Miss England quits Miss World in India over ‘harassment, disrespect’

Days before the final event, 2024’s Miss England has shocked fans by walking out of the Miss World competition in India, alleging harassment and disrespect by the organisers.

As per the details, Milla Magee, 24, was supposed to represent her country at the 72nd Miss World pageant in Hyderabad, on May 31. However, less than a week before the final, she has quit the competition and flew back home.

“I went there to make a difference, but we had to sit like performing monkeys,” she told a UK newspaper. Magee, who works as a lifeguard and is from Newquay, Cornwall, said the event was “stuck in the past” and not what she expected.

“As far as I could see, it hasn’t changed and is stuck in the past. Morally, I couldn’t be a part of it,” she said, adding that all crowns and sashes meant nothing as compared to using your voice and making a difference in the world.

She also shared that the contestants were forced to wear makeup and ball gowns all day, even at breakfast. “But the final straw came when we were told to sit with middle-aged men as a thank you for sponsoring the event.”

“There were two girls to each table of six guests. We were expected to sit with them for the whole evening and entertain them as a thank you,” she said.

“I found that unbelievable. I remember thinking, ‘This is so wrong. I didn’t come here to be farmed out for people’s entertainment’.”

Magee added that she tried to talk about her social causes, but the men didn’t care.

“At one point, I tried to talk about the causes I was supporting, but it was obvious the men at the table were not interested,” she recalled.

“Instead, there was weird small talk that left me feeling uncomfortable.”

“I went out to make a difference, to help create a different future, perhaps inspire young people. Never in a million years did I expect to find myself in that situation,” she said and also criticised a female organizer for her rude behaviour.

“She clapped her hands right in my face to get my attention and as a signal for people to listen to her,” Magee said.

“It was so disrespectful, like she was addressing children rather than a coach full of adult women.”

“It was a small incident, but it showed what they really thought of us and how little respect we were being treated with,” she said.

With Magee withdrawing from the pageant, Miss England runner-up Charlotte Grant, 25, from Liverpool, will take her place at the final with 108 contestants from around the world.

The current titleholder, Krystyna Pyszková from the Czech Republic, will crown the new Miss World at the HITEX Exhibition Centre.