Biography
Who is Caroline Cossey?
Early life and transition
Caroline Cossey was born in Brooke, Norfolk, United Kingdom. She was assigned male at birth and later discovered she was born with XXXY syndrome. Her childhood involved feelings of confusion and bullying. She found companionship with her sister, Pam, and they often played dress-up together.
At fifteen, she left school to find work in a clothing store and as a butcher's apprentice. She eventually moved to London at age sixteen to pursue various jobs. She began her transition while employed as an usherette in the West End. By seventeen, she was receiving hormone therapy and working as a showgirl. She performed in Paris and Rome to save funds for surgery. Her final sex reassignment surgery occurred on 31 December 1974 at Charing Cross Hospital in London.
Modeling and acting career
Caroline began working as a model under the name Tula. She appeared in magazines such as Australian Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. She also worked as a glamour model and was a Page Three Girl for the British tabloid The Sun. In 1978, she won a part on the game show 3-2-1 but withdrew after a journalist threatened to expose her transition history.
She was cast as an extra in the 1981 James Bond film For Your Eyes Only. Following the release, the tabloid News of the World published a headline outing her as transgender. In 1985, she appeared in music videos for The Power Station, including Some Like It Hot and Get It On. She was later featured in the September 1991 issue of Playboy in a pictorial titled The Transformation of Tula.
Legal advocacy and writing
Caroline Cossey authored two autobiographies during her career. Her first book, I Am a Woman, was released in 1982. Her second and final autobiography, My Story, was published in 1991. These books detailed her personal experiences, her transition, and her legal challenges. She also campaigned for the right to marry and to be legally recognized as a woman in the United Kingdom.
She pursued legal efforts to change British law regarding transgender rights for seven years. Her case eventually reached the European Court of Human Rights. On 27 September 1990, the court overturned a prior decision, and transgender people in the United Kingdom did not gain the right to change their legal sex until the Gender Recognition Act 2004.
Personal relationships
Caroline met property investor Elias Simon Fattal in 1985. They married on 21 May 1989 at the Liberal Jewish Synagogue in London. The marriage was annulled after a tabloid article revealed her history to his family. She received no assets from this relationship. She later met David Finch, a Canadian engineer, in August 1991.
The two met by chance at the Brent Cross Shopping Centre in London. They maintained contact, and Finch proposed during a visit to Montreal later that year. The Toronto Star covered their engagement in 1992. Caroline and David Finch currently reside in Kennesaw, Georgia.
Birthday and age
Caroline Cossey was born on August 31, 1954, which makes Caroline 72 years old today. That birthday falls under the Virgo sign. Caroline shares the date with 45 other famous people.
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