SHE was one of the biggest faces in 2024 when her smash hit show Fool Me Once rocketed to the top of the Netflix charts.
So it’s no wonder that Michelle Keegan, 37, who recently announced that she is pregnant with her first child with husband Mark Wright, also 37, lives a very glamorous lifestyle, full of posh trips to Dubai, Ibiza and Sydney.
Finding fame on Coronation Street, this brunette beauty had a humble beginning growing up in Stockport.
So while now her life is filled with exotic trips to sunny destinations and magazine shoots, the first class lifestyle is a far cry from her early days growing up in Greater Manchester.
Once a self-proclaimed ‘chav’, she now lives in a dream £3.5million mansion with five bedrooms, a state-of-the-art gym, a cinema room and an outdoor pool.
And she has racked up a jaw-dropping 7 million followers on Instagram – where a body language expert reveals Michelle uses six signature poses to redefine her image.
Speaking in 2008, Michelle said she ‘doesn’t see herself as sexy,’ but others certainly did.
She then went on to win Sexiest Female Star at the British Soap Awards six times and in 2015, FHM named her the sexiest woman in the world.
But despite this, Michelle described herself as a ‘complete chav’, as she told the Mirror: “I am girly and love getting dressed up and having my make-up done.
“I used to be a complete chav. Before that I was a geek.
“I had puppy fat and braces and the boys were never interested.
“They were always after my mate. I was a tomboy until I was 15 then turned into a proper chav and was well proud of it. All my friends were chavs.”
Here, we examine Michelle’s masterclass in image re-invention, through the regular poses she constantly rocks to make her mark – and what they signify, according to Judi…
Judi James tells Fabulous: “Michelle’s PBT (personal brand transition) from self-styled ‘proper chav’ to stunning global star has worked because of her body language integrity.
“Michelle is a bit of a posing shape-shifter who has elevated her signals of status, celebrity and self-esteem every step of her career journey, but without losing touch with some of the projected messaging that made her so popular in the first place.
“Her trick has been to create a ‘fit’ with her circumstances but without compromising the more down-to-earth, identifiable girl that fans signed up for during her stints in Corrie, Our Girl and Brassic.
Since making her on-screen debut in 2007, actress Michelle Keegan has wowed audiences in a variety of roles.
Here is a look back at some of her biggest career moments.
“Michelle’s body language and her poses manage to retain that inner ‘chav’ vibe of honesty and an enduring sense of knowing who she really is with some stunning upgrades that now present her as an elegant, confident actor with A-list potential.
“Some of her posing tricks are simple but hugely effective in terms of achieving that ‘authentic’ and emphatic brand upgrade.”
According to Judi, Michelle’s signature ‘gaze-away’ pose portrays her as ‘cool’ and ‘relaxed’.
She claims: “Michelle’s signature ‘gaze-away’ pose is one of her most powerful tricks in terms of registering her new-found star status.
“It suggests she is no longer obsessed with the camera, which in turn signals a lack of any desperation when it comes to self-marketing and gaining attention.
“This act of distraction makes her appear cool and relaxed about posing for the camera but also potentially keen to hide from it, which is a very A-list trait from people at the top of their careers who register their status by ducking from the camera rather than courting it or even flirting with it as they did on the way up.
Looking away from the camera is also a posing technique used by top fashionistas who are way too cool to engage with their eyes
Judi James
“Michelle’s technique here tends to make it look as though she’s been casually ‘discovered’ in a moment in her life, which is light years away from the more attention-seeking selfie.
“Looking away from the camera is also a posing technique used by top fashionistas who are way too cool to engage with their eyes. It’s a ‘non-posing’ pose that hints at a more elusive elegance.”
Not only this, but Michelle’s ‘sultry stare’ signals her beauty, talent and self-worth.
Judi adds: “Michelle’s ‘sultry stare’ trait means that when her eyes do engage with the camera the effect is electric.
“It’s perhaps the apparent lack of effort used in performing this sultry stare that makes it look so classy and sensuous rather than cheesy and over-keen.
“The head is held straight on to the camera with a direct eye-engage. She makes it look like she’s almost expressionless here but it’s the subtleness that defines her sense of status and classiness.
“Her lids are very slightly lowered to create a sense of warmth and direct communication. And her lips are slightly parted, which racks up the sensuality but without the effort of an exaggerated pout.
“Michelle has lost the desire to grin, smile or ‘perform’ for the cameras as she used to earlier in her career.
“This effortless look makes her appear less keen to please, more confident and perhaps more uncompromising in terms of her beauty, her talent and her self-worth.”
As well as this, Judi recognises that Michelle’s ‘total ignore’ posing signals her as a down-to-earth, relatable celeb.
She continues: “Michelle’s sense of ongoing integrity is projected in poses like this, where she tends to dress and look like the non-starry, down-to-earth girl she used to be known as, clearly just enjoying often the simple things in life like a beach view and appearing so absorbed that she barely even notices the camera is there.
“This type of pose is akin to one favoured by royals and A-listers, who will often pose with their backs to the camera, inviting the viewer to share their view and their mood as they look out ahead rather than glancing backward.
“It’s an act of what can look like high-status ‘sharing’ when it’s Harry and Meghan looking out at the fireworks on their wedding day, but for Michelle it’s a more relatable but still classy-looking glimpse of shared thoughts and memories captured in one pic.”
Judi also claims that Michelle isn’t afraid to demonstrate her ‘star power’ through her ‘face-framer’ snaps.
She suggests: “Michelle directs our attention to her very beautiful face with this pose by framing it with her hands, propping her chin lightly in her palms and placing the fingers up the sides of her cheeks with an elegant positioning.
“It’s a playful-looking pose that combines several contrasting signals. Face-cupping can suggest boredom but here that sense of mild impatience is aimed at the camera rather than her company.
“Like any top celebrity she’s showing she’s ok to play ball by being photographed but not for too long or too seriously.
This effortless look makes her appear less keen to please, more confident and perhaps more uncompromising in terms of her beauty, her talent and her self-worth
Judi James
“It makes her look cute and, again, relatable, but the directional framing with the hands shows an underlying knack of making her own decisions about how she wants the shot to look.
“It suggests she now poses how she wants to rather than how she is told to and that again sends out signals of honesty and integrity as well as star power.”
But that’s not all, as according to Judi, ‘humble’ Michelle oozes confidence and star status through her ‘pretty woman’ posing.
She explains: “Body language poses like this one suggest Michelle has gone from what sounds like someone suffering from Imposter Syndrome on the red carpet or at glam events to someone who looks as though they were born to be there.
“Her styling looks sleek but effortless and her smile at the camera looks natural and rather modest but also full of justification, as though she totally realises she is where she always deserved to be, no matter how far from her more ‘humble’ school days and early career.
“There’s something almost balletic about the gentle stretch of the arms and elegant turn of the head and, swimming in a sea of lesser celebs for whom getting dressed up and glam means allowing the clothes to wear them rather than them wearing the clothes, and arriving in a state of corseted and killer-heeled discomfort, unable to breathe or walk, Michelle’s pose shows her wearing her outfit in relative comfort and confidence, keeping it simple and classic to ooze total confidence in her looks.”
And if that wasn’t enough, Judi also identifies that Michelle’s ‘lean on me’ pose signals her as ‘playful’ and ‘sexy’.
She concludes: “Michelle champions the ‘hot mess’ look with her one very telling ‘lean’ pose that often involves her leaning an elbow on the seat and making it look as though she’s happily chatting and mid-conversation.
“Her hair is tousled rather than over-styled, her leaning back allows her legs to be featured, revealed and elongated as they stretch in the direction of the camera, and she pulls her coat across as though only just remembering she forgot to put anything on underneath it.
“The lean and elbow prop is a subtle power gesture as it allows for some body-splaying, spatial enhancing and even a pit-baring power gesture. It makes her look in command of her own space here but in a relaxed way rather than an over-dominant way.
“The strongly sexual signals look almost accidental, as though the coat fell open, rather than contrived and over-posed, and this in turn makes her playful-looking sexiness appear authentic rather than performed.
“Instead of openly baring at the camera, her elbow-lean and her averted gaze suggests she’s not actually courting it or flirting with it, which creates a pose that registers playfulness, sexiness and A-list status all at the same time.”
