Pubic hair is the hair in the frontal genital area of adolescent and adult humans, located on and around the sex organs, the crotch, and sometimes at the top of the inside of the legs of; these areas form the pubic region around the pubis bone.

Although fine vellus hair is present in the area in childhood, pubic hair is considered to be the heavier, longer and coarser hair that develops during puberty as an effect of rising levels of androgens. Pubic hair is therefore part of the androgenic hair (or body hair) and is a secondary sex characteristic.

Development[link]

The development of pubic hair can be assessed using the Tanner scale. Before the onset of puberty, the genital area of both boys and girls has very fine vellus hair, referred to as Tanner stage 1 hair.^[1] As puberty begins, the body produces rising levels of the sex hormones known as androgens, and in response the skin of the genital area begins to produce thicker and rougher, often curlier, hair with a faster growth rate.^[2] The onset of pubic hair development is termed pubarche. The change for each hair follicle is relatively abrupt, but the extent of skin which grows androgenic hair gradually increases over several years.

A variation of male pubic hair (left) on a mature male, and a variation of female pubic hair (right) on a mature female.

In males, the first pubic hair appears as a few sparse hairs on the scrotum or at the upper base of the penis (stage 2). Within a year, hairs around the base of the penis are numerous (stage 3). Within 3 to 4 years, hair fills the pubic area (stage 4) and becomes much thicker and darker, and by 5 years extends to the near thighs and upwards on the abdomen toward the umbilicus (stage 5).^[3]

Other areas of the skin are similarly, though slightly less, sensitive to androgens and androgenic hair typically appears somewhat later. In rough sequence of sensitivity to androgens and appearance of androgenic hair, are the armpits (axillae), perianal area, upper lip, preauricular areas (sideburns), periareolar areas (nipples), middle of the chest, neck under the chin, remainder of chest and beard area, limbs and shoulders, back, and buttocks.

Although generally considered part of the process of puberty, pubarche is distinct and independent of the process of maturation of the testicles that leads to sexual maturation and fertility. Pubic hair can develop from adrenal androgens alone, and can develop even when the ovaries or testes are defective and nonfunctional. See puberty for details.

There is little if any difference in the capacity of male and female bodies to grow hair in response to androgens. The obvious sex-dimorphic difference in hair distribution in men and women is primarily a result of differences in the levels of androgen reached as maturity occurs.

Pubic hair and axillary (armpit) hair can vary in color considerably from the hair of the scalp. In most people it is darker, although it can also be lighter. In most cases it is most similar in color to the eyebrows of the individual.^[4] On some individuals, pubic hair is thick and/or coarse; on others it may be sparse and/or fine; these varieties may appear in either sex. Hair texture varies from tightly curled to entirely straight. Pubic hair patterns can also vary by race and ethnicity.

Patterns of pubic hair, known as the escutcheon, vary between sexes. On most women, the pubic patch is triangular and lies over the mons pubis. On many men, the pubic patch tapers upwards to a line of hair pointing towards the navel (see abdominal hair), roughly a more upward-pointing triangle.^[4] As with axillary (armpit) hair, pubic hair is associated with a concentration of sebaceous glands in the area.

Culture[link]

Art[link]

In ancient Egyptian art, female pubic hair is indicated in the form of painted triangles.^[5] In medieval and classical European art, it was very rarely depicted, and male pubic hair was often, but not always, omitted.^[6] Sometimes it was portrayed in stylized form, as was the case with Greek graphic art.^[7] The same was true in much Indian art, and in other Eastern portrayals of the nude. In 16th century southern Europe Michelangelo showed the male David with stylized pubic hair, but female bodies remained hairless below the head. Nevertheless, Michelangelo’s male nudes on the Sistine chapel ceiling display no pubic hair. In Renaissance northern Europe, pubic hair was more likely to be portrayed than in the south, more usually male, but occasionally female.

