In 1979 Daniel Farson interviewed her for The Sunday Telegraph Magazine. She told him: "I have never taken a penny from public money. Friends tell me I could live better on National Assistance, or whatever they call it now. Over my dead body! Anyway, I've never been able to afford the stamps. I've told them this would be more than my entire income. It's a good life but it's a tough life. You've got to be 100 per cent physically fit to live as I do. You've got to be tough, body and soul. Whatever happens at Ferny Ball, I've got to cope with it alone."