Woman becomes the UK’s shortest Miss England finalist at 5ft tall
Watch: Britain's shortest beauty queen says being only 5ft tall hasn't held her back
A university student has become the shortest beauty queen in Miss England’s history after competing in the 2022 pageant.
Emily Harrison, who is 5ft tall, decided to enter the Miss England competition last year after she realised that it had no height restriction.
The 26-year-old came third in the pageant, and will now compete in a contest for petite models in the US this summer.
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“Throughout Miss England you could see in photos how small I was compared to other models, but it didn’t matter to me,” she explains.
“I am not your typical contestant and I used that to my advantage. It became my niche when I was competing, you could say I’m the ‘five-foot Brummie’ and I embraced my size.”
Harrison says she wanted to empower other shorter women and inspire them to enter the modelling world.
“I think there is a certain reputation hanging over shorter girls which makes them seem young or that they can’t be successful, but I don’t think this is the case,” she continues.
“I feel that by competing I was able to show girls that you can achieve whatever you want to regardless of your height.”
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The part-time busker says she doesn’t feel defined by her height, and that she won’t let it stop her from “following her dreams”.
“I want to, and I am, pushing to empower shorter women and I think there should be a variety in model sizes and I’m here representing the small petite girls,” she adds.
“I may be 'petite' but it doesn’t stop me following my dreams, I can accentuate my height in various ways and I think if someone has the right attitude, passion and drive together they can be successful. There is always an opportunity for a petite girl and I was so pleased Miss England didn’t have height restrictions.”
Miss England organiser Angie Beasley says: "For many years taller girls have dominated the modelling and pageant world, many still have restrictions.
“Pageants are becoming more diverse, height isn’t such a big deal. It's good to see shorter women getting the recognition they deserve. I think it’s unfair to have height restrictions and we want to be inclusive.”
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Harrison will fly to Tampa, Florida this summer to compete in the Universal Petite Competition which will take place on board a cruise ship.
“I’m going to be the first person from England to ever compete in the competition,” the computer science student reveals.
“I can’t wait to take part and make the shorter women of society proud. We will be on a cruise ship but will go on days for photoshoots. I am looking forward to the swimsuit shoot the most.
“I want to promote that pageants are not just about beauty but so much more."
Additional reporting by SWNS.
