I thought the work would dry up as I got older but I’m busier than ever and I’ll keep going as long as I can
I’m 50 but I still feel 21 and there’s a whole generation of women – and men – just like me
As a teenager, Mickey Monroe modelled for designers such as Jean Paul Gaultier and was a covergirl for Cosmo, Marie Claire and French Vogue. But she turned her back on the catwalk in her mid-20s to carve out a career in fashion and retail.
However, just a year ago, as she marked her 50th birthday, Mickey decided it was time to return to the trade. “When I turned 50, I thought, ‘I’ve got to do something else with my life’.
“I was the commercial head of a handbag and accessory brand and, while I enjoyed my job, I started to take a look at myself.
“So I decided to go back to modelling.”
The mum-of-three, from Glagsow but now living in London, said: “I spotted a niche market for youngerlooking older women.
“I’m 51 but I still feel 21. don’t feel ‘old’. And there’s a whole generation of women – and men – like me. “We’re not ready for the pipe and
IMarlen Goldie is a regular on TV style guru Gok Wan’s catwalk – at the age of 65. She’s been in the modelling game for more than half a century. And at a time when she should typically be hanging up her heels to kick back and relax, the grandmother says she has no plans to stop any time soon.
“You just can’t beat putting on high heels and diamond earrings,” she said. “You feel a million dollars. I just love it! “And I’ll keep going as long as I’m able.
“There’s certainly plenty of work to keep me going, from catwalk shows and mother of the bride outfits, to ads for ferries, hotels and restaurants. “I thought the jobs would dry up as I got older, but I’m busier than I’ve ever been.” Mother-of-two Marlen, who lives in Rutherglen, started modelling when she was just 14. slippers yet. Just because you go grey, it doesn’t mean you’re invisible.
“We still want to be out there doing things with our lives, and achieving, not sitting back with our rollers in.
“That’s true of modelling. The grey-haired model is becoming mainstream.” Mickey, who recently qualified as a yoga teacher and launched her own yoga clothing range Pada, added: “There’s a perception that women at 50 are going through the menopause and tend to slow down – but there is an alternative life to that – and I’m certainly living it.
“In fact, I feel younger and more alive in my 50s than ever. And hopefully I can inspire others to do the same.
“Of course, sometimes I see pictures of myself and realise I look a little older than I feel – but then I tell myself to be the best version of me I can be – and if I can manage that, I’m doing okay.”
“I fell into it accidentally,” she said. “I was so shy my mum sent me to a grooming school – you know, where you learn how to walk with a book on your head and how to get out of a car.
“As soon as I was finished, I was offered a modelling job on the catwalk.
“Models in years gone by were a size eight and 21 years old, so it’s certainly changing.
“I think brands are realising there’s an older generation and embracing them – because it’s us that have the grey pound. “We’ve paid off our mortgages and have the disposable income to buy expensive face creams and go on nice holidays.”
Marlen added: “I don’t tend to tell people I’m a model, I just say I’m in fashion. It’s easier that way.
“When I’m not working, I’m not glamorous at all, so I don’t know if they would believe me!” Fake fur is sold as an ethical alternative to animal fur but critics fear it is damaging the environment.
The head of a parliamentary inquiry into the fashion industry Mary Creagh says fake fur should be labelled as “plastic fur” because it takes hundreds of years to biodegrade and is made from fossil fuels.
She says plastic sheds microfibres which gets into the sea and can harm marine life. We also don’t know how particles can affect our breathing.