Gail Porter has been showered with compliments from followers after stepping out carrying a wig.
The Scottish TV character started dropping her hair to alopecia – a situation that causes hair loss or baldness in some or all areas of the physique – in 2005.
A number of years later, her lashes and brows started rising again, and he or she sported a brief, cropped look.
Nonetheless, in 2010, the previous mannequin revealed that she had began dropping her hair as soon as extra, and the next yr, she unveiled a shaved head once more.
Gail, 54, has all the time refused to put on a wig or hairpieces to hide her baldness, having been eager on elevating consciousness of alopecia.
Nonetheless, in recent times, she’s began to experiment extra, and final yr, she unveiled a mid-length blonde wig to her followers.
Then, final night time, she rocked a dramatic new look, heading to the British LGBT Awards with lengthy locks.
The ceremony has been held yearly since 2014 and is a big second within the LGBTQ+ group’s calendar, with the likes of Jade, Billy Porter, and Ian ‘H’ Watkins receiving trophies this time.
Forward of strolling the purple carpet, Gail took to Instagram to debut her blonde tresses, which she wore in waves as they cascaded down previous her waist.
She tagged Amber Jean Rowan within the caption, thanking the wig maker – who has additionally made wigs for Strictly’s Amy Dowden after her most cancers therapy.
Taking to the feedback, her 81,000 followers have been eager to heap reward on her, with some having to do a double-take to verify it was actually her.
‘Gorgeous 😍😍 Gawjeeeeus 😍😍’, commented @mcchalkiewhite.
‘Wow Gail. Lovely with it and Lovely with out it’, wrote @christine_anne_garstin.
‘Gail you look superb 😍😍😍’, complimented @tinabear1969.
‘Wow needed to look twice 👏 appears to be like actually good 👍’, wrote @neilcornish13.
Gail eliminated her wig for the occasion itself, posing proudly on the carpet alongside a few of the UK’s largest LGBTQ+ expertise and allies.
The previous kids’s tv presenter obtained her first wig in 20 years in January 2024, which she debuted on social media.
She wrote on the time: ‘First wig ever!! Properly, one which’s coming house with me and the cat! Made with a lot love and care ❤️Thanks so a lot to everybody at @amberjeanshop Adore my new hair! X’
Talking beforehand about dropping her hair, the ex-Celeb Huge Brother housemate defined to Metro that she was compelled to sleep on benches when work dried up because of her refusing to put on a wig.
Gail discovered that TV reveals have been solely curious about reserving her if she would speak about ‘being bald’, which additionally got here whereas going by her divorce together with her former husband and Toploader guitarist Dan Hipgrave.
As her state of affairs worsened within the mid-00s, Gail was unable to make ends meet as she grew to become ‘increasingly depressed’.
When showing on the BBC Entry All Podcast in August 2023, Gail additionally defined that work dried up very quickly.
‘It was so fast,’ she mentioned. ‘I had lengthy blonde hair, after which 4 weeks later I used to be utterly bald.
‘Folks didn’t wish to go close to me for tv or something as a result of I appeared completely different.’
Final yr, she was additionally praised for taking up her first photoshoot in a wig, with Sue Schilling, the chief govt of Alopecia UK, saying it’s key to present folks choices as there may be neither a ‘proper’ nor a ‘fallacious’ technique to have alopecia.
Gail added to The Solar on the time: ‘I don’t assume I’m a job mannequin, but when me being bald or me carrying a wig provides somebody the boldness to go and take a look at it for themselves, I’m glad.
‘I like the truth that men and women discuss to me about hair loss.’
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