Presenter dragon boats with fellow cancer survivors

BBC news presenter and journalist Sally Taylor has praised a group of fellow breast cancer survivors who dragon boat together for their "friendship and camaraderie".

Pink Champagne is a female dragon boat team in Dorset made up exclusively of women who have previously had the disease.

One member of the team told the BBC that the activity had "given people their confidence back".

Taylor, who presented her last edition of South Today after almost 40 years this week, was treated for breast cancer in 1999.

She praised the group, saying: "By talking about it, you will have helped a lot of people."

One member said of the team "we don't talk about cancer all the time", while another said the activity was "important physically".

A fellow dragon boater said: "[It's good] to show people that we do things like this."

"We've now moved into a space where dragon boating defines us, not the breast cancer," another added.

In the 26 years since her diagnosis, Taylor has worked with various charities to raise awareness of the disease.

"Reality kicked in for me when I was sat on the bed the morning of my operation," she said.

"The consultant came in with a felt tip pen and then drew on my back where he was going to make the cuts.

"I sort of thought 'oh my goodness, I am going through with this'."

A fly-on-the-wall style documentary following Taylor's treatment journey was broadcast in 2000, and was widely praised for its candour and honesty.

"I shared my story on television and that was such a big thing, and I had to think about that very carefully beforehand," she said.

"In a way, I mean I don't regret it, but I sometimes think 'I wish it hadn't defined me'."

Taylor - who was described as a "TV legend" by one viewer - presented South Today for the final time this week, having first joined the regional news programme in 1987.

It is believed she had been the longest-serving female presenter of a flagship regional television news programme until her retirement on Thursday.

You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.