groups out there to enjoy. But if you need to be an actor, then be prepared for a bumpy ride.”

It’s hard to imagine Stephanie Cole ever struggling with her career. “Oh yes, I nearly quit at one point after I had my daughter as I found it very hard to get back into acting because by then it was such a different time. The whole experience made me grow up a lot actually,” she says casually.

So what happened? “I went to teach at the Bristol Old Vic and relearned my craft from a different angle which turned my career around. And then Tenko came up and everyone was saying ‘who is she and where did she come from?’ and I was thinking ‘excuse me, I’ve been doing this for 12 years’.

Things moved fast after that: “Tenko gave me a leg up to other TV parts, and I went from serious drama to a light-hearted comedy which wouldn’t happen now, and after that I started getting recognised in Sainsbury’s,” she admits. So was it hard to juggle motherhood at the same time? “Unfortunately Henry [Marshall, her first husband] and I couldn’t have any more children but we juggled things between us to make it work.” She married her second husband — actor Peter Birrel — 12 years later but he died of cancer in 2004.

“Then came Waiting for God which was the first time I led a series,” she said moving through her CV at a rate of knots.

Does she mind playing characters often older than herself? “It’s never been a problem because my first part at the Old Vic in 1958 was as a 91-year-old,” she laughs. “So, yes; ageing has dogged my career, but I’ve absolutely no idea why and generally I don’t think about it. I just like to play the part because experiencing someone’s character is always riveting, whoever they are. And acting is just several steps on from childhood anyway. It’s all make-believe,” she concludes.

“So play the now, that’s a useful thing for life,” Stephanie Cole advises before chuckling and adding, “because having reread my autobiography recently, I thought, ‘who is this person? She’s like Mary Poppins on speed!’ So I don’t want to go back there. Mine is now a life in action.”

This May Hurt A Bit
Oxford Playhouse
Tuesday, April 22 until Saturday, April 26
Box office: 01865 305 305 oxfordplayhouse.com