Material Girl

And you thought I was new to modelling...

You may be wondering how I - out of the many thousands of women with MS in the UK - came to be chosen for this project.

You must be thinking that (at the not-so-tender age of 36) I'm a bit of a late-comer to the world of modelling.

But you see, you're wrong. My modelling career had already commenced at the tender age of 35...

In April 2006, the MS Society held a huge convention for people with MS in Manchester, UK. It was called MS Life.

I had a really busy time at MS Life.

For one thing, I staffed a Jooly's Joint exhibition stand for three days, with the help of my lovely friends Jon and Anne-Marie.

On the Saturday evening, my friend Piero (he also has MS) and I hosted a party for about 200 people with MS.

On the Sunday evening, I took part in a special fashion show, called Material Girls, at Harvey Nichols store in Manchester. All 30 models had MS.

This was an amazing experience for me. Incredibly emotional.

It was such a busy weekend. Although I was holding up physically, by the time Sunday rolled around I was emotionally exhausted and tearful. I wasn't 'upset' by anything as such. I was just 'emotionally spent'.

In the hours that led up to the big catwalk moment I felt miserable. Most of the other models were younger than me (by as much as 15 years in some cases). They couldn't understand why I seemed to be distressed. Was it nerves? Of course not... I 'don't do' nervousness!

As the time drew near, I downed a couple of glasses of medicinal champagne and pulled myself together. As we lined up to do our thing, I felt great. Confident. Happy.

But here's a funny thing. Several of the other models, who had been happy and excited during the day, were overtaken by their emotions as their big moment approached. Suddenly, they too seemed overwhelmed by the emotional weight of the occasion. I have to admit that I smiled a broad, wry smile. That's one of the benefits of being a bit older: you have the wisdom to cry your tears BEFORE getting your makeup done!!

I can't tell you what it felt like to step out onto that catwalk. Literally, I can't. Even though it was 11 months ago, I still can't talk about that experience without feeling overwhelmed. To be part of something so joyful, to celebrate the great joy of just being, and to look out into the audience of 200 people and see everyone (including all the men) in tears... it was one of the most emotional-charged and glorious experiences of my life. I now know what people mean when they say 'the atmosphere was electric'.


A number of members of Jooly's Joint were in the audience that evening and took pictures of me prancing about. Many thanks to them for these extremely sympathetic snaps!

It was this experience that led to the call I received from the MS Society last November, inviting me to model for Melissa.

Who knows what the future holds. I wonder...