Transsexual Teen, Beauty Queen

Meet Jackie Green, an 18-year-old Leeds lass

with a dream of making it in the heady world of high fashion.

It's so much fun! I like being the centre of attention.

I am ringing with good news...

Jackie has reached the first round of the Miss England competition...

Victory dance!

And hopes that winning the coveted pageant will catapult her to model stardom.

To win Miss England would be crazy cool.

So far, so normal Leeds lass.

But, Jackie Green Beauty Queen was born...

..a boy named Jack.

I sent an email round the class saying,

"I'm a girl trapped in a boy's body."

But it's tough being trans.

I was 14 and two 40-year-old men beat me up. What dickheads!

Now she's fighting back.

We're not freaks, we're just trying to get on with our lives.

Trying to prove herself at the country's top beauty pageant.

At five-years-old I was diagnosed as transgender.

OK, that's fantastic. Good luck.

But will she be accepted as one of the girls?

-Please will you hug me?

-Oh, babe!

It's not a big deal to me, and it shouldn't be to anyone else

because I'm a girl.

This programme contains some strong language.

Jackie lives at home in the small Yorkshire town of Guiseley

with her three brothers, mum Susie, and the dogs.

Grandma Julie lives round the corner,

but you'll often find her at the Green family home.

They're a tight-knit bunch.

He's a little bully! DOG BARKS

DOGS GROWL Does anyone else want a cup of tea?

Wait!

Go on then.

Now, you remember when I said Jackie was born a boy?

Well, she doesn't quite see it like that. It's complicated.

-You used to be a lad?

-I...I never used to be a lad.

It's just like, if you met someone else who was, like, trans,

and you said that to someone else who wasn't as nice as me,

you might get a slap. So you know, be careful.

-I apologise.

-Yeah, should do, dickhead!

I've always been a girl.

I had this little birth defect that needed to be fixed.

Just like having a mole, which you don't like.

I have a girl's brain, and I had a boy's bottom half, sort of thing.

I was surprised to learn that Jackie had felt like this

for as long as she can remember.

Kids always know who they are.

It's like if you tried to dress my brother

when he was like three or four

in some girl's clothes he would have been mortified.

He would have seriously kicked some ass about that,

because it was just like...

You know. Part of you always knows.

When I was four, I said to my mum,

"God's made a mistake. I should have been a girl."

Obviously, any parent faced with their child saying that

thinks, I really want this to go away.

I really don't want to have to deal with this.

The first time I ever took her shopping

I took this little boy shopping, you know, with short hair

and wearing jeans and T-shirt, and we were in the girl aisle

and he's picking up dresses,

and putting them up against and swirling around.

I just thought everybody in the shop is looking at me

and thinking, "Oh, what is that woman doing?"

What was going through your head at this stage?

I just thought she'd grow out of it. I just thought she'd like girl stuff for a bit

and then she'd start liking boy stuff more.

And it just never happened.

I love that. That's cool.

-She never let up, did she?

-Oh, no!

It's not as if she ever went, "Oh, all right then!" She never let up.

Jackie was so sure of her identity that she would eventually become

the youngest person in the world to change their gender through surgery.

She was just 16.

It was a moment of transformation for Jackie in more ways than one.

She lost weight, gained confidence, and set her sights on modelling,

starting with a string of student fashion shows.

After being spotted by Miss England scouts

she won an online public vote and a place in the regional heats.

The first transsexual to make it into Miss England.

She was asked to enter the beauty competition by modelling scouts

who had no idea of her history.

And that was that Jackie was in fact born a boy,

and at 16 became the UK's youngest transsexual.

So why is Jackie entering Miss England?

The whole point of it is, obviously, yeah,

it's to further myself in my modelling career,

but whenever I was younger all I'd see was the drastic trans people

who've left their kids and wives.

It's quite daunting to see that that's how your life might turn out.

I like the idea of being a role model.

I feel big-headed whenever I say it, it sounds, like, weird.

But, erm, yeah,

I think there definitely needs to be more role models.

We'll be following Jackie all the way, as she attempts

to become the first ever transsexual Miss England.

10,000 girls entered Miss England this year.

The winner will take home a £30,000 prize package,

become an ambassador for the competition's charity

and represent England on the global stage at Miss World,

which will next be held in Mongolia.

In the coming week, Jackie is competing in two separate qualifiers,

battling to win a place in the Miss England semi-final. And she seems confident.

I'm pretty excited actually, I'm just like, come on, lets go do it!

Take it on! But, yeah, so that's pretty cool.

-Have you ever done a pageant before?

-No, never.

Have you ever even been to one?

No.

Jackie knows she's a complete novice.

To stand a chance, she's going to need some training.

So today she's travelled to London to be transformed

into a potential beauty queen in a one-day course

run by Miss England 2008 Laura Coleman...

-I'm Laura.

-Hi!

..along with pageant coach David Douglas and their team of experts.

