"She's not just a model" Jean Paul Gaultier said of Erin O'Connor, "She's like art. Like drama. She's an extraordinary inspiration". She's been the face of Versace, Dolce&Gabbana, Givenchy, Armani, Gucci e Gaultier, she was discovered by a talent scout at the Bbc Clothes Show in Birmingham. "At a first moment I thought that they wanted to arrest me because I was with some school mates, I had poked my head in every basket with special offers and that woman was constantly behind my back. I was sure that they had confused me for a shoplifter. Had not been for that five minute chat I would have ended up being a school teacher in a primary school". Today Erin is an institution in the UK, not just for taking part with Twiggy, Lily Cole and other tops to the ad campaign which brought Mark&Spencer back on the scene, but also because she's the vice-president of the British Fashion Council, trustee in the board of Victoria and Albert Museum, host and author of a series of programmes on Radio 4 and Bbc, and she also writes travel reportages for publications such as the Sunday Times. "Jumping from an activity to the other is my only form of rebellion" she observes, "Luckily people like to hear my point of view"