TP O’Mahony recently called for the Echo to feature a page 3 model. SARAH HORGAN hears arguments for and against the idea from Cork models.
WE'D DO PAGE 3! Kelly Buckley, left and Edelle Notte
Edelle Notte and Kelly Buckley are men’s magazine models and partners at promotional events. They would pose for Page 3 in the Echo.
THE implication that Page 3 girls are poor role models for children is steeped in double standards, when you take into consideration the prolific size zero models featured in high fashion magazines, say Kelly and Edelle.
They insist that it’s the underweight models often synonymous with fashion publications that have a more damaging effect on kids.
“I’ve never heard of a Page 3 girl from Cork and would love to set a precedent by being the first glamour model to have started their career with the Evening Echo,” says Kelly. “Modelling in a local newspaper would be an extensive platform for women like myself and Edelle, who would not otherwise have the opportunity to progress in the modelling industry.
“My petite frame means I do not qualify as a catwalk model. High fashion models might look down on me for the sort of work I do. Then again, it’s very easy to look down on someone when you’re over 6ft tall!
Edelle says: “For a high fashion model to say that our behaviour is lurid is a contradiction in itself.”
“There is definitely a snobbery attached to mainstream modelling. When you take into account the correlation between high profile advertising campaigns and nudity, this seems rather hypocritical.
“I don’t see how featuring a Page 3 girl in the Evening Echo could impact negatively on readers when you contemplate just how ingrained into public consciousness nudity has become,” adds Edelle.
Anita O’Brien and Mairead O’Farrell are high fashion models with Lockdown, former Miss Corks and best friends since school. They are against a Page 3 girl in the Echo.
GLAMOUR modelling sounds quite monotonous. I love modelling with Lockdown mainly because the photo shoots are always very creative and artistic. Catwalk shows in particular are very unpredictable,” says Anita.
“Having a page 3 girl in the Echo could inspire insecurity in younger readers,” says Mairead. “Don’t get me wrong I have nothing against Kelly or Edelle. I only wish I had the confidence to do what they do! Nonetheless when it comes to glamour modelling, I don’t think a local newspaper would be the right avenue for the pair to explore.
“It’s a sleazy industry,” adds Anita. “I could never model for Page 3 because I believe a significant number of their photographers only serve to highlight the model’s vulnerabilities.
“To say that an Evening Echo glamour model might raise a few eyebrows is an understatement. People complain about how Ireland has ostensibly ‘not yet entered the 21st century.’ A paper’s decision to refrain from having a Page 3 girl is not bowing down to the Irish culture of conservatism.
“The Echo is quite simply a family paper and Cork people need to respect that. A lot of elderly people read it for the sports section, or to see a neighbour photographed at a local event. I don’t think my family would appreciate seeing me splashed across page 3 of the Echo in just my underwear,” said Mairead.
“Besides, I haven’t exactly been blessed in the area that Edelle and Kelly are so I don’t think a
topless spread of me would be that entertaining for people!”
Read the full interviews in WOW!, FREE with Wednesday’s Cork Evening Echo
