Harrogate’s very own Miss England contestant was rescued after getting lost on one of the Yorkshire three peaks.

22-year-old Chloe McEwen, who was last year crowned Miss Yorkshire, took on the challenge alongside another Miss England finalist on April 22 as part of their pageant campaigns.

The former Rossett School pupil was raising money for Mind, a local mental health charity, which she volunteers for following her previous struggles with bipolar.

The women set off at 9am and started their final climb at 6.30pm. However, by the time they reached the Ingleborough summit at 8.30pm, nightfall and cold weather had begun to close in.

Chloe said:

“It was pitch black at the top and we were terrified we would fall down one of the steep slopes. We were so grateful to get down in one piece.

“We got lost and it meant that we were on top of Ingleborough at night. The batteries on our phones had nearly died and we had no back up map and compass to guide us.

“We could have fallen at any point, and we feel very lucky to have climbed down safely.”

Chloe added her hiking partner, Lisa Ellis, managed to ring 999 before their phones died and emergency services called in a mountain rescue operation.

She said the rescue team was searching for the girls for “hours”, but the pair managed to “navigate their way down the peak safely”.

They eventually reached a farm near Clapham, which was a six-mile detour from their original route, where the mountain rescue team picked them up.

The Harrogate beauty queen also said:

“We are both physically fit and had packed food and warm clothing. Our mistake was setting off too late at 9am, which meant that we did not get to the final peak until nightfall. We were determined to finish the trek for the charities that we were supporting but we should have turned back or had an expert guide to show us the way.

“When our phones were about to die at the top, Lisa felt the safest option was to call the emergency services but we really didn’t want the challenge to end. We did think about bedding down on the top, but it was bitterly cold and we were worried that we might suffer from hypothermia.

“Thankfully we found a safe route down by using our torches and we were so relieved when we got to the farmhouse where we were picked up by mountain rescue. It was six miles from the route we should have taken because we had got lost in the dark. I am very grateful to the emergency services for their help and I would urge anyone attempting the three peaks to make sure they have an experienced walker with them, head home if the weather deteriorates and don’t climb after dark.”

Chloe and fellow Miss England finalist Lisa Ellis during their three peaks challenge.

Despite the ordeal, Chloe raised more than £1,700 for Mind during her three peaks challenge. She added:

“I learnt a lot along the way, too. I know that with a positive attitude, inner faith, gratitude and courage you can overcome your greatest fears and challenges.

“I love working with Mind and have found my purpose helping and inspiring those struggling with mental health.”

Chloe’s work with the charity comes after she suffered a breakdown aged just 16.

She was sectioned for eight months after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which led her weight to soar by almost four stone at the time.

She made it her mission to embrace a healthier lifestyle and dedicated fitness regime, leading Chloe to became a personal trainer and is now in the running for a national beauty queen title.

Chloe will compete against 39 others at the Miss England final at the Grand Station in Wolverhampton on May 16 and 17. The winner will qualify for Miss World later this year. You can choose who to vote for here.

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Beauty pageants have become somewhat alien to us Brits in recent years, and still come with a lot of stereotypes.

However, one Harrogate woman, who is now in the running to become Miss England, is determined to use her beauty queen status as a means of empowering those who have faced similar struggles to her.

Chloe McEwen — the recently-crowned Miss Yorkshire — was just 16 when she had a mental breakdown.

Although it was never proven, she believes her drink was spiked while on a night-out for her birthday, and attributes the events that followed to that night.

She did not sleep for three days and doctors ended up sectioning her after she began hallucinating and threatening to jump from a window.

She said:

“I went through hell and was diagnosed with a severe bipolar condition.

“I was shifted from one psychiatric hospital to another while doctors tried to get to the bottom of my condition.”

Ms McEwen added her weight “shot up” after living off pizza, chips and sugary treats during her eight-month stint in hospital.

“I peaked at 12 and a half stone and hated my body image.

“I look at the pictures of me from those days and cannot believe it is the same person.”

It was then that she realised she could use her time in hospital to improve both her physical and mental health.

“I realised that I could get myself better by getting fit and modifying my diet.

“I started reading up on the science of fitness and convinced doctors that I was well enough to go home.”

Ms McEwen has spent the last five years rebuilding her life. Now 21 and four stone lighter, she is a qualified personal trainer, model and, of course, beauty queen.

She now leads both group and private fitness classes, and is currently writing her own cookery book to help improve people’s relationship with food.

In addition, she has also become a Sports Traider ambassador – a charity that uses fitness to help young people thrive.

After entering the Miss Yorkshire competition to celebrate her new-found body confidence, Ms McEwen discovered it was “not just all about beauty” as contestants were required to show the impact they had on other people’s lives.

“Beauty pageants have had to modernise like everything else and contestants show they have a purpose.

“For me, that is talking positively about my road to recovery and working with the charity Mind to help other people going through the awful mental health trauma that I suffered.”

Her story remains at the forefront of her Miss England campaign, during which she will continue her advocacy for mental wellbeing in partnership with Mind.

She has also teamed up with The Prom Den – a dress shop in Brighouse – and will wear one of its gowns during the national competition. She added:

“I would have loved to have attended my old school prom after GCSEs, but unfortunately that was when I was still in hospital.