Heinrich Aldegrever's Eve, 1540. A rare early example of pubic hair in northern European art

Michelangelo's representation of David includes pubic hair

By the 17th century, suggestions of female pubic hair appear in pornographic engravings, such as those by Agostino Carracci.^{[citation needed]} By the late 18th century female pubic hair is openly portrayed in Japanese shunga (erotica), especially in the ukiyo-e tradition.^[8] Hokusai's picture The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife, depicting a woman having an erotic fantasy, is a well-known example. Fine art paintings and sculpture created before the 20th century in the Western tradition usually depicted women without pubic hair or a visible vulva.^{[citation needed]}

According to John Ruskin's biographer Mary Lutyens, the notable author, artist, and art critic was apparently accustomed only to the hairless nudes portrayed unrealistically in art, never having seen a naked woman before his wedding night. He was allegedly so shocked by his discovery of his wife Effie's pubic hair that he rejected her, and the marriage was later legally annulled. He is supposed to have thought his wife was freakish and deformed.^[9] Later writers have often followed Lutyens and repeated this version of events. For example Gene Weingarten in his book I'm with Stupid (2004) writes that "Ruskin had [the marriage] annulled because he was horrified to behold upon his bride a thatch of hair, rough and wild, similar to a man's. He thought her a monster."^[10] However, there is no proof for this, and some disagree. Peter Fuller in his book Theoria: Art and the Absence of Grace writes, "It has been said that he was frightened on the wedding night by the sight of his wife's pubic hair; more probably, he was perturbed by her menstrual blood." Ruskin's biographers Tim Hilton and John Batchelor also believe that menstruation is the more likely explanation."^[11]

Francisco Goya's The Nude Maja has been considered as probably the first European painting to show woman's pubic hair, though others had hinted at it. The painting was considered quite pornographic at the time.^[12]

Gustave Courbet's L’Origine du monde (The Origin of the World, 1866), was considered scandalous because it showed the exposed female genitals in their totality with thick hair. Examples of male pubic hair in contemporary art are harder to find.^{[citation needed]}

In Japanese drawings, such as Hentai, pubic hair is often omitted, since for a long time the display of pubic hair was not legal. The interpretation of the law has since changed.^[13]

Society[link]

Among the upper class in 19th century Victorian Britain, pubic hair from one's lover was frequently collected as a souvenir. The curls were, for instance, worn like cockades in men's hats as potency talismans, or exchanged among lovers as tokens of affection.^[14] The museum of St. Andrews University in Scotland has in its collection a snuff box full of pubic hair of one of King George IV's mistresses, possibly Elizabeth Conyngham, which the notoriously licentious monarch donated to the Fife sex club, The Beggar's Benison.^[14]

Pubic hair removed from the female (left) and male (right) genital areas.

Modification[link]

Trimming or completely removing pubic hair has become a custom in some cultures. In Islamic societies, for example, removing the pubic hair is a religiously endorsed practice under the Sunan al-Fitra.^[15] A preference for hairless genitals is known as acomoclitism. The method of removing hair is called depilation (when removing only the hair above the skin) or epilation (when removing the entire hair). Beauty salons often offer various waxing services. It is sometimes referred to as "pubic topiary".^[16][17][18]

It is unusual for pubic hair to be dyed or painted, except incidentally to bodypainting, but although concerns have been raised about the safety of using regular hair dye for this purpose, dye has been formulated so that women may match their pubic hair either to match the (dyed) hair on their heads (colloquially referred to as 'matching the carpet to the drapes/curtains' or 'collar and cuffs'), or in whimsical colours.^[19]

Reasoning[link]

Some arguments for modification of pubic hair have included:^[20]

Style[link]

Several types of female style

The modification of pubic hair can also be considered a statement about one's style or personal lifestyle as can leaving it unmodified. The fashion designer Mary Quant was notably proud that her husband trimmed hers into a heart shape.^[21]

Some styles include:^[22]

Natural, Au naturel, Bush^[23]

No trimming and therefore no maintenance.

Trimmed or cut

hair length is shortened but not removed or shaped, inner thighs may be shaved

Triangle

Hair removed (generally waxed) from the sides to form a triangle so that pubic hair cannot be seen while wearing swimwear. This can range from the very edge of the "bikini line" to up to an inch reduction on either side. Hair length can be from an inch and a half to half an inch.

Landing Strip, Hitler Moustache

Hair sharply removed from the sides to form a long centered vertical rectangle, hair length about quarter of an inch.

Brazilian waxing, G-wax ˌ

Pubic hair completely removed except for a very thin remnant, centered, narrow stripe above the vulva approximately an inch in height, and the hair length in the sub-centimeter range.

Full-Brazilian, Hollywood, Bare, Bald Beaver, Bald eagle, German Wax

Pubic hair completely removed.

V-shaped^[24]

Adaptation of the triangle shape with an inner triangle removed, rarely with a top bar remaining ▽.

