Penny Lancaster-Stewart was mercilessly bullied as a child but she believes the experience made her stronger.
The 45-year-old model-and-photographer – who is married to Sir Rod Stewart – was tormented by girls and boys when she was at school and the abuse sometimes got physical.
In a discussion on ‘Loose Women’ on Thursday (06.10.16), she shared: "It was just name calling and then they would get boys involved that would kind of ride their bikes in to the back of my legs, it just got physical and really unnecessary."
Penny is now the patron of British charity Beat Bullying and her role involves her working in schools to help tackle bullying problems.
The statuesque beauty – who has two sons, Alistair, 10, and Aiden, five, with Rod – was able to get through the experience with the support of her parents and she now wants to use her own memories to help kids going through the same.
She said: "I have a very strong background, my parents were very supportive and they made me feel like I’m not the victim but they are, so actually I grew a lot of strength from that and now I can support family members and people I know’s daughters who are going through it and I can support them.
"I remember being terrified in the classroom having to read, I hated reading, I wasn’t confident at all, now I’m talking on TV and talking at charity events and talk in front of big audiences and it still terrifies me and that’s like coming on her because it is just one of them things that just reminds me of that school girl that was frightened."
Penny previously credited her husband Rod for helping her with her confidence, she said: "He saw that I had potential and just kept encouraging me. I was so quiet back then, and now I’m not."
Penny Lancaster Stewart relives bullying hell
