THAILAND: Former Miss Thailand World, Angela MacKay from Australia, says she was asked to resign because she posed in raunchy fashion spreads

Record ID: 520870

  • Title: THAILAND: Former Miss Thailand World, Angela MacKay from Australia, says she was asked to resign because she posed in raunchy fashion spreads
  • Date: 28th September 2005
  • Summary: BOB AND MACKAY SHOWING BOOK OF OFFENDING PHOTOGRAPHS
  • Embargoed: 13th October 2005 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Thailand
  • Country: Thailand
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz
  • Reuters ID: LVA8PCHORSKS0MXDSA8H17CDY2EI
  • Story Text: Former beauty queen, Angela MacKay from Australia, says she was asked to give up her Miss Thailand World 2005 crown because she had posed in raunchy fashion spreads before entering the competition.
    Speaking at a press conference in Bangkok on Tuesday (September 27), the 21-year-old model from Perth, said pageant organisers, BEC TERO, advised her to relinquish her title, saying photographs of her posing semi-nude in fashion magazines were inappropriate.
    "They advised me that my pictures that I had taken previously to entering were too rude, and were unfit for somebody to, to be Miss Thailand World so they asked me to resign," MacKay said.
    MacKay, who was born to a Thai mother and an Australian father, gave up her crown last week (September 20) just 10 days after winning the title in Thailand.
    She had previously stated that she wanted to continue her modelling career in New York and did not realise that the title required her to stay in Thailand for the coming year.
    Accompanied by her father Bob, MacKay showed the offending pictures to Thai press, saying organisers were aware of the photographs before she was crowned.
    In what has turned into a soap opera-style saga in Thailand, MacKay says she believes a contractual dispute with BEC TERO was the real reason why the organisers asked her to quit.
    She says she could not understand the Miss Thailand World contract when she signed it because it was in Thai, and was shocked to learn the contents later.
    "After I won, it was a very big shock once my cousin came to interpret the contract, exactly what was required and exactly what I had to do," she said.
    MacKay says the contract did not provide for a salary during her time in Thailand or allow her to work for companies outside BECT TERO.
    When she asked organisers to provide a monthly salary of Bt. 150,000 ($3635), an apartment and a gym membership, they asked her to relinquish the crown because of the photographs.
    MacKay, who can only speak broken Thai, entered the contest after being encouraged by her local relatives while she was visiting them.
    She returned the prize money of one million baht ($24,470), a diamond crown worth 800,000 baht ($19,580) and a Toyota Camry to the Miss Thailand World organisers, but says she can keep her title of Miss Congeniality and Miss Photogenic.
    The model now plans to return to Australia and study set and theatre design at Sydney's famous drama school, NIDA.
    Thailand will send first runner-up, 20-year-old Thai-Dutch Sirinda Jensen, to replace Mackay at the Miss World contest in China in December.
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