ADELE KING, ‘TWINK’
Entertainment legend, with her daughters Naomi, left, and Chloe Agnew
In my world, Christmas is a bit different. It's other people's down time but it's my up time with my lifetime in the panto. People in the real world call it Christmas, but for me it's always been synonymous with work. So this year I'll be in a panto all the way through to the new year.
We've a tradition in my neighbourhood where I bring in all the neighbours on Christmas morning and I stay up for four consecutive days before and make pops and other sugary treats with little knitted scarves. I make amazing canapes as well and David will come over with his mother and father with presents for me and the girls. We love it, but we love when they bugger off as well.
I don't know what the mood will be this year with my book. I didn't write it to hurt anyone but if David's not too enamoured by it maybe he won't come over. But it's my time and my story and my truth, and he can take it or fucking leave it. The truth is ambiguous because everyone has a different take on it.
In the evening it's always just me and the girls and we'll set the large table beautifully in the back room, pull the crackers and have dinner around four. Then we watch TV. The big plan is for the girls to watch a DVD of Mum on the Perry Como show. Then I'll either be in a car on Christmas night, or very early the next morning, to get down to Limerick for the show.
When the panto is over we're all going to go away somewhere terribly quiet — yes, I have turned into a fucking grumpy old woman. We'll go to Waterford Castle as it's my favourite place and bring the seven mutts with us and some walking gear and we'll sit and talk and laugh. Twink is currently starring in ‘Cinderella’ in the University Concert Hall in Limerick. It runs until January 6, 2013. To book tickets, see www.uch.ie. Twink's memoir ‘Twink Unzipped!’, published by Blackwater Press, €19.95 Naomi’s dress from Covet, Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, Sth William St, D2, tel: (01) 679-9313 Make-up by Corina Grant Shot in Lost Society, Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, Sth William St, D2, tel: (01) 611-1798, or see www.lostsociety.ie