3-1-99 SWELL B
THIS is the picture that shows Girl Power is bigger and better than ever. Scary Spice Mel B posed naked for a series of sexy shots while eight months pregnant. Others have done it before - notably Demi Moore who caused uproar when she bared all in Vanity Fair eight years ago. But that did not stop 23-year-old Mel revealing her swollen belly to the world shortly before the birth of her baby daughter Phoenix Chi. In fact she relished the experience. Mel said: "If I look sexy then I feel sexy too. "I suppose these pictures would have caused an outrage a few years ago. It's just fashion. "I don't compare myself with the way things used to be. "I don't go by the rules or anything like that, I just go by what I feel. "If I wanna wear a revealing outfit that shows off my belly, then that's me. "It's the same with breast feeding. At one point if you got your boob out in public, people would have been repulsed and disgusted." Mel was at about the same stage of her pregnancy as Demi Moore when she posed for Vanity Fair. And the pop star clearly drew inspiration from the American actress's infamous 1991 pictures. In one shot, Mel places her hands across her breasts - just like Demi. But whereas the US star cupped her tummy in her other hand, Mel's is held by her husband Jimmy Gulzar. In another photo she sits on a battered leather sofa, while in a third the Spice Girl wears an bikini made of tinsel. All show her heavily-pregnant stomach which is adorned with Oriental tattoos. Mel joins a list of stars who have posed naked while pregnant, including former EastEnder actress Daniella Westbrook - who copied Demi's pose exactly. Supermodel Yasmin le Bon, Amanda de Cadenet and Coronation Street's Margi Clarke have also been pictured, bumps and all, in revealing clothes. And Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies posed naked at eight-months pregnant. But Mel is doing something none of them have. She is so taken by her photographs that she has had a headless sculpture of herself pregnant commissioned for her garden. Phoenix Chi was born last month - two weeks early - at the exclusive Portland Clinic in London. She weighed 5lb 7oz. When Mel was rushed in from her and Jimmy's home in Little Marlow, Bucks, other band members raced to be by her side. Mel C and Baby Spice Emma Bunton were first to arrive. Heavily-pregnant Posh Spice - Victoria Adams - even managed to drive there from her Hertfordshire home for the happy event. They were said to be "deliriously delighted" at the birth. Despite reportedly negotiating the sale of exclusive pictures of Phoenix Chi for a sizeable sum, Mel says she doesn't want her to become a media baby. She said: "I'm not sure how much I want the baby to be in the public eye." Mel clearly relished pregnancy. But in a recent interview she had harsh words for those who accused her and fellow expectant Spice Girl Victoria - fiancee of Manchester United soccer star David Beckham - of setting the wrong example. Mel said: "Some newspapers said me and Vicky were encouraging teenage pregnancies but that was just sick. It was insulting." She also denied attempting to get one over on Victoria and David by getting married first. Mel added: "There was no competition at all, no way. There never is. Why would we want to fall into that trap?" And she had a message for those who took her nickname literally: "I'm not really scary." She added: "I'm nice. I'm nice. I'm nice. "What can I tell you? Yeah, I'm a pain in the ass and I'm stubborn and I've got my own opinion and I can wipe the floor with you if you get me in a bad mood. But I'm nice. "You've got to let people have their say before you completely destroy them. I'm not as nasty as I was. "Two years ago, I was a terribly aggressive person, very defensive, very, very defensive. Really, I could be a total cow. "But I've learnt to control that because you can get yourself into unnecessary problems. "I have to think and breathe now. "I can still bite people's heads off and I've got a bit of a wicked tongue when I get going. "When your lifestyle's so busy, when all you're doing is give, give, give, you've got a very high fuse, your stress levels are high." Mel also denied being the Spice Girls' unofficial leader. She added: "People just say that because I've got a big mouth. "We're very balanced and I don't think we'd have survived if we hadn't been. "We had to prove to ourselves that we could carry on, no matter what other people said. "It's a nice feeling to always have to think of others. It feels good because it isn't forced, none of it." But she had some kind words to say about former band member Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell - whose departure some predicted would spell the end of the group. Mel said: "I think she's done really well for herself. "She's gone into an area that's quite brave, what with all the charity work and women's solidarity kind of thing. Which I think is brilliant. "I think what she did was very brave but I couldn't do that, I couldn't leave this group. I don't think any of us could. "We're friends for a start. She's missed out on all that, missed out on all our phone calls at one o'clock in the morning. "I should imagine that she feels very lonely. "But then she's got her reasons for doing things and I'm sure she's fine. "When I try to put myself in her shoes I instantly think: 'Fear! What am I going to do?'" And what of the future now she's a mother? Mel says she going to spend as much time with her baby as possible. She will have a helper, rather than a nanny, and she clearly wants Phoenix Chi to grow up like her. Mel added: "I don't want a weedy, pathetic cottonwool baby. "I want mine to be a bit rough and tough." Looks like Girl Power will live on through this Baby Spice
1-6-99 EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH MELANIE'S HALF SISTER CAN BE FOUND AT MEGASTAR
12-13-98 Apparently Miss Melanie has a new tattoo....this one is at the base of the spine and is a lotus flower with Tibetan writing. This makes #6 and the ANGEL tatt wasnt the last one like she said. This one was done in LA and she was taken there by none other than Anthony Kedis, to whom she has been romantically linked. She has also been linked to Jake Davies (record producer).
6-23-98 The answer for the tattoo is: "Cause I like the perfume and cause I lost someone very close to me recently." Although the new picture that was taken from Miami Spice does look a bit better than the first one. For a better look go to 100% Melanie C (see links).
6-17-98 Yes it is a new tattoo!! Her fouth and last tattoo that is scrawled under her bellybutton reads "Angel". Melanie says that it was worth it even though it hurt alot
5-7-98 Does Melanie have a fourth tattoo?? That's what a group of Mel C fans and I are tryng to decide. It is located on her stomach just below her belly button. What does it say??? Angel? Lager? Augur? For more information go to 100% Melanie C (see links page). There are pictures, and more info about what Chris thinks it says.