After they were famous
What do a builder, a retired doctor, a charity worker and Canadian diplomat have in common? Not much, except that once, their breathtaking looks and perfect figures meant they were judged to be the most beautiful women in the world.
Though the competition’s image has suffered in recent years, being crowned Miss World was once a dream come true. But what happens to the most beautiful girl in the world when she hands back the coveted crown and sceptre? While some turn their backs on the glitzy world of showbiz, others spend years basking in the glory of their fairytale success. Here, 8 former Miss Worlds speak about what they are doing now.
The Receptionist
Miss UK, Lesley Langley, won the Miss World title in 1965. Now 57, she lives in Weymouth.
Days after winning, topless modelling photos of 20 year-old Lesley were leaked, creating a massive scandal. “To me it had been just another modelling job but, being Miss World, that was not good. There was talk of me being disqualified but it never happened.”
She later had a relationship with Britain’s top jazz organist, Alan Havan, who cashed in on her fame by incorporating her into his touring band – as celebrity percussionist.
Today, Lesley keeps a low profile working as a dental receptionist in Weymouth.
“It is difficult growing old and trying to be what people think you are or what you were,” she says. “People do still expect you to look as good as you did all those years ago. I think the strain of growing old when you’ve been in the glamour business is difficult. You’re watching every line, every bag under the eye, and the stain of that is too much for me to keep wanting to be in showbusiness.”
But more than 35 years on, Lesley’s days as Miss UK are not forgotten by the public. “We get patients coming in to the surgery who know me and they like it. It’s quite a novelty for them, having a Miss World working there.”
The Doctor
Reita Faria was the first Miss India ever to compete in the first Miss World contest when she won in 1966. Now 59, she lives in Dublin.
Reita dispelled the myth that beauty queens are bimbos. A final-year medical student, she used the competition to help break the shackles of a traditional Indian upbringing and became an Asian role model. “We move slowly in India,” she says. “I came to London by myself but there was nothing to be frightened of. I was 23 and I think I was the only college student who entered. I was a little nonplused to win.”
After Miss World, she went back to medical school in London where, in 1967, she met her future husband, David, a professor of medicine. Having shunned the life of a celebrity for work as a doctor in America, she then gave up work altogether to raise a family in the Eighties. Today, she lives a quite life, spending time with her two daughters and grandchild.
The Diplomat
Miss Grenada, Jennifer Hosten, was flour-bombed by women’s liberation protesters when she won in 1970.
Jennifer Hosten’s reasons for becoming Miss World were nothing to do with pandering to the desires of men or an overwhelming desire to flaunt her body. She, quite genuinely, wanted to win in order to make the world a better place. “I saw myself as somewhat a role model for children and an ambassador for my country,” says 50 year old Hosten.
“Entering the contest was something of an accident because I wasn’t into the beauty business. But I needed the $10,000 prize, she adds. “It gave me international exposure and a wonderful learning experience – I probably went around the world three times in a year.”
On returning home to Grenadas after her win, a national holiday was declared and she even appeared on a Grenada postage stamp. She went on to become a diplomat for the Canadian government, on the Pakistan and Afghanistan desk. She is now separated from her husband and has two children.
The Businesswoman
Miss UK Helen Morgan’s tenure as Miss World in 1974 lasted just four days.
Now in her fifties, she recently emigrated to Spain. The fairytale rapidly turned sour for Helen Morgan, after it was revealed that the Welsh beauty was an unmarried mum. She was forced to resign by the organisers amid a tabloid frenzy.
Helen, who ran her own clothing business before retiring last year, remains bitter about the way she was treated. “Okay, I did have a child and I hadn’t got married, but I wasn’t the only person to have done that,” she says. “A lot of Catholic countries were complaining that I shouldn’t have been allowed to win or even take part.”
Their girls were probably all whiter-than-white, in fact they were probably even virgins.”
“Overall,” she sighs, “it has had a bit of a negative effect on my life. No matter what you do, you can never get rid of that label. I will always be known as an ex-Miss World.”
There is one thing, however, that she does not regret – keeping her little boy, who has grown into a healthy, strapping 28 year-old man.
The Singer
Miss Jamaica Cindy Breakspeare, won the title in 1976. Now 48, she looks back on her win with relish.
After retiring as Miss World, Cindy hit the headlines a second time when she gave birth to reggae star Bob Marley’s child.
“I guess you could say I was the antithesis of what he was supposed to be looking for in a woman,” she says. “Young women from upper-middle class backgrounds in Jamaica were certainly not getting involved with Rastafarians.”
Far from being resentful of the beauty industry, she says: “I was exploiting myself. I wanted to go and I did everything in my power to get there. Some people can sing, some can dance, some people are good looking.”
Today, Cindy is attempting to carve her own career in music, but having released five singles – all dismal flops in Jamaica – it seems people only want to remember her as a beauty queen. “To this day, people still come up to me to say they’ve always wanted to have a good look at me. And they do. They are still very curious.”
The charity worker
Miss Puerto Rico Wilnelia Merced was a sexy 18 year old student when she took the Miss World crown. Now 45, she lives in Britain but runs a charity in her own country.
“Latin Lovely” Wilnelia melted the hearts of the judges when she shimmied across the catwalk in her slinky zebra-print one-piece. One of them, Bruce Forsyth, was so taken by her that he ended up marrying her.
Just 18, she was a naive young girl fresh out of high school. “My life changed dramatically after that,” she says. “I was just a young girl from my town who had never been out of Puerto Rico. Suddenly, I was like a big celebrity.
“I couldn’t understand a word the man on stage was saying but it didn’t really matter. I felt like Cinderella that evening.” But 20 years on, she and Forsyth are still very much together. “He is such a gentleman. He knows how to treat a woman. He’s very romantic.” And though she continues to take care of her looks and body, it is not the be all and end all, anymore. Wilnelia, 45, runs her own charity in Puerto Rico. She claims: “I feel like my life is more meaningful now and it’s all thanks to Miss World.”
The Mother
Miss Sweden, Mary Stavin, was a 20 year old physical training student when she won Miss World in 1977.
After her win, Mary Stavin embraced the showbiz lifestyle with open arms, becoming a Bond girl and for three years until 1985, was one of the squad of Miss Worlds to have been attached to George Best.
As for the debates with Feminists that engulfed her in the years following her crowning, Mary says: “I had a lot of discussions with feminists and all those people who were putting me down, and I was saying to them, ‘so what have you don?’ I was a young girl, I had fun doing it. I’ve seen the world and I’ve learnt a lot. My best education was the year I won It.”
Now married to an English merchant banker and mother of a four year-old daughter, she lives in New York and Los Angeles.
At 45, she looks at least 10 years younger, and it is clear she has worked hard to maintain her looks. “It may sound a little braggy,’ she adds, “but I was thinking, my body is a little better now than it was in a swimming costume then.”
The Builder
Miss Guam, Kimberly Santos, was handed the title in 1980 when she was just 18, after the German entry who had taken first place quit after 24 hours amid rumours that she had starred in a porn film.
Kimberly Santos decided to turn her back on fame altogether after her tenure as Miss World ended.
“I wanted to do voluntary work and decided to become a special constable in the Metropolitan Police. I did that for about four years,” she says.
Then, she adopted a very down-to-earth existence – as a builder. “I don’t miss the glamourous part of it at all,” she says.
“My work now is quite a change from having to worry about hair and clothes. It’s quite a release, not having to think about those things. It’s wonderful to roll out of bed, put on my overalls, no make-up, bacon sandwich on the way to work. It’s fun to be a girl once in a while, but I prefer to be a builder.”
