Princess Catherine, Emma Watson, Adele... See how these female British stars have changed

'Chasing Pavements' singer Adele Adkins was a theatre school student at the Brit School before she release the album that made her famous, '19'. In 2008 she began her transatlantic journey to receive worldwide fame. Like many on this list, the singer has transformed both professionally and physically.

Over 120 million record sales. 16 Grammys. 12 BRITS. Billboard's Artist of the Year. These are just a few of the incredible achievements this young singer has accomplished. Let's not forget to mention her incredible comeback in October 2021, the top-spot on the Billboard charts is reserved for Adele, who continues to release music true to her soul.

That epic film: 'Titanic.' Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet shot to fame and were absolutely loved by the world. Winslet was nominated as Best Actress for her role. She had started out with 'Sense and Sensibility' where she'd won both a BAFTA Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award at the young age of 20.

After winning an Academy Award for her role in 'The Reader,' as well as BAFTAS and three Golden Globes, actress Kate Winslet has proved herself a serious and diverse actress capable of taking on any role. Her newest venture in 'Avatar: The Way of Water' saw her once again thrust back into the spotlight.

Previously Cheryl Tweedy, she auditioned for ITV's 'Popstars the Rivals' in 2002 before she became a member of one of the world's favourite girl groups 'Girls Aloud', married footballer Ashley Cole and had a sparking solo music career.

Cheryl didn't stop with her music success and personal life goals, she also became 'Britain's Sweetheart', judging on 'The X Factor' and now has a 5 million pound home in Surrey, a little boy called Bear with the late One Direction's Liam Payne and was last seen judging 'The Greatest Dancer' on the BBC. She joined her fellow 'Girls Aloud' members on their reunion tour in 2024.

Victoria auditioned for The Spice Girls and was given the name Posh Spice - mainly because of her love for designers and the little black dresses she wore. She had a good childhood, saying her parents had always had money and went to an established school. Victoria is everything fashion and made her own name attending many different fashion shows in Gucci, Prada and Chanel, then she met David Beckham...

The Beckham name was one of the biggest in the world, with many people likening them to British royalty. Victoria stayed in the press for the rest of The Spice Girls and beyond, she tried her hand at a solo career, released an album and a few top ten singles and then turned to fashion full time starting her own label, Victoria Beckham.
Four children later, worldwide fame and the life most people envy, Victoria Beckham continues to show great advances in her own fashion career and spend a lot of time with her family.

Helen Mirren is the daughter of an exiled Russian Aristocrat. She once worked at the Kursaal amusement park in Southend as a "blagger", to attract customers to the rides. She has always been creative and certainly always been performing.

We know Helen Mirren as a dame - royalty almost - as she is the only actress to have ever played both Queen Elizabeths on the screen. Three Academy TV Awards for Best Actress and the winner of Esquite Magazine’s Sexiest Woman Alive in 2010, she is an icon in British film.

Lily was born in the town of Guilford, Surrey county in the United Kingdom, on March 18 1989. Since that moment, she's always been in the spotlight. Although it seems that Lily Collins enjoys perfect happiness, the 'Emily in Paris' star has confessed some dark moments in her existence, including specific past events that are still haunting her.

2020 marked a very important cinematic milestone for Lily Collins: her role in David Fincher's movie 'Mank'. The film really captured the critics' attention and even the Academy has deemed it particularly prestigious, giving it a whopping 10 Oscar nominations. Too bad Lily Collins as a supporting actress was not among them, but her presence in 'Mank' was a wonderful artistic breakthrough in her career. 'Emily in Paris' continues to be a success, as does her involvement in a number of movies.

Before creating Harry Potter, JK Rowling has had a rollercoaster of a career and personal life. She worked as a bilingual secretary, lost her job, moved to Portugal, got married, had a child, got divorced, returned to the UK on benefits and then created a multimillion pound franchise. Not without effort though - the initial 'Harry Potter' manuscript was rejected by 12 publishers before it was accepted by Bloomsbury.

JK Rowling is a real life ‘Rags to Riches’ story, as she is now one of the richest women in the UK. She is incredibly generous, donating a lot of money to charities, and a role model for many young women.

Used car saleswoman, Gemma, from Romford in Essex, was told she had bundles of charisma but was 'too fat' to be on TV after she approached an agent. It didn't stop Gemma from pursuing her dream.

Now a much loved 'The Only Way is Essex' star, she has appeared on many Tv shows as well as competitions such as 'I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!' on ITV but withdrew for health reasons. Gemma is currently making headlines as she wakes up with a 'no excuses' mantra to get exercising and, thanks to this and the 'fibre-first' diet she has been on, has already lost 3 stone. Good work, Gemma.

