She may be a size 18, but Laura Mulholland wants to be a model. She speaks to CHRISTEN PEARS as she makes her catwalk debut today in the finals of a national competition

THE woman in the photograph reclines on a sofa, her long blonde hair tumbling about her shoulders. Glamorous and confident, she looks right at the camera as if she has been doing it all her life. But Laura Mulholland is not a model, she's a law student, and what's more, she's a size 18.

The 20-year-old, from Brompton, near Northallerton, is one of just eight women to reach the final of the 16plus Model of the Year competition run by Woman magazine and clothing retailer Evans. If she wins today, she will walk away with clothes vouchers worth £1,500 and a contract with Excel Models.

"Having had a taste of modelling through the competition, I know it's something I would like to do and I think it's good for people to have positive images of bigger women. People will be able to look at me and see that you can still look good even if you're not a size ten," she says.

Laura, who is in her third year at Leeds Metropolitan University, is proud of her voluptuous figure and has never felt any pressure to diet. While some larger women hide themselves away beneath baggy jumpers, she is most comfortable in a chic little black dress.

"My weight has never been something that has bothered me. There are a lot of people out there who see pictures of thin models in magazines and decide to try and lose weight, but I think it applies to girls who are a size eight and obsessed about their weight as much as bigger girls.

"It's all about feeling confident about the way you look and there's insecurity right across the board. I'm happy with the way I look and I like people to know it."

In an age when so many women want to look like super-thin Victoria Beckham or the supposedly "curvy" but really rather skinny Brazilian model Gisele, Laura makes a refreshing change. In fact, she's almost indignant when I suggest that Sophie Dahl is a more realistic role model than some of the waifs currently in the public eye.

"When she first got on the catwalk, everyone was talking about her being a bigger model. She wasn't thin like the others but she wasn't exactly huge. Now she's lost weight and is probably about a size ten. It's quite sad that she feels she's had to do that," Laura says.

The 16plus Model of the Year competition is now in its 12th year and attracts more than 1,000 entries from aspiring models around the country. The organisers believe it has an important role to play in re-shaping the way people think about size and body image.

Jo Moody, of Woman, says: "More than 50 per cent of the population are a size 14 or bigger but every time you open a magazine or turn on the TV, you are presented with images of models who look like stick insects. For a lot of women, it's unhealthy for them to be that thin and you don't have to be like that to look good.

"I think the competition shows people that. You just need to look at Laura to see that. She's happy with the way she looks and you can tell. She's so bubbly, so outgoing, she's stunning."

Laura is hoping the judges will feel the same way. Last month she spent two days in London with the other finalists on a photoshoot for a feature that will appear in Woman later this month. But she faces her final test today when gets up on the catwalk in front of an invited audience of 600 fashion experts and members of the press.

She claims she's feeling nervous but she's so outgoing, it's hard to imagine her being intimidated by the glare of the spotlight. She's far more likely to thrive on it.

She says: "I've never done anything like this before so it's going to be a real challenge but I am looking forward to it. Whatever happens, I'll have had a really good experience during the competition. I'm not pinning my hopes on it, but I would be thrilled if I won."