Shocking pink win for Sheila
Turning on her X-factor glamour, Suzanne Kemp, a 51-year-old housewife and mother of two, was secretly entered into a Sheila's Wheels competition by her daughters.
The surprised star out danced her rivals in heats of Make me a Sheila star competition. Showing true star quality Suzanne (pictured second left) beat 11,500 wannabe Sheilas to take a staring role in the new Sheila's wheel advert.
Still stunned by the news, Suzanne said: "It all started with my 12-year-old daughter seeing the advert on telly for a new Sheila's Wheels girl. She thought it would be fun to send in a photo of me.
"What was really funny was my older daughter who is 20 also applied. We were teasing each other on which one of us would go through.
"I didn't think really I stood a chance."
Suzanne had to attend several auditions in Reigate, Surrey, where she had to mime songs, dance and generally convince the judges that she was the one.
"I was really nervous, there were women who had done lots of extra work on television, and here I was a virtual first timer.
"There were loads of heats, but somehow I got through."
Fifty Sheila wannabes had to prove they had the Sheila-factor.
They performed in front of a panel of judges including Chris Wilkins and Sian Vickers, best known for inventing the Smash martians and the Direct Line red phone on wheels.
Suzanne received a letter confirming she was one of the 30 chosen to appear in the advert on April 13.
Having no time to think about it, Suzanne was whizzed down to Shepperton Studios to begin filming the advert on the Monday. She said, "It all happened so quickly. I got the letter on Friday and by Monday I was in rehearsals at Pineapple studio learning steps for the dance routine.
"The filming took two days to film. We worked incredibly long hours from 6am to 7pm. We all had our make-up and hair done in style of the 60s and everything were wore was shocking pink.
" I had to mime to the song and dance in the back of a pink car.
"The wind machine was going, blowing up our skirts so you could see our pink knickers - I don't know what my husband thinks about it!"
p You can see Suzanne in the Sheila's Wheels advert on ITV on May 22. She hopes this dream will never end.
"I would love to do more work like this. I would love to get work as a extra on a soap."
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Weather for Hastings
Monday 28 May 2012
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