TV actress June Brown visited a Brentwood school as part of a BBC 1 documentary about elderly people.

June, who plays Dot Cotton in Eastenders, was a guest at the Ursuline Preparatory School of Warley during its Grandparents Day event to mark the BBC’s ‘when I turn 65’ season.

The programmes look at the situation of elderly people in Britain, and during the visit June also encouraged the children to film their own short clips.

The pupils interviewed their grandparents and one pupil made an exciting discovery about his grandfather finding an unexploded bomb when he was the same age as him.

Headmistress Pauline Wilson said: “It’s only through sitting down and talking to their grandparents that the children really begin to see their grandparents as people with past lives of their own and not just grandpa or nana.

“This connection is vital for young people today to truly appreciate the older generation, understand about their family history and just take time out to listen and learn from those who have something important to say.”

The programme is due to be aired in two weeks’ time.