Photo by Alison Jackson/REX (2606072r) Catherine Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and baby lookalikes in the bath Royal lookalikes – 2013
Meet Alison Jackson, a photographer who creates brash and convincing shots of celebrity lookalikes doing everyday things.
Jackson’s latest production features a fake Prince William and Duchess Kate giving their royal baby a bubble bath. Speaking with Metro, the photographer says her work explores the modern obsession with voyeurism and asks our reporter to assist in recruiting more lookalikes.
Metro: Your recent spoof photos of William and Kate enjoying a bubble bath with baby George have generated a lot of buzz – one is front page on a leading British national paper. Are you surprised?
Jackson: I never expected to get such a positive public response to this set of images, especially on the eve of Prince George’s christening – a private, solemn, religious affair. But we all have a fascination with what goes on behind the closed doors of celebrities’ lives. The royals will never allow media intrusion, so we can only imagine what they do privately. Especially with [commoner] Kate in the monarchy, we want to know what kind of lives they lead.
Your photos show celebrities doing normal things, like going on a picnic or washing the dishes. But they turn out to be a bit absurd and awkward…
You say awkward but I’m positive they do the exact same things as we do in our everyday lives. Ultimately with my photographs, I want to burst a bubble constructed within the media that celebrities don’t lead normal private lives. What we are all dreaming to see is what they do. We’re incredibly voyeuristic, and I want to break this one big construct.
So, your photos are fulfilling our deep fantasies?
[Laughs] Definitely. I mean, I want celebrities to have both normal and fascinating private lives. The royal family seems to be great fun, especially Prince Harry. And I hope that they are up to no good.
Do you have many impersonators at your service?
I have a stash of them. I have five great Kate lookalikes, but one in particular is a dead ringer – she’s identical in photographs taken from all angles. I have a great lookalike for Prince William and Queen Elizabeth. Funnily enough, I have never found a lookalike for her husband Prince Philip. Oh, and I am now looking for a Miley Cyrus lookalike. I’m always searching, so if you do know someone, I would be very grateful if you could contact me.
I can’t think of anyone I know who’s the spitting image of Miley.
They don’t need to look absolutely spot-on. I mean, I can get her to wear a wig or something.
Who’s your next spoof photoshoot focusing on?
Next week, I’m flying back to London [from Los Angeles] to do one with a (German Prime Minister) Angela Merkel lookalike – I’m branching out of England and the U.S., leaping into other countries and personalities as it were. But generally speaking, politicians are slightly boring at the moment. I hate to admit it, but I miss Tony Blair and George W. Bush, satirically of course, because of their strong personalities. Obama and Cameron are not so interesting for me.
And what project would you love to do in the future?
Simon Cowell’s baby when it’s born. I wonder if it will have that lovely quiff Simon has [laughs].
For more details on Alison Jackson and her work, visit www.alisonjackson.com. More information can also be found on Twitter @AlisonJackson and www.facebook.com/AlisonJacksonOnline.
