Sue Perkins says the coronavirus pandemic has made her release she has been a “selfish sausage”.

The comedian, 50, is hosting a series of online auctions to raise funds for personal protective equipment (PPE) for hospitals, care homes and hospices.

She said she felt “a sense of total impotence and rising fury” about a lack of PPE.

Perkins told Good Morning Britain: “You wouldn’t ask a fireman to go into a burning building in pants, so why are we asking those in community care settings and hospitals to treat a deadly virus without the necessary things they need to do their job safely?”

The former Great British Bake Off host said of lockdown: “I’ve gone so nuts I’ve taken up crochet. I’m a very anxious person, so I’ve been doing some meditation.”

But she added: “I’m genuinely trying to do more in the community.

“I realised what an extraordinarily selfish sausage I’ve been.

“The shining light in all of this has been to meet my neighbours and get out and about and do things for people who aren’t as incredibly lucky as I am.”

The auction is at www.asksformasks.co.uk/live-stream