Say what you like about Anneka Rice – and when it comes to her dancing on Strictly, the judges certainly did – but she looks phenomenal.
The TV presenter’s Charleston may have got her voted off the BBC show, but it wasn’t her kick swings that had me gawping, it was the fact she looked like Kylie Minogue.
Flawless and glowing skin, toned and trim figure, luscious blonde tresses – she looked more 30-something than 61.
I can’t quite decide if she’s had a “helping hand” but if she has, it’s been a good one.
It got me thinking of the similarly-aged women who look better now than they did three decades ago.
I give you our own adopted Dundonian Lorraine Kelly (she originally hails from East Kilbride but married a lovely Dundee guy and set up her home here for many years).
In the 80s and 90s she rocked specs snooker player Dennis Taylor would have been proud of, along with a rounder face and double-breasted tartan blazers with gold buttons and shoulder pads.
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Now, a month away from her 60th birthday, she looks trendier, fresher… better.
She has 14 years on Dame Helen Mirren who at 74 is nothing short of stunning.
These women look better now than I can remember. And yet, they look good for their age – as opposed to turning to cosmetic procedures to look 20 years younger. Or, if they have, you’d never know.
On the other side of the spectrum is the huge increase in people set on changing every feature God gave them.
Lips are filled, foreheads frozen, eyes lifted and bottoms and boobs buoyed not only by celebrities – the likes of Katie Price and some TOWIE types are extreme examples – but people sitting next to you on the train or walking down the street.
What is terrifying is the explosion of women in their 20s having “stuff” done.
I speak not in a judgmental way. I got my lips puffed up twice about 15 years ago and each time the effects lasted about six months but I haven’t had anything done since.
I speak out of concern. While it might be fashionable just now to have the “bee-stung” pout, lips are inflating towards noses and brows becoming motionless.
And the end result is that everyone doing “stuff” is starting to look the same.
To those starting out with a pretty face and changing it in their 20s and 30s and occasionally when they are still teens, where do they stop?
Chasing eternal youth can result in a face that bears little resemblance to the original after a decade or two of “improvement”.
And what happens when it all goes out of fashion? What if you’ve gone too far and can’t come back?
Maybe I’ll get some help one day to stop me looking any more exhausted and yes, older, but I’d also be a bit terrified I no longer look like me.
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