To paraphrase the Elvis Costello rendition of “She” which plays in the beloved rom-com , Julia Roberts has a face you can’t forget – just think of that grin, those sparkling eyes, the big curly red mane. She’s impossible to miss – or, at least, she has been ever since she broke out as the charming wild child Daisy in 1988’s . Then came , a certain instant classic called , and everything from to , with the latter marking the prolific actor’s official transition from glamorous romantic lead to Oscar-winning powerhouse.

It’s a delight, then, to discover the earliest red-carpet images of the future A-lister, in which she’s nearly unrecognisable, sporting a mousy, feathered, micro-fringed bob, crystal chandelier earrings and shiny, textured button-downs. Back then, in the mid ’80s, she had just landed on the scene at the age of 18 and still had no credits to her name, an aspiring performer who was attempting to follow in the footsteps of her older brother, Eric Roberts, who had already parlayed a career in soap operas into a string of lauded, Golden Globe-nominated parts.

It didn’t take her long: she made her screen debut in 1987, as a traumatised teen in the NBC procedural , and racked up a flurry of other roles before going stratospheric the following year. It’s easy to see why: whether on screen, at glittering industry events or off duty on the streets of New York or LA, her star power has always been apparent.

Now, as she turns 59, we present 31 stunning throwback photos of Roberts from the first stage of her career, from her first Oscars (with then-fiancé Kiefer Sutherland) to her kicking back on Oprah’s couch with co-stars Shirley MacLaine and Dolly Parton.