I didn't watch my first Miss Universe Pageant until 1992, so I, while of course knowing them becasuse I have devoured all facts and trivia and lists since I can remember, were not that familiar with all of them. And it's also peculiar what a difference time makes because 10 years ago my rankings apart from my #1 might have been different but let me just say this. The 80s produced 10 remarkable Miss Universe title holders. Let's take a look back at who they were:  Miss Universe 1980: Shawn Weatherly from the USA  Miss Universe 1981: Irene Saez from Venezuela  Miss Universe 1982: Karen Baldwin from Canada Miss Universe 1983: Lorraine Downes from New Zealand  Miss Universe 1984: Yvonne Ryding from Sweden  Miss Universe 1985: Deborah Carthy-Deu from Puerto Rico  Miss Universe 1986: Barbara Palacios from Venezuela  Miss Universe 1987: Cecilia Boloco from Chile  Miss Universe 1988: Pornthip Nakhirunkunok from Thailand  Miss Universe 1989: Ang...

  "We all know how it goes: If for any reason, our new Miss xxx cannot fulfil her duties, the first runner-up shall take over" In anticipation to see who wins, most of us don't really pay much attention to it. But when this special "clause" comes into action, it usually garners a lot of attention. So I am going to look at some 1st runners-up who assumed the title when the winner won another title, resigned or got dethroned. Let's go way back to 1980 when the Miss USA, Shawn Weatherly and the first runner-up had to take over:  Jineane Ford - From Miss Arizona USA to Miss USA runner-up to Miss USA  In 1980, after 13 years, the USA won their 5th Miss Universe title. Shawn Weatherly from South Carolina, won the title and was now the queen of the Universe, which meant she had to travel all around the world to fulfil her duties as Miss Universe. So the Miss USA 1980 went to Jineane Ford from Arizona, less than 2 months after the Miss USA Pageant was held.  Winning...

The Miss Grand International 2025 Competition had a really high calibre of delegates. There are several stunner sthat did not win the crown that I think would do well in other competitions. So, it's time to celebrate a few of these women whom I would like to give it another shot. We continue with an incredible woman who made it to the top 10: Montserrat Villalva - Mexico  Montserrat is absolutely stunning and she slayed the Miss Grand International Pageant. I ended up having her as my number 1 choice to win Miss Grand. Her beauty is captivating and she seems like a really nice person too. For me, she looked like a queen every day of the Miss Grand International Pageant.  I was quite surprised that she did not make it to the top 5 but that means she can now hopefully enter other pageants because I would love to see her again, so let's look at the systems she could do well in.  1. Miss Mexico: I would love for her to try the Miss Mexico system because I think she would be g...

It's almost unbelievable to think that before 1990, no African American woman had ever won Miss USA. The Texas streak of 5 winners in a row was blazing hot and everyone was wondering if they would keep winning. But the 'universe' had other plans. Carole Gist won Miss Michigan USA and traveled to Wichita, Kansas to represent her state at Miss USA 1990.  Carole won the preliminary evening gown round and went into the final night as one of the favourites. She had tough competition though but she kept her composure throughout. Carole edged out a fantastic competitor and future Miss World from South Carolina, Gina Tolleson, to give Michigan their first ever Miss USA title. And at the same time, she also broke the Texas streak.  A lot of attention was given to her victory as she was the first African American woman to win the title and was and still is seen as a trailblazer. Next, she would represent the USA at Miss Universe 1990. Carole was called into the top 10 on the night in...

  The Miss Universe Philippines 2026 candidates are in beautiful Boracay and took part in the swimwear show and 12 "Aqua Angels" were selected. From these 12, I am choosing my top 6. So here we go:  6: Baguio City: Roxy Baeyens  I like her walk but the exaggerated expressions musts go. She could also work on more energy and incorporate different movements and poses in her walk.  5: Iloilo City: Zestah Espinosa    This girl is gorgeous but I do think that she needs to be more "Miss Universe" and less "Binibini". In other words, she should spice up her walk.  4: Taguig: Ysabella Roxas Ysmael  Very solid performance. I would like to see less of her behind though - it's a personal pet peeve. However, I do also sense some Grand in her and I would like her to work on being more Universe.  3: Cebu City: Apriel Smith  Ok her needs to be refined and amped up but she looked gorgeous and I always say swimsuit should be won from the shoulders up....

The Miss Grand International 2025 Competition had a really high calibre of delegates. There are several stunner that did not win the crown that I think would do well in other competitions. So, it's time to celebrate a few of these women whom I would like to give it another shot. We continue with:  Ana-Sofia Lendl - Guatemala  When I first saw photos of this stunner from Guatemala, I was blown away. At the same time, I was also curious to see if she could live up to pre-Grand hype. She did and, in fact, she was better than the hype. This girl is such a beauty and I was very sure that she would make the top 5. But she ended up in the top 10.  The good thing is that now she can use the experience she gained and prepare for a different pageant if she still wants to. I would absolutely love to see her in another pageant because I think she is worthy of an international title. Here are my choices for her:  1. Miss Universe : With her beauty and stage presence, I think she ...

 "We all know how it goes: If for any reason, our new Miss xxx cannot fulfil her duties, the first runner-up shall take over" In anticipation to see who wins, most of us don't really pay much attention to it. But when this special "clause" comes into action, it usually garners a lot of attention. So I am going to look at some 1st runners-up who assumed the title when the winner resigned or got dethroned. Let's start with an astonishing feat:  Kimberley Santos - Guam  From 1st runner-up to Miss World 1980 On the night of the 30th Miss World in November, (West) Germany won their second Miss World crown. Gabriella Brum was named the most beautiful girl in the world, but the joy of winning was short-lived for this beauty. A mere 18 hours after the crown was placed on her head, she resigned. Her reason was that she could not live so far apart from her boyfriend but there were also rumours that there were nude photos of her going around. So her "reign" i...

The Miss Grand International 2025 Competition had a really high calibre of delegates. There are several stunner that did not win the crown that I think would do well in other competitions. So, it's time to celebrate a few of these women whom I would like to give it another shot. We continue with a candidate that placed in the top 22:  Vina Sitorus- Indonesia The absolutely gorgeous Vina Sitorus from Indonesia was one of  my personal favourites to win the Miss Grand International title. I was in awe of how she showed up every day and how she consistently perfored well. So, basically she was in my opinion a frontrunner.  On the night of the final, Vina advanced to the top 22 and gave her a very strong performance. However, that is where the Miss Grand road ended. Hopefully that doesn't mean her pageant days are over. I think she is so beautiful and it would be amazing to see her again. Here are the pageants I would like her to try.  Miss Universe: Vina could potentiall...