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
LETTERS TO A SERIAL KILLER: PALS WITH DENNIS NILSEN AND I EVEN HAVE HIS ASHES AND GLASSES
Andrea Kubinova, 30, from London, became great friends with serial killer and necrophiliac, Dennis Nilsen .
I LIKE MY SALMON ROAR!
A BROWN bear wades through waters in Alaska and waits for his lunch .
FUNERAL COMPANY MAKE DIAMONDS FROM CREMATED REMAINS
SPARKLING bright inside their box, it’s hard to believe these diamonds are made from the cremated remains of the deceased .
“HOTDOG” EUROPES BIGGEST CHILLI DOG IS NO WIENER AT 13,000 CALORIES
A restaurant famed for creating the 3lb cheeseburger has unveiled its latest culinary challenge – the largest chilli cheese hotdog in Europe .
EERIE ABANDONED CHILDREN’S ORPHANAGE
Ornate chandeliers and mahogany panelling give a glimpse into this abandoned building's former glory after it's been left to rot for the past decade .
SUPER CUTE BABY RED PANDAS
These adorable pictures show the moment two cuddly red panda cubs take their first look at the outside world and are weighed for the very first time .
GIRAFFES DUCK FOR COVER
DIPPING and diving their way through this bumpy journey, these giraffe's duck for cover as they dodge multiple cables and wires .
CUTEST PICTURES OF PUPPIES AND BABY EVER
HEART-MELTING shots of a French bulldog and a ten-month-old French baby could be the cutest you’re likely to see .
'MUM OF THE YEAR' FALSELY CLAIMED DEAD HUSBAND'S BENEFITS
Kelly Harvey, 30 and new boyfriend Ryan Archbold -A bereaved wife once voted Mum Of The Year has been convicted of benefit fraud after claiming widow's allowance long after her new partner had moved in .
BRITISH COUPLE FIRST TO TIE THE KNOT INSIDE A GLACIER
A BRITISH couple are the first to tie the knot inside an enormous GLACIER in Iceland .
SNOOZING SEAL PUP
RESTING his weary head on his flipper, this little seal pup takes a much needed nap after an afternoon of strenuous yoga .