She was weird, she was whacky, she has a funny voice, and what on earth was she singing about? (I happened to be studying Wuthering Heights at the time and our English teacher barred us from referencing this song in any of our homework.) Our parents would catch a bar/measure or two, give us that "You call that singing?" look and say "You call that singing?". My dad used to run to the back door to see if there was a cat in pain. Every time the song came on the radio.
And she was hot. I don't know a single 50 year old guy who didn't have a huge crush on her back in the day. She was beautiful in a very ethereal way; sexy without any of the obvious stuff.
And then, when she was ever photographed at all, she started looking like this.
Until finally, we saw her with the Queen the other day, and let's face it, there was a collective intake of breath among her fans.
And you know what? I love her all the more. She's now a mum, she's 54, and she looks it. I would have been far more disturbed and I think, a little disappointed if she'd rolled up looking like a pulled, botox'd, decaying version of her younger self. She hasn't had any work done and clearly has more to do with her life than starving and working out all day, every day. This is what she's supposed to look like.
Brava Kate!
*CBE - Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire