Express & Star

Young, rich, famous and missing out on normality

Imagine this. You're a teenager. Your face is on the cover of all the gossip magazines. You are endorsing all manner of products, perfume, soft drinks, mobile phones.

Published

Let's be honest it's what some people dream of when they're young. But that little fantasy could either push them to strive for success or kick them to the kerb leaving them feeling hard done by.And really, what impact does all this fame and fortune have on these young celebrities so early in life?

And if you could see the real story behind their lives would anyone want to realise that dream? I'm not so sure.

Look at some of the dramas in the world of young celebs. We all know about Britney Spears.

The classic tale of a normal girl reaching for, and grasping hold of, a big old bag of stars. She was the butter-wouldn't-melt child star of the Mickey Mouse Club who went on to be a singing superstar touring the world. Fast forward a few years: Two marriages, one lasting only 55 hours, two children and a very public meltdown which saw her shave off her hair, years later and she's only just finding her feet. All that and she's still only 31.

More recently though is troubled soul Amanda Bynes who is never far from the headlines these days. The 27-year-old actress is known for her innocent demeanour in teen flicks such as What a Girl Wants, She's the Man and Easy A. But lately she's lost her good-girl polish. She's been papped sporting cheek piercings, (yes you did read that correctly, you're not hallucinating, it's not a typo – cheeks – she's going to look great when she's in her 60s), and tweeting pictures of herself in her undies. She's also been on Twitter posting revelations such as suffering from an eating disorder, and guess what? She's shaved half her hair off (what's with these razor-happy girls!?) and had a few brushes with the law.

Then there's Justin Bieber. Now there's a precocious 19-year-old young man with a ginormous chip on his shoulder. Turning up 40 minutes late to his own gig (so he says, although many fans claim it was more like two hours), with thousands of schoolgirl hearts left broken. He's also been in a fight with the paparazzi.

And of course Lindsay Lohan, it seems, is getting far

too big for her Louboutin boots. She's only 26 and it seems her full-time job is appearing in court for a variety of reasons, alleged theft and driving offences and going off to rehab, which is where she is now unless she's checked herself out... again.

Let's not forget One Direction, the boy band moulded by Simon Cowell for the X Factor. They are in their late teens and early 20s, and worth around £5 million each. All that and they only came third! They have books, dolls and other paraphernalia selling like hot cakes. They seem down to earth now but will they let the trappings of fame go to their heads? Let's hope they stay out of trouble and don't get swept away by the treacherous sea of fame.

But once the shine has worn off and the sparkle has fizzled out it seems these dazzling stars are left a little tarnished. Money and fame doesn't buy absolutely everything does it? Sanity, freedom, the chance to be young, and to be able to live your life without a zoom lens in your face.

What will the future hold for these young stars... will they follow the path to self destruction and crack under the pressure of all the intense scrutiny? Is it too late? Or will they stay on the more sensible path? Time will tell.

Sorry, we are not accepting comments on this article.