A BAR is no place to hold the Miss Oxfordshire finals, the beauty pageant’s new organiser has said.

That was why Diane Slater has postponed the competition, due to be held at The Living Room in Oxford last night, in favour of staging it at Witney Lakes Resort, in Downs Road, in April.

Ms Slater took over the competition from organiser David Douglass three weeks ago.

She said: “It had been delayed already to get some more contestants but when I found out it was to be held in a pub I had to put my foot down.

“I just wasn’t happy at all with the venue. I didn’t like the idea of it being in a pub or bar, and it not being exclusive.

“When I came to Oxford to check out the venue a couple of weeks ago I saw there were bar stools only a foot or two away from where the girls would be walking. At the resort it is all exclusive and the security is better, it is fantastic for the girls and means we should raise more money for charity too.”

The Miss Oxfordshire finals were originally supposed to be held on December 9 but this was moved to yesterday because there were only nine contestants for the competition.

Ms Slater said she has six new entrants for the competition now on April 21 as well as the original nine she is contacting to confirm they will be available for the new date.

The annual event is held to find a woman aged between 17 and 24 who can represent the county both at the Miss England competition and at various local events over the course of the year.