Strictly star Claudia Winkleman's jaw-dropping natural look before trademark fringe and tan

TV presenter Claudia, 52, is a fashion queen with her well known look and sharp outfits. But while the BBC broadcaster has a very recognisable image, this wasn't always the case

Strictly Come Dancing host Claudia Winkleman is known for sticking to the same signature style.

For years, the presenter has had the same blunt, chunky fringe and mid-length brunette locks, which she usually wears straight but sometimes styles in soft waves. Claudia, 52, always pairs her iconic hairdo with dark eyeliner and fake tan and once said she "can't imagine ever getting rid of it".

She joked to Hello! magazine: "I haven't seen my forehead for about 15 years. I don't even know what's under my fringe - there could be squirrels, parrots - I've got no idea."

While the mum-of-three is certain about her image, in her younger days she looked very different - as our clip of her on Good Morning from 1996 reveals. In the video, the star's significantly longer brunette locks featured natural highlights and a side parting.

But it's today that Claudia feels happiest, saying it took her years to feel comfortable in her own skin. "There is something amazing about your late 40s," the Traitors presenter said a few years back. "In my 20s I was a bit angsty, in my 30s it was all about babies. But my 40s have been great, my late 40s even better."

The star is known for her style, dubbed the queen of high/low dressing for her sharp looks on Strictly. She usually opts for black outfits, matching her dark hair and make-up look.

Claudia's dresses and suits don't cost the earth - she cleverly mixes up designer and high street brands and isn't afraid of pre-loved clothing. The broadcaster recently wore a £20 blouse from H&M and another week, chose a pre-loved Victoria Beckham gown sourced from Amazon.

With her trademark wit, Claudia typically downplays her reputation for being a fashionista, comparing herself to a "male mature French student who's 52 and on his way to a physics lecture". She added that her hair was the "least of her worries", saying: "That's what I'm holding onto, everything else has gone to pot."

"I am burnt orange," Claudia once joked of her love for fake tan, saying that she felt better when she was "orange". "I will use anything for my fake tan. I would use gravy. I have used mud before. I will use a brown Sharpie.

"I don't think anybody should hold judgment. I have three tans a week for goodness sake."

The star admits her fake tan took a while to perfect, comparing her first visit to a tanning booth to a famous scene in Friends. "You've seen the episode of Friends when Ross gets sprayed in the eyes three times in a row and ends up the colour of teak?," the Strictly host told Get The Gloss in 2020. "My experience was worse. I had NEON hands and a very patchy face. Nice."