-Please take care of me. I'm very nervous!

-Don't worry!

You sit down next to me and I'll explain what's going to happen.

Have you been in any heats before already?

Erm, I was in the photo heats round.

Have you done any heats where you're walking against other girls?

-No.

-It's OK. We're very successful at training people.

We've had multiple winners, not only in Miss England.

Last year at Miss Universe we had the top six at Miss Universe,

so our methods hopefully are working

and hopefully some of it will rub off on you. Let's go.

It turns out that winning a beauty pageant isn't just about beauty.

Organisers say they're also looking for someone with personality.

So each competition starts with an interview.

The interview round is usually a quarter of the marks of any pageant.

So, if you're very good at it, and you blow them away,

then you're in the game, you're scoring highly.

The first bit is to tell them about yourself. Did you do anything interesting when you were young?

Brothers, sisters? Did you have a horse when you were young?

A lot of girls had a pony or they were into something, you know, there was something.

I am actually transgender,

-and I was diagnosed as transgender at five years old.

-OK.

So, erm, through that I would be going to see doctors

and things like that, a lot of different,

like, psychotherapist appointments and things like that.

Don't stall on that story and spend too long on it,

because you are begging them to ask you a question.

And then the minute they ask you a question,

you don't know what road it's gonna take.

I mean, considering your circumstances,

what made you want to be in beauty pageant?

Mainly to be able to raise awareness of people like me,

and to sort of educate people.

-Show that we're capable of doing what everyone else is able to.

-Good.

That's a question you'll be asked,

so what I'm suggesting is, you say it.

It's a dead story after that cos you're then in amongst other girls, competing.

You are one of them and there is no difference whatsoever.

I think what's very important is to dress for your body shape.

There's lots of, like, different body shapes.

Next up, Laura wants to help Jackie find the perfect pageant look.

You can have a rectangle, an hour glass.

So what kind of body shape do you think you are?

An hour glass.

-I don't think I'm quite hour glass!

-Yeah! Yeah definitely!

SHE LAUGHS

Yeah, you look amazing! Would you wear that, like?

No, it's not really my style, it's too glittery.

This is the first time I've seen the normally confident Jackie seem a little awkward.

This one will look really nice with your hair and everything. Gorgeous.

Looks so nice!

Maybe not gold. I don't know, I think it...

I think it really brings out your skin tone and your hair colour and everything, it really suits you.

Apparently, winning a pageant isn't just about looking good,

it's about looking good on the catwalk.

MUSIC: "California Gurls" by Katy Perry

And former Miss Universe Great Britain Tara Hoyos-Martinez

seems to have the knack.

She's the best walker going.

-Is she?

-Yeah.

I only ever did one pageant, and I find the walking the most fun.

Just walk for me how you would walk normally.

Just like walking down the street. Yeah?

I'm no expert, but I'm not sure Jackie's getting into this.

Yeah? That's good, all right then.

You need to show them that you're meant to be there.

You could do a back flip, lose your knickers down the middle of the stage,

but as long as you're confident.

You're smiling, having a good time, and everyone will be smiling with you.

It's really smiley. Yeah?

You all right, darling? You OK?

SHE SOBS

-Are you all right, babe?

-Yeah.

Oh, darling!

Seeing... SHE SIGHS

Seeing you girls, it's just... I don't stand a chance.

-Yes, you do!

-No, I don't.

You're amazing! You have everything going for you.

Like you have everything, honestly, I absolutely swear to you now.

You're doing amazing. You've just got to do it and enjoy yourself

and do it for you, not for other people.

I'm sorry about this.

You don't have to be sorry. I'll walk with you.

Now you've made a big step in life, and you've gone through a massive journey.

You've missed out lots of steps because probably the world hasn't allowed you to have those things.

We go to pageants and we see little girls coming up to us

wanting autographs, wanting to ask us questions

about how do they become a pageant queen.

It's every girl's little dream.

And maybe, maybe, some of those pieces of life have been taken away from you.

But it doesn't mean to say you can't have them now.

Jackie's confidence definitely took a knock.

But with support from Laura and David, she's back on the catwalk.

Keep your shoulders back, there you go.

Smile, have fun, yep.

Remember, finish with a good pose.

-Nice.

-I don't have any problem with her being in this pageant,

and I think she can contest equally, and I think she can win something.

Left and right, smile at the audience, shoulders back.

She's got something about her, she has a passion for it,

and I think she realised today that if she applies herself,

she can compete at this level.

I think she can stand tall against all these girls.

That was good!

It's two days until Jackie competes

in her first qualifier for Miss England.

She's at a photo shoot, trying out different looks.

For ten years, Jackie's been wearing whatever she wants in public,

but this wasn't always the case.

Up to the age of eight, she was still wearing a boy's uniform to school.

Mum Susie could tell it wasn't working.

Towards sort of like the middle of primary school,

erm, she was becoming more and more unhappy.