Heart, also diamonds, spades, clubs

The heart shape is an adaptation of the triangle shape with the top shaped into two half circles. The diamond shape has the upper part of the triangle shape cut into an up-pointing triangle instead.

Arrow

Mix of the landing strip (upper) and triangle (lower) shapes, possibly also in other directions.

Pyramid

An upside-down triangle, the name referring to the cross cut or silhouette of a pyramid.

Freestyle (flash , star and other symbols, letters)

These are usually variations of the Brazilian/G-wax, where a design is formed of the pubic hair above completely bare vulva. Stencils for several shapes are available commercially.^[25] A controversial Gucci commercial included female pubic hair shaved into a 'G'.^[26]

Dyed hair

Coloring pubic hair to match hair on the head or to give it a unique look (for example, red—in the shape of a heart).

Hair extensions, pubic wigs

See also[link]

References[link]

Notes

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pubic hair

• Pubic Hair Distribution Study categorizes four types of pubic hair patterns and summarizes observed occurrence of each type of pattern.
• Morris, Desmond (2007). "The Pubic Hair". The Naked Woman. ISBN 0-312-33853-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=Wa9zntiEKeAC&pg=RA1-PA192&dq=pubic+hair. 

Jenny McCarthy
McCarthy in 2006
Born	Jennifer Ann McCarthy (1972-11-01) November 1, 1972 (age 39) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.[1]
Occupation	Actress, comedian, model, author, activist
Years active	1993–present
Spouse	John Mallory Asher (1999–2005; 1 child)
Partner	Jim Carrey (2005–2010)

Jennifer Ann "Jenny" McCarthy (born November 1, 1972)^[1][2] is an American model, comedian, actress, author, activist, and game show host. She began her career in 1993 as a nude model for Playboy magazine and was later named their Playmate of the Year. McCarthy then parlayed her Playboy fame into a successful television and film acting career. Most recently, she has written books about parenting, and has become an activist promoting the claims that vaccines cause autism^[3] and that chelation therapy helps cure it—both claims are considered false by the medical community.^[4]

Early life[link]

McCarthy was born in Evergreen Park, Illinois to a middle-class Catholic family of Polish and Irish descent. She lived in the West Elsdon neighborhood of Chicago.^[5][6] She is the second of four daughters; her sisters are named Lynette, Joanne and Amy. Her cousin is Academy Award-nominated actress Melissa McCarthy of Bridesmaids and Mike and Molly.^[7][8] McCarthy's mother, Linda, was a housewife and courtroom custodian, and her father, Dan McCarthy, was a steel mill foreman.^[9][10]

As a teenager, McCarthy attended Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School (whose school sweater she donned in the pages of Playboy) and was a cheerleader at both Brother Rice High School and St. Laurence High Schools,^[11] although she has referred to herself as an "outcast" at her school^[12] and has described how she was repeatedly bullied by classmates.^[13]

Career[link]

Modeling and acting[link]

After getting accepted by Playboy in 1993, the magazine offered McCarthy $20,000 to pose for its October issue. McCarthy became the Playmate of the Month and later the Playmate of the Year and was paid a $100,000 salary.^[14] In 1994, because of her newfound public attention, McCarthy moved to Los Angeles and, for a time, hosted Hot Rocks, a Playboy TV show featuring uncensored music videos.

In 1995, MTV chose McCarthy to be the host of a new dating show called Singled Out, for which she left Hot Rocks. Her job as a host was a success, and Playboy wanted her to do more modeling. That same year, she also appeared at World Wrestling Federation (WWF) pay-per-view event WrestleMania XI as a guest valet for villain Shawn Michaels, who faced heroic WWF Champion, Diesel. She left after the match with the victor, Diesel. McCarthy returned to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE, formerly the WWF) on the August 2, 2008 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event to thank the fans for supporting Generation Rescue, an autism advocacy organization. In 1996, she landed a small part in the comedy The Stupids. In 1997, McCarthy launched two shows. The first one was an MTV sketch comedy show The Jenny McCarthy Show, which was sufficiently popular for NBC to sign her for an eponymous sitcom later that year, Jenny. The latter show is generally considered a disappointment and was quickly canceled.^{[citation needed]} Also in 1997, she appeared on one of two covers for the September issue of Playboy (the other cover featured Pamela Anderson). McCarthy also released an autobiography: Jen-X: Jenny McCarthy's Open Book.^[15]

