REAL LIFE VICTORIAN
A woman has taken her house back in time - by spending £10,000 to transform it into her Victorian dream home. Quirky spinster Julia Wood, 42, lives her life like a 19th century lady and can often be seen leaving her terraced house wearing ankle length velvet and carrying a parasol. The self confessed "eccentric" has transformed all five rooms of her property in Leicester with late 19th or early 20th century decor. Her lounge, bathroom, bedroom and kitchen are filled with antique furniture, fireplaces and artefacts and even nude portraits complete with lighting from the period. She has a large mahogany mantle piece in her lounge and sips tea from an 1890s crockery set she says she bought for just £10. Her kitchen, which also acts a sitting room, includes an Edwardian day bed, wood burning stove, antique tub chair, pine table and even a black fridge. The author and writer, who has lived in the home for two years, is an avid Oscar Wilde fan and says she lives her life like a character from one of this plays. She said: "I must have a Victorian or Edwardian aura. I was just born in the wrong era. But Downton Abbey has changed things lately. Sales of long gloves have gone up hugely, I understand. All of a sudden I'm in fashion.
Other great stories
£34m TAX FRAUD RACKET JAILED
A man who conned tax officials out of £34 million and funded a lavish lifestyle of luxury hotels and restaurants has been jailed for one of the longest sentences in British criminal fraud history .
BULLIES MADE MY 10 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER ANOREXIC
A mum has warned of the dangers of child eating disorders, after her 10-year-old daughter developed anorexia when school bullies branded her ‘FAT’ .
CAMOUFLAGED NORTHERN POTOO BIRD IS A MASTER OF DISGUISE
A northern potoo shows it is a master of disguise as it perches on a tree stump and blends into the bark .
A SMILEY GECKO SHEDS ITS SKIN AS HEATWAVE HITS BRITAIN
STRETCHING his little legs in the air, a smiley leaf-tailed gecko breaks free from his old, scaly skin .
I LOST 10ST AFTER MY SON DREW ME AS A BLOB
A 20st mum-of-four who was dangerously obese has lost half her body weight after her son drew her as a BLOB at school .
STUNNING BRITISH AUTUMN LANDSCAPES
From the rolling hills of the Brecon Beacons to the still waters in the Lake District, these photographs capture autumnal landscapes across Great Britain perfectly .
KITCHEN HORROR: I WAS ENGULFED IN FLAMES AFTER HAIR CAUGHT FIRE ON GAS STOVE
In April 2018, Lourdes Cuello, 50, from New Jersey, US, was making a cup of tea when her hair and hoodie caught fire on her gas stove .
BOSTON MARATHON PICTURES
T least three people have been killed and more than 100 injured, some seriously, in two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon .
SECRET POOL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT
HIDDEN in the middle of the Mojave Desert, a secret oasis awaits intrepid travellers .
WEDDING CAKE FAIL
COULD this be the most distastrous wedding cake fail EVER? Most brides opt for a traditional tiered white wedding cake decorated with delicate pink roses and lace for their big day .
WAVE-ING GOODBYE TO RUSH HOUR
HOTSPOT MEDIA - WAVE-ING GOODBYE TO RUSH HOUR: WHILE most workers endure commuting chaos by road or rail everyday, one entrepreneur has come up with a novel way to get to the office - by KAYAK .
UNDERGROUND CHIC
Full of tired and busy commuters, these underground stations are rarely admired for their architecture or beauty .