A MODELLING assignment with a national newspaper was the reward for a Tavistock woman who has lost over five stone in a slimming regime lasting three years.

Mandisara Bushell, who lives in Ford Street, entered a competition in The Sun in the hope of winning a holiday — she never expected to win and was stunned to hear from the newspaper two weeks ago.

'I just couldn't believe it, I couldn't stop laughing.' said Mandisara. 'They said I hadn't won but could I go up anyway.

'There were 7,000 entries, five finalists and an extra two — one of them was me.

'I kept thinking "Why me out of all these people?",' said the 26-year-old.

The all-expenses paid adventure for Mandisara and her boyfriend Gary Steffens of Princetown began last Tuesday, when they took the train to London.

'They put us up in a four-star hotel, The Cumberland at Marble Arch, they paid for the train, the taxis here and there — everything,' said Mandisara.

Once at The Sun studios, Mandisara had her hair and make-up done by a top stylist and make-up artist, and then an outfit was chosen for the photo-shoot.

'It was brilliant, absolutely amazing,' she said.

'They even got my boyfriend to take some photos with the proper camera to make me relax!'

She said the effect the experts created was 'slightly different' from the way she normally does her make-up — but she was pleased they tackled it in a way similar to her own.

Mandisara said she enjoyed meeting the other girls at the studios and finding they shared similar dieting experiences, likes and dislikes.

Mandisara said she piled on a lot of weight when her daughter Phia-neve was born three years ago — at her heaviest she weighed 15 stone.

The loss of confidence she felt because of her weight gain spurred her to try and lose weight, initially by taking more exercise.

She has shed the pounds gradually and without the aid of a slimming club — she is now down to a trim 8 stone 13 pounds.

'I didn't actually lose that much weight compared to some of the others in the competition — I was so amazed they picked me,' said Mandisara.

The results of the photographic shoot should be appearing in The Sun soon. Although she loved the experience, Mandisara said she is sticking to motherhood as opposed to modelling.

'It was like a once-in-a-lifetime thing really — it's hard to believe it ever happened,' she said.