A nude model and a linguist Roslyn Fuller is a very unusual writer indeed. She tells Hot Press why the Irish need to loosen up.
Perhaps we Irish aren’t as liberated as we’d like to imagine ourselves. That’s the only logical conclusion to be drawn from a conversation with novelist, PhD student and nude model Roslyn Fuller, who insists that most, if not all, of the nude models working here are actually foreign nationals!
In fact, there appears to be less than a dozen nude ‘art’ models here, and they are predominantly of Eastern European extraction. Apart from being a published author, the Canadian-born Fuller, presents a show on an internet radio station and – to paraphrase James Bond – is a ‘cunning linguist’ who passed the First Bar Exams in Germany!
“A lot of people see me and they don’t realise that I have a brain at all! Growing up, I was always perceived as the smart one, so it’s funny how suddenly you go from being the smart one to the sexy one! You can be both of course! So far, there has been no reaction to my modelling in Trinity because I don’t think they know! But I think they’ll find out now after this appears in Hot Press!” she laughs.
Roslyn, who moved to Ireland two years ago after almost seven years in Germany, reckons one of the reasons why she is so in demand as a nude model here is because Irish women are simply too inhibited for this line of work.
“There are maybe between five and ten people who do nude modelling in Ireland ,”she says. “I think I’m probably the most popular because partly there are few, if any, Irish girls who will do it as they’re afraid of friends and neighbours seeing them naked in a photograph.
“People presume I’m a little bit of a slut because I do nude modelling,” she adds. “Irish people are very prudish on the surface, but not underneath it – probably less so than Germans or Austrians who are very open on the surface but, in the end, they take things a lot more seriously. To be honest, everyone should try it because, I think, a lot of people have a really bad perception of how they look. They think they look terrible but they don’t, they just haven’t been photographed by a really good photographer.”
Roslyn is critical of what the late Katy French once described in Hot Press as ‘dolly bird’ modelling syndrome in this country. When asked for her thoughts on Irish models parading around in bikinis for photoshoots, Roslyn states: “It looks so ’50s! It reminds me of a game show or something. When I came here I saw models in magazines and, I thought, ‘Good Lord! They don’t have any ability for expression’. I’m more into art than commercials really – obviously to do commercial you have to be pushing a product and I’m not precisely a huge fan of rampant consumerism, anyway. I like to make really good photos.
“Also, there are some people who do nude modelling that think all you have to do is strip off naked – but that’s just the beginning. You have to be able to express yourself in the photo. And you have to be able to do it at a drop of a dime, even if you are feeling really awful about yourself. You have to understand what people find sexy and communicate that. That’s what a photo is about – it should say something to the viewer. It’s not just a naked chick – that’s just porn.”
Speaking of porn, has she ever done it?
“Sure, people ask me to do porn, but I just tell them, ‘No, thank you!’” she reveals. “You do get what you the Irish call ‘dirty old men’ emailing, pretending to be photographers, but you can just tell by the way they’re talking that they don’t know what they’re talking about. I just try to be polite and say, ‘Thank you, but I’m very busy right now’. While I would never do porn, I’d like the chance to have some hot pictures in a high-circulation mag. Girlie, not-girlie, whatever. Hot picture of me, that’s the bottom line. I wouldn’t be completely averse to it. It would depend on how you’re portrayed. Are you really just portrayed as a total sex object of some replaceable bimbo with breast implants? Or are you more of a person? You can be a sex object or a sex subject – they are two different things.”
At 5ft 2”, Roslyn is small: she’d struggle to find work in the fashion industry.
“My height goes against me big time,” she complains. “There really is height discrimination. It really ticks me off. I always get the reaction, ‘I thought you’d be taller!’ It just seems so stupid to me. Why do you have to be tall? I understand you have to be tall for fashion modelling, because designers cut their clothes that way. For anything else – who cares?”
Roslyn’s debut novel Isak, which received positive reviews on its release in Canada and Germany in 2006, dealt with the issue of international terrorism in a futuristic setting. She is currently working on her second novel, Frustration of Line, which deals with the issue of hedonism and non-conformism from a female perspective.
