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Darcey Bussell began ballet seriously only at the age of 13 when she moved to White Lodge in the Royal Ballet School. After graduating in 1985, she stayed at the school for two further years, appearing in minor productions.
In 1988 while she was still at school, she won the leading role in the ballet The Prince of the Pagodas, causing her to move to The Royal Ballet. A year later, in December 1989, on the opening night of the show, she was promoted to Principal, at the time the youngest ballerina to be given this honour.
In 2006 she announced her retirement as a principal dancer at the Royal Ballet, though stayed with the company as "guest principal artist".
She retired from ballet on 3rd June 2007 with a performance of MacMillan`s Song of the Earth. It was performed at the Royal Opera House in London, and at the end of the piece she was met with a glorious standing ovation. It was also broadcast live on BBC 2.
She has recently teamed up with Katherine Jenkins, with whom she plans to put on a song and dance show to pay tribute to the stars who have inspired them. The show is entitled Viva la Diva and is due to be launched in November 2007.
She has been married since 1997 to Angus Forbes, an Australian banker. They live in Kensington, London with their two daughters; Phoebe, born 2001, and Zoe, born 2004.