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
EASTER ISLAND REPLICA STATUES DESTROYED IN SEA FALL
A project to create an underwater tribute to the stone Moai statues of Easter Island ended in disaster when 15 replica structures were destroyed after toppling from a boat and into the sea .
THANKSGIVING DINNER PREPARED BY ARTISTS
An artist has transformed traditional Thanksgiving dinners into mini-masterpieces .
THE END OF THE WORLD CINEMA
SITTING in the middle of a vast desert, an abandoned cinema is still waiting for its first movie to be screened .
N-ICE DAY FOR A CLIMB
CLINGING onto nothing but ice, this brave climber reaches heights of 1000 FEET as he scales frozen solid waterfalls .
KISS OF LIFE TODDLER
A toddler has shrugged off death an incredible 10 times thanks to his parents who revive him with the kiss of life every two weeks .
WOMAN DESPERATE TO LOOK LIKE CHERYL COLE OVERCOMES ANOREXIA
A woman who starved herself to look like Cheryl Cole has told how she shrunk to just under 5st 13lbs after developing anorexia .
FROZEN BUBBLES CREATE STUNNING ICE CRYSTALS
A soap bubble lands on the frosty ground and creates a shimmering snow globe as crystals form around it .
CUTE MINI LION
MEET the little lion of suburbia with a mane that makes him look like a mini-king of the jungle .
19ST WOMAN LOSES 9ST AFTER GIVING UP GREGGS ADDICTION
A woman who was addicted to GREGGS has lost 9st after giving up her favourite food .
UNDERGROUND CHIC
Full of tired and busy commuters, these underground stations are rarely admired for their architecture or beauty .
BRAVE DIVER FEEDS SHARKS DEADLY FISH
A diver attempts to control rising numbers of lionfish by feeding the venomous species to Caribbean reef sharks .
SPLASHING KINGFISHER
CAUSING a splash, this determined kingfisher goes hunting for dinner .