Beauty & the Beast: The Ugly Face of Prejudice

Andy Tedder, who has Treacher Collins syndrome, meets Manchester beauty queen Elicia Davies. As the reigning Miss Manchester, 23-year-old Elicia is totally dependent on makeup, taking up to three hours every morning putting it on. Elicia thinks nothing of spending the majority of her salary on her appearance. Andy tries to persuade beauty queen Elicia Davies that beauty really is more than skin deep. A landscape gardener from Bournemouth, Andy has Treacher Collins syndrome, a genetic condition that affects 1 in 10,000 people. The condition stopped his facial bones developing in the womb, as well as his ears. Andy has had to endure years of painful reconstructive surgery and taunts from the public. When the two first meet, Elicia isn't shy in expressing her shock at Andy's condition, and admitting that if she looked like him she wouldn't be happy. And Andy is equally as shocked by Elicia's dependency on makeup and flippant desire for plastic surgery. With the guidance of psychiatrist Dr Laxmi Kathuria, Andy and Elicia begin to confront for the first time the personal insecurities that have plagued them throughout their lives. Will Andy ever gain the courage to put himself out there and find love, and can Elicia stop hiding behind the armour and free herself from the beauty beast? Also this episode, campaigner Adam Pearson investigates the wide-spread use of airbrushing in magazines and advertising, and enlists the help of a digital re-toucher to see if giving him the perfect symmetrical face can make him more 'beautiful' in the eyes of the public.