In 1998, McCarthy's first major movie role was alongside Trey Parker and Matt Stone in the comedy BASEketball. The following year, she starred in Diamonds, a movie which was directed by her then-husband John Mallory Asher. In 2000, she had a role in the horror movie Scream 3, and three years later she parodied that role in horror film spoof Scary Movie 3 along with fellow Playmate and actress Pamela Anderson. In 2005, McCarthy produced, wrote, and starred in the movie Dirty Love, where she was again directed by her husband at the time, John Asher. In March 2006, she was given Razzie Awards for "Worst Actress", "Worst Screenplay", and "Worst Picture" for her work on Dirty Love, which also earned Asher a Razzie for "Worst Director."^[16]

In addition to her early TV fame on MTV and her short-lived, self-titled NBC sitcom, McCarthy has guest starred in a variety of other television shows including Stacked, Charmed, The Drew Carey Show, Wings, Fastlane, Two and a Half Men and Just Shoot Me!.^{[citation needed]} She was the voice of Six in the third season of Canadian computer-animated science fiction cartoon Tripping the Rift. In 2005, McCarthy hosted a show on E! called Party at the Palms. The reality show, which was filmed at The Palms Hotel in Las Vegas, featured hotel guests, party goers, and celebrities.^[17]

McCarthy has continued her work with Playboy over the years, both as a model and in other capacities. She appeared on the cover of the magazine's January 2005 issue wearing a leopard skin version of the company's iconic "bunny suit" and was featured in a pictorial shot at Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion in that same issue. She was the second woman (following Carmen Electra) and first former Playmate to become a celebrity photographer for the Playboy Cyber Club, where she photographed model Jennifer Madden.^{[citation needed]}

Jenny's younger sister Amy has also posed for Playboy. She was Cyber Girl of the Week for September 27, 2004, and Cyber Girl of the Month for January, 2005.^[18]

McCarthy currently stars in a five-episode online series, called In the Motherhood, along with Chelsea Handler and Leah Remini.^[19] The show is on MSN and is based on being a mother where users could submit their stories to have it made into real webisodes.

She has also appeared in two video games: playing the role of Agent Tanya in the video game Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, replacing Kari Wührer, and the fitness video game Your Shape Featuring Jenny McCarthy.^[20]

She is the host of season 2 of Love in the Wild, which begins on June 7, 2012.^[21]

Public persona[link]

April 4, 2005

McCarthy once modeled for Candie's, a shoe company. In one magazine ad, McCarthy posed on a toilet seat with her underwear near her ankles. Cultural scholar Collin Gifford Brooke wrote that the ad's "taboo nature" brought it attention, while noting that the ad itself helped to weaken that taboo.^[22] Another Candie's ad depicted McCarthy passing wind in a crowded elevator.^[23][24]

A sketch on her MTV show centered on her character, a well-coiffed business woman, answering the question of "What did you have for lunch?" by seeming to force herself to vomit all over a table which she then ate. This was faked using special effects.

This theme was taken to a new extreme in her film Dirty Love, which featured McCarthy's character sitting in a massive pool of her own menstrual blood.^[25]

Personal life[link]

McCarthy began dating actor/director John Mallory Asher late in 1998.^[26] The couple became engaged in January 1999, and married on September 11 of that year. They have a son, Evan Joseph, born on May 18, 2002. Evan was diagnosed with autism. McCarthy and Asher divorced in September, 2005.^[27]

In December 2005, McCarthy began dating actor Jim Carrey. They did not make their relationship public until June 2006. She announced on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on April 2, 2008 that she and Carrey were living together, but had no plans to marry, as they did not need a "piece of paper."^[28] Carrey almost made a mock proposal to McCarthy as a promotion to the film Yes Man for Ellen's Twelve Days of Holidays. McCarthy and Carrey announced that they had split up in April 2010.^[29]

In April 2012 she began dating Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher.^[30][31][32]

Activism and autism controversy[link]

Jenny McCarthy speaking at the 2008 Ante Up For Autism benefit

In May 2007, McCarthy announced that her son Evan was diagnosed with autism in 2005. Before claiming that her son's autism was caused by vaccination, McCarthy wrote that he was gifted, a "crystal child", and she an "indigo mom".^[33] Evan's disorder began with seizures and his improvement occurred after the seizures were treated, symptoms experts have noted are more consistent with Landau–Kleffner syndrome, often misdiagnosed as autism.^[34][35] McCarthy served as a spokesperson for Talk About Curing Autism (TACA) from June 2007 until October 2008.^[36] She participated in fundraisers, online chats, and other activities for the non-profit organization to help families affected by autism spectrum disorders. Her first fundraiser for TACA, Ante Up for Autism,^[37] was held on October 20, 2007, in Irvine, California. She is a prominent spokesperson and activist for the Generation Rescue foundation,^[38] and serves on its Board of Directors as of January 2011.^[39]

