‘Glamour Gran’, 71, falls just short at Miss Great Britain beauty pageant
Ann Marie Harper competed in the Ms Great Britain Classic category at the competition on Friday night.
A 71-year-old “Glamour Gran” has missed out on the top spot at a Miss Great Britain beauty pageant.
Ann Marie Harper, from Ayrshire, made history as the oldest Scottish contender to reach the national final in the pageant’s 81-year history, but ultimately did not make the top five in her category.
Best known by her alias Glamour Gran Ann, the septuagenarian competed in the Ms Great Britain Classic category at the competition on Friday night.
The Classic is open to women aged 45 and over – meaning she was pitted against rivals up to 26 years her junior.
Ms Harper was ranked outside the top five with Ally Sussex from Surrey finally taking the crown after three previous attempts. The other categories on the night were Miss Great Britain and Ms Great Britain, which were won by Yazmin McClean of Belfast and Holly Pirrie of Warrington respectively.
Although she missed out on the top five, Ms Harper was given the “impact over image” award for the contest’s Classic category.
Prior to the competition, Ms Harper spoke to the Press Association at her studio in Ayrshire, and said she has been on an “amazing journey” this year.
She won the Ms Great Britain Classic Ayrshire in June, which saw her qualify for the final in Leicester.
Posting on social media a few days prior, she said the journey has given her a voice, a platform and opportunities that she “could never have imagined at 71”.
“Every interview, every fundraiser and every opportunity to share my story has been a chance to make a difference,” Ms Harper’s Instagram post said.
“If my journey inspires even one woman to believe that her age doesn’t define her possibilities, or helps bring attention to a cause that deserves to be heard, then I’ve achieved something incredibly special.”
She continued: “Because being seen is one thing. Making a difference is another, and that, to me, is what IMPACT OVER IMAGE is all about.”
Ms Harper previously told the Press Association that for her, the competition “really isn’t just about the winning”.
The beauty queen launched her own cosmetics brand aged 66, which sells a make-up palette called the Glam Goddess Collection.
She is also very active on social media, and her Instagram and TikTok pages have thousands of followers.
She presented Glamour Gran Ann as a form of joyful self-expression, free from the expectations and limitations placed on her by others.
“I’ve always been told all my life ‘you can’t do this, you can’t wear that hat, you can’t’.”
“Well, Glamour Gran Ann has got hats that size,” she said, spreading out her arms.
“I love big hats. I love furs. It’s just who I am. But I’ve had to not be like that, and I do get it.
“Sometimes you can’t always be out there like that. But I am who I am, and I love dressing up. And I get into character.”
She said the “biggest thing” she wants to achieve in her work and competitions is to help combat loneliness and isolation – particularly among older people.
As part of this, she does events for the Community Led Action Support Project (Clasp) charity, and regularly attends a pensioners’ club on her street.
“I just want to help people to realise that they’re not alone – because as you get older, you can go in a corner, and we can’t do that,” she explained.
“I show these older people we can wear lipstick. We can go and get our hair done.”