Don't make a drama out of a midlife crisis

Audiences of Question Time are more used to seeing David Dimbleby as a distinguished broadcaster and chairman as he plays politicians off against one another and holds them to account.

He is the sort of person you would expect to head home and sit quietly in an armchair with a brandy and a leather-bound Dickens than to, for want of a better phrase, get inked.

But his new scorpion tattoo, added to his shoulder at the tender age of 75, has made people wonder if he's just having a later version of the midlife crisis.

There are plenty of signs that people who are old enough to know better are trying to recapture their lost youth – some not as permanent as a tattoo.

Take, for example, Harrison Ford. Immortalised forever as the young and dashing Star Wars hero Han Solo and later recognised as Indiana Jones, it must have been harder for him than others to accept he was getting on.

Soon after turning 60 he divorced his wife of more than 20 years, started wearing an ear ring, hung out in nightclubs and began dating actress Calista Flockhart – 23 years his junior.

And yet it wasn't just a case of sowing a few last wild oats. They've been married for three years and have adopted a son, who can quite legimately claim to have one of the coolest dads in the world, ever.

The midlife crisis is often a chance to look at what's wrong and do something about it.

At least that was Tim Robbins' excuse. As Andy Dufresne in the film Shawshank Redemption, he was prepared to spend years tunnelling out of his cell and crawl through the sewers to freedom.

He got out of his long-term relationship with Susan Sarandon much quicker.

In an interview on Radio4's Desert Island Discs he said: "I asked myself the question, 'what is it that will make you happy? What is it you have not done that you will regret not doing?'

"A midlife crisis – I think we all go through something, it's inevitable, it's unavoidable. You're staring some kind of frightening thing down. It's when you pass 40, inherently we double our age when we think about life. At 40 you can imagine 80. You start thinking about how many years you've got left, and you start thinking, 'What the hell am I doing here?'"

Nice. But Sarandon's not done too badly for herself. She's been dating a toy boy 30 years younger than her and now has the letters 'A', 'N', 'D' tattooed like a hangman's noose around her wrist. It stands for 'a new dawn, a new day'.

But it's not all about ditching your long term life partner in search of what George Michael might term 'fast love'.

Griff Rhys Jones did it on a much smaller scale.

The sketch show genius and presenter of Restoration said: "I didn't go too mad – I went out and bought an old sports car and had the boys round, sitting up all night playing poker for small amounts of money."

That's probably the sort of 'crisis' most people would relate to. It's the kind of thing someone tries to do once they've made a bit of money, but just wishes they'd had a bit more cash to splash around when they were young, free and single.

As it is, Griff at least still has hair that wouldn't disappear on the breeze as it is blown about in an open top car.

There are plenty of people who use a landmark birthday to do something amazing, to kick off the first day of the rest of their lives. Take, for example, Helen Beasley. She decided to take on the Great Wall of China after turning 50. The IT teacher from Romsley, near Halesowen, walked 24 miles a week to prepare for the epic journey, which raised £6,457 for the Multiple Sclerosis Trust.

Far from a 'crisis', Helen's great adventure shows there's a whole world out there for people who have realised life begins in those middle years.

Other people go to extreme lengths to either cling on to or rebuild their youthful image, rather than embrace change.

Sylvester Stallone's been through a good few plastic surgeries and had his botox done as well.

But when you're famous for playing a boxer such as Rocky Balboa, then you're no stranger to having your face re-arranged.

Besides, he might be trying to keep up with his dear old mum Jackie, who at the age of 91 was still having operations.

She's also had three heart attacks and now believes she's ended up looking like a chipmunk. But with a husband 31 years younger than her, perhaps she's a believer in the saying that you're only as old as the person you feel.

There are alternatives to making such permanent physical alterations.

Dame Judi Dench, the prim and proper boss of super spy James Bond, unveiled a tattoo in the middle of a glitzy Hollywood lunch after being nominated for an Oscar for Mrs Henderson Presents.

But the assembled audience was not expecting Mrs Henderson to present her rear.

The tattoo carried the name of movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.

It turned out, however, to be a fake. She's also been seen sporting Swarovski crystals on her neck in the shape of the 007 logo.

Miley Cyrus could learn a trick or two about tasteful, temporary body art off Dame Judi and in return could show her how to twerk like a pro.

If celebs are anything to go by, the midlife crisis is basically a chance enjoy fast cars and even faster partners. Bring it on, I say.