A study found 24% of parents placed "some trust" in information on vaccine safety from celebrities like Jenny McCarthy.^[4]

McCarthy's book on the subject, Louder than Words: A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism, was published September 17, 2007. She stated both in her book and during her appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show that her husband was unable to deal with their son's autism, which led to their divorce. In 2008, she appeared on a Larry King Live special dedicated to the subject, and argued that vaccines can trigger autism.^[40][41] In an April 27, 2010 PBS Frontline documentary, she was interviewed about the controversy between vaccine opponents and public health experts.^[42][43]

In addition to conventional, intensive Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy, McCarthy tried a gluten-free and casein-free diet, hyperbaric oxygen chambers, chelation, aromatherapies, electromagnetics, spoons rubbed on his body, multivitamin therapy, B-12 shots and numerous prescription drugs.^[44] McCarthy has stated on talk shows and at rallies that chelation therapy helped her son recover from autism.^[4] The underlying rationale for chelation, the speculation that mercury in vaccines causes autism, has been roundly rejected by scientific studies, with the National Institute of Mental Health concluding that autistic children are unlikely to receive any benefit to balance the risks of heart attack, stroke and cardiac arrest posed by the chelating agents used in the treatment.^[45]

McCarthy's public presence, and vocal activism on the vaccination-autism controversy, led, in 2008, to her being awarded The James Randi Educational Foundation's Pigasus Award (granted for contributions to pseudoscience) for the 'Performer Who Has Fooled The Greatest Number of People with The Least Amount of Effort'. Randi stated in a video on the JREF's website that he did sympathize with the plight of McCarthy and her child, but admonished her for using her public presence in a way that may discourage parents from having their own children vaccinated.^[46]

McCarthy's claims that vaccines cause autism are not supported by any medical evidence, and the original paper by Andrew Wakefield that formed the basis for the claims (and for whose book McCarthy wrote a foreword)^[47] has been shown to be based on manipulated data and fraudulent research.^{[48][49][50][51]} The BMJ published a 2011 article by journalist Brian Deer, based on information uncovered by Freedom of Information legislation after the British General Medical Council (GMC) inquiry into allegations of misconduct against Wakefield that led to him being struck-off from the medical register (unable to practice medicine in the UK) and his articles retracted, stating that Wakefield had planned a venture to profit from the MMR vaccine scare.^{[52][53][54][55]}

Parental concerns over vaccines have led to decreased immunization rates and increased incidence of whooping cough and measles, a highly contagious and sometimes deadly disease.^[56] Neil Cameron, a historian who specializes in the history of science, writing for The Montreal Gazette labeled the controversy a "failure of journalism" that resulted in unnecessary deaths, saying that The Lancet should not have published a study based on "statistically meaningless results" from only 12 cases and that a grapevine of worried parents and "nincompoop" celebrities fueled the widespread fears.^[57]

Generation Rescue issued a statement that the "media circus" following the revelation of fraud and manipulation of data was "much ado about nothing",^[58] which led USA Today to report that McCarthy had "taken a beating on Twitter".^[59] Salon.com responded to Generation Rescue's statement with:^[60]

"It's high time the woman who once said that 'I do believe sadly it's going to take some diseases coming back to realize that we need to change and develop vaccines that are safe' took a step back and reconsidered the merits of that increasingly crackpot stance. And it's time she acknowledged that clinging to research that's been deemed patently fraudulent does not make one a 'mother warrior.' It makes her a menace."

