Britney Spears in her own words: The star finally has her say in The Woman In Me
For all the noise that has surrounded Britney Spears, little has ever come from the star herself.
Ever since Baby One More Time announced her arrival as a superstar at the age of 16, Spears has made headlines: her appearance, her sex life, her break-ups, her breakdown – every movement scrutinised, analysed, objectified, criticised.
Paparazzi photographers followed her like an “army of zombies” and for 13 years she lived under a conservatorship that controlled her life.
She was one of the biggest stars on the planet but could not make her own choices – from trainers to boyfriends, it was all vetted.
Pic: Simon & Schuster
Now, after being freed from her conservatorship following much-publicised legal proceedings in 2021 – and the #FreeBritney campaign from fans – Spears is telling her story in her own words, in the memoir The Woman In Me.
The title is significant, referencing a lyric from the song Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman, released earlyish in her career from her third album, Britney, in 2002: “I’m not a girl, don’t tell me what to believe… I’m just tryin’ to find the woman in me.”
Spears was just 20 when the song was released. Sexualised from a young age, at the same time shamed and criticised about her womanhood, she could not win. As she puts it: “No one could seem to think of me as both sexy and capable, or talented and hot. If I was sexy, they seemed to think I must be stupid. If I was hot, I couldn’t possibly be talented.”
And then, after she became a mother – all she had ever wanted – she was placed under the conservatorship, with her father Jamie and others in charge. Under this legal arrangement, she became “a sort of child-robot”, she says. “I had been so infantilised that I was losing pieces of what made me feel like myself… the conservatorship stripped me of my womanhood, made me into a child.”
The Woman In Me is a short memoir, less than 300 pages. Spears’s storytelling is straightforward, addressing aspects of her life, good and bad, matter-of-factly before moving on to the next. She doesn’t need to embellish – the facts are emotive enough.
Pic: From the documentary Framing Britney Spears/ Sky Documentaries
‘There is so much freedom in being anonymous’
The star begins with her early life growing up in Kentwood, Louisiana, detailing a somewhat difficult childhood due to her parents fighting and father Jamie’s drinking. She was drinking and smoking by the age of 13, she says, and started driving at that age, too.
As she details her rise to fame, it is clear how underestimated she was from the start. As many who were involved in her career and the Baby One More Time video have previously said, the idea for the bored schoolgirl and her classmates dancing in the corridors – a huge part of the song’s success – was all hers.
Back then, she “had nothing to lose”, she says. “There is so much freedom in being anonymous.”
Once that song was out in the world, her life, her freedom, would never be the same again.
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Pic: AP/Chris Gardner
Spears goes on to describe her relationship with fellow Mickey Mouse club protege Justin Timberlake, describing their romance and claiming he cheated on her, but says she “let it all go”, eventually also cheating on him. Perhaps the biggest revelation from the book, that she had an abortion during their relationship, was previewed before its release. To Spears, the pregnancy wasn’t a “tragedy”, she says, but Timberlake said they weren’t ready.
When they broke up in 2002 they were a couple barely out of their teens – a difficult time in anyone’s life, let alone under the glare of paparazzi flashes and tabloid headlines. He dumped her by text message, she says. She details her hurt, but also defends Timberlake about another aspect of their break-up that he has since been publicly criticised for – admitting to an interviewer that they had slept together, despite her being marketed as “an eternal virgin”.
Timberlake is yet to comment on Spears’s memoir, but has previously apologised for his comments on their sex life. But the star says of this: “Was I mad at being ‘outed’ by him as sexually active? No. To be honest with you, I liked that Justin said that. Why did my managers work so hard to claim I was some kind of young-girl virgin even into my 20s. Whose business was it if I’d had sex or not?”
Spears says she started to increasingly suffer anxiety as she made headlines whatever she did. What happened in the years that followed has been well-documented: her 55-hour Las Vegas marriage to childhood friend Jason Alexander; her marriage to dancer Keven Federline later that year and the subsequent birth of her two sons, and then the struggles she faced after their split amid a custody battle. She suffered perinatal depression, she says, as her “vulnerable” babies were placed in “the world of jockeying paparazzi and tabloids”.
When it became too much, she famously shaved her head. This was her “f*** you” to the world, to everyone who wanted her to be the beautiful good girl, the pop princess puppet.
