Deborah Jane Ashby (born 2 July 1967) is an English former glamour model who appeared in British men's magazines and tabloid newspapers during the 1980s and 1990s. She was one of the best-known

Page 3 Page 3, or Page Three, was a British newspaper convention of publishing a large image of a topless female glamour model (known as a Page 3 girl) on the third page of mainstream red top tabloids. '' The Sun'' introduced the feature in Novembe ...

models of her era.

Career

Ashby was born in Meriden,

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

. Her modelling career began when her mother, Anne Ashby, took her at age 16 to a glamour photography studio in

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

. In Ashby's early days as a model, Anne Ashby suggested that mother and daughter pose topless together "so that Dad could have the photo," a request Ashby later acknowledged made her feel "odd." In late 1983, she began appearing on

of ''

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'' and in British men's magazines. As a consequence, she was expelled from King Henry VIII School, Coventry, an independent grammar school, before she completed her O-levels. She went on to model for numerous other publications and also starred in a number of softcore videos. She retired from glamour modelling in 1996. Ashby subsequently expressed regret over her glamour modelling career. She noted that she suffered from

bulimia Bulimia nervosa, also known simply as bulimia, is an eating disorder characterized by binge eating (eating large quantities of food in a short period of time, often feeling out of control) followed by compensatory behaviors, such as self-induc ...

for around seven years, that men frequently preyed sexually on young glamour models, and that she underwent therapy for four years. She supported the decision to remove Page 3 from ''The Sun,'' stating that if she had a daughter, she would not want her to become a glamour model. In 2018, aged 50, Ashby featured in a charity glamour pictorial in ''The Sun'', appearing alongside other former Page 3 models to raise funds for a fellow former model's

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

treatment. She and the other models were photographed covering their breasts with their hands. In her 50s, Ashby began posting topless images of herself for subscribers on

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and Fanvue.

Personal life

Ashby had a relationship with American actor

Tony Curtis Tony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz; June 3, 1925September 29, 2010) was an American actor with a career that spanned six decades, achieving the height of his popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in more than 100 films, in roles co ...

when she was 17 and he was 59, during which she spent time at his

Palm Springs Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

home. The relationship was controversial and widely publicised due to the age difference and, in an interview, she downplayed any sexual aspect, saying that "He wanted company. It wasn't just my boobs... He said I had an interesting personality." She was also linked romantically to

Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, economic, legal, environmental, political, religious, scientific or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the curren ...

guitarist

Rick Parfitt Richard John Parfitt, (12 October 1948 24 December 2016) was an English musician, best known as a rhythm guitarist, singer and songwriter with rock band Status Quo (band), Status Quo. Parfitt began his career in the early 1960s, playing in p ...

and gangster Reggie Kray. Ashby married session musician Richard Mead in 1992, but the marriage ended two years later. After retiring from glamour modelling, she moved to the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

in 1996, where she married Dave Wookey in 1999. The couple had a baby boy in 2000, but they subsequently divorced. Ashby subsequently lived with partner Johnny Mills.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashby, Debee People educated at King Henry VIII School, Coventry 1968 births Living people English female adult models Page 3 girls