BLONDIE SINGER ON BEING 80 AND LIVING A CLEAN LIFE

AS she celebrates her 80th birthday on Tuesday, Blondie icon Debbie Harry will no doubt be touched by her presents.

- BY MARK JEFFERIES Showbiz Editor

Yet despite her age she promises a new studio album this year - her band's 12th - proving it is she who is the gift that keeps on giving.

Growing old gracefully after a chaotic rollercoaster of a life, she may have smoothed out the ride but shows no sign of slowing down.

She vowed recently: "Oh yeah, I'm going to have a whopping great party with everyone there. Though one of the bad things about ageing is everyone's gone already."

Stardom

Debbie, though, is still very much present. As well as new music, she recently added Gucci to her modelling portfolio, becoming a face for their Cruise 2025 collection.

But her path to stardom was not easy. She fled to New York after escaping an abusive relationship in her 20s. There she became a driver for madcap punk rockers the New York Dolls, and worked as a BBC secretary and a Playboy Bunny.

Yearning to sing, she first joined a girl band, then formed Blondie - who would become the most successful group to emerge from the city's 1970's punk scene, with sales now at 40 million.