Not long after this, plans for the conservatorship were put in place.
#FreeBritney: ‘I’ve been through too much’
Spears says she started attempts to free herself from the legal arrangement in 2014. Hearings took place in private, but as the #FreeBritney movement grew and a documentary was released about it early in 2021, the world became aware that something wasn’t right. Then, in June 2021, Spears finally had her say in open court, giving a four-page statement over 20 minutes, telling the judge: “I want my life back.”
Five months later, the order was lifted. Since then, Spears has gone through a miscarriage, married and subsequently split from Sam Asghari. Fans now hear from her through her Instagram page, on which she shares dancing videos and often naked or semi-naked pictures or clips.
Concerns for her welfare have been raised about her posts, but as she explains in the book: “I know that a lot of people don’t understand why I love taking pictures of myself naked or in new dresses… I think if they’d been photographed by other people thousands of times, prodded and posed for other people’s approval, they’d understand that I get a lot of joy from posing the way I feel sexy and taking my own picture.”
Instagram aside, The Woman In Me is the first chance to hear about all of these much-covered ups and downs of her life in in Spears’s own words. She is honest about her flaws – that she was never good at fame, that she did occasionally take prescription drugs, she did cheat – but it is clear she was let down by so many. There is an undercurrent of anger: at the industry, the men who wronged her, her family, all those who made money out of Brand Britney while she was suffering.
Like many child stars before her, Spears has not experienced a normal transition into adulthood. At least now, hopefully, she gets to call the shots. Her book gives her the chance to have her say, but she doesn’t want to look back and reflect on the what ifs.
“It’s difficult for me to revisit this darkest chapter of my life and to think about what might have been different if I’d pushed back harder then,” she says of the conservatorship. “I don’t at all like to think about that… I can’t afford to, honestly. I’ve been through too much.”
Culture lovers have long believed in the healing power art. Now, science has caught up, with new research showing it has measurable benefits on the body.
A study from King’s College London has found that looking at original artworks, in a gallery, doesn’t just lift us emotionally – it also has a positive impact on our physical health.
Fifty people aged between 18 and 40 were shown art by a selection of leading 19th-century artists: Toulouse-Lautrec, Manet, van Gogh and Gauguin.
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864 – 1901), Jane Avril in the Entrance to the Moulin Rouge (c. 1892)
Édouard Manet (1832 – 1883), Banks of the Seine at Argenteuil (1874)
Édouard Manet (1832 – 1883), A Bar at the Folies-Bergere (1882)
Vincent van Gogh (1853 – 1890), Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear (1889)
Paul Gauguin (1848 – 1903), Te Rerioa (The Dream) (1897)
Participants viewed five paintings for three minutes each, in a 20-minute session.
But while half viewed the original paintings in the Courtauld Gallery in London, the others looked at reproductions in a neutral setting.
Their heart rates and skin temperature were measured with research-grade digital watches to indicate levels of interest and arousal, and saliva samples were taken with swabs before and after the session to measure stress hormones.
The results in those looking at the results in the gallery were significant, and immediate: The stress hormone cortisol fell by 22% and inflammatory markers linked to health problems including heart disease, diabetes and depression were reduced by as much as 30%.
No change was observed in the reproduction group.
Dr Tony Woods, researcher at King’s College London
Dr Tony Woods of King’s College London, who was the study’s lead researcher, told Sky News: “The magnitude of the difference between being in here and looking at the real art, looking at the copies in the laboratory, the difference between the two participant groups was quite enormous.”
It’s good news for the NHS, which is increasing its use of social prescribing, which can include visits to galleries.
Dr Woods went on: “The government’s health strategy is all about prevention. And this is a gift to [Health Secretary] Wes Streeting. Art is very well worth investing in because of the return on investment – it will keep people out of hospitals.”
Over one and a half million people in the UK accessed social prescribing between September and August this year across the UK, and NHS England told Sky News their ambition is to make it available to every person in England.
Dr Woods says the next steps of the study will be to find out how long the positive effects last, and research further into the effects of art on older participants.
Russell Tovey, actor, art lover and co-host of Talk Art, chatted to Sky News about his favourite piece at the gallery – van Gogh’s Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear (1889).
