The fashion magazine Vanity Fair ran a competition for its readers in the late sixites that gave the winner a year long modelling contract and a front cover photo. The competition ran from 1967 to 1969. In 1968 it was sponsored by the British watch company 'Old England', the company was the brainchild of Richard Loftus who had the idea to commission cheap watches with bold designs which would change every six months. They were given to celebrities to wear and became quite popular with people who were with it. The company was part of the Accurist group. The 1968 competition was won by a French girl called Sylvette Blanc.
I believed I was speaking to the photographer's grand daughter but she doesn't think her grandad was a photographer but rather he was a 'collector'. Fair enough, maybe he had access to a photo archive or old newsroom. We'll never know. In any event, the photographer is one of these chaps:
Footage from Pathe in colour here: https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/144687/
And here in black and white showing Richard Loftus:
The competition winners were announced in the offices of Old England Watches in Berners Street, London. The girls posed with glasses of champaigne but were told not to drink from them lest they ruin their lipstick. Also, keep your left wrist up to show the watch:
The girls then went outside to pose for the cameras.
How good is this?
The Telecom Tower, still a novel sight in London, visible in the background. I love this photo.
These are taken on January 8th, 1968, a cold wet day; Sylvette staying warm on adrenaline alone:
These were great fun to print. I also enjoyed researching them and speaking to the girl I got them off. It must have been an absolute whirlwind year for this young girl from Toulouse. I wonder what became of her, she'd be in her mid seventies by now...
Let me know if you like them, I've got more found photos to come over the year.
I believed I was speaking to the photographer's grand daughter but she doesn't think her grandad was a photographer but rather he was a 'collector'. Fair enough, maybe he had access to a photo archive or old newsroom. We'll never know. In any event, the photographer is one of these chaps:
Footage from Pathe in colour here: https://www.britishpathe.com/asset/144687/
And here in black and white showing Richard Loftus:
The competition winners were announced in the offices of Old England Watches in Berners Street, London. The girls posed with glasses of champaigne but were told not to drink from them lest they ruin their lipstick. Also, keep your left wrist up to show the watch:
The girls then went outside to pose for the cameras.
How good is this?
The Telecom Tower, still a novel sight in London, visible in the background. I love this photo.
These are taken on January 8th, 1968, a cold wet day; Sylvette staying warm on adrenaline alone:
These were great fun to print. I also enjoyed researching them and speaking to the girl I got them off. It must have been an absolute whirlwind year for this young girl from Toulouse. I wonder what became of her, she'd be in her mid seventies by now...
Let me know if you like them, I've got more found photos to come over the year.
