Sir Richard Branson's daughter Holly has opened up about her childhood, praising her parents for supporting her decision to identify as a boy during those formative years.
The 43-year-old took to Instagram to share a special tribute to her mother Joan on her 80th birthday on Tuesday. Holly recalled identifying as a boy from the age of four to eleven, and credited her parents for never making her feel "strange".
© Getty ImagesThe Virgin CEO's daughter posted a throwback photograph of her mom and penned a heartfelt message underneath. "The last few weeks have been filled with so much love and magical family moments," she began.
"As a family, we love to be surrounded by people (strangers and friends alike), great food, good music, bad dancing, and lots of laughter. My heart is full after an early celebration of [brother] Sam's 40th birthday onboard... quickly followed by wonderful mum's 80th birthday."
© Getty ImagesShe continued: "My mum hates to be in the spotlight, but I'd love to share some of the most precious lessons I've learnt from her. The most amazing quality my mum has is the ability to love unconditionally... Having a daughter who decided from the age of four that she wanted to be a boy must have been difficult to navigate back then."
Holly proceeded to gush over her parents in the heartfelt message. "Mum (and Dad) never made me feel like I was strange in any way, and I am so thankful to them both for this," she added.
"Mum has always been so open-minded, empathetic and kind. Truly letting me and Sam be totally free to become the people we wanted to be... I've realised that unconditional love and support also comes with a large helping of patience – thank you for teaching me that, Mum."
Holly's childhood
This isn't the first time Holly has openly addressed identifying as a boy during her childhood. The chief purpose and vision officer at Virgin previously shared that she "dressed like a boy, stood up to pee, and even gave myself different male names".
© Getty Images"'At the age of four, I decided I was a boy. It wasn't that I wanted to be a boy - it was that I was a boy. It was just after my brother was born and… maybe I wanted to be like him," she told Natalie Pinkham in 2021.
"This wasn't just a quick thing that stopped after a few months or years, it lasted until I was nearly 11."
© Getty ImagesShe continued: "I was so lucky to have parents that were really accepting of it, that they didn't question any of it, they let me be who I wanted to be."
Holly is now a mother and shares three children – twins Etta and Artie, ten, and daughter Lola, six, with her husband Freddie Andrewes.
