PEGGY Mitchell may have thought she was the main lady when it came to Queen Victoria but Oswaldtwistle woman Val Knowles is giving her a run for her money.

Val, 51, who runs Dorothy's Fancy Dress in Oswaldtwistle, has spent much of her spare time researching all things Victorian as a member of the historical costume society Nostalgia Unlimited, based in Wolverhampton.

But it is her uncanny similarity to the late great Queen that inspired a local radio station to choose her, along with four other look-alikes, to officially open its Victorian exhibition -- even though, by her own admission, she is too tall.

Val's interest in Victorian history began when she and husband Allan took on their fancy dress business from Allan's cousin over 10 years ago.

She said: "We are primarily a fancy dress hire business, but we went to a few period costume events and decided we quite like some of the outfits, so we started stocking basic Victorian clothing, like long black skirts and high neck white blouses.

"The more we researched the period the more we got into it and acquired some of the more intricate costumes."

Val says that the whole Victorian period now fascinates her, despite finding history at school boring. Now there's no stopping her.

She said: "It's great interacting with history, especially when wearing the costumes. You realise why people walked and behaved the way they did.

"Some of the Victorian clothes were quite restrictive, so if you were wearing a corset you could not get down on your knees to play with a baby."

Val and Allan have been members of Nostalgia Unlimited for five years and are in contact with fellow enthusiasts and Queen Victoria look-alikes around the country. The couple have lent a number of Victorian costumes to the exhibition, from the 1860s, 80s and 90s, including a Victorian bobby's outfit, but it is the first time Val has dressed as Victoria herself.

She said: "We were contacted to help out with the exhibition at Radio Lancashire and I offered to dress up as Victoria if no-one else volunteered. Four other women came forward, but Harriet Roberts, who organised the exhibition, asked me to do it anyway."

She added: "I didn't think I'd look anything like her, as I am 5ft 6in and she was 5ft, and I had to grey-up my hair quite a bit, but I really enjoyed it."

Husband Allan also dressed up as a Victoria gent -- and received many comments that he looked like the Queen's famous confidant John Brown.

The couple's interest in period costume takes them to events around the country, the latest of which will be a costume regency ball in Chesterfield next weekend.

Val's fellow 'Victorias' came forward after BBC Radio Lancashire appealed for local look-alikes to help launch the exhibition. And organisers were amazed when all five got in touch.

They were Vera Hall, of Hambleton, Poulton le Fylde; Sylvia Jones, of Fleetwood; Mary Dodd, an attendant at Lancaster City Museum and Marion Ward, of Garstang.

The Victorian Exhibition, housed in the foyer of BBC Radio Lancashire in Blackburn, will include many artefacts, including a Victorian post box, a genuine bone shaker bicycle, a Victorian-posed family photograph, a schooldesk complete with slates and chalks for visitors to use and a display of wooden Victorian toys.

Family history events are also planned, with Victorian history lectures, youth theatre workshops, Civic Society walks in areas steeped in Victorian history and even an illustrative talk on Victorian underwear.

If anyone is interested in getting more information on Nostalgia Unlimited they can visit the website at: www.nostalgiauk.ic24.net