A world-famous Kent artist says it felt like her body was being "submerged into fire" as she battles Covid.

Margate's Tracey Emin has revealed that she has been laid up in bed for the last week after contracting the illness.

The 58-year-old says her temperature has rocketed up to 40C - but insists she is "calm" as she waits "for this new curse to leave".

Writing on Instagram, she said: "This is my seventh day in bed with Covid... it’s gone so fast.

"I’ve been asleep most of the time or tripping out on temperatures hitting the 39C and 40C mark. It comes and goes.

"Before I knew it was Covid, I was convinced my body was made of wax and I was being submerged into fire."

This comes about two years after Ms Emin had to go under the knife and have life-altering surgery to remove an aggressive form of bladder cancer.

She later divulged that medics feared the cancer would kill her if it spread to her lymph nodes.

But now she stresses "life's not over yet", and that catching Covid has given her "time to think".

"I’m calm just laying here waiting for this new curse to leave," she added.

"Being ill is a very good time to get a real perspective on life.

"Last week I almost thought of quitting Instagram; I felt it was too much of a nasty platform.

"I’ve been picked on and bullied a lot of my life. I have been told countless times that I couldn’t do things.

"I left home at 15 and I have more or less been in battle ever since. I admit, I have made some stupid mistakes in my life - but the good far outweighs out the bad.

"Life’s not over yet... the good thing about being ill, is it gives me time to think."