‘Keep that spider away from me’ I said...

THEY say you should never work with children or animals, but I couldn’t say ‘no’ to Pets Win Prizes, a sort of talent show for everything from snails to llamas.

Terry Nutkins was our animal expert. I couldn’t have asked for a more charming presenter, but there was a definite blip in our

relationship the day we had a tarantula on the show. ‘Look, darling,’ I said, going into instant panic mode, ‘spiders, even small ones, give me the creeps.

‘I don’t mind what you do with this tarantula, but don’t bring it anywhere near me. And don’t you dare ask me to hold it.’ Come the show, I couldn’t believe my ears when he said to the audience: ‘You want to see Dale hold the spider, don’t you?’

And as I stood there in a blind panic, saying, ‘No, no, no!’, the audience started yelling, pantomime style: ‘Yes, yes, yes!’

When Terry put the spider on my hand and it started to crawl up my arm, I was shaking so much I nearly passed out.

By the time he realised that perhaps this hadn’t been such a good idea, the whites of my eyes had never looked so white. I’d sacrifice my career rather than go through that ordeal again.