“I maybe shouldn’t say that my character in Frustration of Line is a slut, but rather that she’s very independent in a sexual way. I personally think that feminism has experienced some reversals in the last decade or so – you only need to look at the copious amounts of chicklit with which women stultify their brains and the overemphasis on alleged ‘glamour’ to see this. Not that there’s anything wrong with being glamorous, but you should do it to please yourself and not anyone else, least of all some guy. It’s better to have people’s respect than their approval.”
While working on her new book, Roslyn has spent a lot of time pondering sex.
“The only real turn-on in life is passion. Nothing else matters and anyone who tells you otherwise is a poser. In my humble opinion, so long as you have some sort of genuine relationship with whoever you are fucking, and they are a fairly trustworthy person – i.e. not selfish and not a backstabber – and you’re both making an effort, then it can’t go wrong,” she reveals.
“Like, you can read what a person is thinking from their face – by the same token, it’s not hard to figure out their body once you’re screwing. I find that it’s best in life just not to bother with expectations or have any hard and fast ideas of what you like or don’t like (in bed). Fucking obviously depends on who you’re fucking – so whatever you like or don’t like, or whatever, is going to depend on the relationship you have with whoever you’re screwing. It follows from that, not the other way around. And I’ve never had to fake an orgasm in my life. That’s all I have to say. Far from it. So my philosophy has served me well.”
Roslyn is a member of the Irish Writers’ Exchange group who meet every second Tuesday evening at the Gresham Hotel. Coincidentally, all members are a cosmopolitan bunch of ex-pat females residing in Dublin.
“We don’t mean to be a group of immigrants or just women, so if there are any Irish people out there – especially any Irish guys – some of our members would be particularly interested in you! We basically got together to support each other in our writing.
“A lot of our writing is quite different than what a lot of Irish people would write,” she says. “Probably a lot more alternative and a lot more controversial.”
Roslyn Fuller is giving a workshop on self-publishing at the Irish Writers’ Centre, Parnell Square, Dublin 1, on March 14 between 10am and 4pm. Tickets cost €70 per person. For booking contact the Irish Writers’ Centre: Tel. 01-872-1302 or email info@writerscentre.ie.
For further information on her modelling log onto her website:
www.roslynfuller.com. For more on the Irish Writers Exchange see:
www.irishwritersexchange.com
Though unknown in his homeland, Irish writer Ian Gibson is celebrated in his adopted Spain, particularly for his books about the poet Lorca – widely known for being Leonard Cohen’s chief literary inspiration – and Salvador Dali. In a fascinating interview, Gibson discusses falling foul of the Franco regime, Dali’s wild hedonistic excesses, his role in getting corporal punishment banned in the UK, his interest in sadomasochism, Irish attitudes to sex – and why he both loves and despairs of Spain.
Read More
Having rowed solo across the Atlantic in under 50 days, Gavan Hennigan is one of Ireland’s most remarkable athletes. But that’s just the start of his extraordinary life story – which encompasses a strained relationship with his troubled father, addiction and recovery, working at one of the world’s most dangerous jobs, traversing the globe in numerous adventure challenges, and coming to terms with his sexuality.
Read More
In 2011, Jason O’Toole carried out an interview with Martin McGuinness that was never published. Here, we draw on that interview, as well others conducted for Hot Press, to paint a fascinating picture of the late leader of Sinn Féin in Northern Ireland, in all of his complications.
Read More Featured in the new issue of Hot Press, Gavan gives a revelatory new interview with Senior Editor Jason O'Toole.
Read More
Our man Jason O'Toole had to hum 'Whiter Shade Of Pale' before he was let into the Deputy First Minister's office!
Read More Our man Jason O'Toole had to hum 'Whiter Shade Of Pale' before he was let into the Deputy First Minister's office!
Read More Our man Jason O'Toole had to hum 'Whiter Shade Of Pale' before he was let into the Deputy First Minister's office!
Read More
Based in Wicklow for nearly 50 years, legendary film director John Boorman is celebrated for classics like Point Blank and Deliverance. In a fascinating interview, he reflects on the making of those movies, his experiences in Hollywood, the changing face of Ireland, coping with personal trauma, mortality – and his recently published debut novel, Crime Of Passion.
Read More
Fidel Castro has passed away, and relations between Cuba and the United States have thawed somewhat. But it would be wrong to expect things in Havana to change overnight – not least because the spirit of the revolution remains strong and resolute. That is the clear message from the Cuban ambassador to Ireland, Hermes Herrera Hernández – a man who knew both Fidel himself and Che Guevara, and who insists that “many people in the world, if they knew exactly what is happening, would like to have the same level of human rights that we do in Cuba.”
Read More
John Boyne had already penned a clutch of novels when he wrote his first book for young adults. Published in 2006, The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas went on to become a literary phenomenon, selling seven million copies. But behind that remarkable success lies a very different kind of life story. Now, with the publication of his latest novel, The Heart’s Invisible Furies, the best-selling writer feels that he can talk honestly and openly about his past: about growing up in Ireland, his sexuality, the break-down of his civil partnership, depression, drinking and a lot more besides.
Read More
With no background in politics, and a paltry five weeks to canvass, he was first elected to the Dáil in 2011 as an Independent. Since then, he co-founded and then left the Social Democratic Party. Throughout all of this, he has retained a boyish enthusiasm and a sense of humour – which is unusual in Irish politics. So what lies behind the cheerful demeanour and liberal attitudes of the TD for Wicklow? Well, he’s a long-time fan of Hot Press for a start…
Read More
Dexys Midnight Runners’ hit single may not have been written about him, but there’s lots of reasons right now to chant the name of the People Before Profit TD, Gino Kenny. Chief among them is the fact that he has got a Bill legalising cannabis for medicinal purposes through its first stage in the Dáil – an extraordinary achievement for a man who only became a TD in February 2016.
Read More
U2 fans will get the chance to party away in the company of a great tribute band at a special two night event being organised at The Church Bar venue in Dublin on the weekend of the historic Croke Park gig to celebrate the seminal classic album 'The Joshua Tree' in July, it has just been announced.
Read More
Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly tell us what Leonard meant to him during his Long Kesh incarceration...
Read More
Christy Dignam bravely opened up in an extensive interview with Jason O'Toole back in October.
Read More
Kerry TD Danny Healy-Rae sat down with Jason O'Toole back in September for an extraordinary interview on his religious and political views.
Read More
Just ahead of the US Presidential elections, Jason O'Toole caught up with the former Miss Universe Ireland, who went to the States to take part in the Trump-led international beauty competition, to talk about modelling, politics and cuisine.
Read More Amnesty International is not banned from any primary schools in the Waterford district – despite a letter being circulated that appears to claim otherwise, the Catholic Church diocese of Waterford and Lismore has insisted today.
Read More
An Irish company’s cheerful little product is receiving some major international exposure thanks to Kourney Kardashian.
Read More
The O’Donovan brothers’ humorous comments about their brilliant silver medal achievement at the Rio Games has been voted as the most memorable Irish sporting moment of 2016.
Read More
President-elect Donald Trump took to twitter yesterday to attack Vanity Fair’s editor after the magazine gave one of his restaurants a negative review in their latest edition to just hit the newsstands.
Read More
Paul McCartney’s critically acclaimed 1989 album ‘Flowers in the Dirt’ is to be reissued next March, it has been confirmed.
Read More
A video has just been uploaded onto YouTube of The Boss getting a packed Carnegie Hall into the festive mood with some Christmas tunes at Sting’s biennial Rainforest Fund benefit gig.
Read More
Lady Gaga’s fans will no doubt have a million reasons to be excited to learn that the latest music video from her new album ‘Joanne’ has just been uploaded on YouTube.
Read More Some of the most influential figures in the music industry are urging President-elect Donald Trump to radically shake-up laws concerning intellectual property rights.
