Miss Great Britain Ayrshire 2026

COMING SOON!

Gill Sherry

When Ava Morgan first appeared in Ayrshire Magazine in September last year, she was the reigning Miss GB Edinburgh and was determined to use her platform to actively raise awareness of breast cancer through her campaign, BeBoobAware.

By studying International Business at the capital’s Heriot-Watt University, Ava met the competition’s entry requirement of living in or around Edinburgh and in October 2024, went on to be crowned Miss Great Britain.

Miss Great Britain is a national title which is very much focused on community and charity work. In addition to her BeBoobAware campaign, Ava was able to travel to India to support A-Sisterhood, a UK based organisation that seeks to empower, support and protect women worldwide, and to be involved with the Stop Acid Attacks team in India.

Social media has also enabled Ava to support and empower both girls and boys closer to home.

“Through TikTok I ended up getting a bit of a following by sharing my eczema journey… how I struggled with eczema, especially doing modelling and things like that. It does create a lot of anxiety and pressure. If you have a flare up the night before a shoot, what are you going to do? The amount of messages and texts that I get from young girls and boys… because I would get a flare up and not necessarily cover it with make-up. It’s really lovely getting all the messages and being able to support the community. It’s a kind of safe space for people.”

In recognition of her tremendous fundraising and campaigning efforts, Ava won the Bold & Beautiful Award at this year’s Pageant Industry Awards, and although she has now handed over the Miss Great Britain crown, her charitable endeavours will undoubtedly continue. But never one to sit still for long, she has already set herself another challenge.

“I want to have a Miss GB Ayrshire!”

Whilst very proud to be crowned Miss GB Edinburgh, she admits she would have preferred to have entered Miss GB Ayrshire, had the opportunity existed. Now, the former Wellington School student is providing that opportunity for other local girls and women.

“We need to bring it to Ayrshire. It’s a coastal town, that’s where pageants originated.”

Miss Folkestone was the first UK based pageant in 1908. The competitions then gained popularity after World War II with seaside towns such as Morecombe introducing their own beauty contests. In fact, Morecombe was where Miss Great Britain originated in 1945, making it Britain’s longest standing pageant at 80 years old.

“Ayrshire’s very glitzy-glam. On a night out everyone’s dressed up to the max. I think it will be really fun and exciting to bring it to Ayrshire and to give the opportunities that I had to somebody else.”

The date for Miss GB Ayrshire has already been confirmed as Saturday 27th June 2026. It will take place at Troon Town Hall and will support Cancer Research UK and A-Sisterhood.

The five main sponsors are Haus of Dentistry, EssJay Electrical Services, SLS Medical Aesthetics, Unbridaled, and Bronzed, and Ayrshire Magazine is proud to be Miss GB Ayrshire’s media partner.

“It’s about having a bit of fun,” Ava continues. “It’s not about the prettiest girl in Ayrshire, it’s about personality, pushing a cause, being that role model, and giving a bit of spirit back to the community. There’s so much more to it than what you look like.”

This is further demonstrated by the three different categories:
Miss GB Ayrshire – age 18-30
Ms GB Ayrshire – age 31-45
Ms GB Ayrshire Classic – age 46-100

“I really believe that age doesn’t define you. Whether you’re 31-45 or 45-100… they all have different life experiences and will be able to reach so many different people. I was 19 when I won Miss Great Britain, and Maddie who was Miss Great Britain before me had just turned 31, so her life would’ve been so different to mine. It’s nice to get that diversity.”

Thankfully, many of the negatives which once applied are no longer applicable. For example, at one time you may have been excluded if you had children or if you were divorced. As Ava points out, those ‘can’ts’ have now been replaced with ‘cans’.

Needless to say, Ava is delighted to bring Miss GB Ayrshire to her hometown, and rather than hinder her studies, it’s actually helping.

“I’m in my third year of International Business. For me, this is business. The amount of skills I’ve learned through Miss Great Britain… how to present a course, how to speak in front of thousands of people, how to host events. I’ve learned so many life skills that really help with my university course. I see myself as a business and I’m marketing myself through TikTok. My end goal is to just see where it takes me.”

The judging panel for next year’s competition has not yet been announced, but Ava has confirmed that she will not be a judge herself.

“I want to help everyone get the opportunities that I had, and hopefully more! A year ago, I would never have expected to win a pageant or to be crowned Miss Great Britain. The opportunities that have opened up are crazy. So, I will coach and mentor the girls. I want to build on this, not just peak. I want to keep it going, keep the ball rolling!”

And don’t forget, the winners of all three categories will go on to represent Ayrshire at the national finals in October 2026.

If you’re interested in entering next year’s pageant, send your application or message via social media @MissGBAyrshire or email missgbayrshire@mail.com.

Who knows where it might lead?
“It’s just something new and exciting. Let’s bring the buzz to Ayrshire!”