In January 2011, McCarthy defended Wakefield, saying that he had listened to parents and that the controversy was "merely the allegations of a single British journalist named Brian Deer".^[61]

Publications[link]

• Jen-X: Jenny McCarthy's Open Book, an autobiography (Harpercollins, ISBN 978-0-06-039233-8).
• Belly Laughs: The Naked Truth about Pregnancy and Childbirth (ISBN 978-0-7382-0949-4)
• Baby Laughs: The Naked Truth about the First Year of Mommyhood (ISBN 978-0-525-94883-4)
• Life Laughs: The Naked Truth about Motherhood, Marriage, and Moving On (ISBN 978-0-525-94947-3)
• Louder than Words: A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism (ISBN 978-0-525-95011-0)
• Mother Warriors: A Nation of Parents Healing Autism Against All Odds (ISBN 978-0-525-95069-1)
• Healing and Preventing Autism Co-written with Dr. Jerry Kartzinel. Dutton Adult, March 31, 2009. (ISBN 978-0-525-95103-2)
• Love, Lust & Faking It: The Naked Truth About Sex, Lies, and True Romance (Harper, 2010)(ISBN 978-0062012982)

Filmography[link]

Television work[link]

• Mr. Show (1995)
• Singled Out (host from 1995–1997)
• Wings (1996)
• Jenny (1997–1998)
• Home Improvement (Guest star on "Young at Heart") (1999)
• The Big Breakfast (1998)
• Honey Vicarro (2001) (unsold pilot)
• Untitled Jenny McCarthy Project (2003) (unsold pilot)
• Charmed (2003)
• Less Than Perfect (2003)
• Hope & Faith (2004)
• Stacked (2005)
• What I Like About You (2005)
• The Bad Girl's Guide (2005) (canceled after 6 episodes)
• Party @ the Palms (2005–2006)
• One on One (2003–2004)
• My Name Is Earl (2006)
• Tripping the Rift (Voice of Six) (2006–2007)
• Two and a Half Men (2007–2008, 2010, 2011–present)
• Just Shoot Me! (season 5, episode 6)
• WWE Saturday Night's Main Event (Saturday Night's Main Event XXXVI, August 2, 2008, edition)
• Chuck (Chuck Versus The Suburbs) (2009)
• The Price is Right (2012)
• Windy City Live (2012)

Video game work[link]

• Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (2008)

See also[link]

• List of people in Playboy 1990–1999

Notes[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jenny McCarthy

• Jenny McCarthy at Playboy.com
• Jenny McCarthy at Yahoo! Movies
• Jenny McCarthy at the Internet Movie Database
• Jenny McCarthy Playboy Photos

Patsy Kensit
Kensit at the 2009 BAFTAs
Born	Patricia Jude Francis Kensit (1968-03-04) 4 March 1968 (age 44) Hounslow, Greater London, England, UK
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1972–present
Spouse	Dan Donovan (1988–91, divorced) Jim Kerr (1992–96, divorced) Liam Gallagher (1997–2000, divorced) Jeremy Healy (2009–present, separated)

Patricia Jude Francis "Patsy" Kensit (born 4 March 1968) is an English actress, singer, model and former child star, known for her television and film appearances. Her films include Lethal Weapon 2 and she has been married to rock stars Jim Kerr and Liam Gallagher, as well as herself fronting the band Eighth Wonder. In May 2004 she returned to television acting, taking the role of Sadie King in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale.

Early life[link]

Born to James Henry Kensit (1915–1987)^[1] and Margaret Rose Kensit (née Doohan, 1947–1993),^[1] a native of Ireland who died from breast cancer, Patsy Kensit has an older brother Jamie.^[1] Her mother was a publicist; her father was an associate of the notorious London gangsters the Kray twins.^[2] Nicknamed "Jimmy the Dip",^[1] he was also reportedly an associate of the rival Richardsons,^[1] running long firms for the gang. He served time in prison before Kensit was born; she believed he was an antiques dealer.^[1][3] Her paternal grandfather was a robber and counterfeiter,^[4] and her brother's godfather was Reggie Kray.^[5] She attended Corona Theatre School.

Kensit is a practising Catholic,^[6] having begun attending church after her mother's death.^[7]

Career[link]

Early work[link]

At the age of four, Kensit appeared in a television advert for Birds Eye frozen peas.^[1] In 1972, she had her first big screen role in the film For the Love of Ada. Her next film role was two years later in The Great Gatsby^[1] starring with Mia Farrow—whom she would later portray in the 1995 biopic Love and Betrayal: The Mia Farrow Story. She also appeared in a BBC mini series based on the famous historical novel Penmarric (1979).

As a pupil at the Italia Conti Academy stage school, Kensit's first starring roles were in British children's television programmes such as The Adventures of Pollyanna (1982) and Luna. She also appeared as Estella in a BBC adaptation of Great Expectations in 1981 and as Lady Margaret Plantagenet in the 1982 BBC production of Shakespeare's Richard III.

Rise to fame[link]

Kensit in France (1991)