By Sally Hastings
Hairdressing salons must be hubs of gossip. Women like to have pretty= hairdos and they also like to gossip. When they meet at hairstyling sal= ons, they gossip.
They gossip about themselves, friends, relatives, neighbours, celebri= ties and many other people and things. They also like to read gossip abo= ut celebrities, in magazines at home and in hairdressing salons.
Have you ever wondered what gossip you might hear in a hair salon ful= l of women celebrities?
Wendy Iles: No. Are you asking me?
Sally: That was just my rhetorical question but, yes, I am asking you= what gossip you hear from celebrities while you style their hair.
Wendy: Well =E2=80=A6
Sally: You know. You style the hair of leading movie and television a= ctors, top fashion models and other celebrities.
Wendy: Yes, but -
Sally: Well just what do Hilary Swank, Penelope Cruz, Monica Bellucci= , Frieda Pinto and celebrities like that gossip about in your salon?
=Wendy: Well, I don’t serve people like that in a salon, only in= private at their homes or their business premises. I’m based in P= aris and I serve clients mainly in Paris, London, New York and Hollywood= .
Sally: Who are the celebrities you serve?
Wendy: Those charming people you just mentioned are among the celebri= ties I serve.
Sally: Who else, for example?
Wendy: Eva Longoria, of “Desperate Housewives” on televis= ion, Maggie Chung, of the movie “In the mood for love”, Magg= ie Gyllenhaal, Dita von Tesse, Charlotte Rampling =E2=80=A6
Sally: What do you chat about while you are styling their hair?
Wendy: We engage in cordial conversation to pass the time pleasantly = while I’m working on their hair.
Sally: I mean do you hear about Penelope Cruz’s secret romance = with or rumoured engagement that other actor, Monica Bellucci’s re= vealing video on YouTube, or Hilary Swank’s new, multi-million-dol= lar apartment in New York?
Wendy: You seem to know a lot of gossip about celebrities.
Sally: I learn about them by reading women’s magazines, watchin= g celebrity news shows on TV, following postings about celebrities on th= e web and receiving news feeds by email.
Wendy: Do you learn much about celebrities by listening to gossip at = a hair salon?
Sally: No =E2=80=A6 What do they tell you?
Wendy: Not too much. I don’t ask my clients personal or prying =
questions. It=C2=A0
really depends on the day what they feel like =
revealing or speaking=C2=A0
about. They will lead all conversation=
s. I allow them to set the tone.
Sally: I understand: you’re their hairstylist, not a psychologi= st. You fix what’s on the head, not what’s going on inside i= t.
Wendy: Sometimes they are just exhausted and prefer silence.
Sally: I hear you are shooting commercials with famous movie director= Martin Scorsese in Los Angeles. What have you to say about that?
Wendy: Well, the beauty campaign is very new so no words on that unti= l it’s released. I’m pleased to be working on such a nice pr= oject with such a charming man as Mr Scorsese. I feel honoured to be wor= king alongside such an iconic film director as he.
Sally: That’s good news but do you hear of any scandals or secr= ets about other celebrities, any sensational or embarrassing revelations= ?
Wendy: Not really. Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you, not even= in a whisper.
Sally: Would you tell me anything like that off the record?
Wendy: No. It would not be professional or ethical for me to tell any= body anything I happened to learn about my clients. I don’t do tha= t. It’s like a doctor doesn’t talk to one patient about anot= her, because that would not be right. He wouldn’t say, “Do y= ou know your neighbour, Mrs Soandso, suffers from in-gown toenails? So I= wouldn’t tell you if actress Whatshername failed to win a lead ro= le in a film because on the day of an audition she suffered an attack of= unruly follicles.
Sally: So your client’s never tell you any personal secrets or = society news?
Wendy: Oh, a client may share a little secret with me at sometime. On= e delightful client who I’ve been serving for many years told me t= he other day, “Wendy, you’re the best hairstylist I know but= I never recommend you to my friends.” When I asked why, she expla= ined, “Because then their hairstyles would look as good as mine!= 8221;
Sally: Who was she?
Wendy: That’s confidential.
Sally: Still I