Person attributes
Early life
Nixon was born and raised in Barnsley, West Yorkshire, and attended Barnsley Girls' High School. Her father was a car salesman, and her mother worked as a college bursar. She had a sibling who was older than her. At the age of 16, she drew the attention of Paul Jones, the lead vocalist of Manfred Mann, at a show in Sheffield, and he advised her to pursue a career as a model in London. She moved to London after finishing a secretarial course at the Northern Secretarial College in Leeds.
Career
- Modelling
She was discovered on London's Bond Street at the age of 18 by leading fashion photographer Helmut Newton, who got out of a taxi and offered her a contract, initiating a decade-long worldwide modeling career as Vikki Nixon in 1966. She then appeared in Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, Glamour, Nova, 19, and Elle in French, English, Italian, and American editions. She was named the 'Face of 68' by the Daily Mail, and she appeared in a number of high-profile print advertising campaigns. She was also the first British model to work with Riccardo Gay, a Milan model agency.
- Television
She featured on a number of TV shows as a result of her modeling profession, most notably in the 1969 live coverage of the Apollo 11 moon landing, where she appeared with presenter Cliff Michelmore and journalist Jean Rook in a "space-fashion attire" during the live studio broadcast. She was the first "promo star" of the BBC's "Top of the Pops," characterized as a "Angelic looking Hell's Angel" and "girlfriend of promotion ace Bill Fowler" in the April 11 issue of Disc & Music Echo. When a musician, such as Andy Williams or Kenny Rogers, couldn't perform live, producer/director Mel Cornish would pre-film a clip of her to air alongside the song. She appeared in a 1975 remake of the highly popular
- In Australia
Nixon moved to Australia after modeling and worked as an advertising copywriter before becoming the Melbourne editor of POL magazine, an avant-garde fashion and leisure publication, from 1978 until 1985. While living in Australia, she established a film production firm and produced the television series 'The Price of Fame' for Central Television UK; however, the series was never broadcast and is still "in the can."
- Business
Nixon founded the One Stop Fresh delicatessen in Fulham, South London, in 1992, with a focus on nutritious lunchtime fare. One Stop Fresh was the very first deli in the United Kingdom to employ environmentally friendly packaging.
She co-founded Aircell Structures Ltd in 2006 with Michael Messenger, a British firm that designs and manufactures new humanitarian relief products[11] for medical charities and aid groups such as the IFRC, British and German Red Cross, Marie Stopes International, and Vision Salud.
- Author
Her first book, 'Supermodels' Beauty Secrets,' was published in 2002 when she was running the deli, and it included contributions from Jerry Hall, Kate Moss, and other top models. It has been reprinted thirteen times and translated into a number of languages, including Spanish, Hungarian, and Latvian. Victoria's Celebrity Inspiration was featured in Liz Dwyer's (now at Image Magazine) monthly column "Beauty Flash" in TV Now.
Nixon's follow-up book, Supermodels' Diet Secrets, was released in 2004 and serialized by the Daily Express, based on her experiences as a model and afterwards as a deli owner.
Nixon's most recent book, HEAD SHOT, was released in August of this year. A coming-of-age memoir about her extreme existence as an international model while dealing with her entire family's untimely demise. Head Shot was followed by a double page article in the Daily Mail (5 August 2019) and interviews on BB4's Saturday Live 11 August 2019 and ITV Calendar 20 August 2019.
Books
- Nixon, Victoria (2002). Supermodels' Beauty Secrets. ISBN 978-0-7499-2344-0.
- Nixon, Victoria (2004). Supermodels' Diet Secrets. ISBN 0-7499-2517-5.
- Nixon, Victoria (2019). Head Shot. ISBN 978-1-78352-749-6.
- Nixon, Victoria (2019). Head Shot. ISBN 978-1-78352-779-3.