Read More
Outgoing US President Barack Obama has said that he will not be afraid to air his views when Donald Trump is in the White House.
Read More
Virgin Media’s Irish customers can now watch all their favourite Netflix shows seamlessly on their TV using their Netflix subscription on Virgin Media’s Horizon TV service.
Read More
Ten websites that are believed to best record “Irish life in 2016 and remember the events of 1916” as chosen in a public vote have been revealed by the National Library of Ireland.
Read More
Arcade Fire’s powerful live performance of ‘Reflecktor’ in London back in 2014 has just been uploaded on the Internet as a preview of the band’s new two-disc DVD/Blu Ray concert and documentary, which will be released on 27 January.
Read More
Ex-Take That star Robbie Williams has reached out to One Direction singer Zayn Malik, urging him to be strong in the aftermath of his debilitating anxiety that forced him to cancel some upcoming shows.
Read More The original Netflix series The OA, which is from visionaries Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij (Sound of My Voice, The East), will air on the online streaming service from 16 December.
Read More
Elton John has teamed up with YouTube to give you the opportunity to create a brand new pop video for one of his seminal classic tracks.
Read More
Music icon Bob Dylan said it was a great honour to receive “such a prestigious prize” – but confessed that he always thought he’d just about the same chance of going to the moon as he did of being the first singer-songwriter to be deemed a worthy enough winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Read More
He’s best known for tearing musicians apart with his outspoken criticism on The X-Factor, but Simon Cowell had nothing but praise for Louis Tomlinson after the 1D superstar found the inner strength to go on with the show and perform his new single just days after his mother lost her battle with leukaemia.
Read More Tina Fey has opened up about how she believes that Donald Trump’s negative presidential campaign and his shock victory has alarmingly fueled an increased level of misogyny in the US.
Read More
It’s 18 years since we last hard new material by the Scottish band, but The Jesus and Mary Chain has just confirmed that they will be releasing a new studio album early next year.
Read More
Fourteen “enterprising teens”, ranging in age from 12 to 17, had an audience with the Minister for Employment and Small Business, Pat Breen when he visited their school in Wicklow yesterday to launch a new teacher resources package to help support the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Read More
As most of the world stayed up late watching the dramatic US presidential election count unfold, the First Lady Michelle Obama has now revealed that she was tucked up in her White House bed fast asleep!
Read More
Best-selling author Stephen King has dismissed any criticism of Bob Dylan becoming the first singer-songwriter to win the Nobel Prize for Literature as nothing more than “just plain old sour grapes”.
Read More Fiona Apple has put an anti-Donald Trump spin on a cover version of a classic Christmas song!
Read More
Ryan Adams has opened up about having to force himself to "keep my chin up" while recording his new album because his marriage was coming to an end at the same time.
Read More
Lady Gaga has courageously spoken on US national television about how she has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder since enduring the horrible ordeal of being raped as a teenager.
Read More
Composer Patrick Cassidy and actor Patrick Bergin are teaming up to perform a concert at St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin in aid of The Friends of St. Luke’s Cancer Care on 14 December from 8pm – 9:30pm.
Read More
Internationally acclaimed soprano Celine Byrne – who was recently asked to perform for Pope Francis – will end the year on a high note with a Christmas Gala at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre in Dublin on 18 December.
Read More
The annual summer literature festival in Kells, County Meath will rebranded as the ‘Hinterland Festival’ in 2017, it has just been announced.
Read More
It’s not set for a US cinema release until next May, but a brand new teaser trailer for Marvel’s eagerly awaited Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 has just been put up on YouTube.
Read More “Do not deceive yourselves: Trump is no ordinary conservative Republican. He is the closest thing to Hitler Americans have ever seen.” That’s the stark warning from an Associate Professor of US History at Trinity College Dublin.
Read More
Madonna has spoken about her anger and dismay over President-elect Donald Trump’s shock defeat of Hillary Clinton in the race for the White House.
