IT’S 2016 and Miss Great Britain, Zara Holland, has been stripped of her title for having sex on Love Island.
Bosses at the competition announced “with deep regret” that she had been “de-crowned” as they felt they could no longer promote her as a positive role model.
The decision prompted widespread outrage, with women across the UK branding it “misogynistic” and criticising the organisation for “publicly condemning a woman for having sex”.
Miss Great Britain then issued another statement, saying “they have no problem with sex” but couldn’t “condone what happened on national TV”.
At that point, beauty pageants in the UK had long been plagued with accusations of objectifying and “degrading” women, putting immense pressure on contestants to maintain a certain image and contributing to unrealistic beauty standards.
For many women – both involved in the pageant industry and not – watching Zara cruelly lose her crown in front of millions of people was the moment these criticisms were validated.
That includes Miss Great Britain South East winner Amelia Perrin, who didn’t compete again after witnessing her fellow pageant queen “being thrown under the bus”.
The 28-year-old’s local win saw her land a place to compete in Miss Great Britain, where she was actually paired with Zara to learn a dance for the contest.
When Zara was “de-crowned” on national television by an organisation that she was “so dedicated to”, Amelia remembers thinking: “F**k this.”
“I just remember looking at the announcement and thinking, ‘God, this is so old fashioned and outdated’,” she recalls.
“I realised that feminism and pageantry don’t go hand-in-hand.”
Amelia, from Essex, went on to publicly condemn Miss Great Britain for stripping Zara of her title, saying that “the pressure to remain ‘perfect’ is unattainably high” for pageant winners.
In the nine years that have followed, the British public has taken less and less of an interest in pageantry.
“It’s because of social media,” Amelia predicts. “Pageantry is just about beautiful girls, but there’s social media platforms full of beautiful girls now.
“And even on social media, the girls who ‘win’ all the followers are the ones who come across as very authentic.
“I think there’s more of a shift towards seeing women as authentic, vulnerable human beings – and that doesn’t come across in pageantry.”
PAGEANT PROTOCOL
Beauty pageant contestants compete in on-stage events like interviews, catwalks, fashion shows and talent showcases.
The qualifying rounds before the big event involve social media tasks, fundraising and activism.
During fashion rounds, contestants are judged on appearance, confidence and communication as they strut down the stage.
Some fashion rounds held by leading pageant organisations include ‘Beach Body’, evening gown, swimwear and sports.
I think there’s more of a shift towards seeing women as authentic, vulnerable human beings – and that doesn’t come across in pageantry
Amelia Perrin
A number of pageant rounds have come under scrutiny, including Miss England’s ‘Make-up Free’ round, where contestants post bare faced photos of themselves on social media.
Miss England organisers declared earlier this month that the divisive segment is staying in the contest, despite talks about scrapping it altogether at the start of the year.
Some beauty queens had challenged the round, which is held in the qualifiers, for not giving women agency to make decisions about their appearance.
Beauty pageant contestants also advocate for social causes, aiming to represent and raise money for a community or organisation as an ambassador.
DEEP HISTORY
Dislike of beauty pageants is not a new phenomenon.
During the 1970 Miss World contest, feminist activists dramatically flour-bombed the stage at a packed-out Royal Albert Hall in London.
Britain’s Women’s Liberation Movement (WLM) staged the protest over the objectification of women and wanted to make a dramatic statement against misogyny.
They had been inspired by a similar protest the preceding year by the American WLM who had thrown bras in a dustbin and crowned a sheep Miss Universe.
The most recognisable beauty pageants in the UK are Miss Great Britain and Miss England.
On the international stage, the four major contests are Miss World, Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Earth.
Beauty pageants have put celebrities like Molly-Mae Hague on the map, with the Love Islander-turned-entrepreneur competing in Miss Teen Great Britain in 2015 and winning the World Teen Supermodel UK crown aged 17 in 2016.
“I am forever grateful to the system for making me the girl I am today, I truly believe that things in my life wouldn’t be as good as they are now if I hadn’t stepped on that stage back in 2015,” she told of her experience.
Fellow Love Island alumni Ekin-Su Culculoglu, who came onto the scene as a bombshell in 2022, also took her first big step into the world of showbiz in beauty pageants when she was in her teens.
She was in several competitions, including Miss Asia Pacific World in 2011.
Model and former-WAG Danielle Lloyd also cut her teeth on the British pageant circuit, and was crowned Miss Great Britain in 2006.
However, she was stripped of her title half way through her reign after letting slip that she was in a long-term relationship with judge and England ace Teddy Sheringham, who had been the only judge to vote for her on the night.
MODERN DAY CRITICISM
Social media platforms like Reddit and X (formerly Twitter) are awash with negative opinions about beauty pageants.
“Frankly, there is no difference between a pageant and a show like Squid Games,” one anonymous poster claimed. “I agree that is shallow b*******t, but some people enjoy this, and thus they watch it, thus the show makes money.”
“I hate that they exist because they’re misogynistic and try to impose beauty standards on girls from a young age,” another believes.
And while the industry has been dying a slow death for many years in the UK, other countries have been quicker to denounce pageantry.
I hate that they exist because they’re misogynistic and try to impose beauty standards on girls from a young age
Reddit user
After 35 years, the annual Miss Netherlands competition was declared finished in December last year. The contest’s owner herself even dubbed the concept outdated.
