Pinning a purple flower into her bleach blonde hair, pretty Ava admired herself in the mirror. She had every reason to be proud. In the space of a year, she had lost an incredible 17 stone. Her weight dropped from 37st 1lbs to 19st 7lbs, and she slipped into a dress before gazing at her newly svelte figure. With her smokey eye makeup and black skater dress, she could have been glamming up for a night on the tiles with her girlfriends. Instead, it was Halloween, 2013, and Ava was hiding a huge secret. Born a boy named William, it was the first time she had ever dressed as a girl – and everything fell into place.
WITHOUT a care in the world, this little chimpanzee shows off her gymnastic skills as she swings around her enclosure .
When Louise Steen walked down the aisle, she imagined a perfect future with her older hubby – but her life would soon become a living hell .
An intrepid photographer travelled to the abandoned ghost town of Bodie in northern California to capture the historic buildings that are trapped in time .
Gabrielle Dale, 26, was subjected to seven years of coercive control and physical abuse at the hands of her violent boyfriend Sean Owen, 29 .
A woman who was left scarred for life by an acid attack orchestrated by her ex partner has told of her ordeal and her battled to rebuild her life .
A woman was left fighting for her life after an eczema wound became infected and caused a deadly flesh-eating bug to ravish a hole in her arm .
GETTING behind the camera, this monkey practices his photography skills on his friends .
Like a scene from a fairytale, THOUSANDS of fireflies create an enchanting glow as they dance in a forest .
As sunlight cascades through its vibrant stained glass windows, every inch of the Nasir-ol-Mulk Mosque bursts with colour .
SAT ON top of a Brazilian turtle’s head, this little ladybird looks content as he studies his environment from a new height .
NEW DELHI, A woman activist of India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party crosses a police barricade near the residence of ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi during a protest against the recent rape of a five-year-old girl in New Delhi, India, April 21, 2013 .
A BLIND school-girl whose growth has been stunted by a rare medical condition is finding her feet again with the help of a specially made mini-cane .