The Queen Mother “didn’t bat an eyelid” and was very supportive when her hip surgeon transitioned to become a woman, says ballet dancer Wayne Sleep.
Prominent British hip replacement specialist Sarah Muirhead-Allwood, known for performing complex hip rejuvenations and unusual hip replacements, first operated on the Queen Mother before her transition.
She was then known as William and was called to perform a hip replacement on the Queen Mother at London’s King Edward V11 Officers’ Hospital in 1995.
The following year, Muirhead-Allwood began transitioning and was living as a woman when Queen Mum returned in 1998 to have her other hip replaced.
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, watching the march for her birthday in 1987.
Pictured: Wayne Sleep, who claimed the Queen Mother “didn’t bat an eyelid” and was very supportive when her hip surgeon transitioned to become a woman.
Sleep, 76, revealed the Queen Mother’s reaction to the specialist’s new identity, saying she asked Muirhead-Allwood: “Oh William, what do I call you now, dear?”
‘She said ‘Sarah, ma’am.’ She said, ‘Oh, Sarah, do the other hip; the other was a great success.’ The Queen Mother did not blink.
As well as operating in The Queen Mother and Mr Sleep, Muirhead-Allwood also saved the tennis career of Sir Andy Murray, who became the first men’s singles player to continue playing at a high level after his hip resurfaced five years ago.
At 95, the Queen Mother became one of the oldest people in the world when she underwent this delicate operation for the first time.
Muirhead-Allwood worked alongside her personal specialist Roger Vickers during the 90-minute procedure.
Prince William, left, accompanies his great-grandmother, the Queen Mother, as she waves after attending a thanksgiving service in 2000.
The Queen Mother was able to leave the hospital after 18 days, standing alone on the hospital stairs to greet the cameras.
Sleep, who spoke to the Mail on Sunday at the launch of her memoir, Just Different, was told by the surgeon herself about the Queen Mother’s response to Muirhead-Allwood’s transition.
He said: ‘The Queen Mother was fantastic – she always had feathers, feather boas and jewelery everywhere.
‘She was real, I mean, she didn’t look like a drag queen, but she could have been. She was camping. I loved the glow of being a real woman. The brighter the better!’