From Page 3 to Center Stage: Keeley Hazell’s Journey of Reclaiming Her Story

Who Is Keeley Hazell?

Imagine being famous for taking your clothes off in a newspaper when you’re barely out of your teens. Now imagine deciding, years later, that you want to be known for your words, your writing, and your acting instead. That’s exactly what Keeley Hazell did.

In the mid-2000s, Keeley was a regular on "Page 3" of The Sun newspaper—a famous (and now stopped) feature showing topless women. She was even voted the second sexiest woman in the world by FHM magazine.

Fast forward nearly 20 years, and Keeley is:

A comedian performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
An actor in the hit show Ted Lasso
A staff writer for that same show
The author of a memoir called Everyone’s Seen My Tits—which is also the name of her new one-woman show

Important Point: Keeley’s story isn’t just about fame. It’s about survival, reinvention, and taking back control of your own narrative.

A Difficult Start: Childhood in Grove Park

Keeley grew up in Grove Park, southeast London, in the 1990s. Her childhood was far from easy:

Home life was violent: Her dad was a window fitter who hurt her and her mum badly. He hit Keeley with a wooden metre stick, the metal part of a vacuum cleaner, and a belt. If dinner wasn’t ready on time, he’d choke her mum.
It felt "normal": Keeley says the violence was "horrific but incredibly normalised"—meaning it happened so often it just seemed like how life was.
Parents split at 13: That’s also when she started therapy. She’s been in therapy most of her life.
Money was tight: Her mum was a dinner lady (school cafeteria worker). The most girls like her could dream of was a job at JD Sports (a sports shop).

Teenage Rebellion and Trauma

When things are bad at home, kids often act out. Keeley was no exception:

Skipped school constantly
Shoplifted (stole from shops)
Got drunk regularly
Set fires on purpose: "There’s something just really joyful about destruction," she says. "The look of the flames was enchanting."
A terrifying encounter at 13: She and her friends robbed a taxi driver who was exposing himself to them. It was the first time she’d seen a penis, and it left her feeling like "all men wanted was sex."

Important Point: Keeley was smart, curious, and ambitious—she loved learning. But with chaos at home and no support at school, that potential had nowhere to go. She thinks she could have gone to Oxford if things were different.

The Page 3 Years: Fame, Shame, and Smart Money Moves

How It Started

At 16, Keeley left school and worked at a hair salon for minimum wage, shampooing hair. Two people suggested she enter modeling contests:

A customer said: "Enter the Daily Star‘s ‘Beach Babe’ competition."
A friend said: "Enter The Sun‘s search for a new Page 3 model."

Her First Topless Shoot

Keeley’s words: "It was like a wave of numbness, embarrassment and shame. It was not something I wanted to do, but the alternative was to work in a hair salon and never leave this area."

She won The Sun‘s competition, and her life changed overnight.

The Height of Page 3 Fame

Her 2007 calendar sold 30,000 copies in its first few days
She was on the cover of FHM, Loaded, and Maxim—all in the same year
Repeatedly voted one of the sexiest women in the world
"You couldn’t open a men’s magazine or The Sun without seeing me semi-naked," she writes. "My boobs had gone national."

The Disconnect

But inside, Keeley felt empty and ashamed:

Magazines like Zoo and Nuts "felt like trash magazines"
She didn’t feel empowered—she felt used
There was a huge gap between the sexy image and the real her

Smart With Money (The "Long Game")

While others partied, Keeley invested:

Bought property (houses/flats)
Invested in the stock market
Thought: "How can I make my money make money?"

This financial intelligence saved her later.

The Sex Tape Scandal and Escape to LA

The Betrayal

An ex-boyfriend (she calls him "Theo" in her book) sold a sex tape of them to The Sport newspaper.

Keeley’s words: "It was like wiping the chessboard away"—all her career plans ruined.

Running to LA

She fled to Los Angeles to try acting:

Took acting classes
Got small roles in Like Crazy and Horrible Bosses
Had a film script "optioned" (someone paid for the rights, but it never got made)
Stayed 10 years but never got a breakout role

How Did She Afford LA for 10 Years?

