Rebecca Twigley

Rebecca Twigley (born 1983) is an aspiring Australian model, and girlfriend of Australian Football League-(AFL)-star Chris Judd. Twigley is most notable for a dress she wore to the 2004 Brownlow Medal presentation, which made headlines in newspapers the following day. In 2007, Twigley also presented the weekend weather segment of "Seven News Perth".

Brownlow appearance

In September 2004, Twigley appeared at the Brownlow Medal presentation with boyfriend Chris Judd wearing a low cut red dress. The dress was custom-made by Perth designer Ruth Tarvydas, and was valued at AU$2000.cite news
first = Peter | last = Hellard
title = Bec steals the show
work = Herald-Sun
page = 9
date = 2005-09-24] Although it was Chris Judd who won the medal, attention the following day was focused on Twigley and the dress she wore.

Overnight, Rebecca Twigley became a "household name".cite news
author = Fjeldstad, Jesper
coauthors = Dawe, Peter, Barich, Anthony
title = Rebecca wows them with another winner
work = Sunday Mail
page = 72
date = 2004-10-10] Twigley received more hits on Australian news website news.com.au than Miss Universe 2004, Jennifer Hawkins, did when she was crowned, and surpassed all previous records for a single news day. [cite news
first = Edwina | last = McCann
title = A dash of red goes a long way
work = The Australian
page = 18
date = 2004-09-24] AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou described Rebecca Twigley as one of the 20 highlights of the 2004 AFL season. Speaking about the dress, Twigley said: "I really didn't think it would grab that much attention, but I got hounded on the red carpet. Everyone wanted an interview and pictures." Over two years on, the media still refers to the dress she wore as "that dress".cite news
first = Helen | last = Ganska
title = Rebecca Twigley's new TV role
work = Sunday Times
page = 3
date = 2007-01-07
url = http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,21020105-5007222,00.html
accessdate = 2007-01-16]

Radio presenter Jon Faine criticised Twigley's choice of fashion, saying that: "A lot of effort has gone in this season by football codes... to try to stop footballers looking at women as objects as nothing other than sexual desire or bits of meat and flesh... It's kind of like they are undoing all the work that was done earlier in the season." Colleague Virginia Trioli disagreed, saying that "They are powerful, individual, attractive, strong women who want to look nice."cite news
title = Little red herring: Mixed message claim over sexy dresses
work = The Gold Coast Bulletin
page = 2
date = 2004-09-22]

Twigley donated the dress to national children's charity TLC for Kids. The dress was auctioned off in October 2004, going for AU$23,000. [cite news
first = Holly | last = Lloyd-McDonald
title = Stunning price for red dress
work = Herald-Sun
page = 13
date = 2004-10-02] TLC later rejected the winning bid when it discovered the buyer had links to a dating agency. The charity then offered the underbidders the dress, but later changed their mind because they could not guarantee media coverage for the purchaser. The dress was returned to Twigley, who donated it to Judd's football club, the West Coast Eagles. [cite news
first = Fiona | last = Byrne
title = Charity sale goes awry
work = Sunday Herald Sun
page = 127
date = 2005-05-08]

Media career

Following the Brownlow presentation, Twigley received a number of offers from Australian television networks. [cite news
first = Luke | last = Dennehy
title = Dress for success
work = Herald-Sun
page = 107
date = 2004-10-09] Her first television role was as a guest presenter on Nine Perth program "Just Add Water". [cite news
first = Rosanne | last = Michie
title = Rebecca is hot property
work = Sunday Herald Sun
page = 76
date = 2005-02-13] Twigley also presented a news report about Melbourne Cup fashion for "Seven News" in October 2006.

The following year, Twigley started presenting the weekend weather for the Perth bulletin of "Seven News". Her presenting role drew criticism from some public, who complained that Twigley looked anorexic. Twigley spoke out against the claims, saying that she had never suffered from an eating disorder, and she believes the fuss is due to her relationship with Chris Judd. "Seven News" director Shaun Menegola said it was a shame Twigley had been attacked by some viewers, and explained that Twigley's tall stature meant she looked thinner on camera. [cite news
first = Braden | last = Quartermaine
title = I'm not anorexic, says Twigley
work = Sunday Times
page = 19
date = 2007-01-14
url = http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,21054377-948,00.html
accessdate = 2007-01-16]

In September 2007, Twigley announced she would be moving to Melbourne with Chris Judd. She has denied she will immediately get a role with a Melbourne television station, planning to focus on the final year of her studies in Speech Pathology, which she is currently completing at La Trobe University, having just finished a placement in adult rehabilitation at the Alfred Hospital. [cite news
first = Kim | last = Wilson
title = Rebecca Twigley not sad to quit smalltown Perth
work = Perth Now
date = 2007-09-22
url = http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,22463719-2761,00.html
accessdate = 2007-09-25]

References