Mar 6
Kylie Minogue and Helen Mirren Editions of Barbie Mark International Women's Day
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Last year's Song of the Summer chanteuse and one of England's most esteemed actresses now have Barbie dolls fashioned after them in celebration of International Women's Day.
"Dame Helen Mirren and Kylie Minogue are among eight women honored with their own Barbie likenesses," UK news outlet Sky reported.
Minogue, who saw international success with her dance floor anthem "Padam Padam" last summer, took to X (formerly Twitter) to celebrate her new Barbie, which is clad in red - much like Minogue herself was in the video for the song.
"Look at Padam Barbie!!!!" Minogue posted, along with several photos of herself with the doll.
"Baby Kylie would NOT believe this is happening right now," the singer added. Thank you @barbie @barbiestyle @Mattel 😘😘".
Dame Helen Mirren, for her part, declared herself "'absolutely blown away' by the news," Sky relayed.
"It's a very special thing and something I can add to my list of my favorite achievements - becoming a Dame of the British Empire, having an Oscar, having a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and having my own Barbie," the 78-year-old screen icon quipped. "I love that the Barbie doll is wearing one of my favorite-ever red carpet looks," she added.
"The one-of-a-kind doll recreates the outfit Dame Helen wore at Cannes last year: a cornflower blue gown by Del Core, and jewellery by Bulgari, along with blue hair and a fan," Sky detailed.
"The doll is also clutching a miniature Oscar statue, in recognition of Dame Helen's 2007 Academy Awards best actress win for The Queen," the outlet continued.
Six other women have been similarly honored, Sky detailed: "Canadian singer Shania Twain; German comedian and activist Enissa Amani; Mexican director, producer and screenwriter Lila Aviles; American artist, activist, author and producer Viola Davis; Japanese model Nicole Fujita; and content creator from the Tatuyo Amazonas indigenous community, Maira Gomez."
Sky recalled that past "role model" Barbies have "included likenesses of British Olympic skateboard medallist Sky Brown, COVID vaccine developer Professor Sarah Gilbert, sprinter Dina Asher-Smith, boxer Nicola Adams, tennis player Naomi Osaka and Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti."
The article explained that this time the special creations celebrate not just this year's International Women's Day, but Barbie's 65th anniversary.
Mattel executive Kim Culmone told People Magazine, "Girls in particular need to be able to see women telling their own stories, writing their own narratives, living out their own dreams, and we're happy to honor these women in celebration of Barbie's 65th."
Another Mattel exec, Lisa McKinight, told the magazine that the idea is to "use the brand to create likeness dolls of real women to give girls exposure to real people breaking through glass ceilings and achieving amazing things."
Added McKinight: "This year we're honoring an amazing group of women most notably known as storytellers, songwriters and actors because we believe that storytelling is such a critical way to inspire and communicate and help people appreciate the journeys that these amazing women have been through."
The Barbies are unique creations, awarded to inspirational women, but are not mass produced or available for purchase.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
