They say good things come in small packages – and Star girl Lily is the living proof. As one of Britain’s first wave of test tube babies, the Page 3 stunner was once so tiny she fitted in a petri dish.
IVF has hit the news in recent weeks thanks to Netflix film Joy, which tells the story of ‘miracle’ baby Louise Joy Brown. Here Lily tells MEG JORSH how the breakthrough brought happiness to her family…
Every year in the UK, tens of thousands of women give birth via IVF.
This medical marvel has changed the way we see infertility, from a life sentence to a condition that can often be treated. But it wasn’t like that back in 1996, when Lily was born. She was one of just 5,505 test tube babies delivered in the UK, to couples who may otherwise have given up hope of having children.
The procedure was even more gruelling than today, with each embryo getting just an 8% chance of survival. For the model’s parents, though, it was always worth the risk.
READ MORE: Frank Sinatra’s ‘cruel joke’ last meal was so sad he couldn’t finish all of it
READ MORE: Pop legend Kim Wilde feared ‘this is only going one way’ after painful health battle
(Image: INSTAGRAM)
“I’m not sure exactly what the health problem was, but my mum had problems carrying a baby without a miscarriage,” says Lily. “My brother was also a test tube baby – he’s 31 now. I was carried by my mum, it’s still my dad’s sperm and my mum’s egg.
“I have this little teddy bear that has ‘one in a thousand’ on it because me and my brother were some of the first babies to be born from this clinic.”
Their birth was only possible thanks to the pioneering work of Brit fertility boffins Patrick Steptoe, Robert Edwards and Jean Purdy. They invented the IVF process, which involves harvesting a woman’s eggs and fertilising them in a laboratory, then placing the resulting embryos in the womb.
(Image: INSTAGRAM)
In 1977, Bristol couple John and Lesley Brown signed up for the experimental procedure after nine years of trying to conceive. They welcomed daughter Louise Joy – the first ever test tube baby – on July 25, 1978.
Having struggled for the family they wanted so badly, they vowed to never take it for granted. And Lily’s parents may have felt the same. They remain very close to the beautiful blonde, who calls them unfailingly supportive.
The couple, from London, are proud of her career and her mum even helps out with her photoshoots.
(Image: Netflix)
“I think I’m so lucky,” she says. “In a world where everyone is trying to take advantage of young women, I have my mum with me for photoshoots.
“And my dad is really handy and really supportive, I’m just really lucky to have them both. They understand that it’s my life and my body to make my choices. Even though they gave me life and they wanted me, they raised me to be my own person.”
The 28-year-old has been a Page 3 favourite since 2015, when our photographer Jeany Savage spotted her working on the Chanel counter at London department store Harrods. She built up an army of fans with her eye-popping curves, including a 24in waist and 32GG boobs.
Lily, who boasts an impressive 4.1million Instagram followers, was a tomboy as a child and once dreamed of a career on the other side of the camera. She studied photography at college after leaving school at 16. But her modelling has opened up a new world of opportunities and she has become a real businesswoman.
“It’s hard work trying to figure out all the taxes and things, but it’s decent money,” she says.
“I’m in a fortunate position where I’ve built my career and I’ll keep going with it while I figure out what’s next.”
● Joy, starring Bill Nighy, Thomasin McKenzie and James Norton, is out now on Netflix.