Shields missed out on childhood

Brooke Shields has spoken about her dismay at the fact that she never got a chance to be a normal child.

The actress and former child model claims that her career meant that she developed a strongly sexual public image when she was too young to understand the implications.

"I don't think I ever really was a 'child' child. I was made into a sort of icon of sexuality, simultaneously thought of as the virgin, which I was, yet always on the cover of Vogue looking sexual and much older. The object of affection and fantasy," she revealed to Contactmusic.

Yet the star also made sure that she maintained her own sense of identity and did things on her terms. She added: "I remember my defiance - not letting the system get the better of me and playing whatever role I needed to play to survive on my terms."