IMAGINE, for a moment, being a young Britt Ekland. A genuine icon of the Sixties and Seventies, the original poster girl for beautiful, big-eyed Scandinavian blondes enjoying all the trappings of the celebrity lifestyle.
Wife of Peter Sellers, Bond girl, lover of Rod Stewart, wild child, sex kitten, and so on. As one of the world's most photographed women, she certainly did not want for attention.
She made her name with a string of hit films in the 1970s includin
g Get Carter, The Man With The Golden Gun and, of course, The Wicker Man, in which her voice was famously dubbed to hide her Swedish/ English accent.
And now? Now, at the age of 65, she'd be forgiven for living in the past somewhat.
Not so, it seems. "I'm not the sort of sad woman who lives in the past," smiles the actress. "When I hear other women of my age saying how wonderful things used to be in the past, I'm just not interested in hearing it.
"I certainly don't feel that my past is better than my present, although I would like to think that I've learnt many things from my various experiences and become something else."
Those experiences she recalls daily at the Assembly Rooms during the Fringe, as she looks through her remarkable life - a no-holds barred exploration of the woman behind the headlines.
"The show involves me recounting my life on stage," she explains. "It's all quite nerve-wracking I suppose, as there are already so many versions of my life already out there.
"I've never been bold enough to imagine my life would be of interest to anyone except the newspapers, but so far the audiences have been good, so that's a bonus.
"It was Hannah (Chissick, who worked with her in Grumpy Old Women] who suggested I do the show. We were on our way to some town or other during the Grumpy tour and she turned to me and said, "You know, you've lived this amazing life. Have you ever considered doing a show about it?"
"I'd often talked it over with girlfriends, but I was always so busy, working, travelling to Los Angeles or London, touring, doing pantomime, which I've done for about 15 years."
Though no stranger to the Capital having toured here with Grumpy Old Women – which stopped off at the Festival Theatre for a quick grumble last year – Ekland bemoans the fact she hasn't had much time to herself on this visit.
"It's been into the rehearsals and straight back home in a taxi," she sighs. "I've not had a minute to myself so far, it's all work, work, work.
"Hopefully, I'll have the chance to see the sights once things settle down," she adds.
The star of more than 50 movies may not be getting around as much as she'd like, but she's still been turning heads in the Capital.
Each morning, with her Chihuahua Tequila in tow, it's been reported she goes for a half-hour run around Royal Circus – backwards.
"Oh, it's a heck of a lot more than half an hour, darling," she laughs, when asked to confirm the sightings. "I do it all to keep fit."
Always expensively attired and immaculately groomed, Ekland admits she has to work very hard to look so good for her age.
"I'm very much into healthy eating," she says. "I have a very good diet; I eat the right things. I power-walk every day, and I'm very careful to take care of my hair and my skin."
It also seems she has come to terms with growing older. "The years between 55 and 60 were quite awful for me," she confides, adding that as her considerable beauty began to fade she mourned the passing of something that she has always considered to be a blessing.
"I've often said it, but beauty is not a curse," she says. "It's been a real blessing to me.
"Having said all that, it's the inner woman that really matters most. As you grow older you have to find your inner strengths, exploit your God-given talents.
"I blossomed when I turned 60 – it was a turning point for me because I accepted growing older and finally became my true self."
Ekland's well-documented list of lovers has included actors like Peter Sellers, Warren Beatty and George Hamilton; the photographer Lord Lichfield; music producer Lou Adler, and rocker Rod Stewart – but these days there is only room for one man in her life.
"The man is my life is Tequila, my adorable chihuahua, who goes everywhere with me," she laughs. "He even appears in my show. He loves being on the stage, just loves it.
"I'm filled with terror going on each night, and there's Tequila, lapping up all the attention."
Britt on Britt, Assembly Rooms, George Street, until 25 August, 6.30pm, £11.50-£10.50 (£9.50-£10.50), 0131-226 0000
The full article contains 834 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
