Twiggy to appear at Aberdeen festival for over 50s

As one of the first jet-setting supermodels, Twiggy became the role model for androgynous teenagers across the globe, gracing the cover of Vogue magazine an incredible three times in one year alone.

And it was revealed yesterday that the Sixties superstar is now set to be the main attraction at the only festival staged in Scotland that is devoted solely to the over-50s.

Twiggy, 61, who still appears regularly on television screens as one of the leading models in adverts for Marks & Spencer’s fashion range, is heading for Aberdeen next month to headline the “50 Plus Festival”

She will be attending a screening of the late Ken Russell’s 1971 movie, The Boy Friend, in which she starred alongside Christopher Gable and Tommy Tune. It will feature as part of Aberdeen’s first Classic Film Festival, which is being staged as part of the annual celebrations for the middle-aged and the elderly.

Twiggy won two Golden Globes for her performance in the film and a documentary on the supermodel is also to be shown at the festival at the Belmont Cinema, before Twiggy takes part in a question-and- answer session with the audience and introduces The Boy Friend on 7 September.

Twiggy said: “I am thrilled that my first film, The Boy Friend, has been chosen to open the Aberdeen Classic Film Festival as part of the 50 Plus Festival.

“Over the years this Ken Russell film seems to have become something of a classic. It will only be my second trip to Aberdeen, the first time was over 30 years ago when I passed through on my way to Fraserburgh to visit my friend, fashion designer Bill Gibb.”

The 1960s icon added: “I’m very much looking forward to returning to Aberdeen for this special occasion.”

The festival is now in its tenth year and Len Ironside, Aberdeen City Council’s convener of social care and wellbeing, said: “The 50 Plus Festival has become a key part of the calendar in the city and always manages to throw up a fantastic array of events for residents to sample.”

Mr Ironside, former Labour leader of the council, added that the festival had been launched in a small way ten years ago in an effort to promote a healthy lifestyle amongst the over-50s.

He said: “It was a very different economic situation then and a lot of people were leaving work early. And one of the important things about wellbeing is that they have to keep in social contact with people and also have to keep active, and the council saw the festival as one of the ways of encouraging that.

“We wanted to encourage people to take part in a whole range of activities before they reached retirement. And the festival has just grown in stature.”

The festival will be staged from 7 to 16 September. The other films being screened at the classic film festival include Local Hero and Summer Holiday, the Cliff Richard film celebrating its 50th anniversary.