Mandy Smith has undergone quite a transformation, says Jenny Johnston in the London Daily Mail. Back in the 1980s, she was London’s most visible wild child—a teenager who spent her nights in clubs, hanging off the arms of rock stars such as Bill Wyman of the Rolling Stones. Today, nearly 40, she is a devout Catholic who spends her time working with young people in Manchester.
She is, she says, frequently shocked by the sexualization of the girls she meets (“I try to say to them: ‘Hold on, you don’t have to do this’”), and reckons the age of consent should be raised to 18. “I don’t think most 16-year-old girls are ready. I know, I know, people will find that odd, coming from me. But I think I do know what I’m talking about. You can never get that part of your life, your childhood, back.”
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