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Rosie bags Burberry from under the nose of Agyness
Laura Craik, Fashion Editor27.06.08
Her cropped blonde hair and individual sense of style have made her a household name - but the image above could be the first sign that Agyness Deyn's modelling career is on the wane.
She has been replaced as the star of Burberry by Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, seen here in the firm's new autumn/ winter campaign, unveiled today.
The decision to give the role - one of the most prestigious in the fashion industry - to the relative newcomer seems to have driven the once-close friends apart.
Huntington-Whiteley, 21, who is dating Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood's son Tyrone, has complained that Deyn, 24, no longer speaks to her, and launched a lightly-veiled attack on her rival's personal style. "Agyness was really sweet and we used to hang out all the time but when she became big she dropped me," the model said recently. "I tried being her friend and texted her repeatedly for six months but she never replied, so I just gave up. Personally, I think Agy's look is a one-off season look but she has been so publicised and has such a big profile she'll make it in the long term now. I wish her well." Huntington-Whiteley, a distant relative of Queen Victoria and recently named by the Evening Standard as one of the 1,000 most influential people in London, appears in the campaign alongside actor Sam Riley, 28, star of Anton Corbijn's film Control. Among the bags featured is the £1,295 ruched leather Lowry - a bargain compared with current favourite, the £11,000 Warrior.
The Burberry campaign has a history of turning young, unknown models into celebrities. As well as helping to launch Deyn, it was one of the first international brands to sign up Kate Moss, in 1999. Photographed by Mario Testino, the adverts afford global exposure to any models who star in them and almost guarantee success in a notoriously competitive industry.
But there is good news for Deyn. She continues as the face of Burberry's perfume, The Beat, and stars in the new Jean Paul Gaultier fragrance campaign as well as ones for Armani, Shiseido and Printemps, France's equivalent of Selfridges.
"Agyness is a huge part of the Burberry family and a personal friend," said Burberry's creative director Christopher Bailey. "We've worked with her for several years and I am thrilled she will continue to star in our fragrance campaign."
The model, who has been photographed with Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr, also provides backing vocals on Who, the new single by New York rockers Five O'Clock Heroes.
