Acid attack victim bids to be Miss England
A YOUNG woman scarred for life by acid thug Arthur Collins told yesterday how competing in a top beauty pageant helped “rebuild my life”.
Fifteen months after the sickening nightclub attack by the ex-boyfriend of The Only Way Is Essex star Ferne McCann, Sophie Hall is in the final of the Miss England competition.
Sophie, 22, had been celebrating a friend’s birthday at the Mangle club in east London in April 2017 when Collins hurled acid over revellers. He was later jailed for 20 years. Sophie, seen posing in a red bikini during the Miss England semi-final – with a scar visible on her left shoulder – now hopes her bravery will inspire others.
She said the attack was “as if someone had physically punched me because it knocked me and I fell on the floor. I felt like I was on fire and it took me a couple of minutes to realise it was acid.”
But the estate agent from Poole, Dorset, who had counselling to overcome panic attacks, said entering the pageant let her put a “positive spin” on what happened.
She said: “I didn’t want to be remembered as the acid attack victim. I wanted to have a positive impact, perhaps inspire people and not only build my confidence but help other victims and show you can go on and achieve fantastic things.
“There are lots of rounds in this competition and it has helped me to rebuild different parts of my life – it’s helped me massively.”