The girl in the mink bikini Diana Dors — the British answer to Marilyn Monroe

In the 1950s, the number one star was Marilyn Monroe. Her image of a sexy blonde was copied by thousands of girls, but only a few managed to approach the idol in popularity. Briton Diana Dors has become one of the most successful copies of the Hollywood diva, although her career in film and modeling began earlier than Monroe.

Diana Mary Flack, who later became famous under the name Diana Dors, was born on October 23, 1931 in the English city of Swindon, in Wiltshire. Since childhood, Diana dreamed of a career as a film actress and she was so impatient that at the age of 14 she entered the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. To do this, the young lady had to correct the date of birth in the documents and impersonate a 17-year-old. So she became the youngest student in the UK.

It is worth saying that Diana Dors took a risk for a reason — she got her first role in college when she was only 16 years old. The girl first played minor roles, but quickly moved on to the main ones. Most likely, the career was influenced not only by talent, but also by the decision to dye her hair from brown to platinum. Blondes were on trend and, I must say, this color really suited Dors.

Blonde Diana became known not only as an actress. She participated in photo shoots as a pinup model, and postcards with her image were bought even overseas. Dors began to copy the image of Monroe, which started later, but more vigorously. Yes, she could not completely repeat the success of the American woman, but the image brought "dividends". At the age of 20, a young British woman bought a Rolls-Royce and again became a record holder. This time she was the youngest owner of a car of this premium brand.

Despite the money and fame, Diana gravitated to dubious companies. Her first husband and part-time agent Dennis Hamilton introduced her to legendary villains. The couple maintained friendly relations with the gangsters twins Cray and their mother Violet, as well as with Ruth Ellis. The latter is known for being the last woman hanged by a British court verdict.

Dennis Hamilton was not a good spouse and professional agent. He constantly cheated on Diana, and also scared off producers with good offers with his behavior. There is an opinion that it was because of his hot-tempered nature and lack of intelligence that Dors never became a Hollywood star. As a result, Diana also began to instruct her spouse horns, and their marriage broke up.

After the divorce, in 1959, Hamilton unexpectedly dies, and Diana remarries. Her new choice was comedian Richard Dawson. Their acquaintance took place in a very unusual way — the couple was accidentally brought together by Dors' lover, a racing driver and stuntman Tommy Yardi. The actress immediately fell in love with Dawson, and soon they were married. The couple settled in the actor's house in Hollywood. Diana tried to be an exemplary wife and gave birth to her husband two wonderful sons.

Yardi's abandoned lover did not forgive his girlfriend. He sold intimate details about the connection with Dors to the yellow press. There were a lot of interesting things, including stories about mass orgies in country villas. Publications relishing the details of these parties have left another mark on the already pretty damaged reputation of a woman.

In 1966, the marriage of Dors and Dawson broke up, and the actress returned to the UK. She was tired of playing the role of an exemplary wife and mother, so Diana left the children to her husband. The children did not forgive her for such an attitude. Mark and Gary literally hated their mother and their rare meetings were accompanied by scandals.

Returning to England, Diana was full of hopes and plans. But the motherland met Dors unfriendly. The echo of scandals that thundered across the ocean reached the Foggy Albion. The British treated Diana disdainfully and called her "Madame Lips-and-Tits". In addition, she got pretty fat and lost some of her sexuality. The actress had to be content, as at the beginning of her career, with episodic roles. She even started performing as a cabaret singer and acting in light porn.

By 1968, Diana's life had improved a little. She met actor Alan Lake and married him. She gave birth to a son, Jason, and completely settled down. Dors refused to shoot in frivolous genre films and began offering her services on television. Suddenly it turned out that she was a born TV presenter. Diana was witty, knew how to improvise and, having lost weight, began to look her best again.

In the 70s, Diana Dors won back her positions and became famous again. It seems that she has finally found happiness and peace of mind. Diana was full of plans and was enjoying life. During one of the broadcasts in 1977, she wittily joked about the short life of famous blondes. Dors was referring to Marilyn Monroe, Jean Harlow and Jane Mansfield. She added that she plans to live much longer and change her ninth decade.

But these plans were not destined to come true. Diana Dors died in 1984 at the age of 52 from ovarian cancer. The husband arranged a luxurious funeral for the star. The actress was put in a coffin in a chic gold dress, which she loved so much during her lifetime. Her husband Alan Lake could not live without his beloved and committed suicide five months after the funeral.

In history, Diana Dors remained not only as an actress, copying Marilyn's style and appearance. She is also known as a girl in a mink bikini. In the 50s, there was a peak in the popularity of bikini swimsuits, which have already ceased to shock the public. Diana, with her gorgeous figure, adored posing for photo shoots in a "split atom", as this swimsuit was jokingly called in the USA.

In 1955, Diana Dors, as a British film star, was a guest at the Venice Film Festival. She really wanted to shock the audience, but the organizers asked the guests to know the measure. The actress still could not resist and replaced the inappropriate bikini at a serious event with her own fur design.

Diana ordered a fur swimsuit from costume designer Julie Harris, known for her long-term collaboration with Hitchcock. Instead of a mink, a shorn rabbit was used, but this did not make the outfit any less spectacular. The image of Dors was not approved by everyone, but it still became the highlight of the Venice Festival and went down in its history.