The part-time waitress who was trying to make ends meet while studying art history at university. After graduation, Kate started a part-time job as an accessory buyer for the clothing chain, Jigsaw. She has come a long way since she met William Windsor.

Kate Middleton is every inch lady. From stepping out after the births of her children looking entirely flawless, to embodying her role as future queen consort and voted one of the most influential people in the world - she always dresses to perfection, smiles beautifully and is everything a member of the royal household should be. After a tough year battling cancer, we look forward to seeing her back in the spotlight and continuing her road to recovery.

Everyone remembers the 80s/90s TV show 'Countdown' and, most importantly, everyone remembers Carol. She was an instant hit and the viewers adored her - a beautiful person inside and outside; as well as a woman with an incredible brain and some wild mental arithmetic skills.

Still looking glamorous, she has never strayed too far away from the public eye. The fantastic Ms Vorderman has presented a number of TV shows including 'Have I Got News for You' and 'Loose Women', where she was a part of the morning crew for three years. Here she is in 2022 attending the the Pride of Britain Awards in London.

This is a very different looking Claudia in her early days - before she landed the role as Strictly Come Dancing's presenter in 2004. She had already worked a little for the BBC and appears here for Red Nose Day in 2003.

Claudia's commitments to 'Strictly' paid off and it threw her into the spotlight, making her currently one of the most desirable presenters of our time. 'Strictly Come Dancing' won the Best Talent Show Award and here she is with fellow colleague, Tess Daly.

When she was just 11 years old, Emma Watson was looking at releasing one of the biggest motion pictures in history and looking towards winning two Awards for her role in the film. 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' was the start of an incredible journey for Emma Watson.

One of the most influential people in the world, one of the highest paid actresses in the world and a role model for young women everywhere, Emma Watson has taken stardom in her stride and used her fame to highlight the issues within women's rights. She was appointed to a G7 advisory body for women's rights in 2019.

Britain's much-loved Holly Willoughby started as a model when she was noticed by Storm Management when she was just 14. She dallied in odd jobs before a friend made a showreel of her and secured her a place at the BBC.

Many TV shows later, including 'Celebrity Juice', 'Surprise, Surprise', 'The Voice UK', 'I'm a Celeb' and, of course, 'Dancing on Ice', Holly is the face of ITV's 'This Morning'. The presenter has just launched a new TV show that is a revival of the iconic show in the 80s and 90s: 'You Bet!' was first aired in December 2024.

Emily Blunt, form London, grew up with stuttering issues. It was only went she got into acting that these voice ailments started to disappear. Her breakthrough came in the hit movie, 'The Devil Wears Prada'.

A Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and nominations for two British Academy Film Awards later, Emily Blunt has proved she is every inch class and talent. She can sing, too! Here she is attending the 2022 Freeing Voices, Changing Lives Gala at Guastavino’s in July, 2022 in New York City.

Keira Knightley played Jules in 'Bend it like Beckham' in 2002, giving women’s football some spotlight. She was just 17 but had already been acting for ten years previously, including playing Padmé’s handmaiden and decoy in 'Star Wars - The Phantom Menace.'

A whole range of period dramas, international blockbusters, awards and an OBE later, Keira continues to shine on and off the screen. Most recently, she starred in the film 'Misbehaviour' which focused on the 1970 Miss World Competition in London and how the Women’s Liberation Movement bombarded the stage. Not to mention her new Netflix hit, 'Black Doves', which has been critically acclaimed.

One of Britain's most respected actresses, Emma Thompson came out of Cambridge University with a love for literature and was thrust in the spotlight with two BBC series, 'Tutti Frutti and Fortunes of War', which she won BAFTAs for in 1987. Here she is at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in '93.

Emma Thompson continues to live in the same road as her childhood home in Hampstead, London, although she has a magnetic connection to both Scotland and Italy. She was famously married to Kenneth Branagh, who had a personal affair with actress Helena Bonham Carter, but then met current husband Greg Wise on the set of 'Sense and Sensibility.'

A young Kate Moss wears a Calvin Klein's Fall 1993 collection on the designer's runway in New York on June 1, 1993. She was scouted at just aged 14 in JFK airport and she has gone on to be one of the most famous supermodels in history.

Model Kate Moss has had an incredibly successful career, but experienced a dark patch when she was tied with substance allegations and she was dropped from fashion campaigns. She was cleared and resumed modelling and still walks the walk today. Here with her daughter, Lila Grace.

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