Two friends dressed as Barbie dolls arrive in style for prom

Emily Pounde and Hannah Jagger, both 16, were encased in plywood and perspex boxes complete with Mattel branding.

The 6ft x 2ft boxes were created over two days by Emily’s mum Christine, 39, who spent £250 on materials.

Emily said: “Hannah and I thought of the idea together and it suddenly became reality when mum liked it too.

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“We wanted to do something different and I really loved Barbie’s when I was little. It is something I will never forget, the further we got into the car park the more people stopped and noticed.

“Suddenly everybody surrounded us and took photos, I came out of the box shaking, so many people were taking pictures.

“It was like being famous, although I’m not sure I'd want to do it again - maybe if people take less photographs then I would, I didn't know where to look!”

Emily and Hannah hatched the idea in a bid to stand out from their classmates at Wadham School in Crewkerne, Somerset.

They kept their outfits secret, telling friends and teachers they were turning up in a taxi or by a parent’s car - but in reality they were planning an entrance to remember.

Proud mum Christine spent two days creating the life-size boxes for the teens despite having no experience in woodwork at all.

The 6ft x 2ft frames were made from wooden batons and each box was hand-painted with flowers and battery-powered fairy lights.

On the big night the boxes were loaded onto a flat-bed trailer and the pals climbed inside their boxes for a tour of Crewkerne to cheers from amazed on-lookers.

They then stole the show when they arrived at Haselbury Mill, the country house venue of their prom where their school pals were waiting.

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Emily said: “All the teachers and our friends kept saying how brilliant it was, the amount of attention was amazing.

“A lot of people kept coming up to me and Hannah all night saying that it was a brilliant idea and the best thing they’ve ever seen.”

The girls may have been inspired by the extravagant high school proms across the pond that is treated as a rite of passage.

US-style proms have become a 21stcentury phenomenon in Britain and it seems these girls are not the only ones pulling out all the stops for a grand arrival.

Last week Chloe Webb and Lauren Huggett from Archway School in Stroud, Gloucestershire, turned up to their prom in a helicopter after all the driven cars were booked up. 

Lauren’s father stepped in and paid £500 for a half-hour flight to the venue in Gloucester eight miles away to ensure they made a spectacular entrance at the end-of-year party.

Chloe said: “It was a fantastic trip - really good fun. We got in the helicopter and flew around for half-an-hour before being dropped off at our prom.

“All our friends were really shocked - they could not believe it. We landed on a patch of grass right next to the tent where our prom was taking place.

“We had wanted to get a limousine to the venue but they had all gone by the time we went to book it - but this was even better. The prom was brilliant too.”