It confused the other kids, that she acted like a girl

and wanted to play with the girls.

And she just started to tell everybody.

I sent an email around the class saying, "I'm a girl trapped in a boy's body."

They just sort of went, "Oh, that's why!"

You know, "That's why he's so weird!"

Sorry - I hate saying "he", but I was back then, I guess.

The head of the primary school said to me,

"Can you just tell her not to do that?" and I went, "I've tried!"

Being forced to dress as a boy was taking its toll on young Jackie.

She was disruptive in lessons,

she was very confrontational, she was very angry all the time.

She would steal things, she'd destroy things.

It was all sort of acting out this immense feeling

of being so totally wrong and unhappy with herself.

I had to talk her out of wanting to cut her parts off,

cos she didn't want... They weren't...they weren't her.

It was a huge strain on the family. Something had to change.

By the time she was about nine, I just said to the school,

"Look, trying to live as a boy in school is not doing her any good.

"I'm going to let her grow her hair and I'm gonna let her start coming to school

"looking like she is on the inside."

It felt just amazing to be myself,

like instead of having all these people tell me I'm not a girl,

and it's just like, "Yeah, I am. Fuck off! Go away!"

Come down, come down. The dress is here!

There's a delivery for Jackie.

I have the dress! The dress!

Oh, my God! I want to put it on now!

It's Jackie's first ever pageant dress.

It's so beautiful!

I think she's starting to get into the part.

It's the day of the Nottingham heat for Miss England.

A first for Jackie and a first for the beauty pageant.

Change it from where you finish, and hold the pose for four.

She's battling it out with 50 other girls for a handful of places in the Miss England semi-final.

I am nervous, but optimistic.

Not to sound rude but there's all different shapes and sizes.

I mean catwalk, everyone's skinny bony and walking up and down like they're zombies.

Here there's a bit more character introduced.

I think it's gonna give me a good chance, especially in the interview stages.

Cocky much(!)

But before the competition gets into full swing,

Jackie is meeting David and Laura for some final tips.

Hello! Oh my gosh.

I'm dying of heat exhaustion, I've just been running up and down stairs.

-You look really nice.

-She looks lovely, doesn't she?

So, simple things, never leave your back to the judges, OK?

They'll score you from the back, and you don't want that.

-Take all the attention you can get.

-Would you like to see my dress?

-I'd love to.

-I have a picture of it on my phone.

Pretty nice, I think you'll do well today.

-You need to work to feel like that when you're walking around.

-Yeah.

-Just to turn that...

-Step out?

Yes. What will happen is the dress will naturally follow you around,

almost like a dog.

You're looking like a beauty queen today.

-Thank you!

-It's a big transformation from the other day.

You'll make me blush!

What's your game plan for tonight?

I wish I had one now.

You've got to get in there. Talk to the judges.

-Don't she, David?

-Yes.

It's the first round.

A group interview.

Judges rotate around the tables to chat to the girls.

This is not a job interview. I just want to have a chat.

It's Jackie's first chance to impress,

and she's not shy about telling her story.

Hello, I'm Jackie Green.

I'm 18 years old, and I'll tell you some more if that's all right.

I actually do a lot of charity work for children,

and families of children with gender variant issues.

And the reason I'm part of that charity is because,

at five years old, I was diagnosed as transgender,

so since then they've been a massive supporting pillar to me and my family.

I'm quite an ordinary girl trying to achieve some extraordinary things.

-Like all of the other girls.

-Yeah.

Right, well, I think we should move on.

At five years old I was diagnosed as transgender.

-How did that affect your life?

-It's gone towards making me who I am,

and it's gone towards making me a stronger person and more confident.

OK, that's fantastic. Good luck.

-I'm transgender.

-Are you? I would never have guessed!

-Oh, why, thank you!

-Really?

-Yeah!

-Wow.

It's hard to tell what the judges made of Jackie,

but if points are awarded to girls with something interesting to say,

Jackie must have won this round.

Or maybe it's all down to the catwalk show.

Can Jackie shine in front of the crowd?

Now first of all I'd like to say, we have got 33 fantastic girls

waiting backstage, so, ladies and gentlemen, first of all,

please welcome the girls in their club wear.

MUSIC: "Countdown" by Beyonce

In the evening's big event, the girls will be judged on how they carry themselves

in two different outfits - club wear and evening wear.

Good evening, ladies and gentleman, my name is Grace-Elizabeth Weaver.

Today I'm sponsored by Toolmatic,

and it would mean the world to me if I won this evening,

just so I could prove that you can fulfil your dreams.

I'd also like to show that beauty isn't separate from intelligence,

as I think that's a really important message.

I want to win, because I want to be a role model for trans people

and to show that we're all beautiful, and deserve to achieve our dreams.

APPLAUSE

MUSIC: "Part-Time Lover" by Stevie Wonder

The show's over. The judges are considering their verdict.

-Jackie's Miss England dream is in the balance.

