0:00:13 > 0:00:15'Ladies and gentlemen, a very warm welcome,
0:00:15 > 0:00:17'please, for contestant number one.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19'Carolyn Moore.'
0:00:19 > 0:00:22Most of the beauty contests were held at seaside resorts.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26And you just had to be between a certain age and female.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29First, in swimsuits, sit back,
0:00:29 > 0:00:31turn up the brightness control on your telly,
0:00:31 > 0:00:33and meet the first semi-finalist.
0:00:33 > 0:00:38I'm sure we were unaware that men might be ogling us.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42And we make no apologies of being frivolous.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45But it does seem to me that we need a touch of frivolity and fun.
0:00:45 > 0:00:47Above all, we need a little beauty in our lives
0:00:47 > 0:00:49in these troubled times.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Beauty queens belonged to a different era.
0:00:51 > 0:00:54Beauty queens belonged to an era where everyone was sweet
0:00:54 > 0:00:57and lovely and never did any wrong.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00They were dying a death, anyway.
0:01:00 > 0:01:03What do you feel like, standing up there in, say, bathing suits,
0:01:03 > 0:01:05being admired just for your body and not your mind?
0:01:05 > 0:01:07Erm, well...
0:01:07 > 0:01:10I did have a glimpse of what it was like
0:01:10 > 0:01:13to live like a bit of a celebrity,
0:01:13 > 0:01:16but it never crossed my mind, at all,
0:01:16 > 0:01:18what life would be like when the reign finished.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21Looking back and knowing
0:01:21 > 0:01:24what you can do in life, anyway,
0:01:24 > 0:01:26I wouldn't have rushed into the beauty contest thing.
0:01:26 > 0:01:32It might have made me want a bit more from life.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35As a 20-year-old, I didn't think about the future.
0:01:35 > 0:01:41I didn't worry about how I would look in 40 years' time.
0:01:41 > 0:01:42Being, sort of, 51, now.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45And you're looking back, I think, how did it all go so wrong?
0:01:45 > 0:01:46It's just one of those things.
0:01:57 > 0:02:0130 years ago, the BBC was televising its last beauty contests.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05For two decades, being crowned a national beauty queen
0:02:05 > 0:02:07had promised instant fame.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12But what happened in the lives of the women once voted
0:02:12 > 0:02:13the most beautiful in Britain?
0:02:18 > 0:02:21My mother's family used to make a lot of what people look like.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24It was very important to them, what they looked like.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28I was born in Moreton in Wirral.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33It's over the other side of the Mersey River from Liverpool.
0:02:34 > 0:02:36I was typical, sort of, working-class kid, basically,
0:02:36 > 0:02:38who lived on a council estate,
0:02:38 > 0:02:41and I grew up on a council estate in the '60s.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Watching beauty contests on TV, you were a star.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50You were immediately a star.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54'All right, a big smile. Come on, girls. Keep it up.
0:02:54 > 0:02:55'Big smiles.'
0:02:57 > 0:02:58It's a way to get
0:02:58 > 0:03:00some sort of recognition,
0:03:00 > 0:03:03some sort of access to maybe a better life.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07I'm not condemned to a life in the typing pool.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11When she was knee-high to a grasshopper, type of thing, I said,
0:03:11 > 0:03:14"This little one's going to win Miss World, one day."
0:03:14 > 0:03:16What it was, you know those little Cinderella shoes
0:03:16 > 0:03:19with the little heel on, that girls run around in,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21while she used to have a little bathing costume
0:03:21 > 0:03:24with a pair of these shoes on, and she used to run around like this.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26And one of my neighbours said, "Do you know what?"
0:03:26 > 0:03:28He said, "Your daughter's only two and a half,
0:03:28 > 0:03:31"but she's got a figure, already. She's shapely."
0:03:34 > 0:03:37When I was 15, I went in for Miss New Brighton contest,
0:03:37 > 0:03:41and should have been 16, and I lied about my age,
0:03:41 > 0:03:43and my mum and dad wrote me
0:03:43 > 0:03:45a letter to say I had tonsillitis to my school,
0:03:45 > 0:03:47so that I could bunk off the day.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56So, I put this bikini on and I trotted around the swimming baths.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00And I came second in the contest.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03And it was in all the local papers.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07And the next day, I was called to the headmistress' office
0:04:07 > 0:04:10and she asked me what I wanted to, sort of, achieve
0:04:10 > 0:04:13from doing these contests.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17She said, "We had high hopes for you, academically. Don't throw that away."
0:04:17 > 0:04:21- So, did you listen to the head?- No.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26It became, basically, a full-time job.
0:04:28 > 0:04:29Miss Southport was on a Tuesday.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32Miss New Brighton was on Wednesday.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Prestatyn was on Thursday night.
0:04:34 > 0:04:36Blackpool was on a Thursday.
0:04:36 > 0:04:40So, there was a competition just about every day of the week.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47I wanted to win Miss Great Britain more than anything else.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50And I thought, "Right, this is my, sort of, ticket to the big time.
0:04:50 > 0:04:52"It's a golden ticket."
0:05:07 > 0:05:10I grew up in Nantwich, which is a rural town in Cheshire.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13I was shy, actually.
0:05:13 > 0:05:18My mother sent me to ballet lessons from the age of, probably, three.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21And that did help me overcome my shyness.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24But Nantwich grammar school, I did all right.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27I didn't really excel in anything.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30When I was 17, I decided
0:05:30 > 0:05:32I didn't want to study anymore.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36So, that's when I applied for a job at the local bank in Nantwich.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38And did they offer you a job?
0:05:38 > 0:05:40They did, yes, and I accepted the job.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45I decided to take a couple of months holiday
0:05:45 > 0:05:48and then I was going to work for this bank -
0:05:48 > 0:05:53start as a bank clerk, and work my way up to a bank manageress.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58That was when I started entering beauty contests.
0:06:00 > 0:06:01APPLAUSE
0:06:01 > 0:06:04I thought, "Oh, this is just a bit of fun for the school holidays,
0:06:04 > 0:06:06"before I start working."
0:06:06 > 0:06:11'Carolyn is just sweet 18, and stands five feet, five inches.'
0:06:13 > 0:06:15I wish I was 18 again, don't you?
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Mind you, I never looked like that even when I was 18.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20I didn't feel shy, which was the strange thing,
0:06:20 > 0:06:23from being such a shy girl.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25I felt good.
0:06:27 > 0:06:29Was it not about the time
0:06:29 > 0:06:33when the feminists, or whatever they called themselves,
0:06:33 > 0:06:38hurled bags of flour at Bob Hope in the Albert Hall.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40Yes. Miss World.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42- Yes, yes.- Why were the feminists objecting, do you think?
0:06:44 > 0:06:45Why do you think, Carolyn?
0:06:45 > 0:06:46Maybe they were envious.
0:06:49 > 0:06:51Well, they called it a cattle market.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55- They did.- Yes.- They said that women shouldn't be parading in swimsuits.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00# Hello, Dolly, well, hello... #
0:07:02 > 0:07:04Did it feel degrading?
0:07:04 > 0:07:07No. It didn't feel degrading, at all.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09It felt good to be appreciated.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12# Looking swell, Dolly
0:07:12 > 0:07:14# We can tell... #
0:07:14 > 0:07:18I enjoyed being the centre of attention. Yeah, it was fun.
0:07:18 > 0:07:25# Dolly, don't go away, yeah. #
0:07:25 > 0:07:27Hello, Carolyn.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30Your ambition is to become a bank manageress.
0:07:30 > 0:07:34- I didn't know there were such things.- Oh, yes. There are...
0:07:34 > 0:07:36There were, obviously, very few bank manageresses.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39He asked me how many but I had no idea.
0:07:39 > 0:07:40What about the men bank managers,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43do they resent women coming into the profession, or not?
0:07:43 > 0:07:46I should think they do, yes.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48And how many bank... female bank managers are there
0:07:48 > 0:07:49in the country at the moment?
0:07:49 > 0:07:52- I think there are only one or two. - You'll make it three.
0:07:52 > 0:07:54- Can I have a quick overdraft? - Certainly.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57Thank you very much. Ladies and gentlemen, Carolyn Moore.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01I wasn't aggressively ambitious
0:08:01 > 0:08:05but I wanted to succeed at whatever I did.
0:08:08 > 0:08:13So, the third prize has gone to number four, Carolyn Moore.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15APPLAUSE
0:08:15 > 0:08:19That really proved to myself that I can do this,
0:08:19 > 0:08:23and I can come back, and maybe I can win it the next year.
0:08:29 > 0:08:31I grew up in Devon.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Oh, it was a country up-bringing, most definitely.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36Did all the pony club stuff and went to shows
0:08:36 > 0:08:38and did a bit of jumping and gymkhana.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42When did you realise that you were pretty?
0:08:42 > 0:08:48Probably when I was about 12.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51I think it was the first time I had to get dressed up for something.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54And I remember mother made me a long skirt.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58I thought, "Hmm, not bad."
0:09:06 > 0:09:08# Girls, let's talk about girls... #
0:09:08 > 0:09:10Father wanted me to go to university.
0:09:10 > 0:09:12You've got to go to university and work really hard.
0:09:12 > 0:09:14So, I thought, "Oh, God, no."
0:09:14 > 0:09:16If I can earn some money now, I'd rather do it.
0:09:17 > 0:09:21I wanted to buy my own place, and be independent from the beginning.
0:09:21 > 0:09:22And the prize money was quite good
0:09:22 > 0:09:25so I thought that would be a deposit on a house.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30And as the dancers said, "Let's talk about girls, girls, girls."
0:09:30 > 0:09:33In fact, 29 of the Kingdom's lovelies.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39I was never very glam, growing up.
0:09:39 > 0:09:44You know, I didn't really know how to put make-up on, or anything else.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47'Number 21, Miss Portsmouth.'
0:09:47 > 0:09:51So, I just bought a cheap hair dye at the chemist, and slapped it on.
0:09:51 > 0:09:52And suddenly I was blonde.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56'Carolyn Seaward from Yelverton.'
0:09:56 > 0:10:00I think these contests evolved because we as humans
0:10:00 > 0:10:06are programmed to quite like looking at fit, healthy beings.
0:10:06 > 0:10:07Those measurements,
0:10:07 > 0:10:10and a provocative little item she's nearly wearing.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12A 34, 24, 35.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14Because, we're programmed to breed...
0:10:16 > 0:10:18..and, you know,
0:10:18 > 0:10:21that's the shiny hair, good skin, white teeth, bright eyes,
0:10:21 > 0:10:24muscle rather than fat, is all a good prospect for breeding.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27So, I think that's how these came about
0:10:27 > 0:10:29and why people enjoyed watching them.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38'I never really thought of myself as good-looking.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42'I was fortunately the kind of child that used to attract attention,
0:10:42 > 0:10:47'even at a young age, from the opposite sex.'
0:10:47 > 0:10:50- And what are you going to be when you grow up?- I don't know.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53What are you going to be when YOU grow up?
0:10:56 > 0:10:58'Once you're an attractive teenager'
0:10:58 > 0:11:00and girl, people follow you,
0:11:00 > 0:11:03people want to know you, want to be with you, want to date you,
0:11:03 > 0:11:07whatever they want. Sometimes you get a bit fed up of it.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12It sort of gives you a strange view of men.
0:11:14 > 0:11:18What did it make you think that the men thing was about?
0:11:18 > 0:11:20That they were predators.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26I don't think I used that word at the time in my head but they chased you.
0:11:26 > 0:11:28And they were sometimes dangerous.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32The next of our semifinalists is number 13, Miss North Shields!
0:11:32 > 0:11:36APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:11:37 > 0:11:40I was trying to make ends meet, living in the north east,
0:11:40 > 0:11:43doing modelling, and I wasn't earning very much money
0:11:43 > 0:11:46or getting that much work in the north east.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49Those measurements you see there are 37-25-37.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52She measures the same exactly upside down.
0:11:52 > 0:11:59'So I thought, well, if I do beauty contests, there's the prize-money.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01'But I knew also I was very tall,
0:12:01 > 0:12:03'and that sometimes put a lot of people off.'
0:12:05 > 0:12:07Madeleine, is it cold up there?
0:12:07 > 0:12:11Oh, Terry, can't you think of something more original, please?
0:12:11 > 0:12:14No, I can't, at the moment, because I'm staggered at your beauty.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18I kept trying. And I got knocked back, and I kept trying and trying.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21A face you may remember from last year's Miss United Kingdom,
0:12:21 > 0:12:22Madeleine Stringer.
0:12:22 > 0:12:23Madeline Stringer.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25Madeline Stringer.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28She told us last year that she didn't stand 6 feet tall,
0:12:28 > 0:12:30she was 5' 12".
0:12:31 > 0:12:34Madeleine, no stranger, you've been here many times before.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36Why do you keep coming back?
0:12:36 > 0:12:40'You didn't have to be competitive, you had to be attractive.'
0:12:40 > 0:12:42It was a beauty contest.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46You had to have the face, the figure, the hair,
0:12:46 > 0:12:49and...not a lot of personality, I suppose.
0:12:49 > 0:12:51It was a beauty contest.
0:12:52 > 0:12:57- What do you think you had, that day you won?- Perseverance.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09My family business was on the docks.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13I thought she was Scandinavian.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16I thought she had come in on one of the boats.
0:13:16 > 0:13:18She was different.
0:13:18 > 0:13:22That's what attracted me in the first place.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25We been going out for five, six months,
0:13:25 > 0:13:29then I think she got invited to go to the first sort of contest,
0:13:29 > 0:13:32and I drove her across to Scarborough.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34I think it was on Yorkshire TV.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39I ferried her round and it sort of snowballed from there, really.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45Suddenly she is in the Miss UK, and that was quite a big event.
0:13:47 > 0:13:49APPLAUSE
0:13:51 > 0:13:54They were beginning to get a little bit of stick
0:13:54 > 0:13:57about the swimsuit scene and things like that.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59It was probably becoming a little bit old-fashioned.
0:13:59 > 0:14:03So the year I was in it, they decided to do an assault course.
0:14:03 > 0:14:07We in fact took the girls to the RAF base up at Uxbridge
0:14:07 > 0:14:09to put them through their paces - all 48 of them.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11A sort of keep-fit with a vengeance.
0:14:11 > 0:14:13Take a look and you'll see what I mean.
0:14:13 > 0:14:14Get set.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16STARTING PISTOL
0:14:16 > 0:14:19Well, both girls very careful with those shuffle bars.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22We had to go through tyres, go over a net.
0:14:22 > 0:14:25There's Fiona, losing her hat.
0:14:25 > 0:14:29Where's Catherine? I think Catherine's still there somewhere.
0:14:29 > 0:14:31I remember thinking, "Great, an assault course."
0:14:31 > 0:14:34Cos I'd spent my whole childhood going round the back garden
0:14:34 > 0:14:36with our assault courses.
0:14:36 > 0:14:37STARTING PISTOL
0:14:37 > 0:14:40And they're away.
0:14:40 > 0:14:41I was so competitive as well.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43Della's like lightning.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46It was all, you know, old hat to me.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49I leapt at this rope, swung across, dropped off
0:14:49 > 0:14:53thinking, "Great, I hope I've got a really good time."
0:14:53 > 0:14:56It's Della first to that rope.
0:14:56 > 0:15:0025 seconds to beat, is she going to do it? 21...
0:15:00 > 0:15:02And then some of the other girls, some of them
0:15:02 > 0:15:04couldn't even hold their weight on the rope
0:15:04 > 0:15:07and just slithered down the rope into the river.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09I think one girl twisted her elbow
0:15:09 > 0:15:14and I think they had to get a sling made to match her evening dress.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17SHOUTS
0:15:18 > 0:15:23I came second, and they said I was a probably a bit young,
0:15:23 > 0:15:26and that I ought to come back next year.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35APPLAUSE
0:15:35 > 0:15:38Welcome back to Morecambe and back to the final section
0:15:38 > 0:15:41in the competition to find Miss Great Britain 1971.
0:15:41 > 0:15:45This then is the decisive round as we welcome the first contestant,
0:15:45 > 0:15:48Miss Carolyn Moore from Nantwich in Cheshire.
0:15:48 > 0:15:49APPLAUSE
0:15:52 > 0:15:56- So where's this? - The Winter Gardens in Morecambe.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00What an amazing place.
0:16:00 > 0:16:05Very quiet. So different to when I was here, full of people.
0:16:09 > 0:16:14So I would have walked across the stage firstly in my evening wear
0:16:14 > 0:16:16because we did the swimsuit section outside,
0:16:16 > 0:16:20then walked across here, little twirl in front of the judges.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24SHE LAUGHS
0:16:24 > 0:16:27This is the new section, the daywear section.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30We put this in because we feel daywear gives the judges
0:16:30 > 0:16:32a much better idea of a girl's taste in clothes
0:16:32 > 0:16:33and a girl's personality.
0:16:33 > 0:16:38The daywear, I chose a trouser suit.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42Even though it was covered up, it still showed my figure.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44When you looked t the line-up,
0:16:44 > 0:16:48there were girls looking great in hot pants,
0:16:48 > 0:16:53and high boots, but maybe I was a girl next door.
0:16:55 > 0:16:59It was eight o'clock in the evening, prime time.
0:16:59 > 0:17:04There were only three television channels - ITV, BBC One, BBC Two.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08And there was probably an audience of about 20 million
0:17:08 > 0:17:11watching the Miss Great Britain contest.
0:17:11 > 0:17:16- So it could change your life. - Yeah. Instant celebrity.
0:17:21 > 0:17:22I definitely wanted to win.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26Having gone that far, I definitely wanted to win.
0:17:26 > 0:17:30We had to get a daywear outfit for our outside shots
0:17:30 > 0:17:33in a nice garden.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37I just went for a completely plain black tailored suit,
0:17:37 > 0:17:41and just had my hair up in quite a severe bun.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43So therefore I looked quite sophisticated.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47Now inside, I wasn't. I was naive.
0:17:47 > 0:17:48But I looked the part.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54This year, we're going to ask the girls to allow themselves
0:17:54 > 0:17:59to be spoken to by an astrologer, well known to you, Ann Petrie.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02Before the actual interview, I think that she'd said to us,
0:18:02 > 0:18:05"I don't want you to just go, 'Yes, that's right.'
0:18:05 > 0:18:08"I want, you know, if I challenge you with something,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11"I want to see how you react and how you...
0:18:11 > 0:18:13"You don't have to just go along with it."
0:18:13 > 0:18:15- Tracy, you're a Sagittarius. - That's right.
0:18:15 > 0:18:19It's said that you not only travel around the world whenever you can,
0:18:19 > 0:18:24but you also hop in and out of jobs, and perhaps other people's bedrooms!
0:18:24 > 0:18:28I was like, I'm in front of about ten million people here,
0:18:28 > 0:18:31it's none of your business, madam! But of course you just go...
0:18:31 > 0:18:32LAUGHS NERVOUSLY
0:18:32 > 0:18:34Obviously doesn't apply in your case.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36But love is a bit of a sport.
0:18:36 > 0:18:38'They liked the image to be squeaky clean.'
0:18:38 > 0:18:44Fresh-faced girl-next-door thing with, yeah, bodies.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46- You are a freedom-loving soul, aren't you?- Yes.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48That's what your life is all about.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51'You were the princess, you were a working class princess.
0:18:51 > 0:18:54'Demure but sexy.'
0:18:54 > 0:18:56Tricky balance.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00Yeah. Especially when you're 21.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07When they were about to announce the results, yeah, really nerve-wracking.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12I shall announce the results in reverse order.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14Third, Miss Chichester.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17It's like the start of a race. You know, a sick feeling.
0:19:17 > 0:19:22Runner-up to Miss United Kingdom is Miss Belfast.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25They obviously announce the third and then the second,
0:19:25 > 0:19:29and then you're thinking, I might be nowhere or I might have won.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33And Miss United Kingdom 1982 is...
0:19:35 > 0:19:38- And what was like when you heard your name called?- Yeah, great.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42- ..Miss England! - I'd had so much support as well.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44They always used to say I'd put Grimsby on the map,
0:19:44 > 0:19:48and you're just so pleased that you haven't let them down.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51The winner, Miss Great Britain for 1971,
0:19:51 > 0:19:55and it's Carolyn Moore from Nantwich in Cheshire.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58Madeleine Stringer, Miss North Shields,
0:19:58 > 0:20:01is Miss United Kingdom 1977.
0:20:01 > 0:20:03Miss England, Carolyn Ann Seaward,
0:20:03 > 0:20:06is Miss UK 1979.
0:20:06 > 0:20:11Tracy Dodds is Miss Great Britain, 1982.
0:20:11 > 0:20:15It was just, then, like a rollercoaster.
0:20:15 > 0:20:20The blur of photographers and everybody wanting you afterwards.
0:20:20 > 0:20:24There's press and you're ushered here and you're ushered there,
0:20:24 > 0:20:27and you're photographed. And then, suddenly,
0:20:27 > 0:20:30I suppose your...your life isn't your life, in a way.
0:20:32 > 0:20:36I just remember feeling very grateful and happy.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39And then you sign contracts - things like you don't have babies,
0:20:39 > 0:20:43you don't get married, you don't work for anybody else.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46You're very much, um, owned by them, sort of for a year.
0:20:52 > 0:20:57What did you both think when she won Miss Great Britain?
0:20:57 > 0:21:02- Well, we were elated, quite honestly. And, um...- It was lovely.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05It was a very exciting time for us.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08- The phone never stopped ringing, did it?- No.
0:21:08 > 0:21:10Day and night.
0:21:10 > 0:21:12- From who?- The press!
0:21:12 > 0:21:13Press mainly.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15Honestly, it was amazing.
0:21:15 > 0:21:18Did you mind her going on
0:21:18 > 0:21:22- and therefore deciding to choose her looks at that stage?- Not at all.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Females are females and males are males.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27Aren't they?
0:21:27 > 0:21:29And...beauty is beauty
0:21:29 > 0:21:31and...ugliness is ugliness.
0:21:31 > 0:21:32What's...?
0:21:34 > 0:21:37As Miss Great Britain I was contracted for a whole year.
0:21:37 > 0:21:38It was a job, really.
0:21:40 > 0:21:45Anything from opening a supermarket, cutting a ribbon,
0:21:45 > 0:21:48invited to visit the soldiers.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54The press would always publish a picture of a beauty queen
0:21:54 > 0:21:57or a footballer... or preferably, together.
0:21:57 > 0:22:02- Carolyn, are you going to marry George Best?- No, that was a rumour.
0:22:02 > 0:22:07Um, I was very surprised when I saw that in the paper this morning.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09- Has he asked you?- Oh, no, no!
0:22:09 > 0:22:11Well, I've only known him a month.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14'If I dated somebody high-profile,'
0:22:14 > 0:22:16then...they wanted to know.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19What do you think his future is in football?
0:22:19 > 0:22:23I don't know, I'm not a football fan.
0:22:25 > 0:22:29Cos being a beauty queen opened certain doors.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32I did a big campaign for Black Heart Rum
0:22:32 > 0:22:35and a big poster campaign in Scotland,
0:22:35 > 0:22:37dressed as a serving wench.
0:22:39 > 0:22:44But I wasn't the right shape, size, to be a fashion model.
0:22:44 > 0:22:49Some days I might have a good income, other days I might have no work,
0:22:49 > 0:22:54so...it was, um, a little bit uncertain.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00I saw an advert for bunnies
0:23:00 > 0:23:02to work at the London Playboy club.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05So I thought, "Yeah, maybe I can do this."
0:23:05 > 0:23:12Um, I went along to 45 Park Lane to audition.
0:23:12 > 0:23:17In the fun palace that Hefner built, the Hefner rule is law.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19Men weren't allowed to touch us,
0:23:19 > 0:23:22but the bunny girls were an attraction to the club, of course.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26You, um, had to look good, well groomed,
0:23:26 > 0:23:27smile.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30The costume was rather like a swimsuit
0:23:30 > 0:23:34and the behaviour was rather like a beauty queen.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37Did you go to the Playboy Club eventually?
0:23:37 > 0:23:39- We did. - Only for a meal, didn't we?
0:23:39 > 0:23:40It was very impressive.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43Well, it wasn't only for a meal, actually.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46- Did you mind the bunny outfit?- No.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49No, didn't mind it at all, loved it.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51Loved that London Playboy Club on Park Lane,
0:23:51 > 0:23:55didn't have...a bad image, did it?
0:23:55 > 0:23:59A lot of our friends interpreted it wrongly.
0:23:59 > 0:24:00- You know?- As what?
0:24:02 > 0:24:06As something that nice girls shouldn't do.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13How did you find the male attention when you were in the club and how did you deal with it?
0:24:13 > 0:24:15Same way as I deal with it anywhere else...
0:24:17 > 0:24:18..enjoyed it.
0:24:20 > 0:24:21How long did you work here?
0:24:21 > 0:24:23Just two years.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25Why did you leave?
0:24:25 > 0:24:27I met my husband.
0:24:27 > 0:24:30What was he like?
0:24:30 > 0:24:32Mark? Very attractive.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35Very good-looking.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38Suave, sophisticated.
0:24:38 > 0:24:39Perfect match.
0:24:50 > 0:24:56After the Miss UK I did move up to London from Devon.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00And was moving in quite glamorous circles, I suppose.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04Even got a part as a Bond girl which was brilliant.
0:25:05 > 0:25:09I was told that I was a bit of an ice-maiden
0:25:09 > 0:25:14and...was apparently, quite unapproachable.
0:25:14 > 0:25:19Um, I didn't feel like I was being an ice-maiden,
0:25:19 > 0:25:22I just was quite naturally cool.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29I knew what I looked like, I did know what I looked like. Um...
0:25:29 > 0:25:31Did you know the power of your looks?
0:25:33 > 0:25:35Yes. I wish I knew how to use it.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37I...well, no.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40Yeah, I was aware that men thought at that time
0:25:40 > 0:25:44that I was very attractive but that's where it ended.
0:25:44 > 0:25:52I remember thinking that no nice men came up to speak to me at all,
0:25:52 > 0:25:55it was usually drunk, obnoxious ones.
0:25:57 > 0:26:01The norm...normal, nice, down-to-earth ones,
0:26:01 > 0:26:04I don't think I really came across them.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10I don't know if they even knew how to talk to me.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13Rumours have abounded that you have been out with royalty.
0:26:13 > 0:26:15- Yeah.- Is it true?
0:26:15 > 0:26:17I'd prefer to be so discrete, I can't even say yes or no.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20- But I could say yes. - I'll take that as a yes.
0:26:20 > 0:26:22'I met Prince Andrew'
0:26:22 > 0:26:24at Dartmouth Royal Naval College.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29And he very nicely invited me for dinner.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32The press just got hold of it
0:26:32 > 0:26:33and blew it up out of all proportion.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37You know, I just went to Buckingham Palace once.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40We had a fun evening and went running around on the roof of the Palace.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44And we had a nice dinner, but um, that was it.
0:26:44 > 0:26:45Why only one dinner?
0:26:45 > 0:26:48Um, I was too young and too naive at that stage.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51I hadn't even had a proper boyfriend, if you know what I mean.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54I was an extremely late starter on that front.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56These Plymouth girls always aim high, you know?
0:26:56 > 0:26:57- You think so.- Oh, yes.
0:26:57 > 0:27:02- Might you get married in St Paul's? - Oh, wishful thinking, I don't know.
0:27:02 > 0:27:06- He could get married in St Paul's. - Yes, he could, but I probably won't.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13I grew to like the confident men, actually.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16There was Laurent, the Swiss banker.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19Donald, the Greek shipper.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23We lived just close to Belgravia.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27But Donald was very busy, he worked hard. I didn't work hard at all.
0:27:28 > 0:27:34After Donald... it was...a Canadian chap, yeah.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36Carl the Canadian.
0:27:36 > 0:27:40He suddenly proposed, out of the blue.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44So I said yes, but that could have been the three gin and tonics
0:27:44 > 0:27:46that he plied me with before asking.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48But I had this fear that having gotten married
0:27:48 > 0:27:51they'd suddenly turn into a nightmare
0:27:51 > 0:27:54and then I'd be kind of trapped there.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57And because I was usually told, "Oh, you could get anyone you wanted,"
0:27:57 > 0:28:01in the back of my mind was, "Oh, well. No, it'll be fine.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05"I've got plenty of time for that, I've got plenty of time for that."
0:28:14 > 0:28:19In May 1978, I was in the northeast doing a sponsored walk.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23# There is a house in New Orleans... #
0:28:23 > 0:28:28I'd gone for tea at this house and then in walked this man,
0:28:28 > 0:28:31Chas Chandler.
0:28:31 > 0:28:36# And it's been the ruin of many a poor boy... #
0:28:36 > 0:28:40I knew Chas had been in The Animals and I learnt later
0:28:40 > 0:28:42that he managed Jimi Hendrix.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47And we looked at each other, and our eyes met,
0:28:47 > 0:28:51and I don't know that... first meeting, that memory,
0:28:51 > 0:28:53just stays with me forever.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56And from that day on?
0:28:56 > 0:28:58Chas didn't let me out of his sight.
0:28:59 > 0:29:04A week after I met him...he proposed to me.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11And I just burst out laughing and he...he lent into me
0:29:11 > 0:29:14and he said, "Don't you laugh at me.
0:29:14 > 0:29:17"I'm deadly serious, will you marry me?"
0:29:17 > 0:29:19How did that make you feel?
0:29:19 > 0:29:22Gosh, I think I...it was lovely,
0:29:22 > 0:29:28it took away all...any angst you had about being a single lady.
0:29:28 > 0:29:32And being chased and followed and hounded.
0:29:32 > 0:29:34I just felt safe.
0:29:36 > 0:29:39I'd read in the paper that he was a millionaire.
0:29:39 > 0:29:41He had gold Rolls-Royce.
0:29:41 > 0:29:43He certainly dressed really smartly.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46But that all changed.
0:29:49 > 0:29:50Career-wise, well,
0:29:50 > 0:29:53I had maybes thought that I would continue with the modelling,
0:29:53 > 0:29:55but I was pregnant straightaway,
0:29:55 > 0:29:57and I don't think he did want me to work.
0:29:57 > 0:30:01I don't think he even wanted me... out the house for very long.
0:30:03 > 0:30:10Charles explained to me once about...a man with a beautiful woman,
0:30:10 > 0:30:14he's always on the watch for other people moving in on his lady.
0:30:15 > 0:30:19Whenever we went anywhere, he'd always work out where the exits were.
0:30:19 > 0:30:22And if he... He'd say, "What are you doing talking to that person?
0:30:22 > 0:30:25"That person's real trouble."
0:30:25 > 0:30:27And I said, "I can't tell the difference!"
0:30:29 > 0:30:31I would go to the beach and go jogging
0:30:31 > 0:30:35and that was my bit of sanity, I could think things through.
0:30:38 > 0:30:42REPORTER: Surviving the beauty circuit was Grimsby's Della Dolan.
0:30:42 > 0:30:46About the only thing worrying Della is if she'll get enough time
0:30:46 > 0:30:49in the next two weeks for her regular gym work-outs.
0:30:49 > 0:30:53Everybody knew who Miss UK was, so everywhere you went
0:30:53 > 0:30:59people would want to say hello, or...getting fan mail and things.
0:31:01 > 0:31:03It was a little bit threatening for Craig I think.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08I always expected her to win
0:31:08 > 0:31:10and I wasn't surprised at all.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15But I didn't notice any particular change in her at the time.
0:31:15 > 0:31:18I'm just pleased to be taking her home with me, get back to normality.
0:31:20 > 0:31:27Just a few months after we had a photoshoot at Manchester United
0:31:27 > 0:31:30and one of the players was there on the shoot.
0:31:30 > 0:31:32Um, Gary Bailey, he was the goal keeper.
0:31:32 > 0:31:36Willie tonight is looking for help from soccer and from athletics.
0:31:36 > 0:31:39From football there's Gary Bailey, the immense United goal keeper...
0:31:39 > 0:31:42'And I hadn't realised but he was quite keen on me
0:31:42 > 0:31:44'and wanted to meet me.'
0:31:46 > 0:31:50I did sense something, you know, just a bit of male-tuition.
0:31:50 > 0:31:53You know, I just felt that there was something not quite right.
0:31:53 > 0:31:55Spending a lot of time in Manchester.
0:31:59 > 0:32:03You know, he's a good-looking chap and he wanted to take me out
0:32:03 > 0:32:06and in the end I split up with Craig...
0:32:07 > 0:32:08..to go out with him.
0:32:10 > 0:32:15The press were very interested. They were following me at home
0:32:15 > 0:32:18and following Gary.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21I was on the front page of the Daily Mirror holding the FA Cup.
0:32:21 > 0:32:23Gary and I, you know, me with my fur coat on.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26And, um...things like that.
0:32:28 > 0:32:31It was unpleasant, I've got to say.
0:32:31 > 0:32:33Very unpleasant.
0:32:34 > 0:32:36With my Miss UK winnings
0:32:36 > 0:32:39I bought the business which Craig had with his brother,
0:32:39 > 0:32:40a shop called Hobo.
0:32:40 > 0:32:43He and his brother at the time were looking to sell it,
0:32:43 > 0:32:46so...I bought the business off them.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56I was supposed to go on a national tour
0:32:56 > 0:32:58and then have a contract of £20,000.
0:32:58 > 0:32:59Did it pan out?
0:32:59 > 0:33:01No. No.
0:33:01 > 0:33:03The work just wasn't there,
0:33:03 > 0:33:05it wasn't there at all.
0:33:08 > 0:33:15A few months before the contest I had done topless test shots.
0:33:18 > 0:33:20The Sun came out and they started doing Page Three
0:33:20 > 0:33:24there were boobies all over the place and it just got to be more pressure,
0:33:24 > 0:33:26so if you were a pretty girl and you wanted to be a model,
0:33:26 > 0:33:31then there was pressure to, "Oh, take your top off because that's what people want."
0:33:31 > 0:33:34I think I was Miss Great Britain for about three days
0:33:34 > 0:33:39before the test shots ended up in one of the newspapers.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48They didn't accept it from their national beauty queen
0:33:48 > 0:33:52and they didn't accept it from me either.
0:33:53 > 0:33:56I went into hiding cos the press went, "Woah",
0:33:56 > 0:33:58cos I said I want to resign as Miss Great Britain.
0:33:58 > 0:34:01It all went splat, really.
0:34:02 > 0:34:04- How did you feel?- Horrible.
0:34:04 > 0:34:08It was just this big bubble and it had burst.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13Beauty queens belong to a different era.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16Beauty queens belong to an era where everyone was sweet and lovely
0:34:16 > 0:34:18and never did any wrong.
0:34:18 > 0:34:21They were dying a death anyway.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33I was 28 and I'd had such a mad life.
0:34:33 > 0:34:34I wanted to be normal.
0:34:37 > 0:34:42I met Steve and I just thought that he was fabulous.
0:34:42 > 0:34:44Hiya.
0:34:44 > 0:34:46'Steve was a business man.
0:34:46 > 0:34:49'He got on the corporate ladder and he got all this money.'
0:34:51 > 0:34:53I had my daughter, India.
0:34:53 > 0:34:56We ended up going to live in Australia
0:34:56 > 0:35:01and we had a beautiful mansion on the water. It was gorgeous.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03I loved being a mother. I loved being a wife.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05They were my universe.
0:35:05 > 0:35:07My husband and my daughter were just my absolute life.
0:35:12 > 0:35:15He went out and he bought himself this Jag.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18And then the guy down the road went out and bought himself,
0:35:18 > 0:35:20a couple of weeks later, he went and bought
0:35:20 > 0:35:22this bright yellow Porsche.
0:35:22 > 0:35:24And Steve said, "Oh, look at his Porsche."
0:35:24 > 0:35:27I said, "You've just got yourself this beautiful car.
0:35:27 > 0:35:30"Why are you looking at that? You'd better not do that with me,
0:35:30 > 0:35:33"just stick me in front of a newer model or whatever."
0:35:33 > 0:35:35He goes, "Don't be silly." And that's what he did.
0:35:38 > 0:35:42I was 38 and she was 26
0:35:42 > 0:35:44and he just left me.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47He just left me and he left his daughter.
0:35:53 > 0:35:57Life with Chas wasn't settled. It was...
0:35:57 > 0:35:59- SHE LAUGHS - It was interesting!
0:35:59 > 0:36:02# Do you understand me now? #
0:36:02 > 0:36:05We went to Miss Cyprus's wedding,
0:36:05 > 0:36:07Miss Cyprus I met in the Miss World contest.
0:36:07 > 0:36:11And while we were in Cyprus, we went to this Roman arena.
0:36:11 > 0:36:13Chas was saying,
0:36:13 > 0:36:17"What a great rock venue this would be for concerts and stuff."
0:36:17 > 0:36:21And eventually, he built his arena.
0:36:21 > 0:36:23He came back to the North East and put it into his hometown.
0:36:23 > 0:36:27- Which will you be remembered for, do you think?- I don't know...
0:36:27 > 0:36:30I think you'll always be Chas Charlie, the ex-Animal.
0:36:30 > 0:36:34- Does that bug you?- No, not at all.
0:36:34 > 0:36:36I used to be an Animal but I'm all right now.
0:36:36 > 0:36:41Lizzie was born and then when Lizzie was seven months old,
0:36:41 > 0:36:46I was still breastfeeding this baby, my husband collapsed
0:36:46 > 0:36:48and was in hospital for three months.
0:36:48 > 0:36:53Fortunately, he got well and he was well for seven years,
0:36:53 > 0:36:55but then sadly, he passed away.
0:36:56 > 0:36:58SEAGULLS CHIRP
0:37:00 > 0:37:04'It was very difficult. It was really difficult.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08'Very dark phase in my life.'
0:37:09 > 0:37:14All right, I was liberated, I didn't have anybody saying to me,
0:37:14 > 0:37:16"Where are you going?
0:37:16 > 0:37:21"What time will you be back?" and this and that, the negative side.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23'But I just wasn't used to it.
0:37:24 > 0:37:27'I had no income. I had no savings.
0:37:27 > 0:37:31'There was no insurance on Chas's life.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34'It was a bit of an awful mess for me, really.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37'And part of it was the six million debt I inherited.'
0:37:37 > 0:37:40- INTERVIEWER: 'Which was the debt from? The arena?'- 'Yes.'
0:37:40 > 0:37:45'He borrowed money to build it, so there was a debt.'
0:37:45 > 0:37:46It had to be paid.
0:37:46 > 0:37:48SHE CLEARS HER THROAT
0:37:49 > 0:37:52I had to borrow some money off someone at the funeral.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54Somebody said, could they do anything to help.
0:37:54 > 0:37:57I thought, well, yes, I know you're a wealthy person.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59Can you please lend me £10,000
0:37:59 > 0:38:01and I'll pay you back in a year's time,
0:38:01 > 0:38:04or as soon as I sell the house?
0:38:04 > 0:38:06It was a bit tough.
0:38:14 > 0:38:18'I came back to the UK, I went onto benefits and mum and dad got me
0:38:18 > 0:38:22a council house, which was great because it was a roof over my head.
0:38:22 > 0:38:24And I thought, right, what can I do?
0:38:24 > 0:38:28What sort of job can I do to look after my daughter?
0:38:31 > 0:38:35I went along to my local college and I did A-levels. I was 40.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42The local college were running a degree course for Sheffield,
0:38:42 > 0:38:43the University of Sheffield.
0:38:43 > 0:38:46And they took me on as a mature student
0:38:46 > 0:38:48and I did a first-class degree.
0:38:49 > 0:38:54I actually cried. I burst into tears. I just felt...
0:38:55 > 0:38:58I felt like I'd really sort of messed up with the beauty contest,
0:38:58 > 0:39:01but that was a different part of my life, that had been a long time ago.
0:39:01 > 0:39:04But I thought, I've done something I was so proud of.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06I felt like, I've worked for this.
0:39:06 > 0:39:09It wasn't this that I was being judged on. It was this.
0:39:12 > 0:39:13Because I got a first-class degree,
0:39:13 > 0:39:16I was offered a post as a teacher
0:39:16 > 0:39:19on the course that I'd actually graduated from.
0:39:19 > 0:39:21'Did it change your circumstances for you and India?'
0:39:21 > 0:39:23'Absolutely.'
0:39:40 > 0:39:43- Hello.- Hi. What a lovely morning.
0:39:43 > 0:39:45Hi, hello. Is Carolyn in?
0:39:45 > 0:39:49- Yes, she is. Yes.- Good. - Just a moment, I'll give her a call.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53- Carolyn.- Hello, morning!
0:39:53 > 0:39:56This is, introduced me. This is your house.
0:39:56 > 0:39:58Yes, this is my mother, Pamela.
0:39:58 > 0:40:02- Actually, Carolyn's just a lodger. - And I swot here yes, at times.
0:40:02 > 0:40:06This is the scene of many a gourmet dinner party that mother throws,
0:40:06 > 0:40:09that I'm not usually invited to.
0:40:09 > 0:40:11She doesn't want to join the old people.
0:40:11 > 0:40:15I was invited but it's like, "No, no, I've got other plans, thank you."
0:40:15 > 0:40:18- I just eat the leftovers afterwards. - Yes.
0:40:18 > 0:40:21When did you first realise that Carolyn was so pretty
0:40:21 > 0:40:23and that you had such a pretty daughter?
0:40:23 > 0:40:26- When she was about a year old. - SHE LAUGHS
0:40:26 > 0:40:28Did she have any boyfriends when she was a teenager?
0:40:28 > 0:40:30Not really. It was horses.
0:40:30 > 0:40:33They got me into horses to keep me away from boys.
0:40:33 > 0:40:36- Yes.- And it's worked a little too well.
0:40:36 > 0:40:42After Carl the Canadian, it was Yuri the mad doctor.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46We ended up renting a house together,
0:40:46 > 0:40:48but unbeknown to me he'd actually got engaged
0:40:48 > 0:40:51on the phone to a girl back in South Africa
0:40:51 > 0:40:56and asked to borrow... he wanted to borrow money from me.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59He said it was for the Inland Revenue, so I lent it to him,
0:40:59 > 0:41:03but actually it was to buy her engagement ring back home.
0:41:03 > 0:41:05- And that was that? - That was that.
0:41:05 > 0:41:08Well, that area is Carolyn's.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11Along that corridor is everything to do with Carolyn,
0:41:11 > 0:41:13which really is not fit to be seen.
0:41:13 > 0:41:16This is one tidy area down here, that's all mine.
0:41:16 > 0:41:18Explosion at the jumble sale look.
0:41:18 > 0:41:21Carolyn has two bedrooms, two bathrooms.
0:41:23 > 0:41:25Lucky, aren't I?
0:41:25 > 0:41:27- Do you have to pay rent? - Yes, aren't I lucky?
0:41:27 > 0:41:29Did you think that Carolyn would be back,
0:41:29 > 0:41:32or would you prefer that she was...
0:41:32 > 0:41:35I would much prefer that she were off my hands.
0:41:35 > 0:41:37CAROLYN LAUGHS
0:41:37 > 0:41:42It would be nice for her to be settled somewhere.
0:41:42 > 0:41:46I shan't always be here. What's she going to do then?
0:41:46 > 0:41:48Take over the whole house, I presume.
0:41:48 > 0:41:51Probably end up living under a bridge in a cardboard box,
0:41:51 > 0:41:55but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.
0:41:55 > 0:42:00You begin to think that your judgement of people is slightly off.
0:42:00 > 0:42:05That's what I thought. So I became a little bit distrustful then of men.
0:42:07 > 0:42:10As far as relationships from now on,
0:42:10 > 0:42:13I honestly don't think I'm interested.
0:42:13 > 0:42:16I just would have trouble trusting, I think.
0:42:16 > 0:42:20Someone's just sent me that from Germany to sign, actually.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23That was a still from Octopussy, the film Octopussy
0:42:23 > 0:42:26and that was taken in India at the Lake Palace.
0:42:26 > 0:42:29Happy memories, you know. They were good times.
0:42:29 > 0:42:32- When you look at it, does it feel like another time?- Oh, yes.
0:42:32 > 0:42:35- Absolutely. It feels like another person, actually.- Really?- Yes.
0:42:35 > 0:42:39What part do you think your looks have ever played,
0:42:39 > 0:42:42in kind of, how men have regarded you?
0:42:42 > 0:42:46Maybe men have wanted to control me a little too much.
0:42:46 > 0:42:49I think that could be it. Um...
0:42:50 > 0:42:54Maybe they were afraid that I would meet someone else and go off,
0:42:54 > 0:42:56therefore they were very controlling.
0:42:56 > 0:43:00Maybe they were keeping their options open in case I did go off. Maybe.
0:43:04 > 0:43:08My life now is very simple, which is the way I want it.
0:43:08 > 0:43:11I house sit for people.
0:43:11 > 0:43:14You know, I'm a gypsy, basically.
0:43:14 > 0:43:16Hello! Hello!
0:43:16 > 0:43:20- You're very welcome to come to use the pool.- Yes, thanks.
0:43:20 > 0:43:23So, I really enjoy that going from place to place.
0:43:23 > 0:43:25And it is quite a responsibility.
0:43:25 > 0:43:27And as far as the dogs are concerned,
0:43:27 > 0:43:29Sultan with his back legs is a bit wobbly.
0:43:29 > 0:43:33If I hadn't had those looks at that age,
0:43:33 > 0:43:38I probably would've gone into working with horses, actually.
0:43:41 > 0:43:46'I've reverted back to probably what I would have done anyway
0:43:46 > 0:43:48'had I not done the Miss England, Miss UK thing.'
0:43:48 > 0:43:52It's almost gone full circle and now, you know, I ride,
0:43:52 > 0:43:54I look after people's horses and animals
0:43:54 > 0:43:57and that's probably what I would've done anyway.
0:44:02 > 0:44:04Do a bit of nudey sunbathing. Of course,
0:44:04 > 0:44:06it's not so good now that mother's thinned this hedge
0:44:06 > 0:44:09and the neighbours walk by, but I just keep very still.
0:44:10 > 0:44:15Looking back and knowing what you can do in life anyway,
0:44:15 > 0:44:19I wouldn't have rushed into the beauty contest thing,
0:44:19 > 0:44:22I would have studied harder.
0:44:22 > 0:44:27It might have made me want a bit more from life then, actually
0:44:27 > 0:44:29and expect a bit more.
0:44:47 > 0:44:49CONTINUOUS BUZZER
0:52:08 > 0:52:11Miss UK definitely changed my life
0:52:11 > 0:52:15because it gave me the freedom to have my own business,
0:52:15 > 0:52:17which I had for 25 years.
0:52:17 > 0:52:19It always gave me independence.
0:52:20 > 0:52:26It's also been good for Danielle and Holly. They're both entrepreneurial.
0:52:27 > 0:52:31It does reflect as an example for your children.
0:52:33 > 0:52:37At the moment, we're living in Verbier, Switzerland,
0:52:37 > 0:52:42and this is Craig, my husband, who was also my first boyfriend.
0:52:42 > 0:52:45We've been together 32 years and married 25.
0:52:51 > 0:52:57I'd totally given up. I was getting on with my normal life.
0:52:57 > 0:53:01I was getting back into work. It did hurt, it hurt.
0:53:01 > 0:53:06The only sort of thing I thought was that if she bought the business,
0:53:06 > 0:53:10there'd probably be a chance that she wanted to come back to Grimsby
0:53:10 > 0:53:13and maybe she wanted to come back and be with me.
0:53:13 > 0:53:18There was the odd headline. "Della's Back With Her Fella..."
0:53:18 > 0:53:21- I can't remember, there's a few. - We've got all the clips.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24I think Della's mother's got all the clips at home.
0:53:24 > 0:53:28- But you must have felt pretty good. - Yeah, felt great.
0:53:30 > 0:53:34'Craig had his own business, I had my own business,
0:53:34 > 0:53:38'so we both had our individual interests.
0:53:38 > 0:53:42'That's sort of stayed with us through our whole marriage, really.'
0:53:43 > 0:53:45'We've had success, we've had failure,
0:53:45 > 0:53:47'but the business has given Della and I'
0:53:47 > 0:53:53the sort of freedom to find ourselves out here in a ski resort.
0:53:53 > 0:53:57She did that well. There's Mum!
0:53:57 > 0:53:59Ooh, she's not far.
0:53:59 > 0:54:02They asked me which type of men I preferred, whether I preferred
0:54:02 > 0:54:06the South American men, and I said I preferred an Englishman.
0:54:06 > 0:54:10'I didn't follow fame, I married the boy next door.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13'And yeah, I wouldn't change anything for the world.'
0:54:13 > 0:54:17He came out with me and my friends and there was about 12 of us.
0:54:17 > 0:54:22I was like, "Oh, yeah, by the way, lads, Craig married Miss UK."
0:54:22 > 0:54:26All the boys started clapping. Craig stood up, he was like, "Thank you."
0:54:26 > 0:54:29- You did stand up.- You did stand up. - You did stand up and bow.
0:54:29 > 0:54:30No, I didn't!
0:54:30 > 0:54:33What's the secret to being in a long relationship like yours?
0:54:33 > 0:54:36- Tolerance.- Yeah.
0:54:39 > 0:54:44Now, at this stage of my life, home is a flat in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
0:54:44 > 0:54:46Beside the river, beside the sea.
0:54:47 > 0:54:50My last house with Chas was beside the sea.
0:54:54 > 0:54:59Now I like to think when I walk around, people don't know my past
0:54:59 > 0:55:01or any of it, I'm just more incognito,
0:55:01 > 0:55:03I'm just one of the crowd, you know.
0:55:06 > 0:55:10- Men?- No.- Why's that?
0:55:10 > 0:55:14It just hasn't happened, you know.
0:55:14 > 0:55:17That "when the eyes meet across the room" thing,
0:55:17 > 0:55:19does that still happen when you're nearly 60?
0:55:19 > 0:55:21I don't know.
0:55:21 > 0:55:24I like male company, I like men, but you know,
0:55:24 > 0:55:28somebody would sort of have to enjoy my company,
0:55:28 > 0:55:30but not...
0:55:31 > 0:55:33..possess me, own me.
0:55:35 > 0:55:37This is my Miss UK dress.
0:55:37 > 0:55:40I can still get into it. Isn't that good?
0:55:42 > 0:55:45What was it about the dress that you liked when you picked it?
0:55:45 > 0:55:49It was pretty and frilly and swirly.
0:55:49 > 0:55:52Girly, wasn't it? Yes.
0:55:54 > 0:55:58Chocolate boxy. Pretty.
0:55:58 > 0:56:00It suits a younger person to me.
0:56:00 > 0:56:03I'm a bit too old for this style.
0:56:10 > 0:56:12- Did you want to see the tiara?- Yes.
0:56:12 > 0:56:15The tiara is fantastic. Let me show you.
0:56:16 > 0:56:18Isn't that beautiful?
0:56:18 > 0:56:23They're presented with this and they will be Miss Liverpool 2012.
0:56:23 > 0:56:25Yeah.
0:56:29 > 0:56:32What happens as you get older?
0:56:32 > 0:56:35Certainly you don't turn heads any more.
0:56:36 > 0:56:40There's a certain time in a woman's life,
0:56:40 > 0:56:44if she's been good-looking when she was younger, she becomes invisible.
0:56:45 > 0:56:48I think people do have expectations.
0:56:48 > 0:56:51If they haven't met me before, I can see their faces.
0:56:51 > 0:56:55Like, "Where is she? Where is she?" "No, it's me!"
0:56:57 > 0:56:59I personally don't want the attention.
0:56:59 > 0:57:02I find it a little bit uncomfortable,
0:57:02 > 0:57:07maybe because I still don't know how to handle it very well.
0:57:07 > 0:57:08Maybe I never knew how to handle it.
0:57:13 > 0:57:17I think that, for 51, I'm doing OK.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21If you can keep the physical you in sync
0:57:21 > 0:57:25with the way that you're thinking, that's great, that's nice.
0:57:28 > 0:57:31I think times have changed for women.
0:57:31 > 0:57:35It's really hard not to be bothered about your looks.
0:57:35 > 0:57:39And you don't have confidence as a young person.
0:57:39 > 0:57:42You have the looks, the beauty,
0:57:42 > 0:57:44and you never ever appreciate it when you have it.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49The thing about getting older
0:57:49 > 0:57:52is we do hopefully get more relaxed and confident, yeah.
0:57:55 > 0:57:57I'm going to be 60 this year
0:57:57 > 0:58:03and the thought of it is freaking me out a bit.
0:58:03 > 0:58:04What's this one?
0:58:04 > 0:58:08I don't feel my age, no, I still feel exactly the same.
0:58:08 > 0:58:10Which is a problem sometimes.
0:58:10 > 0:58:13I tend to wear clothes like my daughter
0:58:13 > 0:58:16and then look at myself and think, God.
0:58:17 > 0:58:21He calls Mum "Mum". Because I call her "Mum".
0:58:21 > 0:58:25And I'm not disciplined enough to say Granny all the time, or Carrie all the time.
0:58:25 > 0:58:28- I don't want to be Granny. - You don't want to be Granny!
0:58:28 > 0:58:32- I don't feel like I'm Granny. - You don't look like a granny.
0:58:32 > 0:58:36Some women say as you get older, you just become invisible.
0:58:36 > 0:58:37- Have you experienced that?- No.
0:58:41 > 0:58:45No. No woman wants to be invisible. Surely not.
0:58:51 > 0:58:54Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd