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Story: Beauty contests

Miss Universe Lorraine Downes, 1983

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Miss Universe Lorraine Downes, 1983

In 1983 Lorraine Downes won the international Miss Universe contest, making her New Zealand's most successful beauty contestant. Here, she is photographed soon after her win with Prime Minister Robert Muldoon and his wife Thea.

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New Zealand Herald

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How to cite this page

Kerryn Pollock, Beauty contests – Beauty contests, 1960s to the 2000s, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/38691/miss-universe-lorraine-downes-1983 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Kerryn Pollock, published 14 November 2012, updated 1 December 2015.