A woman from Southwark who faced “aggressive bullying” as a child has made it to the finals of the Miss London pageant competition – with the winner set to be crowned this evening.

Franceska Murati is delighted to be a finalist in the Miss London competition and hopes to go on to represent the borough of Southwark in the Miss Great Britain pageant.

The 28-year-old explained that she had a hard time in secondary school, facing bullies and having her confidence knocked because of their actions.

She moved to the UK as an asylum seeker at just four-years-old after her family had to flee their own country due to the Kosovan war.

Franceska has lived in Southwark ever since and is very proud to be representing London and her borough in the competition - as well as highlighting the issue of childhood bullying.

She told the News Shopper: “I was really aggressively bullied when I was a child.

“From the age of 12 to 15 it was horrendous - the girls would throw their lunch at me and follow me home. I was scared constantly.

“I had really long hair and they cut my hair on the bus - so I decided to just keep my hair short because I thought that would not provoke them.

“I cried for two months and didn't want to leave my house. I couldn't get on the bus because I was so traumatised by the experience.

“Even now, when I get on a bus and subconsciously think about who is behind me - they probably have no idea of the impact that it has had on my life.

“I went from being this child that really wanted to stand out, to trying to be invisible so they would leave me alone.

“I felt that I had lost myself I had, I was so far from who I was as an individual, and I had no confidence at all. I had no friends, I stopped talking to everyone.”

 

Franceska explained that despite her experience as a child, she is now very happy with her life and is proud of how far she has come as a person – regaining her confidence in her adult life.

She originally worked for about seven years in financial services but has recently opened her own business which is a clothes factory employing women.

Franceska added that the “whole purpose of the factory was to employ women that have no education and no training to train them up and offer them further career advancement.”

She said: “I really hope that young children can see me as an example. For anyone going through any kind of bullying - that you can come through really extreme adversities.

“When you're at the lowest points of your life, don't do anything silly, because it's not worth it. There is so much more to life than just that tough period that you're going through.

“My parents are so happy I’m competing and so proud of me.

“I think for them it is about seeing everything I went through and how low I was feeling in my life, to now seeing me flourishing and achieving all the things that I want to achieve.”

Franceska explained that she had always had an interest in pageants and watched every single Miss Universe as a kid, but this is the first time she has ever competed.

She went on to add that the competition itself was very welcoming and that “it's a lot more than what people assume a pageant would really be like”.

Franceska said: “The director of the pageant, Lizzie, put us into this big group chat and everyone is so supportive.

“There is no putting each other down.

“It doesn't really feel like a competition quite honest with you. Someone will post a picture of something that they've done and all of the girls are always like ‘You look amazing!’ - everyone is so excited to meet each other.

“The contest doesn't feel like a competition. It just feels like a big group of friends that are being involved in an event.”

For the charity part of the competition, Franceska decided to take on the challenge of climbing Ben Nevis which she explained was “really stepping out of her comfort zone” and required a lot of training.

The charity climb is to raise funds for Cancer Research UK and Alex’s Wish.

Avenue House in Finchley is set to host this year's Miss London finals, where two winners, Miss Greater London and Miss Central London, will go on to represent the capital city in the prestigious Miss Great Britain finals.

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The doors to the event tonight (May 27) will open at 6.30pm, and the show will kick off promptly at 7pm with a fashion show.

The judges will reveal the recipients of various awards, including the titles of Charity Queen, Publicity Queen, People's Choice, Brains & Beauty, Best in Interview, and Top Model – which all contribute to their overall score.

When asked what advice she would give to someone considering taking part in a similar pageant competition, Franceska said: “If you need a boost of confidence, go for it. If you need a challenge in your life, go for it. If you want to make new friends and meet new people, go for it.

“I always thought ‘I'm not good enough to compete or ‘there's no point in trying’

“Whatever it is that you think is stopping you, go for it anyway. I guarantee you; you will be so surprised.”