The Miss World pageant (not to be confused with Miss Universe) is an international beauty pageant founded in Great Britain by Eric Morley in 1951.
It started as the Festival Bikini Contest, in honor of the swimwear getting notoriety at the time, but was called Miss World by the press. It was originally meant as a one-time event.
Opposition to the wearing of bikinis led to their replacement with more modest swimwear after the first contest. In 1959, the BBC started broadcasting the competition. The pageant's popularity grew as the popularity of television grew.
Controversy
In the 1960s and 1970s, the pageant was marred by scandals. The '60s included tabloid coverage of nude photographs and the alcoholic excesses of the winners. The rise in feminism lead to further controversy. The first winner from the United States, 1973's Marjorie Wallace, was forced to resign because of her high-profile serial dating. The 1974 winner resigned four days later after it was discovered she was a single mother. In 1977, a United Nations boycott was organized because of the pageant permitting the participation of South Africa, a participation which ended the next year. The 1980 winner Gabriela Brum of Germany resigned one day after winning initially claiming that her boyfriend disapproved. A few days later it emerged that she had been forced to resign after it was discovered that she posed naked for a magazine.
In the 1980s, the pageant repositioned itself with the slogan Beauty With a Higher Purpose. The contest added tests of intelligence and personality. By the 1990s, the pageant was reaching two billion viewers from almost every country in the world.
21st century
Eric Morley passed away as the pageant entered the new century. The century saw its first black winner, Agbani Darego, in 2001. In 2002 the competition was slated for Nigeria. This choice was controversial, as a woman, Amina Lawal, was awaiting death by stoning for adultery there. A newspaper editorial suggesting that Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, would not have objected to the immodesty of the pageant resulted in riots that started on November 22 in which over 200 people were killed. Because of these riots, the 2002 pageant was moved to London. A fatwa urging the beheading of the woman who wrote the offending words, Isioma Daniel, has been issued.
Year | Miss World | Country |
---|---|---|
1951 | Kiki Haakonson | Sweden |
1952 | May Louise Flodin | Sweden |
1953 | Denise Perrier | France |
1954 | Antigone Costanda | Egypt |
1955 | Carmen Duijm Zubillaga | Venezuela |
1956 | Petra Susana Shurmann | West Germany |
1957 | Marita Lindahl | Finland |
1958 | Penelope Anne Coelen | South Africa |
1959 | Corine Rottschafer | Netherlands |
1960 | Norma Gladys Cappagli | Argentina |
1961 | Rosemarie Frankland | United Kingdom |
1962 | Catharina Lodders | Holland |
1963 | Carole Joan Crawford | Jamaica |
1964 | Ann Sydney | United Kingdom |
1965 | Lesley Langley | United Kingdom |
1966 | Reita Faria | India |
1967 | Madeleine Hartog Bell | Peru |
1968 | Penelope Plummer | Australia |
1969 | Eva Rueber Staier | Austria |
1970 | Jennifer Hosten | Grenada |
1971 | Lucia Tavares Petterle | Brazil |
1972 | Belinda Green | Australia |
1973 | Marjorie Wallace | United States |
1974 | Anneline Kriel 1 | South Africa |
1975 | Wilnelia Merced | Puerto Rico |
1976 | Cindy Breakspeare | Jamaica |
1977 | Mary Stavin | Sweden |
1978 | Silvana Suarez | Argentina |
1979 | Gina Swainson | Bermuda |
1980 | Kimberley Santos 2 | Guam |
1981 | Pilin Leon | Venezuela |
1982 | Mariasela Alvarez | Dominican Republic |
1983 | Sarah-Jane Hutt | United Kingdom |
1984 | Astrid Herrera | Venezuela |
1985 | Hofi Karlsdottir | Iceland |
1986 | Giselle LaRonde | Trinidad and Tobago |
1987 | Ulla Weigerstorfer | Austria |
1988 | Linda Petursdottir | Iceland |
1989 | Aneta Kreglicka | Poland |
1990 | Gina Marie Tolleson | United States |
1991 | Ninibeth Jiminez | Venezuela |
1992 | Julia Kourotchkina | Russia |
1993 | Lisa Hanna | Jamaica |
1994 | Aishwarya Rai | India |
1995 | Jacqueline Aguilera Marcano | Venezuela |
1996 | Irene Skliva | Greece |
1997 | Diana Hayden | India |
1998 | Linor Abargil | Israel |
1999 | Yukta Mookhey | India |
2000 | Priyanka Chopra | India |
2001 | Agbani Darego | Nigeria |
2002 | Azra Akin | Turkey |
2003 | Rosanna Davison | Ireland |
1 Crowned after Helen Morgan of the United Kingdom resigned. | ||
2 Crowned after Gabriella Brum of West Germany resigned |
See also: Miss Earth, Miss Universe