Made in Essex

TWO years ago, Amy Childs was virtually unknown, working as a beautician and model in her hometown of Brentwood, in Essex.

But for the last two years, we’ve watched her grace our screens, sitting in her beauty salon, performing Vajazzles and spray tans to the vast and insane clientele of Essex. But the success of ‘The Only Way Is Essex’ (TOWIE) has seen the 21-year-old launch from a ditzy stereotypical Essex girl who parties all the time at the ‘Sugarhut’, to a household name, prompting people round the world to coin her phrases ‘shu’ up’ and ‘jel’ into everyday life. But how has the young woman influenced our lives, and British fashion, so much? Starring in an editorial in the October issue of British Vogue, she’s certainly come a long way from her small town in Essex.

At the moment, she is a finalist on the Celebrity version of Big Brother on Channel 5, but sees herself as so much more than a reality star. Childs has won ‘Personality of the Year’ at the National Reality TV Awards for TOWIE, the show that’s made her famous, and writes a column for celebrity gossip magazine New!, as well as presenting a regular fashion segment on ITV1’s ‘This Morning’. She has made herself available to the widest market as possible, and although she has a reputation of being one of the thickest girls on television, she’s far from it.

However, while Childs has had a wide fan base, she has critics aplenty and is tired of being stupid. In fact, she is so sick of people calling her stupid; she plans to go back to college to prove to people that she has brains as well as beauty. She’s also in talks about having her own reality TV show which would see her travelling the world learning about different cultures and beauty treatments.

I suppose you could say Amy Childs is a little like Marmite: you either love her or you hate her. Whichever opinion you have of her, there is no denying that over the last two years, she has forged a successful career and wormed her way into the hearts of the British public. Watching Celebrity Big Brother and TOWIE though, only one thing is clear. No matter whether she’s dancing in the Sugarhut, or posing for Vogue, you can take the girl out of Essex, but you can never, and I stress never, take the Essex out of the girl!