“Girls love dressing up to the nines for a big night of celebration after working so hard on their exams.

“Prom dances are huge at schools in Yorkshire, and it is great to be modelling for such a fantastic brand.”

If triumphant, Chloe will qualify for the international competition, Miss World.

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Anyone over the age of 70 might remember a group of feminists dramatically flour bombing the 1970 Miss World competition.

The group was protesting at a contest that objectified women. Miss World then was broadcast on the BBC and was one of the biggest TV events of the year — the feminists made headlines all over the world. Now, the idea a beauty contest being scheduled alongside Strictly on a BBC One Saturday evening is unthinkable.

The beauty pageant though has survived this lack of major TV profile and last weekend Chloe McEwen, a 21-year-old woman from Harrogate, was crowned Miss Yorkshire. She will go through to compete in the Miss England contest next year.

In a world where even Barbie has had a feminist makeover, could the same be said for the beauty contest?  Chloe’s story of being crowned Miss Yorkshire got hundreds of likes on the Stray Ferret’s social media post and noticeably no jibes.  Chloe says her small group of close friends have embraced her doing it:

“They’ve all genuinely been really supporting towards me, no one has had anything negative to say.”

Chloe has a powerful story to tell. At the age of 16 she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Such were the severity of her symptoms she spent eight months in hospital and gained four stone in weight.

“When I got out of there I was so depressed, so filled with anxiety, worried about what people would think of me. I went from this petite, pretty girl to having all this weight on me. Some people didn’t recognise me. It really knocked my confidence.

“I cut my circle of friends really small, focussed on myself and my health; getting into the gym little by little and slowly building up to being a personal trainer”.

Instagram and YouTube though are full of young women using social media to campaign and spread messages. Why did she chose a beauty contest to get her message across?

“If you’d have told me four years ago when I got out of hospital I would be doing this, I would have said not in a million years.

“For me to even get to a point of having enough confidence to compete — I want to spread the message that no matter where you are in life and you haven’t got that confidence, if you work on yourself, you can do something like a beauty contest.”

Chloe’s photos of her weight loss and fitness journey

The rules for entering the Miss England contest are clear — you have to be between 16 and 27 years old and unmarried. It’s described now though as ‘beauty with a purpose’.  The winner needs to have a powerful narrative and raise money for the organisation’s charity. Chloe says ‘there are plenty of beautiful girls out there but if you haven’t got that strong message, they’re not going to pick you nowadays”.

Soroptimist International is an organisation that looks after the interests of women and girls. It has an active Harrogate and district branch – with members who will remember the 1970s fight for equal rights.

The local communications officer, Lesley Berry, said in 2021 the organisation’s annual conference heard from 33-year-old Dr Carina Tyrrell – a former Miss England who is a first class honours Cambridge graduate and respected public health physician who worked on the development of covid vaccines.

Ms Berry said:

“We want people to do whatever they want to as long as nobody is exploiting them or forcing them to do it. If it is something you want to do when you’re young.

“This young lady seems to be doing it to enhance her confidence and spread awareness of the issues she’s overcome. That is a positive message”.

In an age where women’s empowerment is about individual choice, Chloe McEwen has chosen her way of spreading her message.  She hopes that, with so many young women suffering from anxiety, it works and has impact.

Chloe’s Instagram images (Chloemcewen8) and her message

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Harrogate personal trainer Chloe McEwen has been crowned Miss Yorkshire and is now set to compete in Miss England.

Chloe, 21, was chosen by the judges at The Earl of Doncaster Hotel last night. 

The level 3 fitness trainer hopes to use the title to inspire others facing mental health issues to embrace fitness and a healthier lifestyle.

Chloe McEwen

At the age of 16, Chloe was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and her weight soared by almost four stone during an eight-month spell in hospital.

But by embracing a healthier lifestyle, the former Rossett School pupil regained control of her life and now helps others to use fitness to overcome their problems.

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A young fitness trainer from Harrogate is hoping her tilt at the Miss Yorkshire title this weekend will encourage others battling mental health problems through fitness. 

Chloe McEwen, 21, will be competing in the regional round of Miss England in Doncaster on Sunday, but her immaculate appearance will leave judges none the wiser about her past struggles.

At the age of 16, Chloe was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, she endured an arduous eight-month hospital stay, and her weight soared by almost four stone.

But by embracing a healthier lifestyle and a dedicated fitness regime, bolstered by an unwavering support network, she not only regained control of her life but also embarked on a mission to empower others.

Before and after photos of Miss Yorkshire contestant Chloe McEwen.

Former Rossett School pupil Chloe now wants to provide support and motivation to those in need. As a Level 3 fitness trainer with clients in a small private gym and classes at a Harrogate health club, she understands the challenges of self-motivation, but believes that simply maintaining discipline, even in small steps, is the key to turning things around. She said:

“The rewards of persevering are immeasurable.”

The problems Chloe had to overcome to achieve her transformation are all too common – 56% of the UK population are now registered with some form of mental health issue, and young people are disproportionately affected.

The Miss Yorkshire contest will take place at on Sunday at the Earl of Doncaster Hotel.

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