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Meet Leanda Walters: Stylist to the super-sized stars

Who do plus-size celebrities turn to for their red carpet outfits? Leandra Walters tells them how to stand out

February 9, 2017 17:58
Joanna Scanlan and Leanda walters at Bridget Jones Baby premiere (2)
4 min read

Bigger women have a new role model — Detective Inspector Viv Deering, from the Channel Four hit series No Offence, played by the actress Joanna Scanlon. She oozes confidence, and never ever lets her ample curves hold her back.

Off screen, Scanlon’s even more glamorous than Deering. And who helps her look magnificent? A Jewish stylist and shop owner from north London, Leanda Walters, who has made it her life’s work to style larger ladies.

Scanlon has become a close friend. They were pictured together on the red carpet at the premiere of Bridget Jones’s Baby, for which Joanna wore a beautiful red coat, chosen by Leanda. “She doesn’t move without me when it comes to clothes,” says Walters. “I am her go-to stylist for an important occasion or an interview.”

Other famous clients include Kate Bush, who as a former dancer “is deeply unhappy about her size,” and Dawn French. “She wears our stuff the whole time and wore one of our print coats to Geri Halliwell’s wedding. Like many larger women, she fluctuates in weight.”