Miss Italy is also struggling.
The pageant has its own Netflix show, named Miss Italia Mustn’t Die, airing on Wednesday (February 26).
It focuses on bosses are desperately trying to salvage the competition amid scandals and changing beauty standards.
The History of Britain's Beauty Pageants
Following World War Two, a number of seaside resorts around the United Kingdom introduced beauty contests.
The first pageant of its kind, held in Morecambe in 1945, went on to become Miss Great Britain.
Alongside it was Miss England, which had its first competition in 1928 but got properly underway as a beauty pageant in 1953.
The winner of the first ever Miss Great Britain in 1945 was 18-year-old Lydia Reid, a civil service typist, who received a cup and a paltry prize (according to the local paper) of seven guineas, as well as a swimsuit.
Prize money increased to £100 the following year, £500 the next and reached £1,000 in the fifties due to the competition’s popularity, with it becoming a form of seaside entertainment for holidaying Brits.
“The contests were aimed at a family audience,” a blurb on the Miss GB website reads.
“Men could enjoy watching pretty girls, women could have fun backing their favourites and young girls could aspire to be a bathing beauty when they grew up.”
Morecambe Town Council put the contest up for sale following the 1989 final and it was purchased by new owners who rebranded it as the ‘Miss Great Britain Organisation’.
REVIVING THE INDUSTRY
Former pageant queen Katrina Hodge doesn’t think that beauty pageants are completely dead – she just thinks they need a new lease of life.
Namely, they need to not focus on women’s bodies or appearance, but rather their confidence and charity work.
The mum-of-two, who was known as Combat Barbie in the Noughties for being a serving soldier while competing in Miss England, actually campaigned to have the swimwear round taken out of the contest on the grounds that it was “degrading” in 2009.
However, she doesn’t believe that the entire concept of pageantry is degrading.
So much so, she is now the director of two contests in the UK, named Miss Supranational United Kingdom and Mrs UK World (which is for married women).
“When I was Miss England, your measurements were read out when you walked on stage,” Katrina explains.
“I didn’t really understand why, to be a role model and somebody that became a charity ambassador, you needed to be the person with the most amazing bum.
“So yes, I campaigned to have the section taken out back then.”
I didn’t really understand why, to be a role model and somebody that became a charity ambassador, you needed to be the person with the most amazing bum
Katrina Hodge
Fast forward to today, Katrina actually has a swimwear round in both of her pageants – but it’s not compulsory, and the contestants can wear sportswear instead.
“The girls don’t get marked any differently if they wear sportswear, because we’re not actually marking a single point on their figure,” she says. “It’s all about their confidence.
“So you get some girls that will come dressed as a boxer because they do boxing – it’s all about showing personality on stage.”
Katrina also doesn’t agree with the notion that pageants are inherently anti–feminist.
“Feminism is about women having a choice,” she tells. “Nobody’s holding a gun to my head, or the women that take part in the competition.
“We are having a choice to take part in this, and if you choose not to take part in it, that’s your choice too. Pageantry is feminism.”
Katrina adds that “beauty is what’s on the inside too”, and she strives for her pageants to represent this.
In the age of OnlyFans models and controversial ‘influencers’ like Bonnie Blue, Katrina believes the charity work done by beauty queens is worth just as much attention.
If it’s fine for women to express themselves and do OnlyFans, then what’s wrong with women raising awareness and funds for charity, and walking on stage having the time of their life
Katrina Hodge
“If it’s fine for women to express themselves and do OnlyFans, then what’s wrong with women raising awareness and funds for charity?” she says.
“They’re walking on stage having the time of their life.
“As a mum, I know who I would want my daughters to be influenced by.
“Pageant girls all the way.”
A spokesperson from Miss Great Britain said: “Since taking over, Miss Great Britain has evolved significantly and is now stronger, more relevant, and more inclusive than ever before.
“We now receive over 4,000 applications annually, host more than 30 live regional finals, and offer the largest prize package on offer to women competing in pageants in the UK.
“Miss Great Britain has never been more successful, attracting more applicants, regional directors, and sponsors than ever before.
“We sell out our National Final in a matter of hours, proving the demand for the pageant industry and such competitions in the UK is stronger than ever.
“Miss Great Britain is about to celebrate its 80th anniversary, proving its longevity and continued relevance.”
AI PAGEANTS
Techies have tried to give beauty pageants an AI lease of life – but this has proved as controversial as the contests themselves.
The world’s first artificial intelligence-generated beauty pageant didn’t receive the alluring praise in April 2024 that the event’s creators hoped for.
The digital competition invited computer whizzes to design the ultimate AI beauty queen – and the sculptor to generate the most desirable woman was awarded the digital title of Miss AI.
A $5,000 cash prize was also up for grabs.
But the faux contest was condemned by some techies who branded it as a “disintegrating society”.
“Beauty pageant for AI women? What is the world turning into,” one person criticised on Facebook at the launch of the digital event.
A second wrote: “Wow, I have a theory that we are getting dumber by the day, and this fits in perfectly.”
Real Housewives of Atlanta star and model Claudia Jordan even ripped the contest, comparing it to photoshopped pictures.