Pigeon Lady, the actress behind Home Alone’s Pigeon Lady, has revealed that she feels “invisible” in later life because of her significant health issues over the holiday season.
The star behind the much-loved Pigeon Lady in Home Alone 2 has revealed the heartbreaking reason she stopped getting acting jobs.
Irish screen star Brenda Fricker is best known as the gentle stranger who helps Kevin McCallister during his New York adventure. She appeared alongside Macaulay Culkin in the 1992 festive hit Home Alone 2, playing the lonely woman who befriends pigeons in Central Park.
Her character famously saves Kevin by turning the birds on villains Harry and Marv, played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern. But Fricker has said the iconic role did not protect her from being overlooked as she got older.
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Despite a career packed with acclaimed performances, the Dublin born actress has admitted that work dried up after she turned 70. In an interview with The Times, she said she felt she had become invisible. “They don’t write for old women,” she said. “Shakespeare wrote for old women, but none of the young writers do. None.
“There are so many wonderful people around… interesting women with history and stories. Remember these words when you turn 70: you become invisible. Richard Harris said that to me while sitting on the rocks looking out over the Atlantic Ocean and it stuck in my head. On my 70th birthday I thought, ‘He’s wrong, I feel great.’ A week later I knew exactly what he meant. It’s weird.” The actress added: “So it’s not that I’m out of work for any other reason there are no parts to do.”
In 1990, Fricker became the first Irish actress to receive an Oscar. For her role in My Left Foot, she won Best Supporting Actress. Her acting work included roles in Albert Nobbs, Angels in the Outfield, A Time Kill, Veronica Guerin, Inside I’m Dancing, and So I Married an Axe Murderer.
The actress has publicly acknowledged her declining health in recent years. She claimed that she is currently being treated for several ailments, which have largely kept her in bed.
The now 80-year-old told The Guardian in September that she is constantly in pain and exhausted. She said, “I’m out of breath just talking.” Never in my life have I experienced fatigue. Weary . Will I ever regain my height? I’m passing away horribly. Every day, I’m just dying in pain. I’ll probably live to be 100.
Fricker revealed that reality TV provides her with comfort when she is struggling to find sleep. She claimed to be inspired by watching The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. It is superior to sex, they say. Better than drinking, I think. She continued, “I just adore it.”
Despite being part of one of the most loved Christmas films of all time, Fricker has admitted she does not enjoy the festive season.
Speaking to Radio 1 in 2021, via The Independent, she said Christmas can be a lonely time. “I would be lying if I said it would be a nice and happy Christmas because I’m old and I live alone,” she said. “It can be very dark. I turn the phone off and put the blinds down. I do pre record some good programmes and I have my dog and I get myself through it that way.
“I don’t want to be sounding kind of negative but it is a different kind of Christmas, that’s all. While I don’t find Christmas all that difficult, what I do find difficult is New Year’s Eve.”
If you are spending Christmas by yourself and need someone to talk to, you can contact Age UK, The Salvation Army or Mind.
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Source: Mirror
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