Leggy Birmingham fresher vying for Miss England crown

All 5ft 10″ of her

beauty birmingham Fresher jessica boot miss england miss mansfield national pagaent university of birmingham UoB

Jessica Boot is eagerly anticipating the Miss England final, which is just four short weeks away.

The 19-year-old –– who will begin her Drama degree in September after scoring an unconditional offer –– nabbed the Miss Mansfield title last year. The Nottingham stunner, who stands at a leggy 5ft 10″, also does loads of charity work and is a musician, and now she’s one of just 50 pageant queens counting down the days until the final in Coventry.

Jessica is ALSO a musician

Despite having beautiful eyes which are “the first thing people comment on”, Jessica – who is set to study at Birmingham in September – is keen to prove to the world taking part in pageants is about more than good looks. She told The Tab: “The Miss Mansfield organisation is an ambassador programme for young girls who are interested in charity work and promoting the local community. Modelling is a very small part of it, but it is something I definitely enjoy, although my love for charity work exceeds that.”

As a Miss England finalist, Jessica has worked hard to raise awareness of the Miss World Charity, Beauty with a Purpose, which supports disadvantaged children around the world. During her time as Miss Mansfield, she has raised over £3,000 for Womankind Worldwide, an organisation designed to improve the lives of girls and women in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Jessica added: “I like to call myself a Feminist in a tiara.”

Jessica has raised £3,000 for charity

In order to keep herself looking her best for competitions, Jess eats well and works out. She is keen to point out it’s not all just to look good, and being healthy, happy with your body, and figuring out what makes you feel pretty is really important too –– something she realised when she struggled with acne in her early teens.

She said: “I’m definitely a self confessed make-up obsessive. This really stirred from my time as a young teenager, where I suffered from moderate to severe acne. I loved the way make-up could change my appearance and give me a lot of confidence. Now I just enjoy watching Youtubers like Tanya Burr and Zoella, and experimenting with my Urban Decay Naked Palettes.”

She added: “I’m a vegetarian, so I follow a healthy diet – but I’m definitely someone who loves to indulge in cake and chocolate. I’m a girl, it’s inevitable. I love running and going to the gym. Fitness is very important to me, mainly for health reasons, and not so much about weight loss. It’s important to be happy and healthy and striking the right balance.”

Jessica (left) on her trip to Ohio

You might be forgiven in thinking Jess’ good looks and modelling career help her to pull when she’s on a night out with the girls, but apparently she’s not beating guys off with a stick just yet. “Surprisingly I don’t get chatted up a lot. I was the girl at school who was lanky and spent most of her time in the music room playing guitar. I was definitely not the ‘type’ of girl people had in mind to ever enter a beauty contest. My aim is to show people the competition is so much more than that.”

When asked what advice she’d give to somebody interested in modelling and competitions, Jess thinks the best thing you can do is be yourself and not give in to the pressure of perfection.

“My advise would be just enjoy it. These days, girls get so caught up in being perfect. I’m not perfect. I have a gap in my teeth and I love chocolate too much. But I am passionate and very determined. I knew I wanted to change people’s perceptions of pageants and I believe I have. Just be yourself, look after your health and be passionate about what you believe in.”

What a hat

The soon-to-be fresher can’t wait to start uni. She said: “I am so excited to start uni life. Being from a small town, the transition to a large city is definitely the most exciting aspect. I would definitely like to carry on my charity work at university, and if modelling is also an option then I will definitely pursue it while I’m at Birmingham.”

Despite being really busy completing her A-levels, modelling, and doing charity work, Jess is also a talented musician in her spare time, and has big aspirations for after uni. “I’m a singer-songwriter, and last month I was lucky enough to perform in Mansfield Ohio as part of their Miss Ohio week. I won the chance to visit the States when I gained my title, and the experience completely changed my life.

“My dream is to become a performer, whether on stage, TV or being a musician – I love it all. But I am level-headed, and understand it’s an extremely hard path, so a career in arts journalism or in events management is also up there too.”