Kelly Brook - An unfit role model?

Kelly Brook

Earlier this week there was a brief debate in the letters page of the Metro as to whether Rochester's favourite daughter, Kelly Brook, was indeed a good role model for young women in today's society.

In fact the letter I read was firmly against such an accolade. It criticised Miss Brook stating that she was hardly a role model as she was only famous for taking her clothes off for money.

This is indeed a fair point. After all Kelly's career started back in the 90s as a model and she soon found herself advertising Bravvisimo bras and then slid into Page 3 in the Star and other "Lads mags" like Loaded, FHM, Maxim et al. I will admit that at the age of 20 I had a Kelly Brook poster on my wall at university and I wasn't the only one!

She also branched out into television work including The Big Breakfast where she worked as Denise Van Outen's replacement for six months back in 1999.

It would be easy to pigeon hole her there and then but the story continues.

Kelly has also hit the big screen with starring roles in Piranha 3D, Three, School of seduction, The Italian Job (remake)... No I've not seen any of them either BUT she has also been on TV in the US Superman series Smallville. Commonly she has also done a spot of reality TV... then again which Z lister hasn't? Hers has been somewhat limited to ones where you need actual skill such as Strictly come dancing. Her other roles in Reality TV have been in the presenting/judging capacity.

Unlike Jordan (or Katie Price), Jodie Marsh or Kerry Katona she has not prostituted herself out for fame and appeared on the cover of Every magazine, starred in her own fly-on-the-wall documentary about her life or written about four Auto-biographies. She has stayed aloof of that and carried on doing what she wants to do in Movies and Television and left the modelling behind for quite some time.

Yes it is fair, she has, and does take her clothes off for money BUT that is but one string to her bow and if it makes her happy then, why not?

I agree, if Sophie came home one day and said she wanted to be a glamour model I would be deeply disappointed, obviously you always want your kids to excel and be doctors and lawyers but ultimately she should do what makes her happy.

Kelly is a good role model in that she is not a stick thin, rather a curvy, pleasant, bubbly person who is seems to not be obsessed by fame or driven by it. Rather she is a professional actress/model who gets paid good money and is successful. Who doesn't want that for their children?

Indeed there is a shortage of good female role models. The Olympics have thrust Jessica Ennis and Victoria Penbleton back into the limelight as positive role models, and there is of course Maria Sharapova, fictional characters like Doctor Who's Amy Pond (Karen Gillan), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) to name but a few. In fact one article in the Evening Standard this week suggested Miriam Clegg was a good role model for young women as she is an exceptionally hard working and successful lawyer who balances that with three sons and still finds time to support her husband the Deputy Prime Minister.

Though Kelly Brook doesn't necessarily reach those standards, she is a successful celebrity - maybe not A-list but celebrity none the less, who hasn't prostituted herself for every bit of fame going and who maintains a healthy figure and bubbly personality. You could do a lot worse for a role model.