Rear of the Year was a British award for celebrities who were considered to have attractive buttocks. It was created by publicity consultant Anthony Edwards in 1976. Initially, it was awarded only to women, but in 1986 the first award was made to a man and from 1997, it was awarded annually to one woman and one man.
The award was organised by Rear of the Year Limited. The last contest was held in 2019, and Rear of the Year Limited was dissolved as a company in 2021.
History Edwards initiated the award as a way to promote specific brands of jeans. Barbara Windsor won the first award in 1976, which was presented as a one-off publicity stunt. Five years later it became an annual event, with Felicity Kendal receiving the honours. The 1982 winner, Suzi Quatro, commented: "I’ve been told since I was about eight or nine that I had a nice ass... So, when I won the award, I was actually quite proud." The singer Lulu, who won the 1983 award, was later asked by a journalist if she felt that she had been the subject of objectification when she won the award, and replied: 'I think you're taking this all much too seriously'. On winning the award in 1985, Lynsey de Paul quipped, "I would like to thank the organisers from the heart of my bottom". In 1986, the award was presented to a man for the first time (Michael Barrymore) and 1991 saw Marina Ogilvy, the daughter of Princess Alexandra, became the first royal recipient. A male award was given to Richard Fairbrass in 1994, and from 1997 the male award became a regular part of the annual event. The 2002 award to Charlotte Church attracted controversy, as the winner had only recently turned 16 at the time.
2010 winner Fiona Bruce accepted the award and participated in a photoshoot, happily posing for pictures in tight jeans. However, she subsequently described the award as "the most hypocritical, ridiculous, ludicrous thing I’ve ever done."
In 2014, Carol Vorderman became the first person to receive the award for a second time, joking: "I always suspected there were a lot of people out there who were glad to see the back of me. It now appears there were even more than I thought."
The winners of the award were selected by public vote, a process that sometimes accrued popular campaigns for particular individuals. The winners were usually actors in soap operas, contestants in reality TV shows or pop stars. Edwards has described the contest as "an excellent monitor of fashions in body shape". In 2012 he declared that female rears were starting to slim down as more women took to the gym, jogging and keeping trim during that Olympic year. In 2018 he said that "the trend is towards a shapely, well-toned and, above all, proportionate rear".
A number of businesses sponsored the award including manufacturers of beauty products, Cadbury and Wizard Jeans. By 2015 the award was reported to be generating a level of media coverage equivalent to £4 million (US$ million) Advertising Value Equivalent.
Award winners were given a commemorative plaque in the form of an engraved crystal trophy. Until 2016 the award was promoted with a winner's photo op that was reported in the UK's tabloid newspapers. The event, staged for some years at The Dorchester hotel in London, was attended by numerous press photographers and included a champagne reception. Some winners subsequently described ambivalent feelings about their photo ops, during which they were photographed from behind. 2007 winner Siân Lloyd described hers as "probably the weirdest photocall I’ve attended in my life", while 2003 winner Natasha Hamilton said of seeing her pictures in the press: "I just didn’t like it. It seemed a little bit crass and seedy."
Winners Recipients included:
1976 — Barbara Windsor 1981 — Felicity Kendal 1982 — Suzi Quatro 1983 — Lulu 1984 — Elaine Paige 1985 — Lynsey de Paul 1986 — Anneka Rice and Michael Barrymore 1987 — Anita Dobson 1988 — Su Pollard 1989 — No competition 1990 — No competition 1991 — Marina Ogilvy 1992 — Ulrika Jonsson 1993 — Sarah Lancashire 1994 — Mandy Smith and Richard Fairbrass 1995 — No competition 1996 — Tracy Shaw 1997 — Melinda Messenger and Gary Barlow 1998 — Carol Smillie and Frank Skinner 1999 — Denise van Outen and Robbie Williams 2000 — Jane Danson and Graham Norton 2001 — Claire Sweeney and John Altman 2002 — Charlotte Church and Scott Wright 2003 — Natasha Hamilton and Ronan Keating 2004 — Alex Best and Aled Haydn Jones 2005 — Nell McAndrew and Will Young 2006 — Javine Hylton and Ian Wright 2007 — Siân Lloyd and Lee Mead 2008 — Jennifer Ellison and Ryan Thomas 2009 — Rachel Stevens and Russell Watson 2010 — Fiona Bruce and Ricky Whittle 2011 — Carol Vorderman and Anton du Beke 2012 — Shobna Gulati and John Major 2013 — Flavia Cacace and Vincent Simone 2014 — Carol Vorderman and Olly Murs 2015 — Kym Marsh and Daniel Radcliffe 2016 — Jennifer Metcalfe and Tom Hiddleston 2017 — Rachel Riley and Idris Elba 2018 — Michelle Keegan and Aidan Turner 2019 — Amanda Holden and Andy Murray
Similar contests In 2013, a University of Cambridge newspaper held its own version of the award in which the contestants were naked.
Miss Bumbum is an annual contest in Brazil to choose the best female buttocks in the country.
References
External links Official website