Two income streams:

Property and investments from her Page 3 days (remember the "long game"?)
Commercial acting: "I’d be in an Emirates commercial for two minutes and make 70 grand from it."

The Ted Lasso Twist: So Close, Yet So Far

The Message That Changed Everything

One night, Keeley was "doomscrolling" (mindlessly scrolling social media while feeling bad about her life) when a message popped up from Jason Sudeikis—the actor/writer she’d worked with on Horrible Bosses.

The Offer

They had dinner. Jason told her:

He was creating a new show: Ted Lasso
He’d written a part specifically for her
The character: a former glamour model who becomes a sharp, ambitious marketing executive
The character’s name? Keeley. (Yes, really.)

The Heartbreak

Keeley knew this was her role. It was her life story. But the part went to Juno Temple instead.

Keeley was offered a smaller role: Bex.

The Aftermath

Ted Lasso became a massive hit
Juno Temple got 3 Emmy nominations
Keeley calls it "a complete mindfuck"
She’s had "a lot of therapy" for it

But She Stayed

Despite the devastation, Keeley:

Acts in the show (as Bex)
Is a staff writer on the series
Uses her real-life experience to make the show authentic

Writing Her Own Script: Therapy, Ambition, and Integrity

Where Does the Drive Come From?

Keeley: "For me it was a survival mechanism that came out of my circumstances, but it’s also about wanting to be a person that I am proud to be, because for so much of my youth, doing modelling did not make me proud."

The Big Question

If 40-year-old Keeley could go back to that hair salon and hear someone tell teenage Keeley to enter the Page 3 contest… would she do it?

Her answer: "Probably not. There’s been a lot of good stuff, but being true to what you feel and believe is more important. Integrity is incredibly important."

The Edinburgh Show: Finally Playing Herself

Everyone’s Seen My Tits

One-woman show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Based on her memoir of the same name
Runs at Pleasance Courtyard until 29 August
She’s not sure if it’ll tour after Edinburgh—"depends on how well it goes and how I feel"

Why It Matters

Keeley: "This is the version of me that I’m choosing to put forward, and not somebody else’s idea of me. I’m finally playing myself."

Summary

Phase	What Happened	Key Takeaway
Childhood	Domestic abuse, poverty, violence	Trauma shapes you, but doesn’t have to define you forever
Teen Years	Rebellion, arson, traumatic encounter	Acting out = crying for help
Page 3 (Early 20s)	Fame, shame, smart investing	You can survive a bad situation AND make smart choices
Sex Tape & LA	Betrayal, 10 years of small roles	Resilience = finding ways to keep going
Ted Lasso	So close to dream role, got smaller part + writing job	Sometimes the "no" leads to a different "yes"
Now	Fringe show, memoir, reclaiming her name	You get to write the next chapter

FAQ

Was Keeley Hazell forced to do Page 3?

Not physically forced—but she felt she had no other choice. She was 16, earning minimum wage shampooing hair, and saw modeling as her only ticket out of her neighborhood. She describes feeling "numbness, embarrassment and shame" during her first shoot.

**Is the character Keeley Jones in Ted Lasso really based on her?**

Yes. Jason Sudeikis wrote the part for her, based on her actual life—former glamour model turned ambitious marketing exec. The character even shares her name. But the role went to Juno Temple instead.

How did she afford to live in LA for 10 years without steady acting work?

Two things: 1) She invested her Page 3 earnings wisely (property + stocks), and 2) She made very good money from commercials—like £70,000 for a two-minute Emirates airline ad.

Does she regret doing Page 3?

She says "probably not" if she could go back—but not because it was good. She acknowledges "a lot of good stuff" came from it (money, opportunities), but ultimately: "Being true to what you feel and believe is more important. Integrity is incredibly important."

What is her Edinburgh show about?

Everyone’s Seen My Tits is a one-woman show based on her memoir. It’s her reclaiming her story—telling it her way, in her words, on her terms. As she puts it: "I’m finally playing myself."

Final Thought: Keeley Hazell’s journey reminds us that your past doesn’t have to be your final draft. You can survive the worst chapters, learn from them, and write a new story where you’re the author.

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