• why this site?
• about the author

why?

Why create a site that explores the concept of beauty in the medium of television? The answer is pretty simple. We've been fed on a steady diet of what is beautiful from this particular medium for so long now, that we have created a generation of young women who are dying of eating disorders, young men who are taking drugs to build up their physique and all anyone seems to deem important is how you look.

This state of affairs is in a word - tragic. As a race, we have always appreciated physical beauty, but also those who are clever, bright, funny, talented, compassionate - and the list goes on. Somewhere in the last fifty years - since television arrived - we have become more and more obsessed with how someone looks, rather than what they can do, or who they are as people.

So yes, I place the blame for this skewed focus on television. I also blame it on magazines and, to a degree, movies. But television is the one medium that nearly everyone comes in contact with on a regular basis. They may not buy a magazine, or even go to the cinema, but they are bound to watch television. And so, the images that television shows us are the strongest influence on us, and dictate our perceptions and beliefs about the world and how we should look within it.

The visual messages from television are sub-conscious in nature. I agree that the images of violence and sex also affect us. But so do the images of thin women and muscled men - usually with a tan. And it lessens us as a species.

And before you think I'm harbouring some kind of "I'm not considered a beauty" angst, I modelled on television commercials for two years. I started at age 14, but by age 15, I was already skipping meals and obsessing about my weight, my face, my hair - you name it. I decided to get out of the industry and concentrate on what really mattered - who I am, not what I look like.

This site was created to celebrate those television actors who hold their own kind of beauty, not just in looks, but more importantly, in their quality of work and screen presence. All the actors profiled here may not fit the standard kind of "beauty" that our magazines or media like to portray, but they all share that intangible quality of spirit and presence that makes them uniquely beautiful in their own right.

Others may not agree with me, and they are entitled to their opinion. If you do not agree with me, please don't waste your time or mine by writing stupid, nasty and badly constructed letters to tell me so. No one is making you visit my site, and no one will make me answer or even acknowledge abusive or smartass emails about my taste or likes. In a democratic society we should all remember this little saying: "I may not agree with what you say, but I support your right to say it." - just say it nicely, that's all I ask.

Beauty is ultimately an intangible thing. What I consider beautiful, another may find just the opposite. What I offer here is not the standard fan site, but hopefully, a study of who is beautiful and why - apart from the way they look.

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about the author

My name is Jana and I live in Sydney, Australia. I am 19 and will start my arts degree at university next year. I am Canadian by birth, but moved to Australia with my parents when I was 3 years old. My grandparents are English, which means I get to go to the UK every Christmas and New Year. With blonde hair and blue eyes, I have a Grace Kelly kind of look, and have been told so many times. But it doesn't interest me. I want to be remembered for what I have done with my life, not who I might look like.

As a result of my international background, I have come to appreciate that our differences are what make us beautiful. With a mother who is an artist, and a grandmother who is a singer, in addition to my own experience in modelling, the study of beauty and what it entails fascinates me.

A particular context of beauty in our society that really interests me is in the world of television, which routinely tries to tell us what is beautiful. As a result, I have created this website to record my reactions and thoughts about the concept of beauty in this part of the entertainment industry, through highlighting those who occupy our small screens and are, in my opinion, truly beautiful.

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