"Growing up, I didn’t understand why people would stare at me all the time," says Taylor. "I was badly picked on and I had very few friends."
Before losing her leg, Taylor had an active childhood. She loved sports, and spent spare moments skateboarding and playing football. However, all that changed when, aged 11, she tripped during a netball match and dislocated her hip.
Taylor was rushed to hospital in agony, where doctors were quick to put her leg in a cast. But Taylor’s troubles were only just beginning.
"My weight began to drop rapidly, but no-one could work out why," she remembers. "After seven weeks, I’d lost two stone and doctors finally figured out I’d picked up an MRSA infection."
When Taylor Crisp had her leg amputated aged 15, it felt like the end of the world. Born with a shortened femur on her right leg and no kneecap or ankle, she was already the victim of cruel taunts about her limp – but she knew having one leg would make returning to school unbearable.
"Growing up, I didn’t understand why people would stare at me all the time," says Taylor. "I was badly picked on and I had very few friends."
Before losing her leg, Taylor had an active childhood. She loved sports, and spent spare moments skateboarding and playing football. However, all that changed when, aged 11, she tripped during a netball match and dislocated her hip.
Taylor was rushed to hospital in agony, where doctors were quick to put her leg in a cast. But Taylor’s troubles were only just beginning.
"My weight began to drop rapidly, but no-one could work out why," she remembers. "After seven weeks, I’d lost two stone and doctors finally figured out I’d picked up an MRSA infection."
Her fearless attitude meant the bullies soon lost interest in picking on her. Slowly but surely, she built up the kind of normal teenage life she had missed out on: friends, a boyfriend and a social life.
But her lack of mobility led to Taylor gaining four stone within a year and she soon had body confidence issues to contend with as well as her disability. Her self-esteem was so low that she was astonished when, aged 17, a modelling agency approached her when she was out shopping.
"I never imagined becoming a model, because I was so self-conscious and didn’t think I could find the courage," says Taylor. "Obviously, you dream of doing this sort of thing, but I never thought I could really do it."
Before long, Taylor was starring in fashion shoots for everything from lingerie to wedding dresses and alternative-style clothing – and she was loving every minute.
"Being in front of the camera has made me feel so confident, no-one can hold me back now!" she smiles. "I want to show people that, just because you look a bit different, it doesn’t mean you can’t achieve everything you want to."
With her new found self-assurance, Taylor began to take up the sports she’d missed out on while she’d been unwell. But she didn’t stop at football and netball – she decided to take up pole dancing and circus skills, too.
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