Kathleen Baird-Murray fell somewhat haphazardly into a career in beauty journalism because it was marginally more interesting than writing about wedding dresses on You and Your Wedding Magazine, her first “proper” job.
Her unconventional route into the world of moisturisers and make-up began when she started modelling while studying for her degree in Law at Sussex University. She later starred as the “beauty journalist” in the Pantene shampoo tv-commercials learning such useful skills as how to toss your hair about for maximum shine. (Arch your body backwards, let hair hang without touching your shoulders, then swoosh!)
Her first beauty job was at Elle, under the industry veteran and current British Vogue beauty director, Anna-Marie Solowij. She was brilliant at writing speedy copy, but terrible at answering the phone or tidying out the beauty cupboard, skills she is yet to harness. This didn’t seem to put them off employing her at Marie Claire Australia, where she had a fabulous pad in Bondi and learnt to boogie board, albeit badly as she has to hold her nose when submerging herself underwater.
She returned to London to get married, and worked at The Telegraph Magazine, and the much-missed Frank magazine. She successfully managed to convince herself that the sounds of traffic roaring past on the Westway were in fact not dissimilar to the waves crashing on the shore at Bondi.
Much of the inspiration for her first novel, Face Value, comes from her work at Tatler magazine where she was beauty director from 1999 to 2004. She had the dubious honour of producing the world’s first plastic surgery supplement, and met several plastic surgeons yet resisted their recommendations to trim down the bump on her nose, get cheek implants or plump up her lips.
She is the author of How to Be Beautiful, The Thinking Woman’s Guide (Vermilion 2002). The non-fiction book was serialised in the Observer magazine and received exceptionally positive reviews in the Sunday Times, Vogue, the Scotsman and the Guardian to name but a few. The launch party at Claridge’s saw over 200 people attend, including socialites, rock stars and more importantly, the world’s best hairdressers.
She has co-written a screenplay, twentyfourseven, which was optioned by Talkback Thames, and a tv pilot, 55 Acres, with Jennifer Hochman Hamm. Face Value is her first novel, published in the USA by Berkley, part of the Penguin Group. Writing it nearly killed her but she hopes it won’t be her last. She is also a regular contributor to the Sunday Times Style magazine.
She lives in Notting Hill, with her husband and two children, Armand and Emmanuelle.
Read what Kathleen’s friends and family have to say about her - click here.
Kathleen is represented by Deborah Schneider at
Gelfman Schneider.
