Inspirational Women - Elizabeth Taylor

It really was inevitable that the sad sad news today that Elizabeth Taylor has died aged 79 would spark an Inspirational Women post. I don't really have that much to say because, well she speaks for herself. Even hearing her name you have the image of a woman forever glamorous.

Elizabeth Taylor, the last of Hollywood's Golden era, an incredible woman who started her acting career in 1942 aged 10 in There's One Born Every Minute but whose most famous role was Cleo in the 1963 film Cleopatra.

Taylor was beautiful, stylish, talented and more than a bit of a man eater having been married eight times to seven different men!

They say a photo speaks a thousand words so here are some of my favourite photos of our Liz...

Inspirational Women - Kathy Lette

Today is not only Shrove Tuesday, in fact I don't see the big deal with what we call pancake day, why do people get so excited? Do they not realise that they can eat pancakes every day of the year if the so wish!

Anyway... As I said it's not only Shrove Tuesday, but it's the 100th International Women's Day! Which is far more exciting in my opinion, and what better way to celebrate on Cameos and Espadrilles but to have an Inspirational Women post.

My inspirational woman for the month is Kathy Lette, and i'm so lucky to have just been to a guest talk with her. She is an absolute hoot!

For those who don't know who Kathy is, she's a novelist, a mother of two, a journalist, a singer, a sitcom writer and a feminist. (However she doesn't like that word, she prefers to call feminists "The Clitterati.") Oh and she once turned down the chance of a date with George Clooney!!


Kathy wrote her first novel 'Puberty Blues' aged 18, while she was still living in Australia, and it was made into a film in 1982. Kathy's written an impressive 11 novels in the past 34 years along with everything else she's done in her career.

Kathy is fun and funny, successful and smart, and all in her own right. She's not afraid to say what's on her mind and to stand up for herself and women everywhere. It's International Women's Day and my Inspirational Woman is Kathy Lette.

Here's Kathy receiving her honorary degree from Southampton Solent University in 2009.

Inspirational Women - Miranda Hart

Miranda Hart is most definitely my kind of woman! And I say this as someone who is frustrated by most female comics, I always will them on girl power style but ultimately feel the major disappointment when their entire act is about sex. With male comics it's different, I really dislike Jack Whitehall and Michael McIntyre but I don't feel let down by them I just switch over and try to erase the pompousness out of my memory.

Which is why we must celebrate the great female comics, the Jennifer Saunders', Victoria Wood's and Sarah Millican's of this world who don't make their act's sleazy and degrading and quite frankly embarrassing!

But I am focusing on Miranda Hart here, the woman who stole our hearts at the end of last year and I for one am glad she did. We'll most certainly be seeing a lot more of Miss Hart, why not start with this interview in this week's Stylist Magazine where Miranda is looking more than a bit lovely. (I would kill for skin like hers!)

Her BBC show Miranda, the second series of which aired at the end of 2010 was a little ray of sunshine on my winter nights. Something that just made me laugh out loud, it was kooky and silly and warm and funny. Let's not make things complicated here, Miranda's job is to make us laugh and she succeeded. Forget Chicken soup for the soul, this was Chicken soup for the funny bone!

So Hoorah for funny women and hoorah for women who aren't trying to be anything other than themselves and last but most certainly not least, hoorah for Miranda, you funny, lovely, inspirational woman!