A FORMER Weymouth Carnival Queen is continuing to shine after making it through to the finals of a charity-supporting competition celebrating beauty and brains.

Elysia Munday decided to enter the Face of the World pageant at the last minute after travelling to London to support her friend who was competing in one of the heats.

She made such an impression on judges it earned her a place at the finals to be held at Disneyland Paris in November.

The 22-year-old will compete alongside her friend Emma Whitbread, 24, also from Weymouth.

Face of the World differs from other pageants in that it focuses on ‘the beauty within’ and raises money to support the brain injury charity Headway and other causes.

Elysia is no stranger to supporting good causes – she spends a lot of her time helping others, has campaigned against bullying and raised money for organisations helping those with skin conditions.

She herself suffered from a serious skin condition and has written about her experiences.

Not content with being carnival queen in Weymouth’s Olympic year in 2012, Elysia went on to join the organising committee and helped to run this year’s event.

As part of her fundraising for Face of the World she is organising a Halloween-themed quiz for all the family at Moby Dicks on Friday, November 1, at 6.30pm.

It includes a prize draw and bracelets Elysia has been making will be on sale.

Full-time mum Elysia said: “It was all very last minute entering the competition and I ended up borrowing an outfit but I’m so glad I did it. It’s really exciting.”

She added: “I am passionate about supporting such an outstanding cause as part of the pageant; charity is incredibly important to me and I consistently dedicate my time more than happily to various causes important to myself and others.

“I believe participating in the final of this event will be such a valuable platform for my missions and can encourage women to be proud of who they are.

“It’s such an honour to have been selected as a finalist representing Weymouth.

“It’s also a huge step forward for me after being judged negatively almost my entire life. I really hope this can promote awareness and positivity.”