'Combat Barbie' Redux- 2009 Miss England Returns to Active Duty With Royal Army

*sigh* All good things must come to an end. Some of you who were around towards the beginning of Not Another New England Sports Blog!might remember the name Katrina Hodge- Lance Corporal Katrina Hodge of the Royal Army, to be specific.

A decorated Iraq war vet, she competed in the 2009 Miss England pageant and was awarded 1st runner up when the then-reigning Miss England was stripped of her crown for getting into an altercation with another contestant at a nightclub [No word on whether or not it was a prolonged Dynasty-esque face-slapping, dress-ripping, hair-pulling, falling-into-a-pond catfight- NANESB!]. So in a rather ironic twist, the military woman is awarded the Miss England crown for not fighting.

And now that a new Miss England was crowned last year, Corporal Hodge is back with the Royal Army and awaiting deployment to Afghanistan.

the move from soldier to beauty queen was a lot easier that the move in the other direction.

‘I’m not going to lie, it was hard to come back,' said Hodge.

‘It’s definitely a change of lifestyle from having your hair and make-up done every day to being in your combats and having your hair scraped back.'
But after 12 months of fancy hotels, false eyelashes and beauty assistants at her beck and call, Combat Barbie is back in combat training

Aside from her Miss England duties, Corporal Hodge had a pretty eventful 2010 in that she married some lucky bastard a fellow British soldier at a private ceremony in Sri Lanka last June.

UK Equalities Minister: Christina Hendricks is "Role Model"

UK Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone apparently is a fan of Mad Men- specifically Christina Hendricks.

Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone has declared the curvaceous redhead, who plays Joan Holloway in the hit American drama, an "absolutely fabulous" role model for girls, the UK's Daily Telegraph newspaper reports.

The Liberal Democrat minister criticised the overexposure of skinny models, which she said was causing a crisis in body confidence among the young.
She said women shouldn't be constantly comparing themselves with the "unattainable" figures of most celebrities and models.

"Christina Hendricks is absolutely fabulous," Mrs Featherstone said.

"We need more of these role models.

"There is such a sensation when there is a curvy role model. It shouldn't be so unusual."

Hendricks was voted the sexiest woman alive by Esquire magazine readers earlier this year...

As much as I'm in agreement with Featherstone regarding heroin chic and more curvy models or actresses being under-appreciated in the fashion and entrainment industry, it's one of those things that I don't think is the governments business.


This isn't the first plus-sized hullaballoo across the pond over the last few years. Amid criticism from some quarters, 17 year old Chloe Marshall of Surrey won runner-up in the 2008 Miss England pageant, with some tabloids calling the teenage Marshal a 'Poster Child for Ill Health'.

Lazy, Inept Blogger Scoops Mainstream Press AGAIN: Miss England/'Combat Barbie' Revisited

(The Sun)

Actually, I noticed this courtesey of the British tabloids, but for some reason this story that I reported on nearly 6 months ago just now is getting noticed here in the USA. Granted it's nowhere near as deadly serious as the developments in Pakistan that I beat the Washington Post by several weeks, but I pride myself on being ahead of the curve [moreso when it actually happens- NANESB!]

And speaking of curves....

Lance Corporal Katrina Hodge isn't just a decorated veteran of Iraq- she also happens to be the reigning Miss England. She actually was runner-up in the Miss England pageant when then-winner Rachel Christie was stripped of her crown for fighting with another contestant at a Manchester nightclub (not Hodge tho', otherwise Christie would probably still be in traction).

Hodge travelled to the 2009 Miss World pageant in South Africa where she didn't even place in the top 12. Personally, I thought that was unfortunate....but apparently field-stripping and reassembling the L85A2 service rifle blindfolded for the talent competition wasn't enough to impress the judges.

Hodge will retain the Miss England crown until at least June....and at the risk of repeating myself, does anyone else find it ironic that the professional soldier was awarded the title for not fighting?