Leilani Dowding
Encyclopedia
Leilani Dowding is an English
former Page Three girl
, glamour model, television celebrity, and Miss Universe
contestant.
Dowding and her sister attended St Peter's School in Bournemouth. She did well in school, earning eleven GCSEs and three A-levels. She studied for an economics
degree at Royal Holloway, University of London
, in Surrey
, with the intention of becoming a city trader.
The then eighteen-year-old entered and won the 1998 Miss Great Britain
competition.
In Hawaii
later that year she became the first woman of Asia
n descent to represent Britain in the Miss Universe
pageant.
in The Sun
newspaper in 1999. Her younger sister Melanie ("Mel") Dowding also had a brief career as a model, during which the sisters posed topless together. Melanie is working as a promotional model in the motorsport industry.
In 2003 she was rated #89 on the FHM Sexiest Women in World list.
Dowding has been a guest on various British television shows, modelling on the Big Breakfast and This Morning
, and appearing on Faking It
Celebrity Wrestling
and Celebrity Fear Factor
. She has also enjoyed a season in pantomime as Tiger Lilly in Peter Pan
.
Dowding appeared on a charity Page 3 episode of The Weakest Link
where she lost out in the sudden death round to Jakki Degg
. Dowding was competing on behalf of the RSPCA and breast cancer charities. She joked "I look forward to using my brain for the first time in three years."
Dowding has competed in celebrity poker tournaments and done promotional work for Ladbrokes.
She also apppears in the American TV Reality Show Tough Love Miami
as a contestant/performer/particpant, in which she deals with her superficiality in order to find a suitable mate.
She has travelled to Bosnia
, Kosovo
. Iraq
and Cyprus
on morale-boosting trips for British troops abroad.
and Northern Ireland
defender Mark Williams
and was engaged to Middlesbrough
footballer Jérémie Aliadière
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former Page Three girl
Page Three girl
Page Three is a tabloid newspaper feature consisting of a topless photograph of a female glamour model, usually printed on the paper's third page...
, glamour model, television celebrity, and Miss Universe
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
contestant.
Early life
Dowding grew up in Bournemouth, and has a younger sister Melanie. They were brought up Roman Catholic by their Filipina mother Zena, and British father Chris. Leilani was named for her mother's cousin and her name literally means "heavenly flower".Dowding and her sister attended St Peter's School in Bournemouth. She did well in school, earning eleven GCSEs and three A-levels. She studied for an economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
degree at Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London is a constituent college of the University of London. The college has three faculties, 18 academic departments, and about 8,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from over 130 different countries...
, in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, with the intention of becoming a city trader.
The then eighteen-year-old entered and won the 1998 Miss Great Britain
Miss Great Britain
Miss Great Britain is a female beauty contest currently held in London. Between 1956 and 1989, it was held in the seaside resort of Morecambe. It is one of the oldest of its kind in the country, with the first edition held in 1945...
competition.
In Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
later that year she became the first woman of Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n descent to represent Britain in the Miss Universe
Miss Universe
Miss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
pageant.
Career
After her success in beauty pageants, Dowding dropped out of university to pursue a full-time modelling career. Although she had not originally considered topless modelling, she started appearing as a Page Three girlPage Three girl
Page Three is a tabloid newspaper feature consisting of a topless photograph of a female glamour model, usually printed on the paper's third page...
in The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
newspaper in 1999. Her younger sister Melanie ("Mel") Dowding also had a brief career as a model, during which the sisters posed topless together. Melanie is working as a promotional model in the motorsport industry.
In 2003 she was rated #89 on the FHM Sexiest Women in World list.
Dowding has been a guest on various British television shows, modelling on the Big Breakfast and This Morning
This Morning (TV series)
This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...
, and appearing on Faking It
Faking It
Faking It was a television programme originating on Channel 4 which has spawned various international remakes, including a US version which began in 2003 on the TLC network...
Celebrity Wrestling
Celebrity Wrestling
Celebrity Wrestling is a British television programme, broadcast on ITV in 2005. It involved two teams of celebrities, competing against each other in wrestling style events. The series was presented by Kate Thornton and Rowdy Roddy Piper...
and Celebrity Fear Factor
Fear Factor
Fear Factor is an American stunt/dare reality game show. The original Dutch version was called Now or Neverland. When Endemol USA and NBC adapted it to the American market in 2001, they changed the name to Fear Factor. The show pits contestants against each other in a variety of stunts for a...
. She has also enjoyed a season in pantomime as Tiger Lilly in Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
.
Dowding appeared on a charity Page 3 episode of The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and will end its run in 2012 when its host Anne Robinson ends her contract. The original British version of the show airs around the world on BBC Entertainment...
where she lost out in the sudden death round to Jakki Degg
Jakki Degg
Jakki Degg is an English glamour model and actress. While the bulk of her work has been done in England, she has appeared in American film and television, and has posed for posters and magazine pictorials.-Early life:...
. Dowding was competing on behalf of the RSPCA and breast cancer charities. She joked "I look forward to using my brain for the first time in three years."
Dowding has competed in celebrity poker tournaments and done promotional work for Ladbrokes.
She also apppears in the American TV Reality Show Tough Love Miami
Tough Love Miami
Tough Love: Miami is the fourth season of the American reality television series Tough Love, which first aired on VH1. The show features eight women seeking relationship advice from the host and matchmaker, Steven Ward, and his mother JoAnn Ward, both of the Philadelphia based Master Matchmakers...
as a contestant/performer/particpant, in which she deals with her superficiality in order to find a suitable mate.
She has travelled to Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
. Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
on morale-boosting trips for British troops abroad.
Personal life
Dowding has been engaged to former WimbledonWimbledon F.C.
Wimbledon Football Club was an English professional association football club from Wimbledon, south-west London. Founded in 1889 as Wimbledon Old Central Football Club, the club spent most of its history in amateur and semi-professional non-League football before being elected to the Football...
and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
defender Mark Williams
Mark Williams (Northern Irish footballer)
Mark Williams is a former football defender.-Club career:Williams started his career at Newtown, then moved to Shrewsbury Town where in 1993/94 season he picked up a Football League Division 3 championship medal. After three seasons with the Shrews he moved to Chesterfield...
and was engaged to Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
footballer Jérémie Aliadière
Jérémie Aliadière
Jérémie Aliadière is a French footballer who plays as a striker for Lorient.As a graduate of the elite Clairefontaine academy, he signed for Arsenal aged 16. After making his Premier League debut in the 2001–02 season, he ultimately had limited opportunities, partly due to injury...
.