Culcheth has another reason to stand a little taller, although sensible footwear is probably advisable on Glaziers Lane. Holly Pirrie, company director of The Dress Studio and Pageant Girl, has been crowned Ms Great Britain 2026 after a pageant journey spanning more than two decades.
Holly first entered pageants as a teenager and loved the atmosphere, even if the biggest crown did not land on her head at the time. Now nearing her 40th birthday, she returned to competition when the opportunity arose, with the wonderfully straightforward attitude of, “if not now, when?” Frankly, it is hard to argue with that logic. It beats waiting around for the universe to send a handwritten invitation.
Her win has clearly struck a chord across the pageant community, which turned out to support her at the competition. Congratulations also poured in online, including from influencer and entrepreneur Molly-Mae Hague, who competed in Pageant Girl’s Miss Teen Great Britain contest in 2015.
What makes this more substantial than the usual sparkle-and-sash headline is Holly’s long record of putting work into the industry, rather than simply posing beside it. Through Pageant Girl, launched in 2010, she runs six annual competitions and crowns 18 national titleholders each year. The organisation has also collectively raised £1 million for Together for Short Lives, The Christie and A-Sisterhood. That is a genuinely impressive total, and a welcome reminder that pageantry can have purpose beyond sequins and carefully rehearsed waving.
Holly says the industry has changed considerably since the more appearance-led traditions of the 1960s and 1970s. Pageant Girl’s Miss Teen Great Britain, for example, puts 50% of its judging on interview performance, with an emphasis on finding a role model rather than creating a catwalk contest where everyone is expected to look like they have been assembled by a filter.
That said, pageantry will always invite debate, particularly when young people are involved. The positive version is exactly what Holly describes: a safe, supportive space where participants can build confidence, raise money and be recognised for character as well as presentation. The industry has to keep proving that promise in practice, because “empowerment” is a lovely word but a poor substitute for proper safeguarding and fair judging. On the evidence here, Pageant Girl seems determined to take the better route.
Alongside her pageant work, Holly has owned The Dress Studio on Glaziers Lane in Culcheth since 2012. The shop specialises in occasionwear for proms and pageants, offering dresses for different styles and shapes. In a world where shopping for a formal dress can feel like an obstacle course designed by mirrors and fluorescent lighting, a business that aims to make customers feel looked after is no small thing.
Holly’s Ms Great Britain title runs for 2026-27, and it is a deserved milestone for someone who has spent years mentoring others while building businesses in Culcheth. The crown is shiny, naturally, but the real story is stubborn dedication finally getting its moment in the spotlight.