I’ve just had my second pandemic birthday – here’s what I’ve learnt over the past 12 months

Last year, my birthday marked both my 60th year, and the day the country began to close down due to Covid-19, writes Jenny Eclair. Now I’m 61 and have a managed a whole year without tasting banana bread

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Last year, my birthday marked both my 60th year and the day the country began to close down due to Covid-19. Boris Johnson made a speech advising against all “unnecessary contact” – a move that was unprecedented since the Second World War. It was also the night when the lights went out in the West End, and everything else followed in pretty quick succession.

I’m 61, now. The last show I saw, pre-lockdown, was “Musik” – the Pet Shop Boys musical, starring the phenomenal Frances Barber. I went with my old tour manager – after the show, we went out for dinner to discuss my upcoming new stand up tour “Sixty! (FFS)” which was due to start in the autumn. I remember complaining about being served sauvignon blanc, instead of the chardonnay that I’d ordered.

A year on, with the tour postponed to autumn 2021, what have I learnt over these weirdly fleeting – yet torturously slow – 12 months? Well, for starters, I haven’t given up the chardonnay habit. Congratulations to anyone who has managed a dry plague year, because I certainly haven’t – though in my defence, it’s been a very long time since I had a hangover (I think the last one was back in December, when a particularly moreish bottle of port arrived for Christmas).