Gosport girl makes the town giggle by heading to the shops dressed as Mr Blobby
AMID the downbeat news and dreariness of the coronavirus outbreak, a young girl has risen above everyone to put a smile on people's faces.
Eagle-eyed residents in Forton, Gosport, spotted someone dressed as Mr Blobby walking through Forton Road on Thursday, March 19.
One video has received more than 85,000 views on Facebook in that time.
Now, the secret of who is behind the mask has been revealed.
Gosport’s Mr Blobby is in fact 12-year-old Ellie Steel, from Russell Street.
She took to the shops dressed as the 90s TV character as the result of a family dare, to the delight of everyone watching from their windows.
Ellie said: ‘Last year my mum bought the outfit for a family trip to Butlins – but since then it’s just been sat in the cupboard.
‘My mum dared my step-dad to wear it but he chickened out, so I decided to wear it instead.’
Ellie went down to the Co-op in Forton Road, simply to buy a bottle of Coca-Cola.
But on her way there and back, she put smiles on countless faces, with people taking photos of her, laughing and honking their car horns as they drove past.
‘I had lots of cars beeping and people pointing at me, it was really funny,’ she recalled.
‘One lady was filming me while I was at the traffic lights so I made sure I waved at her.
‘I didn’t expect it to end up becoming as big as it has.’
Mr Blobby himself shot to fame as a character on the 90s TV show, Noel’s House Party.
With the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, many shops have closed their doors and residents are staying in their homes.
But Ellie hopes to make more outings dressed as Mr Blobby, to keep the town’s spirits up.
She said: ‘Everyone’s going through bad times at the moment so it’s fun to put a smile on people’s faces.
‘It feels good to know that people are laughing from it – I loved going out as Mr Blobby and definitely want to go out like that again.’