Clare Balding has revealed she made plans for her own funeral following her battle with cancer.
The BBC presenter, 55, said her outlook on life changed when she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2008 after noticing a lump on her neck while watching herself on TV.
The Wimbledon host had surgery to remove a cyst and her thyroid gland followed by radioactive iodine therapy and was later given the all-clear from the disease.
Speaking to Saga magazine, Balding said the cancer battle “made me realise fairly young that we don’t all get as long as we think we’ll have”.
The former Celebrity Traitors star went on: “So, do the things you want to do, make the most of them, and don’t leave anything behind. I love the various challenges I’ve taken on – and there’s plenty more to come.”
Clare Balding has organised her own funeral
BBC
Discussing her plans for her funeral, she said: “The Black Beauty theme music is very strong in my head.
"I’ve always said I want it at my funeral. I can sort of imagine galloping off the planet, off the earth, to that music.”
Balding also talked about the body image issues that athletes can face, admitting her career as an amateur jockey was “not the healthiest profession in that sense”.
“I think it’s made me sensitive to people’s body image. A lot of people have issues with weight or their body confidence,” she explained.
“There are lots of sports where you have to maintain a lower weight than you’d like to, and every sport involves being careful with diet. Understanding that is a good thing as a presenter. I appreciate what people go through for a professional career.”
Balding, who lives in Surrey with her wife Alice Arnold, was diagnosed with cancer after spotting a lump on her neck while hosting the Olympia Horse Show on TV.
Balding with her wife Alice Arnold
PA Wire
"I didn't tell anyone other than my family and friends as I didn't want to be treated any differently,” she told The Telegraph at the time.
"You hear the word 'cancer' and you think it is a death sentence. In fact, the shock is the biggest thing about a diagnosis of cancer."
Balding added that she had not "freaked out, cried a lot or felt 'woe is me"' since being diagnosed with the disease, and found sympathy "exhausting".
Speaking after her successful cancer treatment, the broadcaster said she was “hugely relieved” that all the “nasty bits” had been “zapped”.
“There are no signs of the thyroid cancer having spread anywhere else so all is looking happy and rosy in the world,” she wrote on her website.
"I am hugely relieved and very grateful for all your support, particularly to those people who have had thyroid cancer and got in touch to share their experiences with me. I can't tell you how much this helped me get through the treatment process."
Read the full article in Saga magazine, out now.