What does it cost to look so young at 70? Cosmetic surgery experts analyse youthful appearances of Jane, Robert and Barbra
With their smooth faces and rictus smiles, they could be waxwork models.
When Robert Redford was reunited with Jane Fonda and Barbra Streisand on the red carpet this week, the trio looked a fraction of their years.
Jane, 77, had barely a wrinkle, 78-year-old Robert’s skin glowed and Barbra, 73, flaunted a crepe-free decolletage.
Here, cosmetic surgery experts analyse what they have most likely done — and spent — to stay youthful.
JANE FONDA, 77
ESTIMATED COST: £39,600 ($60,800) – PLUS £2,750 ($4,225) ANNUAL MAINTENANCE
Dermal filler
JANE FONDA: While others her age may suffer from saggy, crepe-like skin on the chin and neck, the 77-year-old boasts a smooth, silky decolletage
CHEEKS
Unlike her co-stars, Jane has admitted to having plastic surgery. In 2010, she said: ‘I’ve had work done on my chin and neck and had the bags taken away from under my eyes.’ Experts reckon she’s had replacement dermal fillers in her cheeks as recently as six months ago. These cost in the region of £800 ($1,230) and should be replenished every nine months.
‘Plastic surgery in the Eighties was more aggressive than it is now, involving pulling the skin and removing tissues,’ says Dr Costas Papageorgiou, a leading facial plastic surgeon in London’s Marylebone. ‘She may have had quite harsh work done then that she is trying to soften. She’s definitely had fillers in her cheeks to round them out.’
FOREHEAD
Even that soft fringe can’t disguise Jane’s line-free forehead. Closer inspection reveals not a single furrow on her brow.
Dr Ayham Al-Ayoubi, one of Britain’s leading plastic surgeons, from the London Medical and Aesthetic Clinic on Harley Street, says her grin gives the game away. ‘Jane has definitely had Anti-Wrinkle Injections in her forehead, as it’s so smooth and wrinkle-free — even when she’s smiling.’
To keep those stubborn lines away, she’d need to repeat this treatment, which costs £350 ($535), every four to five months.
NOSE
Seen here in profile, Jane has a small nose that is turned up at the end. Though it looks natural, Dr Al-Ayoubi says it bears clear marks of having been worked on.
‘The nasal bridge is extremely straight and the tip is very defined, so it looks artificial,’ he says. ‘I would say she’s had rhinoplasty [a nose job], whereby it has been reconstructed and made slightly smaller.’ Cost: £7,000 ($10,750).
EYES
Any other woman of her age would be drowning in crows’ feet, but Jane has only a speckling of fine lines around her eyes. This, says aesthetic and anti-ageing specialist Dr Sarah Tonks, suggests she’s had a blepharoplasty (eye lift) in her upper and lower eyelids.
‘This is when they cut the excess skin from her upper and lower lids to make it tighter around the eye. It has a lifting effect, getting rid of bags and dark circles.’ Cost: £5,000 ($7,650).
TEETH
Jane’s smile looks as if it hasn’t changed a bit since she starred with Robert in the 1967 romantic comedy Barefoot In The Park. But it’s unlikely her grin has remained so dazzling without help.
Dr Tim Bradstock-Smith, a leading cosmetic dentist at the London Smile Clinic, says: ‘Jane looks as if she’s had veneers to create her Hollywood smile. If these are upper and lower, they would cost in the region of £16,000 ($24,600).’
LIPS
‘If you look closely, you can see the shadow of the filler in her lips,’ says Dr Al-Ayoubi. ‘In other photographs, there are microscopic lumps visible, showing she’s had it relatively recently.’
Such fillers contain hyaluronic acid, a skin-plumping chemical found naturally in the body. Their effect is temporary, lasting up to six months, so maintaining this look requires repeated procedures, costing £450 ($690) a session.
CHIN AND NECK
While others her age may suffer from saggy, crepe-like skin on the chin and neck, Jane boasts a smooth, silky decolletage, which she shows off in her sparkling jacket. ‘It looks as if she’s had a face and neck lift — at least twice and maybe more,’ says Dr Tonks.
Taut skin is achieved by repeating the procedure, which costs £10,000 ($15,350), every five to ten years. ‘She’s gone for a more augmented look than the other two. Her skin should be drooping in this area — and this is normally a bad patch as it can’t be covered by make-up — but instead she looks phenomenal.’
ROBERT REDFORD, 78
ESTIMATED COST: £17,250 ($26,500) – PLUS £1,250 ($1,900) ANNUAL MAINTENANCE
Dermal fillers
ROBERT REDFORD: Even under stage make-up, the 78-year-old’s skin looks rosy and glowing
EARS
The skin around Robert’s earlobes appears to be pulled taut, instead of sagging towards his jowls. Dr Tonks says this is an area that can become ‘hollow’ as we age — and its plump, youthful appearance may be down to fillers.
This procedure, which costs £250 ($385) a time, would need to be repeated every nine months or the look will fade.
‘This area can end up looking hollowed out,’ she says. ‘Dermal fillers can make a big difference. Robert’s lower jaw and earlobes look smooth, suggesting this is what he has done.’
SKIN
Even under stage make-up, his skin looks rosy and glowing. Deep wrinkles, brown spots and hyperpigmentation that dapple the cheeks of men his age are conspicuously absent.
‘It’s likely he’s used prescription products from a private clinic to remove brown spots and retexturise his skin,’ says Dr Tonks. ‘He may also have applied a course of wrinkle relaxant over a number of months. It’s been done really well — he’s kept some of his wrinkles, the ones that give his face dynamism, and got rid of the ones that made him look old.’