Read More
It’s hard to believe that it’s exactly 20 years since Will Smith’s hit TV show came to an end, but Netflix is now bringing all six seasons of ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ to the streaming service on New Year’s Eve for its Irish members.
Read More
Actor Andrew Sachs has died at the age of 86 following a four year battle with dementia, it was confirmed late last night.
Read More
Drake was the most popular musician played on Spotify for the second year running in 2016 with an astronomical 4.7 billion streams on the music service.
Read More
It looks like selfie sticks – along with more than a dozen other “undesirable items” – could be banned when Chris Martin and Co takes to the stage in Croke Park next summer, as part of their world tour.
Read More
FANS of the popular US sitcom Friends will certainly be disheartened to hear that Jennifer Aniston feels a reunion movie or TV show will never happen.
Read More
Bernie Sanders has confessed that he's left wondering "what if" if it was him instead of Hillary Clinton who ran against Donald Trump.
Read More
It’s hard to believe that Neil Diamond is celebrating his 50th anniversary since he became a household name with his first major hit single with ‘Solidarity Man’ all the way back in 1966.
Read More
It appears that the door is now finally being opened to making cannabis legal for medicinal purposes in Ireland.
Read More
Star Wars fanatics are in for a treat.Twitter has teamed up with Disney and People magazine to live steam an exclusive special ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' event with a behind-the-scenes sneak peek from the hugely anticipated new movie on Friday.
Read More
Nirvana, R.E.M., Elvis, Rod Stewart, along with David Bowie and Prince - who both sadly passed away this year - are among 25 artists going to have one their songs inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, it has been announced.
Read More
The critically acclaimed musical ‘The Train’, which is inspired by a remarkable true story involving a former Hot Press writer and has a score composed by Bill Whelan of Riverdance fame, is to be staged at The Abbey next spring.
Read More The rumour mill has gone into overdrive with recent speculation that the First Lady Michelle Obama was planning to run for the presidency in the future. But outgoing US President Barack Obama has now debunked the notion of his wife making history by becoming the first woman elected to the White House
Read More
Ex-Take That star Robbie Williams has bravely admitted that he started taking anti-depressants this year after a “weird summer”.
Read More
Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher has revealed that she still loves her ex-husband’s music – even if she feels he has personally insulted her in some of his lyrics.
Read More
The US's First Lady-elect is threatening YouTube with a major lawsuit over a video on its site that claims her son Barron is autistic.
Read More Lady Gaga wore her heart on her sleeve on Sunday in an interview on US TV in which she touched on the subject of love following her break-up with actor Taylor Kinney after being together for five years.
Read More
There will be a vigil to mark the death of Fidel Castro in Dublin this evening (Monday, 28, November) at 6.30pm at The Spire on O'Connell Street, according to a tweet put out yesterday by Sinn Féin's newspaper, An Phoblacht.
Read More
RTÉ has announced a new partnership with the RTÉ Choice Music Prize for next year's event, which will see both RTÉ2 and RTÉ 2FM play a lead role in supporting what has become one of the highlights of the Irish musical calendar as part of a new agreement.
Read More
Hothouse Flowers are riding high in the iTunes charts with one of their old hit singles – and it’s all thanks to Jeremy Clarkson and Co’s new Amazon online streaming show, ‘The Grand Tour.’
Read More
Irish superstar Niall Horan might be focusing on his solo career right now, but he’s confident One Direction will reform in the future. “We’ll be back,” the Mullingar native vowed yesterday, which the band’s fans will surely be thrilled to hear.
Read More
President Michael D. Higgins leads the Irish tributes this morning to the breaking news of the death of former Cuban leader, Fidel Castro.
Read More
Gilmore Girls makes its much-anticipated return today on Netflix with four memorable chapters from the lives of Lorelai, Emily, Rory... and many more stalwarts from the fictional small town of Stars Hollow.
Read More
Popular radio DJ Nikki Hayes has bravely revealed that she gave up alcohol last year because of its negative side effects of being mixed with medication to deal with a mental health condition.
Read More
To help celebrate Thanksgiving, Aretha Franklin was invited to sing the American national anthem before yesterday’s big football game between Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings at the Ford Field stadium.
