Blondie's Debbie Harry Reveals She Once Refused To Look At Herself

debbie harry
debbie harry
(Image credit: Rex Features (Shutterstock))

Debbie Harry's platinum blonde hair and razor-sharp cheek bones were iconic in the 70s punk scene, but the star has revealed that she was once desperately unhappy with her appearance.

Debbie founded the punk band, Blondie with guitarist Chris Stein in 1974. She quickly became a style icon because of her attention-grabbing looks that oozed attitude and rebellion. The band enjoyed several number one singles including "Heart of Glass" and "The Tide is High". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGU_4-5RaxU

However, during an interview with The Sunday Times Magazine the legendary singer said: "There was a time when I had to take down all the mirrors."

She added: "I felt like I was looking at myself too much. The world made such a big deal of how I looked."

Debbie's fearless style was admired by many. She has been open in the past about how important her look was for Blondie's commercial success.

Debbie has also spoken in the past about how she felt she had to have plastic surgery for business reasons. The Daily Mail quoted Debbie in 2014 when she said: "Everybody knows that I've had plastic surgery. I did it for business reasons. you photograph better, and looks are a key part of being an entertainer, so I felt it was something I had to do."

The Blondie singer, aged 71, is now much happier and we can imagine she isn't the quiet retiring type. During the interview with the Sunday Times Magazine she also revealed that she would be willing to take her clothes off once again.

Speaking about her days as a sex symbol Debbie said: "I always used to tear my clothes off. Would I be naked all the time now? Probably. It might horrify everyone, but..."

The singer revealed that some parts of her performance might need adapting. She said: "I wanna... do flips and bang around on my knees, but I know I might have a hard time getting back up. It's such a drag".

Jessica Ransom

Jessica is a Senior Food Writer at Future and is an enthusiastic, self-taught cook who adores eating out and sharing great food and drink with friends and family. She has completed the Level 1 Associate course at the Academy of Cheese and is continually building on her knowledge of beers, wines and spirits. Jessica writes food and drink related news stories and features, curates product pages, tests and reviews equipment and also develops recipes which she styles on food shoots.