Agyness Deyn (; born Laura Michelle Hollins; 16 February 1983) is an English model and actress. She is best known for her successful modelling career in the 2000s, and has been called one of the decade's top models. Since her retirement from modelling in the 2010s, she has pursued acting and design, among other ventures.

Early life

Born Laura Michelle Hollins, Deyn is from Littleborough, near

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Bor ...

in Greater Manchester. Deyn later moved to Failsworth near

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, w ...

. The second of three children, she moved to Rossendale, Lancashire, and attended All Saints Roman Catholic High School, as well as Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School and Sixth Form, Waterfoot. Deyn's name was apparently coined to further her modelling career after she consulted her mother's friend, a

numerology Numerology (also known as arithmancy) is the belief in an occult, divine or mystical relationship between a number and one or more coinciding events. It is also the study of the numerical value, via an alphanumeric system, of the letters in ...

expert, who advised her of the most 'fortuitous' way to spell the name 'Agnes'. It was reported that her mother Lorraine (a nurse), and her sister Emily both changed their surname to Deyn, while Lorraine has changed the I in her first name to Y. Deyn's working life started at a fish and chip shop in

Stubbins Stubbins is an industrial village in the southern part of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire, England. It is half a mile north of Ramsbottom town centre on the A676 between Bolton and Edenfield. For local government purposes, it receives serv ...

, Rossendale, where she was a part-time server at the age of 13. Even at an early age she had an eye for style and by 17 she had already had her head shaved. "I've had short hair since I was 13, and when I was 17, I had a skinhead." In 1999, she won the ''

Rossendale Free Press The ''Rossendale Free Press'' is a weekly newspaper that covers the geographical Rossendale Valley and Uplands published in Chadderton, Greater Manchester, England with news coverage centred on the four main towns of Rawtenstall, Bacup, Haslingden ...

'' "Face of '99" competition, aged just 16. She then moved to London, working in a fast-food restaurant during the day and a bar at night.

Career

Modelling

Agyness Deyn in Anna Sui Feb 2008, Photographed by Ed Kavishe for Fashion Wire Press

Deyn's biography claims that she was "spotted" while shopping with fashion designer Henry Holland in

Kentish Town Kentish Town is an area of northwest London, England in the London Borough of Camden, immediately north of Camden Town. Less than four miles north of central London, Kentish Town has good transport connections and is situated close to the open ...

, London. She then signed with SELECT Model Management. In May 2007, she was featured on the cover of American ''Vogue'', alongside Doutzen Kroes,

Caroline Trentini Caroline Aparecida Trentini (born 6 July 1987) is a Brazilian model. Early life Trentini was born in Panambi, Brazil. Trentini is the youngest daughter of Lourdes and Jacó Trentini, who died when she was one year old. Her older sisters are ...

, Raquel Zimmermann,

Sasha Pivovarova Aleksandra Igorevna Pivovarova (russian: Александра Игоревна Пивоварова; born 21 January 1985), is a Russian supermodel and actress. She is best known as the longest appearing fashion model for Prada, posed for 19 adv ...

Jessica Stam Jessica Elizabeth Stam (born 23 April 1986) is a Canadian model. She is considered to be part of the crop of models described as "doll faces". In 2007, ''Forbes'' named her fifteenth in the list of the World's 15 Top-Earning Supermodels, earnin ...

, Coco Rocha, Hilary Rhoda, Chanel Iman and Lily Donaldson as "The World's Next Top Models." She has also been featured on the covers of: UK ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'', the ''Observer Woman'' supplement, ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

Style'', ''

Pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

'', ''

Grazia ''Grazia'' (; Italian for ''Grace'') is a weekly women's magazine that originated in Italy with international editions printed in Albania, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Colombia, France, Germany. Greece, Indones ...

'', ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and event (philosophy), events that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various me ...

'', ''Style & Life'', ''

Vogue Italia ''Vogue Italia'' is the Italian edition of ''Vogue'' magazine. Owned by Condé Nast International, it has been called the top fashion magazine in the world. It's been in publication since 1964. Name ''Vogue Italia'' was first published as ''No ...

'' and numerous other international publications. She has walked the runways for

Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chane ...

Dolce & Gabbana Dolce & Gabbana (), also known by initials D&G, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1985 in Legnano by Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. The house specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, accessories, and cos ...

Burberry Burberry is a British luxury fashion house established in 1856 by Thomas Burberry headquartered in London, England. It currently designs and distributes ready to wear, including trench coats (for which it is most famous), leather accessorie ...

, Hermés,

Dior Christian Dior SE (), commonly known as Dior (stylized DIOR), is a French luxury fashion house controlled and chaired by French businessman Bernard Arnault, who also heads LVMH, the world's largest luxury group. Dior itself holds 42.36% shar ...

Lanvin Lanvin () is a French luxury fashion house based in Paris. Founded in 1889 by Jeanne Lanvin, it is the oldest French fashion house still in operation. Since 2018, it has been a subsidiary of Shanghai-based Lanvin Group. Bruno Sialelli, a 31-year ...

DKNY DKNY is a New York City–based fashion house for men and women, founded in 1984 by Donna Karan. History Karan worked for 15 years at Anne Klein, including 10 as its head designer. In 1984 Karan and her late husband Stephan Weiss were offered ...

Karl Lagerfeld Karl Otto Lagerfeld (; 10 September 1933 – 19 February 2019) was a German fashion designer, creative director, artist and photographer. He was known as the creative director of the French fashion house Chanel, a position held from 1983 ...

Moschino Moschino () is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1983 by Franco Moschino in Milan known for over-the-top, campy designs. The company specializes in ready-to-wear, handbags, and fashion accessories. History Founding and 1990s Franco M ...

Versace Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978 known for flashy prints and bright colors. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as ...

Michael Kors Michael David Kors (born Karl Anderson Jr. August 9, 1959) is an American fashion designer. He is the chief creative officer of his brand, Michael Kors, which sells men's and women's ready-to-wear, accessories, watches, jewelry, footwear, and f ...

Zac Posen Zachary E. Posen (; born October 24, 1980) is an American fashion designer. Early life Posen was born and raised in a Jewish family in New York City, residing in the SoHo neighborhood of lower Manhattan. He is the son of Susan (née Orzack), ...

, Celine,

Roberto Cavalli Roberto Cavalli (; born 15 November 1940) is an Italian fashion designer and inventor. He is known for exotic prints and for creating the sand-blasted look for jeans. The high-end Italian fashion house Roberto Cavalli sells luxury clothing, pe ...

Bottega Veneta Bottega Veneta () is an Italian luxury fashion house based in Milan, Italy. Its product lines include ready-to-wear, handbags, shoes, accessories, and jewelry; and it licenses its name and branding to Coty, Inc. for fragrances. History Foun ...

, Proenza Schouler,

Tommy Hilfiger Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( /hɪlˈfɪgər/; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger Corporation. After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's Place in upst ...

Stella McCartney Stella Nina McCartney (born 13 September 1971) is an English fashion designer. She is a daughter of British singer-songwriter Paul McCartney and the late American photographer and animals rights activist Linda McCartney. Like her parents, McCa ...

Viktor & Rolf Viktor & Rolf is a Dutch avant-garde luxury fashion house founded in 1993 by Viktor Horsting (born 1969, Geldrop) and Rolf Snoeren (born 1969, Dongen). For more than twenty years, Viktor & Rolf have sought to challenge preconceptions of fashion an ...

, Max Mara, Oscar De La Renta,

Ralph Lauren Ralph Lauren, ( ; ; born October 14, 1939) is an American fashion designer, philanthropist, and billionaire businessman, best known for the Ralph Lauren Corporation, a global multibillion-dollar enterprise. He has become well known for his c ...

, Giles Deacon, Alexander Wang,

Jean Paul Gaultier Jean Paul Gaultier (; born 24 April 1952) is a French haute couture and prêt-à-porter fashion designer. He is described as an " enfant terrible" of the fashion industry and is known for his unconventional designs with motifs including cors ...

Alberta Ferretti Alberta Ferretti (; ) is an Italian fashion designer and dressmaker. She designs for her namesake brand Alberta Ferretti, and designed for Philosophy di Alberta Ferretti until 2014. Her showroom is in Milan, Italy but her studio is in her na ...

, Carolina Herrera, and Yves Saint Laurent. Deyn has appeared in advertisements for

, Burberry, Emporio Armani,

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer who launched the company that would later become Calvin Klein Inc., in 1968. In addition to clothing, he also has given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, an ...