-We got through it, we got through it.

-Did you enjoy it?

-I did, I enjoyed it so much, so...

I was like, "Yeah, go on Jackie!"

-You did really well.

-Thank you.

-No, I'm really pleased, really pleased.

You did really good, honestly. You did fantastically well. You should be proud of yourself.

She looked fabulous, and just really poised and confident.

You know, when she stood up there and said about raising awareness

for trans issues, I thought that was fabulous.

Just really proud of her.

Takes a lot of guts to put yourself out there.

It's the moment of truth.

Will Jackie win acceptance from the pageant judges?

Now over to the Miss Modelzed finalists.

Just five are going through to this next stage.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

The first girl making it into the top five...

..is contestant number six, Jenny Williams.

-CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

-Congratulations, Jenny.

Contestant number 11, Louise Jowitt.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Number seven, Jamie Lee Faulkner.

-CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

-Congratulations, well done.

But the final girl that the judges have chosen to go through to the top five of Miss Modelzed tonight...

..Is contestant number four, Jennifer McSween.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

And why would you like to win tonight? What would it mean to you to go forward into Miss England?

It would mean, like, so much to me to go into miss England.

It would be an amazing experience.

-How are you feeling?

-Gutted, but, hey.

I'm genuinely gutted.

Being here has been amazing. I'm so sorry.

I am so proud of you.

It's only a beauty pageant, OK? It's only a beauty pageant.

You've got the rest of your life to continue on to do whatever you want to do and I am so proud.

You were fabulous and you look amazing.

Look. OK?

This is a setback, you might not have done...got in to the final or semi-finals.

Why would anybody laugh at you? You look fantastic.

Nobody is going to look at you as anything other than

just one fantastic amazingly strong young woman.

-Please can you hug me?

-Oh, babe.

Come on. Let's go.

Come on, you must be freezing your tits off out here.

I thought we'd give Jackie and her mum a little space.

But when we got back inside, Jackie was on stage.

-What's going on?

-She won the Miss Personality award.

Basically, Jackie's won the personality vote,

which has been voted for by all the girls backstage.

We asked them to vote for the girl that's made an impression.

And to be honest I can't think of a better award to make her feel accepted, I suppose.

-Are you going to keep going?

-Yeah, as if this is going to stop me. I've been through much worse.

It's just been a pleasure to meet you and to open our eyes

and squash some, you know, ignorant views.

-You're a real inspiration to a lot of people.

-Thank you.

Honestly. Really proud to meet you, pleasure to meet you. Honestly.

I'm just gobsmacked, to be honest. I mean, I can't describe it

because it's just like they have... they have voted for me.

As in... Oh.

I have friends and I've been accepted into, with...

I'm just, like, you know, I'm one of the girls, and I should be.

So it's just...

SHE SIGHS

SHE SOBS QUIETLY

Jackie might have won acceptance from the pageant girls,

but tonight's award DIDN'T come with a place

in the Miss England semi-final.

But it's not all over. In three days, Jackie has another qualifier.

Her last chance to make it through.

The following evening I met up with Jackie,

who'd had some time to reflect.

I was so sad. I really was like, "Oh, man."

I thought I'd made enough of an effort and I thought,

come on, fourth at least!

Did it cross your mind that your past might have affected

the judge's decision?

I don't know, I don't think so. I hope not.

Because if it did, then what a bunch of wankers.

But I don't think it did.

Jackie clearly has an incredibly strong sense of identity.

And she's had to fight to express her true self for her entire life.

That battle became particularly fierce at secondary school.

Despite arriving as a girl named Jackie,

in her small home town, she wasn't able to escape her past.

-Secondary school was an absolute pigging nightmare.

-Oh, yeah.

She just was a girl and she just wanted to be treated like a girl,

but it just made her a target

for all this nastiness and bigotry and hatred.

It was so obvious that I was a girl.

I had long hair, I kind of guess I was pretty.

So it was just like, why? I don't even look like a guy.

If I had a beard and I had like... I talked like friggin' Barry White

then I would get it, but it's just, like, why?!

Jackie was attacked a couple of times in the street by other kids.

They circled her, about 20 of them in the playground, shouting out,

"Oi, show us your dick, when are you having it chopped off?"

There was one boy in school who kept calling her "tranny".

"Tranny, tranny, tranny, freak, tranny, man-beast,"

and it was every time he saw her.

And the abuse wasn't confined to the school yard.

When she was 14, and two adult guys attacked her.

'They were, like, 40.

'They came up behind me and they beat me up.'

I was 14 and two 40-year-old men beat me up!

What dickheads! Just saying.

It was a difficult time and led Jackie to some extreme places.

Something had happened at school. I think I got spat on.

'I just said to myself, "Right, fuck it," and left.

'I walked out of school.

'I stole a packet of 16 paracetamol and took them in the toilet.'

Obviously, I was feeling quite sick and ill.

