# Miss World 1979

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Beauty pageant edition

Miss World 1979 Countries and territories which sent delegates and results for Miss World 1979[1][2][3] Date 15 November 1979 Presenters Esther Rantzen Sacha Distel Venue Royal Albert Hall, London, United Kingdom Broadcaster BBC Entrants 70 Placements 15 Debuts Lesotho Withdrawals Curaçao Dominica Saint Vincent Tunisia Returns Bolivia Guatemala Lebanon Panama Portugal Winner Gina Swainson[4] Bermuda Personality Anne-Marie Franke (Guam) Photogenic Karin Zorn (Austria) ← 1978 1980 →

**Miss World 1979**, the 29th edition of the [Miss World](/source/Miss_World) pageant, was held on 15 November 1979 at the [Royal Albert Hall](/source/Royal_Albert_Hall) in [London](/source/London), United Kingdom. The winner was [Gina Swainson](/source/Gina_Swainson) from Bermuda.[4] She was crowned by Miss World 1978, [Silvana Suarez](/source/Silvana_Suarez) of Argentina. First runner-up was [Carolyn Seaward](/source/Carolyn_Seaward) representing the United Kingdom and second runner-up was Debbie Campbell from Jamaica. Swainson was a first runner-up in [Miss Universe 1979](/source/Miss_Universe_1979), while Seaward was second runner-up in same pageant as the representative of England.

Live television coverage of the contest was largely abandoned by the [BBC](/source/BBC) as a result of a trade union dispute typical of the era in Britain, when sound engineers refused to work, and the [BBC](/source/BBC) decided shortly beforehand that it could not show live pictures without a commentary. The parade of the contestants in their national costumes and each of the entrants in their evening wear had been recorded the night before, so this was televised, followed later in the evening with the crowning of the winner with mute pictures narrated by [Ray Moore](/source/Ray_Moore_(broadcaster)).[5] A unscheduled repeat of *[Futtocks End](/source/Futtocks_End)* was televised to bridge the two segments. For later overseas transmission, a commentary was added to the silent pictures of the entire event, but the interviews with the final 7 contestants were never shown.

This edition marked the debut of Lesotho. And the return of Portugal, which last competed in [1973](/source/Miss_World_1973), Guatemala last competed in [1976](/source/Miss_World_1976) and Bolivia, Lebanon and Panama last competed in [1977](/source/Miss_World_1977). Curaçao, Dominica, Saint Vincent, Tunisia, withdrew from the competition for unknown reasons.

## Results

### Placements

Placement Contestant Miss World 1979 Bermuda – Gina Swainson[4] 1st Runner-up United Kingdom – Carolyn Seaward 2nd Runner-up Jamaica – Debbie Campbell 3rd Runner-up Australia – Jodie Anne Day 4th Runner-up Switzerland – Barbara Meyer Top 7 Austria – Karin Zorn[6] Brazil – Lea Silvia Dall'acqua[7] Top 15 Malaysia – Shirley Chew Mexico – Roselina Rosas Torres Panama – Lorelay de la Ossa Spain – María Dolores Forner Toro Trinidad and Tobago – Marlene Coggins United States – Carter Wilson Uruguay – Laura Rodríguez Delgado West Germany – Andrea Hontschik