Miles Berry, a leading consultant in cosmetic surgery with more than 20 years’ experience, says Robert may also have had a peel, which is when mild acid is applied to the skin to remove the top layer and reveal a younger surface underneath. ‘There’s not much evidence for a facelift, but his cragginess has certainly been reduced,’ he says. Cost: £1,000 ($1,535).
EYES
Those dreamy blue eyes made him a heart-throb in the Eighties, but as age crept in they began to droop at the edges. Dr Papageorgiou says Robert looks as if he’s had a lift to open out his eyes.
‘When men have an upper eyelift, surgeons remove the skin and soft tissue in the lid, which exposes the tarsal plate, a platform of skin above the eye.
‘Most men don’t have this on show, but men who undergo eye surgery do — and this can make the face look slightly feminine. Robert’s is subtle, but it’s definitely there, suggesting he’s had upper blepharoplasty.’ Cost: £3,000 ($4,600).
TEETH
Though his lips have thinned with age, he’s always been blessed with a winning smile and those perfectly white, symmetrical teeth still gleam. They may, of course, be falsies — but it’s more likely that image-conscious Robert has had dental work done to keep his teeth photocall ready.
Dentist Dr Bradstock-Smith says: ‘He looks as if he has had a set of veneers on his upper teeth — probably around eight in the upper arch.
‘He has chosen a more age appropriate shade than Jane, but the adolescent length of them, lack of wear and glossy shine give them away.’ Cost: £8,000 ($12,285).
CHIN
The fillers under his ears and wrinkle-relaxant in his cheeks detract attention from Robert’s lower face, but the chin is notorious for belying a person’s age.
Dr Tonks says he may have had an endoscopic neck lift to tighten the skin in this area and create a rugged, defined jawline, rather than a droopy jowl.
This procedure involves a small incision being made under local anaesthetic and the skin being pulled gently inwards and upwards. A tiny scar could be concealed under the chin — leaving everyone else none the wiser. And Robert may well have had more than one (roughly a decade apart) to maintain such a youthful appearance. Cost: £5,000 ($7,670).
BARBRA STREISAND, 73
ESTIMATED COST: £22,850 ($35,800) – PLUS £4,350 ($6,700) ANNUAL MAINTENANCE
Anti-Wrinkle Injections
BARBRA STREISAND: Like her co-stars, the 73-year-old’s wide-eyed look is most likely thanks to upper and lower eye lifts
FOREHEAD
With a forehead so smooth you could polish it and eyebrows that look as if they’re permanently fixed in position, Barbra’s expressionless appearance is characteristic of a cosmetic makeover.
‘In all likelihood she’s had Anti-Wrinkle Injections to erase her frown lines and crows’ feet,’ says surgeon Miles Berry. Repeat injections at £350 ($535) a session every four to five months are required to keep the skin smooth.
CHEEKS
Barbra’s face is less dewy than Jane’s, but her cheeks are just as smooth and plump. Dr Papageorgiou says her youthful glow appears to be down to repeated dermal fillers costing £800 ($1,230) once a year.
‘It’s given her something of the Madonna effect. There is simply too much filler in her mid-cheeks — she looks artificial, as if they’re permanently puffed out.’
EYES
Like her co-stars, Barbra’s wide-eyed look is most likely thanks to upper and lower eye lifts, which have removed the excess skin around her eye sockets and reduced fine lines. ‘If you look closely, you can see the shadow of the dermal fillers going down into the cheek area,’ says Dr Al-Ayoubi. Cost: £5,000 ($7,700).
NOSE
Barbra’s unique nose has always been her most notable feature and she has spoken about refusing a nose job at the age of 18. She worried surgery might affect her vocal cords — and to this day retains the strong profile that made her famous.
But facial expert Dr Papageorgiou suspects at some point she may have had a ‘mild reshaping’ of her nose, in the form of non-invasive rhinoplasty, where fillers are injected to get a smoother line in the nose. ‘It no longer has the hump in the bridge and the tip is less pronounced, so it looks as if she’s had something subtle done.’ Cost: £500 ($770).
MOUTH
Barbra’s lips have that full, bee-stung appearance often associated with an artificial filler. Dr Al-Ayoubi says the plump, V-shaped upper lip hints at Anti-Wrinkle Injections, at least in her top lip — which she would need to have redone every nine months to maintain their shape. Her smile conceals her teeth, but Dr Bradstock-Smith says glimpses of these show them to be ‘whiter and less crowded than when she was younger’. She has most likely had orthodontic work and whitening, costing £4,000 ($6,500).
DECOLLETAGE
Barbra has none of the crepe-like skin that haunts many a middle-aged woman’s neck and chest: hers is taut and line-free.
‘It looks as if she’s had some form of radio frequency skin treatment, which is when pulses of electromagnetic waves penetrate the skin, causing the underlying tissue to constrict,’ says Dr Tonks.
‘She may also have had a course of microneedling, which is the application of a device that delivers tiny needle pricks to the skin, mimicking its natural healing process.’
One course of six sessions can last up to a year.
Dr Papageorgiou adds: ‘You simply can’t achieve a neck and jawline that defined at her age without assistance. Non-invasive surgery to give that extra lift can have a really dramatic effect.’ Cost: £2,500 ($3,840).
BUST
A saggy bust is one of the most prominent signs of ageing in a woman, and Barbra’s is anything but. Dr Al-Ayoubi says she appears to have had a breast augmentation — more likely one to scoop and lift her bust. ‘It gives her a younger appearance,’ he says. Cost: £5,000 ($7,685).
Dr Ayham Al-Ayoubi – London Medical & Aesthetic clinic
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