Twiggy, the London model who came to define the look of the 1960s, turns 77 on September 19. Born Lesley Hornby in Neasden, London, she was still a teenager when a photograph of her newly cropped, bleached haircut caught the eye of a fashion journalist, who published it under the headline "The Face of '66" in the Daily Express. Within months, Lesley Hornby had become simply Twiggy, and fashion had a new template for what a model could look like.
Twiggy's signature style was defined by contrast: an androgynous, cropped pixie cut set against enormous, heavily lined eyes finished with false lower lashes painted on by hand, a look that became one of the most imitated beauty formulas of the decade. Paired with the era's rising hemlines, boxy shift dresses and Mary Quant-associated mod silhouettes, the combination made her, alongside contemporaries like Jean Shrimpton, one of the faces most associated with London's Swinging Sixties and with what is now widely regarded as the birth of the modern supermodel. By 1967, she had appeared on the covers of Vogue and Tatler and modeled in France, Japan and the United States.
Happy Birthday to Twiggy. Born Lesley Hornby this day in 1949 in Neasden, Middlesex. English model, actress and singer. Known for her thin build and androgynous appearance, she became a British cultural icon of the "swinging 60's" #Twiggy #History 🎂🎉 pic.twitter.com/nKtIq6lWUq
— Kenny (@kennylanglea) September 19, 2026
