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
BEATEN TO A PULP FOR MY TRANS-FORMATION, BUT I WON’T LET THE BULLIES GET ME DOWN

Ashlee, 20, has always known that she was supposed to be a girl .

STREET FIGHTER CRAZE SPREADS TO LONDON

THE CRAZE for mimicking the video game Streetfighter has spread to the streets of London .

SHEEPDOG GIVES BIRTH TO BUMPER LITTER OF 14 PUPS

One sheepdog is taking a well-deserved rest after giving birth to a whole WHEELBARROW-FUL of puppies .

LIFE-LIKE PENCIL DRAWINGS

AT first glance these images could easily be mistaken for photographs, but they are in-fact real life drawings created using nothing but coloured pencils .

MONKEY BATH

RAISING his foot into the air, this cheeky monkey offers an unusual wave .

ADORABLE SQUIRRELS PREPARE FOR EASTER BREAK

Scurrying along the branch of a tree, a little squirrel pushes a pram packed full of Easter treats .

PELT-MOBILE SPOTTED

A TAXIDERMY truck spotted in America’s Deep South could be the most gruesome wagon on the road .

POLYAMOROUS TRIO: I SHARE A HOUSE WITH MY TWO BOYFRIENDS AND OUR CHILDREN

Sunny Saap, 27, from Columbia, Missouri, United States, enjoys life with her two boyfriends .

FRIENDLY TOAD READY FOR HIS CLOSE UP

STARING eagerly into the camera, this little toad is full of curiosity .

SURPRISE BABY: WOMAN REVEALS SHE DIDN’T KNOW SHE WAS PREGNANT UNTIL SHE SAW HER BABY’S HEAD CROWNING

A woman has revealed how she didn’t know she was pregnant until she saw her baby’s head crowning .

SOMERSET FLOODING

Villages on the Somerset Levels have faced weeks of flooding with no respite from the conditions in sight .

DANCER REFUSES BIRTHMARK REMOVAL TO KEEP HER INDIVIDUALITY

A professional dancer has embraced her individuality after refusing plastic surgery to remove a giant birthmark on her face .