June Brown has had her eyesight "saved" following a 60-second operation.
The 90-year-old actress – who is best known for playing Dot Branning on ‘EastEnders’ – was one of the first people to undergo the Eyemax Mono technique to treat macular degeneration, an age-related condition which means damage to the retina stops a person seeing fine details.
She told the Sunday Express newspaper: "I can see people’s faces and recognise my children again. I can now distinguish colours and the pattern on a rug that I couldn’t see before.
"I can read again and I don’t think I would be able to see at all if I hadn’t had the operation."
The soap stalwart had been diagnosed with the condition over 10 years ago and it was even written into her storylines last year after developing an advanced stage of the disease.
But now, June is overjoyed that her vision is "slowly improving" after the pioneering lens surgery helped readjust nerve signals in the brain to access healthy parts of the retina.
She added: "[My eyesight] is slowly improving all the time. I think my brain is teaching my peripheral vision to come into operation."
June recently admitted she can’t afford to quit ‘EastEnders’.
She said: "I can’t afford to retire. I never had the money to start a pension – I didn’t start to make any real money until I was 58 – and now it’s not worth much.
"I’ve always been afraid of being poor when I’m old. It’s a dreadful thing to be strapped for cash when you are elderly. It’s awful when you’re young, too, but you always have hope."
However, she has another reason for remaining in the show, as June admitted she would be bored if she quit working.
She said: "As long as I am capable of working, and can learn lines and move around, I will carry on. I’d be utterly bored if I stopped.
"I don’t think I look nearly 90 but because I can’t see these days I don’t know.
"You don’t think about your age – you just knock it down."
June Brown’s sight saved