, Moncler, Anna Sui,

Giorgio Armani Giorgio Armani (; born 11 July 1934) is an Italian fashion designer. He first gained notoriety working for Cerruti and then for many others, including Allegri, Bagutta and Hilton. He formed his company, Armani, in 1975, which eventually expande ...

John Galliano John Charles Galliano (born 28 November 1960) is a British fashion designer from Gibraltar. He was the creative director of his eponymous label John Galliano and French fashion houses Givenchy and Dior. Since 2014, Galliano has been the crea ...

Gianfranco Ferré Gianfranco Ferré (; 15 August 1944 – 17 June 2007) was an Italian fashion designer also known as "the architect of fashion" for his background and his original attitude toward creating fashion design. Early life and education Ferré was born ...

Blumarine Blufin S.p.A. is an Italian fashion house founded by Anna Molinari and her late husband Gianpaolo Tarabini. The core brand is Blumarine, which they started in 1977, followed by Miss Blumarine (1987, 8- to 14-year-old girls), Blugirl (1995, for t ...

, Vivienne Westwood, Cacharel,

Doc Martens Dr. Martens, also commonly known as Doc Martens, Docs or DMs, is a German-founded British footwear and clothing brand, headquartered in Wollaston in the Wellingborough district of Northamptonshire, England. Although famous for its footwear, D ...

Shiseido is a Japanese multinational cosmetic company founded in Tokyo, Japan in 1872. Its product categories consist of: skin care, makeup, body care, hair care, and fragrances. The company is one of the oldest cosmetic companies in the world ...

Mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 ident ...

, Paul Smith,

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufacture ...

, and

Reebok Reebok International Limited () is an American fitness footwear and clothing manufacturer that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company ...

. She has been the face of

fragrance An aroma compound, also known as an odorant, aroma, fragrance or flavoring, is a chemical compound that has a smell or odor. For an individual chemical or class of chemical compounds to impart a smell or fragrance, it must be sufficiently v ...

''The Beat'' by Burberry, ''Gold by Giles Deacon'' at New Look replacing Drew Barrymore,

's fragrance ''Ma Dame'', ''

'' (replacing

Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...

), ''Rock Me!'' by Anna Sui, and childhood friend Henry Holland's label '' House of Holland''. In 2009, Deyn landed a Uniqlo campaign and appeared in a commercial with

Gabriel Aubry Gabriel Aubry (born August 30, 1976)Date of birth formerly given as January 4, 1976. is a Canadian model. Early life Born in Montreal, Quebec, to French-Canadian parents, Aubry is one of nine siblings. Modeling career He has modeled for Tommy H ...

. In May 2008, Deyn was guest editor of ''

i-D ''i-D'' is a British bimonthly magazine published by Vice Media, dedicated to fashion, music, art and youth culture. ''i-D'' was founded by designer and former '' Vogue'' art director Terry Jones in 1980. The first issue was published in the fo ...

'' magazine. The issue was devoted to her and includes articles written by and about Deyn, as well as interviews she conducted with fashion designers such as Vivienne Westwood. Deyn's was on one of the fourteen covers of '' V magazine'' autumn issue. Each cover employs a

head shot A head shot or headshot is a modern (usually digital) portrait in which the focus is on the person. The term is applied usually for professional profile images on social media, images used on online dating profiles, the 'about us page' of a cor ...

of a famous model, either from new models or established

supermodel A supermodel, also spelled super-model or super model, is a highly paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in ''haute couture'' and commercial modeling. The term ''supermodel'' became prominent in the po ...

s; it was photographed by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin. In June 2009, the ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily Tabloid journalism, tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its Masthead (British publishing), masthead was simpl ...

'' reported that Deyn had quit modeling to spend more time with her then boyfriend, singer-songwriter Miles Kane. The newspaper quoted a source as saying that modeling had started to bore Deyn and that she had hired an acting agent to pursue an acting career in British

independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...

s. ''

Vogue Paris The French edition of ''Vogue'' magazine, formerly called ''Vogue Paris'', is a fashion magazine that has been published since 1920. History 1920–54 The French edition of ''Vogue'' was first issued on 15 June 1920, the first editor-in-chief b ...

'' described her as one of the top 30 models of the 2000s. Deyn appeared in the May 2011 British ''Vogue'' editorial, photographed by Tim Walker. In October 2012, Deyn once again announced that she has retired from modeling in an interview with ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

''. She stated, "I suppose I have stopped modeling officially. I've not done any for a good long while now. I think it was about four years ago when my feelings were changing towards the industry. I didn't hate it, but I was yearning to do something different. I was on a gradient. It was a gradual thing." She intends to focus on her acting career.

Music

Deyn provides vocals for the single "Who" by Five O'Clock Heroes as well as featuring in the video. The single was poorly received by '' NME'', who gave it only a 2/10. The single charted at No. 109 in the UK. Until recently she was a member of the now defunct group Lucky Knitwear. Deyn's voice can be heard at the beginning of Rihanna's music video for " We Found Love".

Acting

In the 2010 film '' Clash of the Titans'', Deyn played

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols incl ...

, Greek goddess of beauty, love, and sex. In March 2011, Deyn appeared as an owl-bearing warrior in

Woodkid Yoann Lemoine (; born 16 March 1983), known professionally as Woodkid, is a French music video director, graphic designer and singer-songwriter. His most notable works include his music video direction for Katy Perry's " Teenage Dream", Taylor ...

's debut music video, "Iron". In 2012, Deyn starred opposite Richard Coyle in ''Pusher'', an English language remake of Nicolas Winding Refn's Danish film of the same name, where she played Flo, a strong-minded stripper. On 28 February 2012, Deyn played her first role on the West End stage, as Paula in François Archambault's comedy, ''The Leisure Society''. After receiving excellent reviews for her role in that play, Deyn was cast to play the main female role, Chris Guthrie, in a film adaptation of the Scottish-set novel '' Sunset Song''. In 2013, Deyn played the lead role in ''

Electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...

'', a film adaptation of the novel by Ray Robinson, about the journey of a young woman with epilepsy. In 2015, she starred in fantasy-horror thriller film ''

Patient Zero The index case or patient zero is the first documented patient in a disease epidemic within a population, or the first documented patient included in an epidemiological study. It can also refer to the first case of a condition or syndrome (not ...

''. In 2017, Deyn began filming ''

Hard Sun ''Hard Sun'' was a pre-apocalyptic British crime drama series, created and written by Neil Cross, starring Agyness Deyn and Jim Sturgess as the principal characters, DI Elaine Renko and DCI Charlie Hicks. The series is a BBC co-production wi ...

'', a pre-apocalyptic crime drama for the BBC at Hanstead Park in Bricket Wood, Hertfordshire. In 2018, Deyn appeared in the Netflix original movie '' The Titan'' as Dr. Freya. In 2019, Deyn starred in Alex Ross Perry's '' Her Smell'' as Marielle Hell, bassist for the fictional band Something She.

Design ventures

In 2010, Deyn collaborated with her younger sister Emily to create a line of T-shirts and tank tops for high street chain Uniqlo. In 2012, Deyn began a design partnership with

Dr. Martens Dr. Martens, also commonly known as Doc Martens, Docs or DMs, is a German-founded British footwear and clothing brand, headquartered in Wollaston in the Wellingborough district of Northamptonshire, England. Although famous for its footwear, D ...

called Agyness Deyn for Dr. Martens, a line of accessories, shoes, and clothing. In spring of 2014, she planned to release a third collaboration with the brand. She currently works with the agencies Elite New York City, Why Not Model Agency in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

, and Oui Management in Paris.

Personal life

Deyn was married to American actor Giovanni Ribisi from 2012 to 2015. In August 2016, Deyn married hedge fund manager Joel McAndrew in New York. In the 2000s, she dated musicians Albert Hammond Jr. of

the Strokes The Strokes are an American rock band from New York City. Formed in 1998, the band is composed of lead singer and songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikolai Fraiture, and drummer Fabrizio Mor ...

Alex Greenwald Alexander Greenwald (born October 9, 1979) is an American musician, actor, and record producer. He is the lead vocalist of the California rock band Phantom Planet. Life and career Greenwald was born in Los Angeles, California, to a family of ...

Phantom Planet Phantom Planet is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1994. The band consists of Alex Greenwald (vocals, rhythm guitar), Darren Robinson (lead guitar), Sam Farrar (bass guitar) and Jeff Conrad (drums). The band is best known for ...

, and Miles Kane of the Last Shadow Puppets.