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
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 .

INTIMATE PORTRAITS OF HINDU HOLY MEN

COVERING themselves in ash and face paint, these are the holy men who live their lives away from everyday society .

BEING BRITNEY'S LOOKALIKE HAS EARNED ME £300K

A former waitress who quit serving tables to become a professional Britney lookalike has told how her incredible likeness has earned her £300,000 as a full time doppelganger .

PHILEAS FROG: KERMIT'S WORLD TRAVELS CONTINUE PREV

A Kermit the Frog toy made famous by travelling the world is still globehopping, having racked up an incredible 420,000 kilometres to some of the world's furthest flung places .

HUNGRY HIPPO MISSES OUT ON LUNCH

A hungry hippo is seconds away from catching a bird in its gigantic jaws .

FROM KEBAB TO KE-BABE: WOMAN DROPS 13ST AFTER FOOD ATTACK

A woman has lost an incredible 13st after a group of men cruelly threw a kebab at her as she walked down the street .

FLY FISHING

A fish almost escapes the beak of a bird as they both soar through the air .

10 YEAR OLD GIRL REINVENTS HER IDENTITY THROUGH COSPLAY

From foster care to the MAGICAL world of cosplay, a young girl’s dreams become reality after being adopted by a photography loving couple .

WOMAN LOSES 8ST AFTER DITCHING CURRY ADDICTION

A woman who was addicted to eating curries has shed an impressive 8st after giving up her favourite food .

PRISON HOTEL

FOR most people, spending a night locked up in a cell would be undesirable .

FISH FIGHT

FINALLY catching a meal, a pair of great white egrets fight over their dinner .