A young woman from Ross has been selected to take part in the Miss Universe GB 2010 competition this May.

Alice Rees-Haddock, 21, an actress from Llangrove, has fought off tough competition from 500 other hopefuls from around Great Britain to be named as one of the 50 finalists to take to the stage at the Miss Universe GB final.

The final will be taking place at The International Convention Centre in Birmingham on Sunday, May 2nd, in aid of the Joshua Foundation, children's cancer charity. The winner of the title will go on to the Miss Universe final this summer, which is owned and run by American tycoon, Donald Trump.

Alice told The Ross Gazette:?"I feel very privileged to have ben selected for the Great Britain final of Miss Universe. I am quite exhausted at the moment having just finished two week's filming in London."

Alice, who is currently living in Garway, attended St James' Girls School, Malvern. She has just completed a film with director, Richard Wright, which is to be screened in London and at film festivals. Early in her career, Alice appeared in the popular soap, EastEnders, and more recently she has been living in New York, appearing in Shakespeare plays. She has also been on television in a Nintendo DS advertisement.

Alice now has just three months to prepare for the glittering final, secure sponsorship and raise money for charity at the same time. Last year the Miss Universe GB finalist raised £32k for The Joshua Foundation, a charity which helps terminally ill children have life experiences, day trips, holidays, gifts and memories. The amount raised was enough to take 25 families to Lapland for the day.

Director of Vibe Models, which organises the event, Paula Abbandonato said, "The Miss Universe GB competition provides 50 gorgeous girls with a fantastic opportunity to strut their stuff during a glittering catwalk show, have fun and raise money for an extremely good cause.

The winner of Miss Universe Great Britain will receive an incredible prize package including an all expenses paid three-week visit to Miss Universe 2010.

The overall winner will spend a year in New York living in Trump Tower with a diary full of international engagements.