## Contestants

Country Contestant Age Hometown Argentina Verónica Ivonne Gargani 19 Buenos Aires Aruba Vianca van Hoek 20 Oranjestad Australia Jodie Anne Day 18 Brisbane Austria Karin Zorn 18 Weiz Bahamas Deborah Major 20 Nassau Belgium Christine Cailliau 23 Brussels Bermuda Gina Swainson 21 St. George's Parish Bolivia Patricia Asbún 20 Santa Cruz de la Sierra Brazil Léa Sílvia dall’Acqua 20 Campinas Canada Catherine Mackintosh 23 Thunder Bay Cayman Islands Jennifer Jackson 21 George Town Chile Marianela Toledo 19 Santiago Colombia Rosaura Rodríguez 17 Cartagena Costa Rica Marianela Brealey 17 San José Cyprus Eliana Djiaboura 24 Nicosia Denmark Lone Jörgensen 18 Holstebro Dominican Republic Sabrina Brugal 18 Santo Domingo Ecuador Olba Padilla 18 Guayaquil El Salvador Ivette Lopez 19 San Salvador Finland Tuire Pentikäinen 23 Helsinki France Sylvie Parera 18 Marseille French Polynesia[a] Thilda Fuller 24 Pape'ete Gibraltar Audrey Lopez 21 Gibraltar Greece Mika Dimitropoulou 17 Athens Guam Anne-Marie Franke 18 Hagatna Guatemala Michele Domínguez 19 Guatemala City Holland Nannetje Nielen 22 Amsterdam Honduras Gina Maria Weidner 18 San Pedro Sula Hong Kong Mary Ng 21 Kowloon Bay Iceland Sigrún Sætran 24 Reykjavík India Raina Mendonica 22 Bombay Ireland Maura McMenamim 21 Dublin Isle of Man Kathleen Mary Craig 17 Douglas Israel Dana Feller 19 Tel Aviv Italy Rossana Serratore 18 Asti Jamaica Debbie Campbell[1] 17 Kingston Japan Motomi Hibino 19 Nagoya Jersey Treena Foster 21 Saint Helier Lebanon Jacqueline Riachi 19 Beirut Lesotho Pauline Essie Kanedi 22 Maseru Malaysia Shirley Chew 18 Kangar Malta Elena Christine Abela 17 Sliema Mauritius Maria Allard 24 Port Louis Mexico Roselina Rosas Torres 19 Durango City New Zealand Nikki Duckworth[8] 17 Hamilton Nigeria Helen Prest 20 Ibadan Norway Jeanette Aarum 20 Fredrikstad Panama Lorelay de la Ossa 19 Panama City Paraguay Martha Galli 19 Asunción Peru Magali Pérez-Godoy 18 Lima Philippines Josefina Francisco 18 Manila Portugal Ana Gonçalves Vieira 18 Lisbon Puerto Rico Daisy López 18 San Juan Singapore Violet Lee 20 Singapore South Korea[b] Hong Yeo-jin 21 Seoul Spain Dolores Forner 19 Madrid Sri Lanka Shamila Weerasooriya 17 Colombo Swaziland Gladys Carmichael 17 Manzini Sweden Ing-Marie Säveby 19 Stockholm Switzerland Barbara Mayer 21 Marly Thailand Tipar Suparbpun 22 Bangkok Trinidad and Tobago Marlene Coggins 21 San Fernando Turkey Şebnem Ünal[9] 18 Istanbul United Kingdom Carolyn Seaward 20 Yelverton United States Carter Wilson[3] 23 Harrisonburg United States Virgin Islands Jasmine Olivia Turner 17 Saint Croix Uruguay Laura Rodríguez 21 Montevideo Venezuela Tatiana Capote[2] 18 Barinas West Germany Andrea Hontschik 20 Berlin Western Samoa Danira Schwalger 19 Apia

## Notes

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Competed as Tahiti in the pageant

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Competed as Korea in the pageant

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-W.W._Gaunt_&_Sons_1987_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-W.W._Gaunt_&_Sons_1987_1-1) [*Jamaica*](https://books.google.com/books?id=7_fpD9s0V2AC&q=Miss+World+1981). W.I.L.I.P. series. W.W. Gaunt & Sons. 1987. p. 92. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9780245540240](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780245540240). They enthusiastically choose a Miss Jamaica Universe each May and a Miss Jamaica World each September And there are ... have been second runners-up in the Miss World finals — Debbie Campbell in 1979 and Sandra Cunningham in 1981.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-E!_2014_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-E!_2014_2-1) ["Miss World Competition Through the Years"](http://www.eonline.com/photos/14545/miss-world-competition-through-the-years/443153). *[E!](/source/E!)*. 12 December 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2016.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-TSDI_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-TSDI_3-1) ["The Sumter Daily Item"](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1979&dat=19790912&id=vH8iAAAAIBAJ&pg=2917,1881532&hl=en). Retrieved 26 January 2016.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-autogenerated1_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-autogenerated1_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-autogenerated1_4-2) [*New Straits Times*](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1309&dat=19800715&id=VqlUAAAAIBAJ&sjid=6Y8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6998,3199858&hl=en)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** "Miss World not shown as BBC dispute worsens", *[The Times](/source/The_Times)* page 2, 16 November 1979

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Miss Mundo 1979"](https://rodriguezmatute.home.blog/2020/05/10/miss-mundo-1979/). *MISS WORLD HISTORY / HISTORIA DE MISS MUNDO*. 11 May 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2023.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Miss Mundo 1979"](https://rodriguezmatute.home.blog/2020/05/10/miss-mundo-1979/). *MISS WORLD HISTORY / HISTORIA DE MISS MUNDO*. 11 May 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2023.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Waikato girl takes Miss N.Z. title"](https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/press/1979/09/24/1). *[The Press](/source/The_Press)*. [Christchurch](/source/Christchurch), New Zealand. 24 September 1979. p. 1. Retrieved 3 January 2026 – via [Papers Past](/source/National_Library_of_New_Zealand#Papers_Past).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Tarihi, Güncelleme (4 May 2020). ["Güzeller canlı yayında buluştu"](https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/galeri-1929dan-gunumuze-turkiye-guzelleri-41508916) [Beauties met on live broadcast]. *[Hürriyet](/source/H%C3%BCrriyet)* (in Turkish). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230102125519/https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/galeri-1929dan-gunumuze-turkiye-guzelleri-41508916) from the original on 2 January 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2025.

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