Talk Art podcast hosts Russell Tovey and Robert Diament
Tovey jokes: “Look at this painting here. It’s quite a troublesome picture, especially for me with my ears…
“But you can look at the surface and the way that he makes brushstrokes and the scale of the things and the colour he used. And you think about his life at the time and where he was living, and all those questions and answers will reveal the painting.”
Tovey adds: “Art is intrinsic to humanity,” and “shows us who we are”.
And now with the new findings, the hope is that gallery visits will be considered just as good as your ‘five-a-day’.
Tovey goes on: “It’s good for your health, it’s beneficial to your mental health and to your wellbeing to be in a museum and to be around art…
“If you eat well, go to the gym and go to a regular art gallery visit, then your health will be through the roof.”
Tovey’s podcast co-host, gallery owner Robert Diament, agrees: “I think it’s really important just to slow down a bit. Going to a museum or gallery can be part of your self-care routine… It will improve your life.”
Amid rising costs, reduced funding and dwindling visitor numbers, the findings could also provide a boost to galleries.
Jenny Waldman, Art Fund director, told Sky News: “These museums and galleries were set up in all cities and towns by people, you know, hundreds of years ago, who felt that it was good for people. So, this is the evidence, finally, that they were right.”
Jenny Waldman, Art Fund director
The national charity for museums and galleries, Art Fund champions art around the country, with initiatives including the National Art Pass which offers free or discounted entry to hundreds of museums, galleries and historic places around the UK.
So, what do gallery visitors think of the news that their time looking at art will positively impact their wellbeing?
Charlie, 10, from London said: “It makes me feel quite calm, and it draws me in.”
His dad Patrick, who had brought Charlie with his two young brothers to see the exhibition, added: “Looking at them on screens, or even in books, you just don’t get the full impression.”
Taeseok, an arts student from Amsterdam visiting the UK for the first time, said it felt good to stand and focus on just one thing, with no distractions. He summed it up: “Things around you start to not matter at all… It’s just you and the artwork.”
Re-framed as a course of treatment instead of an indulgent pastime, could the hard edge of science change the role galleries play in society?
If so, it could be a fitting reminder to the government of the true power of art, at a time when so many institutions are struggling to survive.
Thieves have stolen more than 1,000 items from a museum’s collection in California, including jewellery, carvings and Native American artefacts.
The burglary took place at an off-site storage facility holding items for the Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) on 15 October.
A neckpiece by Florence Resnikoff was also taken. Pic: Leopold Macaya/Oakland Museum of California/AP
The museum’s director said on Thursday details about the incident were being made public because the items might show up at flea markets, pawn shops and antique stores.
“The theft that occurred represents a brazen act that robs the public of our state’s cultural heritage,” said Lori Fogarty.
“They’re not just a loss to the museum. They’re a loss to the public, to our community and we’re hoping our community can help us bring them home.”
She also said she believed it was an opportunistic crime, rather than a targeted raid.
“We think the thieves found a way to enter the building, and they grabbed what they could easily find and snatch and get out of the building with,” she said.
Oakland Museum of California. Pic: Leopold Macaya/Oakland Museum of California/AP
A metal neckpiece by the late artist Florence Resnikoff, scrimshaw walrus tusks and Native American baskets were taken, with the thieves also making off with historic memorabilia like pins and sporting items.
Experts believe some items may have already been sold.
John Romero, a retired police captain, told the Los Angeles Times he expects detectives are looking at resale platforms such as Craigslist and Ebay, as well as networks specialising in historic or collectable goods.
“These people are interested in fast cash, not the full appraisal value,” he said. “They need to get rid of it quickly.”
Oakland Police Department is working with a specialist art crime unit of the FBI to track down the items.
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The OMCA’s mission is to document the art, history and natural environment of the Golden State.
Its collection carries works by famous Californian artists from the 18th century to present day.
The theft at the OMCA took place four days before the brazen jewellery heist at the Louvre museum in France.
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Suspects in Louvre robbery ‘partially confessed’
Thieves broke into the world-famous Paris museum while it was open to visitors on 19 October and made off with several Napoleonic crown jewels.
Authorities have made five arrests but the stolen items have not yet been recovered.
Entertainment
‘We’re having the time of our lives’: Westlife on 25 years of touring, family fame and fans
They were one of the main staples of noughties music in the UK and Ireland and to celebrate 25 years of touring, Westlife have returned to the spotlight again.
The boy band has released a new song called Chariot, with an album following suit in February and a tour that will take them around the world next year.
