Meet Britain’s biggest BURLY-ESQUE dancer! Talk to the Press helped Charline tell her story about her life as Britain’s Biggest Burlesque Dancer.
When Charlene saw an advert in her local paper advertising burlesque dancing lessons her heart sunk, as she believed it was only for ‘skinny girls’. But after speaking to family and friends, Charlene decided to join the class to try and build up her confidence – which was at rock bottom after a bad relationship.
At first, Charlene felt nervous about stripping down to her undies and donning racy lingerie to dance in. But as the weeks rolled by, her confidence rocketed and soon she was shimmying around in next to nothing and feeling like Dita Von Teese.
Charlene, 26, a mother-of-one from Doncaster, says her size 16 body and 14 stone weight has helped her ‘stand out’. Last year she won Miss Burlesque South Yorkshire and Doncaster competition, battling it out against 50 other performers. She did two solo chair routines, both choreographed by herself and was part of a group dance routine too.
There were seven categories altogether – and Charlene and another finalist who drew the same marks had to have a ‘dance off’ so the judges could decide the winner. Charlene says she was a bag of nerves as the other girl was a lot thinner than her and she thought she was bound to win. But to Charlene’s surprise, she was crowned the winner.
She said: ‘I was so gobsmacked I couldn’t speak. As they handed me my flowers and my prize I stared at the cheering faces in the audience.
‘It just goes to show that the judges and audience preferred me, despite my size. Most of the women were ‘normal sizes’ but I believed my bigger size helped me stand out.
‘I felt so proud of what I’d achieved that a few days later I got ‘Chazabelle Royale’ tattooed on the back of my neck.’
Today, Charlene performs at local pubs and even has her own manager. ‘People tell me I’m an inspiration,’ she continues, ‘I’m flying the flag for bigger women who feel ashamed of their bodies. I used to hate my body but now I love it. You don’t have to be skinny to be sexy, and I’m the living proof.’
Incredibly, she’s set to win again this year and TTTP are wishing her the best of luck! We placed Charlene’s story with a number of national papers and she’s since appeared in Best and Chat magazine.
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