THE lips give it away. James Jagger, the son of Rolling Stone Sir Mick Jagger, is unmistakeable as he prepares to walk down the catwalk.
Much to his father’s chagrin, Jagger Jr, 18, is following his mother, Jerry Hall, 47, and his sister, Elizabeth, 20, into a modelling career. Jade, his half-sister — daughter of Bianca — is also a leading model.
Sir Mick is said to be unhappy that another of his privately educated children should choose the same route. But James has told friends he is dropping his ambition to become an actor to take up modelling instead.
He has signed onto the books of Models 1, where his mother has been a star name for more than a decade. He has posed for promotional campaigns by Tommy Hilfiger fragrance, Pepe jeans and Burberry. But next month he takes his first tentative steps down the catwalk in a show for the fast-rising British designer Kim Jones.
Jones, 30, who has already opened a shop in Japan, is staging his first menswear collection in the Paris ballroom chosen by Alexander McQueen to present his designs in the form of a dazzling dance marathon last year.
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The young Jagger will sashay down the catwalk underneath the chandeliers of the 19th century Salle Wagram. He has been recruited for the show by Leah Wood, daughter of the Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood.
Jones, who says he is inspired by youth culture, said: “It is my first menswear show in Paris. We will have 40 models. We haven’t decided what James will be modelling yet. It could be anything from Savile Row-tailored suits to casualwear, but it will be cool to have him on the catwalk.”
Buyers from America and Japan are flying in especially for the presentation. Claudia Croft, fashion editor for The Sunday Times Style section, said: “It will be a super-cool show. Jones is very edgy and trendy. James could not have chosen a better baptism.”
A friend of Jagger said: “He was invited to audition for a film the other week but he turned it down. Perhaps he has seen a video of his dad’s performance as Ned Kelly and decided that acting doesn’t run in the blood.”
Jagger Jr had his first taste of modelling at a charity fashion show at Stowe, his public school, three years ago. By turning to modelling, he is joining a host of other celebrity offspring in the fashion industry.
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Riley Keogh, 14, daughter of Lisa Marie Presley and granddaughter of Elvis, has inherited the family pout and modelled clothes for Dolce & Gabbana in Milan. She has joined Elizabeth Jagger at the IMG agency.
Theodora Richards, 19, and her sister Alexandra, 17, daughters of the Stones guitarist Keith Richards and his wife Patti Hansen, a supermodel in the 1970s, have appeared in advertisements for the perfume Shalimar Light.
Jennifer Nicholson, the daughter of actor Jack Nicholson, and Stella McCartney, the daughter of former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, are both fashion designers.
Kimberly Stewart, 24, daughter of singer Rod Stewart, is a model and a budding designer.
But Sir Mick appears to have an aversion to his children modelling clothes. A row over daughter Elizabeth becoming a model at 14 was one of the causes of his split from Texas-born Jerry Hall. Elizabeth is now dating Sean Lennon, son of John, the Beatle.
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Hall was only 14 when she ran off to Paris to embark on a modelling career. She appeared on album covers by the rock group Roxy Music and became the girlfriend of its singer, Bryan Ferry, before leaving him for Jagger. Hall’s catwalk career lasted 26 years.
If James Jagger’s choice of career annoys his father, it won’t be first time he has shown a rebellious spirit. Last year he set up speakers on the roof of his mother’s £6m house in Richmond, southwest London, and staged a five- hour party.
His father, who lives nearby, said he was angry with James. Not because the noise annoyed the neighbours but because his son did not invite him.
Last year Jagger Jr, who has dated Alexandra Richards, was named one of the most eligible people in British society by Tatler magazine.
A Models 1 spokesman said: “Now school is out James is deciding what he wants to do. He is very handsome and makes a very good model.”