“The Westlife story is fairy tale stuff and we’re very lucky and proud to be part of it”, Shane Filan tells Sky News at the Royal Albert Hall, where they have just performed for two nights.
“It took our breath away. We came out to the Royal Albert Hall thinking it might be a little bit more intimate than a big arena and just the sheer noise, the sheer screams from the women and everyone just having good fun.
“The support and love, we never felt it like we did in the room. It was amazing.”
Westlife started their 25th anniversary celebrations with two sold-out shows at the Royal Albert Hall in London
Formed by their manager Louis Walsh in the late 1990s, the group originally consisted of Filan, Mark Feehily, Brian McFadden, Nicky Byrne and Kian Egan.
McFadden left the group in 2004 to pursue a solo career, but the other four have remained together.
Due to health issues, Feehily can’t join the celebrations, but representatives say he is still very much part of the band and features on their new music and upcoming album.
Westlife were blown away by the ‘sheer noise’ of screaming fans at the Royal Albert Hall. Pic: Sony Music
Pic: Sony Music
History-making chart successes
Westlife are joint third with Sir Cliff Richard and Ed Sheeran for the most UK number one singles in history, just behind Elvis and The Beatles.
In their first 18 months, they secured seven of those top spots thanks to songs like Flying Without Wings, I Have A Dream and If I Let You Go.
Reflecting on the years gone by, Byrne says the nostalgia hits harder than ever.
“You see the generations coming to the shows, people letting their hair down, people remembering the songs from their first kiss, the first dance, all those special things that music does,” he says.
“Not even just for the fans – we’re having the time of our lives.
“We’re singing these songs up there… I remember breaking the wardrobe door when we were promoting Swear It Again, and now we’re singing it in front of the Royal Albert Hall and look, I mean, just look at this place.”
(L-R) Kian Egan, Nicky Bryne and Shane Filan say they are having ‘the time of their lives’ performing together again
Famous fans and furniture
For Byrne, finding out about fans of their music never gets old, and their song Flying Without Wings seems to be a key component of their stature in music.
“I did Soccer Aid with Tom Grennan recently, and he was talking all about how he grew up listening to Westlife – his dad is Irish. Big Zuu, who scored the winning goal, he was like, ‘Flying Without Wings, man, is the best song I’ve ever heard’.”
It’s the same song Sheeran first learned to play guitar on, and years later, he began writing songs for the group, including their latest single Chariot.
Oddly, it’s their choice in furniture that receives just as much attention as their music over the years, with four stools becoming synonymous with the group.
Stemming from their lack of dancing skills, according to Simon Cowell at least, they chose to change it up and simply rise from their chair on the key change of the song.
“We are stool connoisseurs. It’s become a very strange thing and it’s nearly as big as our music. It’s genuinely as big as You Raise Me Up,” Filan laughs.
Filan (R) jokes that the band have become ‘stool connoisseurs’
Keeping their kids grounded
As the band continued to release music, each member settled down and had families of their own. Now their children are around the same age they were when they first started as a group.
Egan says they all made a conscious decision to raise the next generation away from the spotlight.
“We don’t want our kids growing up in this world and at the end of the day they are privileged, so it’s really important for us to keep them grounded and to try and give them as much of a natural kind of upbringing as they possibly can, and I think that’s why we choose to bring them up in the same places that we grew up,” he adds.
Byrne chimes in jokingly: “Slightly bigger houses, though!”
It was this tour that caused Byrne’s children to realise the extent of their father’s fame.
“I have twin boys who are 18 and a half, and the middle girl is 12. So last week, when the tour went on sale in Ireland, and we went from five nights in the 3Arena to 13, and from Belfast it went from three right up to seven, and the boys are looking at me, going, ‘You’re doing 13 nights in the 3Arena’.
“And it is even me looking at them going, ‘Yeah, right’. It hits you, it hits you there in a way, to be honest with you. I got a little bit cooler then.”
Read more from Sky News:
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Running from September 2026, Westlife 25 – The Anniversary World Tour, will kick off in Dublin for 13 shows before heading to Aberdeen, Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, Sheffield, London, Brighton, Bournemouth, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and then Belfast for seven nights.
Gigs in Paris, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Cologne and Zurich will follow.
Tickets for Westlife’s UK tour dates go on sale this Friday.
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