In the end we went in to hospital and checked in overnight.

So, yeah... That was...that was hard.

Jackie says she tried to kill herself half a dozen times

before she was 14 years old.

It was an anxious time for Susie.

-I thought I was going to lose her, I thought she was going to be dead.

-Yeah.

I thought she would kill herself, it was so awful.

Every day was...a worry.

I had nightmares about it,

about her being subject to that sort of prejudice and hatred.

So, yeah, I was terrified.

'I hated every single part of myself, I didn't see any happy ending.'

Like, I'm going to end up a dude.

Or at least... Well, no, I didn't, I knew I WASN'T going to end up a dude.

I would die before that would happen.

Jackie had reached a critical point in her life.

Puberty was around the corner,

with all the irreversible male changes that come with it.

She wanted surgery, but it's banned here until you're 18

and blockers - drugs that could have helped by delaying puberty -

weren't available to anyone under 16.

If I didn't get the blockers, I'd basically I'd get an Adam's apple, I'd get a deep voice.

I'd have been about six-foot-four, I'd have got a beard

and all that sort of thing. I kept saying to my mum,

if I have to go through that, I'll kill myself.

With her daughter's life in the balance, there was a breakthrough.

Susie tracked down a pioneering Boston doctor named Norman Spack.

He was Jackie's last chance.

It's like a light going on for her to meet this doctor who just...

He just totally and utterly treated her with respect,

treated her as a girl.

Said to her, you know, "This is clear to me who you are,

"we'll just have to sort it out."

And that made me feel like there was hope,

that she would have a happy life, that she could be OK.

Over the course of three years

and half a dozen visits to the Boston Children's Hospital,

Dr Spack provided the blocking hormones

to stop the onset of a male puberty. He saved Jackie's life.

Jackie hasn't seen Dr Spack for three years.

Hi, Norman!

How are you?

I'm good, how are you?

It's so good to see you.

Jackie was the first trans person in the UK to receive this treatment,

blazing a trail for other youngsters with a similar condition.

I don't know how... to thank you enough.

SHE SOBS

Thank you.

Thank YOU.

You have been an inspiration to my work,

which has made it possible for hundreds of young people

to be treated like you.

Don't!

Gosh, you're going to mess up my make-up!

Jackie has one last crack at making it through to the Miss England semi-final.

The day before the event, I found her pretty psyched.

I'm a person, I'm a girl, I'm a human being,

I'm going for the Miss England competition cos I want to

show people that that's exactly what trans people are.

They're normal human beings, we're not freaks,

we're just trying to get on with our lives.

There's not many people who are comfortable to say that,

but...you know, I am.

Watford on a Wednesday. Setting for the final showdown.

Just a dozen girls facing off for the last two places in Miss England.

It's now or never for Jackie, but she's playing it cool.

'I can only do my best.'

I might as well enjoy it while I'm here, no point being down about it,

or worrying, cos if I look down or look like I'm upset or uncomfortable,

I'm going to lose straight away.

Actually there's some really gorgeous girls so I'm just, like, "Ah, shit!"

-Hello.

-Hello!

-This is contestant number seven, Jackie Green.

-Hi, Jackie.

-Hello!

I'm Jackie Green, I'm 18 years old

and I'd like to tell you some more about myself, if that's all right?

-We'd love to know more about you!

-Saves us asking questions!

One of the charities I work with is called Mermaids,

and it's for gender variant children. I joined them when I was around five,

me and my mum, because around that time I was diagnosed as transgender.

So if you won the competition would you like to make this a bit more known to everyone?

Yeah, definitely. I would love to be able to, sort of, educate people

and show that trans people are very normal people trying to get on with our lives.

Yep, there we go, nice. Yep.

Let's change the legs up, maybe do something legs apart,

a little bit more posey-posey with this one... That's it.

Can I do my favourite one?

-Whoo!

-God, I thought you were going to fall then!

-Amazing.

-I was close!

-Got it.

Wow, I'm impressed with myself for catching that one as well!

I feel like they liked me because I made them laugh,

and sort of kept their attention.

I wasn't boring, I don't think, you know.

So hopefully, I did well.

My dad's here, bless him. He's come to see me.

'I think he finds it uncomfortable,

'because he's your typical bloke's bloke and he's coming to pageants.'

Oh, I guess it's not really his thing.

I must admit her personality is such a strong point,

and what she wants to do, what she wants to achieve.

I'm interested now to see the catwalk,

because being Miss England doesn't necessarily mean

you've got to be a model, it's about personality,

you're representing the UK.

So you're an ambassador, that's one of the things we really look for.

She has to be a complete package, just not a beauty queen.

Contestant number seven is Jackie Green.

APPLAUSE

And she's from Leeds.

Thank you, Jackie.

It's crunch time on the catwalk.

The prize - a place in the Miss England semi-final.

That went OK, I think. Could've done better,

but I think everyone thinks that, I think they always think that.

We now have our results.

Thank you very much for being so patient with us today.

Our first runner-up, also going through to the semi-final

is contestant...

number seven, Jackie Green!

Oh, my God!

APPLAUSE

SHE MUTTERS

Jackie Green beauty queen, how does it feel?

Well, THAT sounds really weird! But it feels fucking awesome.

'I'm in it. Oh, my God.'

Dude! I'd high-five you if you weren't busy!

SLAP! Fuck, yes!

SHE GIGGLES

-Go on, go and see your dad.

-I need to go and see my dad!

Jackie's folks split up when she was seven,

but the whole family are still close.

I'm very proud and very happy for her.

She's clearly over the moon, and so am I, so there you go.

Keep it nice and happy, everyone.

'There is absolutely no way to put in words

'where Jackie was and where she is.'

I was, like, "OK, breathe now!"

She's had a torrid, tough, tough life.

Erm, but she's getting through it and she's finding

ways to be confident and happy and assertive and find her way in life.

She's probably tougher than anyone I know, frankly.

And good luck in the semi-finals.

-Yeah, thank you. I know, right?

-I'll keep my fingers crossed for you.

I've done it, I'm in the semi-finals, and...

SHE SIGHS IN RELIEF

Fucking eh!

NEWSREADER: Jackie who's from Leeds was the youngest person in the world

to have a sex change at the age of 16.

Yes, Jackie used to be Jack.

The last time we met up with her she'd just been invited to compete

in the Miss England contest and it went pretty well, didn't it?

-Tell us all about it.

-Yeah.

It's a week since Jackie made it through to the semi-final.

Every morning I wake up and go, "Oh! Semi-final soon."

And the world's press have picked up on the story, from Yorkshire...

to Brazil.

Hola, Fantastico! I'm Jackie Green, I'm 18 years old,

I'm a transgender Miss England contestant.

I'm in the papers in Panama.

Oh, my God, and Hong Kong! Oh, my God, India!

I don't even know where Panama is.

I feel like a terrible person but I don't know where Panama is.

"Sex change teenager - now I can win Miss England."

"Sex swap, sex change." I fucking hate those terms.

-Do you?

-Yeah, it's bullshit.

-Why?

I don't know, it's just... I think it's because it's always that

those words are sensationalised, those are the things you hear.

"Swap-op girl"! Oh, my God, swap-op girl!

I have to admit, even though I fucking hate it,

it does roll off the tongue pretty well.

It's more than two years since Jackie

had her gender reassignment surgery -

or "swap-op" as the papers call it.

She made history by becoming the youngest transsexual in the world

on her 16th birthday.

The seven-hour procedure is banned in England for people under 18,

so the Greens flew to Thailand

where at the time it could be done legally at 16.

They booked her in for her 16th birthday.

And I told her and she danced around the room for five minutes.

It was like a victory dance,

it was like, "Yay, yay, I'm getting a fanny!"

SHE CHUCKLES

I don't know the technical terms of what they did, and I really don't want to, it's gross.

It's just, like, "Oh, no!"

The majority of surgeons around the world

do something called penile inversion where they basically use

the skin from the penis to create the vagina.

She hadn't developed through full puberty,

so, to not put too fine a point on it, there wasn't much to work with!

Sorry, Jackie, she'll hate that!

SHE LAUGHS

From the minute I woke up I felt different,

and everything just seemed so much brighter.

I was who I should be and no-one could tell me otherwise.

She just went, "Oh, I'm so happy," and then burst into tears

and she went, "I can't believe it, I've got a fanny."

And just...we were both in tears cos it wasn't just what

she was saying, it was just the look on her face.

She just...she was just so happy.

It was the start of my life,

and from there, it's been pretty wicked.

For a normal working mum, it was a huge financial strain.

Worked out about between £28,000-£30,000 altogether.

I put it on my mortgage, I had no other way of paying for it.

Is she going to pay you back?

Yeah, right(!)

BOTH LAUGH

It's the day before the Miss England semi-final

and we're all in Leicester.

Susie and a friend have driven 100 miles to support Jackie.

Stressed is not the word, she's been going up the wall.

I'm really worried about how she'll take it if she doesn't go through.

She really, really wants it,

but she's done fabulously well to get this far.

Who would've thought it?

10 years ago, I didn't even know she'd be alive, so...

This is a new level of competition,

by the far the biggest pageant Jackie's ever competed in.

60 girls vying for just 12 places in the Miss England final.

-Hello.

-Hello, honey.

-The semi is a little bit different.

Girls are competing against each other

in a series of sports competitions.

And bizarrely they'll be modelling home-made eco-dresses.

-Hello.

-Hello, come in.

-Hello.

Right, we have wine and vodka and water for you.

Thank you for the water!

Half ten on the night before the competition.

So what's the plan with the old dress, then? Balcony?

The plan is don't you get too drunk...

-I'm not getting too drunk!

