From catwalk to combat

A FORMER Miss England, dubbed Combat Barbie, faces deployment to Afghanistan after she returned to the army following her stint as a beauty queen.

Corporal Katrina Hodge swapped active service for the glitz and glamour of the catwalk when she took the title last January. She has since handed over her crown and is back on exercise in army fatigues, preparing for a tour of the war-torn country.

The married soldier, decorated for her bravery in Basra, yesterday insisted she was glad to be back in the forces.