Read More
It’ll probably come as no surprise to hear that the teenager filmed being hit by the Canadian popstar prior to one of his gigs on Tuesday is now planning to take legal action.
Read More Media reports that Elton John is set to perform at President-elect Donald Trump’s Inauguration ceremony are “not true,” according to a spokesperson for the British star.
Read More Vladimir Putin’s top media advisor in the Kremlin has used disgusting racial slurs to attack US President Barack Obama on the state-owned national television.
Read More
The French composer’s new single Oxygène Pt. 17 has just been stuck up on YouTube without any fanfare, shortly ahead of his much anticipated new album on 2 December.
Read More
Justin Bieber lashed out at a fan shortly before going on stage for his “Purpose World Tour” concert in Barcelona last night.
Read More The USA might have had a very different President-elect right now – if it wasn’t for the fact that Donald Trump's grandfather was booted out of Germany, according to a legal decree that was recently discovered.
Read More
Ex-Neighbours star Jason Donovan says he would prefer if his teenage children wanted to experiment with drugs that they would do so in the more safe environment of the family home in front of him – describing it as a form of “reverse psychology”.
Read More
Phil Collins revealed back in 2015 that he was “no longer retired”... and now true to his word he plans "some comeback shows" next year.
Read More
Kanye West was forcibly taken to hospital for his own safety after suffering a "psychotic breakdown", according to US media reports.
Read More
Former Sex Pistol Steve Jones has opened up for the first time about being sexually abused by his stepfather in his autobiography.
Read More
A three-day auction of Marilyn Monroe’s personal and career items has just fetched a staggering $11million dollars, which is being described as a “another word record” for the LA-based Julien’s Auctions who organised the event.
Read More
The Police have been offered a whopping $9million US dollars to reform for a one-off festival in California next year, according to reports.
Read More
It’s hard to believe that it’ll be 25 years since Queen’s charismatic frontman was cruelly cut down in his prime this coming Thursday (24 November).
Read More
As part of the celebrations for the upcoming 50th anniversary of their debut album, the Grateful Dead have announced plans for a comprehensive reissue of their entire discography.
Read More Outgoing US President Barack Obama has for the first time revealed that he strongly warned President-elect Donald Trump that he should tone down some of his radical political stances during their chat at The White House last week.
Read More
The much-anticipated new show by ex-Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson is now uploaded for streaming. The first episode of the new show called 'The Grand Tour' – featuring hosts Clarkson, Hammond and May – premieres exclusively on fee-paying Amazon Prime Video today (Friday 18 November).
Read More
Defeated US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton gave her first public speech in which she not only opened up about her pain at her shock defeat, but she also made a rallying cry for young people not to get disillusioned with politics.
Read More
Fans of Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events look set to be in for a real treat if the exciting new trailer just put up on YouTube for an upcoming series created by the book's author himself is anything to go by.
Read More
It’s hard to believe how time flies. Jeff Buckley – who will probably be most fondly remembered for his haunting cover version of the late Leonard Cohen’s elegiac song ‘hallelujah’, which was released posthumously to much acclaim – would’ve been celebrating his 50th birthday today on 17 November … if only he hadn’t been taken away so tragically young at just 30-years-old.
Read More To paraphrase one of The Beatles’ most popular tunes ‘Don’t Let Me Down’, John Lennon definitely felt he had been let him down by his ex-band members - as demonstrated in an angry letter addressed to Sir Paul McCartney and his then wife Linda about the iconic band's split in 1970, which has resurfaced and will be auctioned off.
Read More
As one of his last acts in The White House before handing over its keys to Donald Trump, the outgoing US President Barack Obama will bestow the country’s top award of the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Bruce Springsteen at a ceremony on November 22.
Read More Mick Jagger says he believes the world is “mystified” by how TV reality star, billionaire Donald Trump is going to be the next president of America.
Read MoreFor information including benefits, key facts, figures and rates for advertising with Hot Press, click below
Advertise 