-..so you can't help me spray my dress.

-Oh, OK.

-Is this eco-dress still in here?

-Yeah.

Oh, Jackie! You should have hung it up!

-Where am I meant to hang it up?

-All the fingers are going to get stuck together.

OK, so we need to lay this out now, and we need to unpick it.

Look at that!

-You can't walk down the catwalk in that!

-No.

Jackie's friend has hand-made an eco-dress out of rubber gloves

for the event, but it hasn't travelled well.

-Shit, Jackie. This shouldn't have been left bundled up.

-Oh, Jackie.

-Glove fingers are all sticking together.

-Yeah.

Have we got like anything we can peg that to?

-How's that going to peg it on?

-Don't start!

-Don't start!

We're trying to do you a favour!

-Yeah.

-She's only left it wrapped up

in a bloody bundle for half the night.

-See you in the morning, babe.

-All right.

-I'm sorry.

-That's all right.

-It looks great.

-Night, honey.

-Bye!

-Night, bye.

It's the day Jackie's been waiting for - the Miss England Semi-Final.

-You nervous?

-I wasn't particularly nervous yesterday.

-Yeah.

Now, I feel a little bit more nervous.

-Yeah.

-Just like, putting on make-up and getting ready.

Big smile, there you go.

It's 10am. Jackie's first chance to size up the other girls.

I'm Jackie.

They're the cream of the competition,

and Jackie seems a little sensitive.

Everyone's got cool names like Natalia.

I don't know how to pronounce some of them.

but it's like, mine's "Jackie". I feel boring. It's just, oh.

-Didn't you choose your name?

-Yeah, but still...

An elegant lady is what I look for, to put it bluntly.

She's got to be very beautiful to look at,

but also she's got to be beautiful from within.

If somebody comes in and says they want to work for world peace

or are interested in fluffy animals

they'll get zero points straight away.

The day starts with a sports round,

with the winner going straight through to the Miss England final.

But it's not Jackie's forte and she's knocked out early.

After getting their breath back, all 60 girls are being interviewed

individually in their evening wear.

Jackie normally has a lot to say,

and her story sets her out from the crowd,

but this time she's up against her most challenging panel yet.

It's a nice town.

Famous for which playwright?

I don't know.

Alan Ayckbourn, wasn't it?

Learn something new every day!

I'm studying sociology at Loughborough Uni. Sociology.

Car boot, I always do a car boot for charity.

Because every time I do it, I raise about a hundred pounds.

It's really worth it.

Hello, have a seat. Everyone, this is Jackie.

-Hello, Jackie, have a seat.

-Hi, Jackie.

Hi. My name's Jackie Green, I'm 18 years old,

and I'd like to tell you a little about myself, if that's all right?

-Yeah, go ahead.

-I live in Leeds, but originally I'm from Maidstone.

From there I moved with my family, my mum and my dad,

and we moved to Croydon.

Leeds - is it as awful as everyone says it is?

JUDGE: Excuse me, I'm from Leeds!

Leeds, is it as ABYSMAL as everyone says it is?

No, I quite like Leeds, it's a nice city.

I don't go out often which is probably a good thing,

cos I can't drink much, I have a terrible tolerance for alcohol

I'm, like, "Please, no!"

-Did you raise funds for the Beauty With A Purpose charity?

-I did.

I raised maybe 200, or maybe 150, within that region, ballpark.

-Are you happy with that total?

-I am.

I think I'm devastated I couldn't raise more,

but I think at the end of the day every little helps.

-Thank you very much, Jackie.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

I was surprised that for the first time in competition

Jackie didn't talk about her extraordinary life story.

She didn't even mention being trans.

Pleasant enough but if asked a question, at least try and say something interesting

-even if there's nothing interesting to say.

-Make something up.

Absolutely.

APPLAUSE

Good afternoon, ladies and gentleman, and welcome to the semi-finals of Miss England 2012.

Tonight, 14 girls will go forward to the national finals of Miss England.

SWING MUSIC

Please now welcome contestant 31, Natalia Leigh, Miss Coventry.

And contestant number 35, Jackie Green, Miss Popularity.

WHOOPING AND APPLAUSE

APPLAUSE

It's the final round - the home-made eco-dress.

Jackie's very last chance to wow the judges.

What did you put in the hands, Jackie?

Yeah, just cotton wool.

So simple and so soft. It's just, like, "Ooh, comfy!"

Does it look all right?

Yeah, it's fun, really effective.

Contestant one is Dempsie Trevor-Wilson, Miss Leicester runner-up.

This is a tutu made out of bubble wrap.

MUSIC: "EVA" by Jean-Jacques Perrey

By designing eco-wear we can reduce the landfill

-and make the world a greener place to live.

-That's fantastic.

-Tell us a bit about your outfit.

-Well, my dress is made from

a very simple white, tubular dress.

Very eco. I like to think so.

