penny lancaster rod stewart© Photo: Getty Images

Penny Lancaster opens up about 'frightening' condition in heartfelt interview

The Loose Women star was candid about her struggle

Senior Online Writer
June 8, 2022

Penny Lancaster was diagnosed with dyslexia as an adult and she opened up about her experience of the condition on Wednesday, in a special – and very moving – edition of Loose Women.

Her co-star Charlene White began the conversation by asking the mum-of-two: "You were a late diagnosis, weren't you?" "Very late," Penny responded.

MORE: Penny Lancaster makes impassioned plea over 'devastating' health issue

She went on: "During my school period I was always labelled as 'Penny gets easily distracted, she can't focus'… My biggest fear was [when] you're asked to stand up and speak… With dyslexia, the words end up jumping about and moving, and there's hardly any spaces between one word and the next, so it's frightening."

WATCH: Loose Women's Penny Lancaster opens up about 'frightening' condition in heartfelt interview

The programme also saw the panellists speak to former government minister Matt Hancock about his experience of the condition.

MORE: Rod Stewart supports Penny Lancaster's menopause campaign with sweet post

SEE: Penny Lancaster looks incredible in summer shorts in rare photo with stepdaughter ahead of family celebration

Although Penny had difficulties with reading since childhood, she wasn't diagnosed until 2018, when she was 46 years old.

© Photo: Rex

Penny talked about her experience on Loose Women

In an interview with the Mirror at the time, the star revealed that she had long suspected she was dyslexic before asking to be tested.

She also credited her husband, Sir Rod Stewart, who she married in 2007, with giving her the confidence to address her learning difficulty.

"I'm dyslexic – something I've always known and kept secret until I recently got diagnosed," she shared.

© Photo: Rex

Penny's husband Rod is her biggest supporter

She went on: "Rod has given me so much confidence. Rod has never made me feel in any way like I can't do things. I was asked to read a pledge at a charity event. I was in a panic, but he said, 'Go on Pen, you can do it.'

"I could hear him cheering for me and I read out the words. I didn't get them all right but I read them and I felt like bursting into tears afterwards because it was such a big deal for me."

Like this story? Sign up to our HELLO! Mail newsletter to get other stories like this delivered straight to your inbox.

Transform your routine with expert advice from our beauty and wellness team

Email Address

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Health & Fitness

See more