Star’s tears as she unveils new wig on TV show
GAIL PORTER broke down in tears as she unveiled her new wig, the first one she has worn on television since losing her hair to alopecia 13 years ago.
Porter, 47, was first diagnosed with alopecia in 2005 and she has refused to wear wigs and hairpieces over the years.
She debuted her custom-made blonde wig on ITV’s Loose Women.
Through tears, the Scottish star said: “I said, ‘I’m definitely not going to cry because I’ve got good make-up on!’ It feels really nice but really weird.”
“I keep wanting to do this all the time,” she said, flicking her hair.
“I’m quite a tearful person normally, I felt really nervous, I was worried about your reactions and what people think,” she added.
Porter said that she “gasped” when she saw the wig for the first time, and that “it reminds me of being young”.
Asked if she felt pressure to stay bald to inspire others, she said: “I think I’ll always be bald half the week. I don’t know when I’ll wear this. Maybe go out for dinner or something.”
She added: “It’s not just for people with alopecia... [there is] cancer, people lose their hair for all different reasons. If they can go bald, that’s brilliant, I might take this off afterwards and go shopping in Westfield. I might have it in my handbag, have the option.”
Porter, who rose to fame in the 1990s as a TV presenter for shows including Top Of The Pops and
The Big Breakfast and then as a model in men’s magazines such as FHM, added: “I’m used to being bald. This is fun.”
Porter developed the condition in the wake of the end of her marriage to musician Dan Hipgrave.