And you've got to be a bit cheeky. LAUGHTER

You look fabulous!

Take one more walk down our catwalk.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

The competition's over. Jackie's done all she can.

But has she made the top 12?

I interviewed her this afternoon and was very underwhelmed,

wasn't impressed by her particularly this afternoon.

However, when she came out this evening, it was a completely different story.

I loved her outfit and there was a swagger there, there was confidence.

Cheeky, which was definitely a good thing, I'd say,

shows a bit of personality.

I've heard about Jackie, I interviewed her today

and I thought she was lovely, I really did.

In some of the other rounds you gave a bit of a talk

-about your back story, and none of that happened publicly today.

-Oh.

-Was that a conscious decision or was that just the way things went?

-Yeah, it was.

As much as I'm proud to be who I am, it's not important that everyone knows.

Because it's not a big deal to me,

and it shouldn't be to everyone else. Because I'm a girl.

If I can fit in with everyone else

then that's also a really big accomplishment for me,

and it feels like one.

Making it through to the Miss England finals tonight...

Leanne Ward!

APPLAUSE

-Sarah O'Rielly!

-APPLAUSE

-Laura Hickey!

-APPLAUSE

-..Is Nadina Knight!

-CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

To make someone's day now,

the last space in the final

for Miss England 2012 goes to...

Jodie Duckworth!

APPLAUSE

Jackie placed a respectable 18th out of 60 girls.

Just six places away from qualifying.

But for now, her Miss England dream is over.

You did a really good job, the best that you could.

As you say, some absolute stunning girls who haven't gone through, just like you.

I'm really gutted, honestly, I could cry, but...

-I just want to go home, I just really want to go home now.

-Yeah.

-See you later.

-Yeah, I'll see you soon.

-See you soon.

It's four weeks since the semi-final

and I've caught up with Jackie, who's got some news.

I have decided that I'm going to go to Thailand

and while I'm there I'm going to have breast surgery.

A breast reduction, I assume?

Yeah, yeah, cos they're so huge(!) My bazoomas.

No, I'm going to have breast augmentation to make them bigger.

I kept asking Jackie whether she saw this

as the completion of her physical transformation into a woman.

But she was clear that wasn't the case.

No, I have boobs, I have natural boobs.

Like, I've been on oestrogen for, like, three, four years.

I've got like some natural growth

but they're not as big as I would like them.

I mean, I would like them bigger. Not crazy big,

I'm not going like I've got Jordan tits or owt, but...you know.

A nice pair of boobies!

MUSIC: "Pure Shores" by All Saints

Bangkok, one week later.

I've got to ask, do you feel self-conscious about your chest at the moment?

I don't know, it's just like I've wanted them done for ages.

But, again, it's not a necessity. I don't feel that I HAVE to...

Yeah, I do! I feel that I have to, but that's because I want to,

and I'm an impatient little bitch!

After leaving Jackie with the nurses,

Susie bravely waits it out by the pool.

'Well, like, yeah, of course I'm nervous, it's surgery.'

I'm worried she'll be disappointed, I'm worried about the pain that she's going to go through.

Nobody wants to know that their kid's going under the knife, really.

The next morning, procedure complete,

Jackie is groggy from the anaesthetic.

It's hard to tell what the result is

because it's only, like, 24 hours after.

The swelling will go down and stuff, so after that it'll be better,

but, yeah, I'm happy.

I might not seem it, but I am!

What does it feel like?

Er...like I've done a really long workout,

and then I've got some fat man sat on my chest.

-But at least it's over now.

-Yeah, it'll be fine.

-Yeah.

'I've brought clothes with me that fit me before and now they don't.

'It's quite hard to dress.'

Surprisingly enough, you can't wear the same clothes

when you've got boobs, as what you would when you don't have boobs.

I didn't really think about that.

'I was having a panic yesterday about it, I was thinking, "Oh, God, what have I done?"'

Had a really stupid, sad moment

cos it was just, like, "Why are you moaning? You have boobs!"

Six weeks on from the Miss England semis,

did Jackie regret not mentioning being trans

at such a crucial stage in the competition?

No. Being trans has nothing to do with it, really.

It shouldn't make a different as to whether I was

more or less likely to win, if you see what I mean, cos I'm a woman.

That doesn't make me who I am,

it just adds a little more...story.

I can't help but admire Jackie for what she's been through,

and what she represents.

She's a teenage girl who's not afraid to stand up to -

or even invite - prejudice and animosity by being honest

and open about the journey that made her.

She's been prepared to waive her anonymity, to stand up

and show people with similar issues that there is light

at the end of the tunnel, that there can be a happy end to their story.

And whatever the circumstances of your youth,

nothing need stop you from following your dreams.

I think some of it is sad,

but I think all of the shit that I've been through

has gone towards making me the character that I am,

to be able to look forward to things

and I'm having a really good fucking life, all right?

It's not sad, I'm not sad, so it's not a sad story.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd