A BOLTON woman has been cheering up her her community to provide herself with some catharsis following a tragic miscarriage.

Chellsi McGarry, 30, from Westhoughton, miscarried at the beginning of March, leaving her depressed and stuck with her thoughts.

With nothing to do, and signed off work for a while on doctor’s orders, Chellsi decided to cheer herself - and those around her - up, with a unique and fun idea.

Having purchased a £20 minion costume, Chellsi began walking around her area, waving at passing cars and children.

Minions characters shot to fame in the Despicable Me films.

Chellsi said: “A couple of weeks ago I had a miscarriage and was off work for a while after my doctor advised me to. The day before Mother’s Day, I thought to myself; I can’t just sit in anymore. I had a Minion costume, kids were off school so I just thought I’d go for a walk in it.

“People were waving and beeping at me - it was great. I had one woman who told me it had cheered her up as it was her first Mother’s Day without her mum and it was nice to smile. I just want people talking about something other than Covid and to cheer people up.”

And nursery worker Chellsi said that she has no plans to stop her entertaining walks.

She has set up an Instagram page, documenting each trip she makes out into the community.

She has also bought two more costumes for future trips out - of Mickey and Minnie Mouse - while also planning to add a Paw Patrol character to her collection.

She added: “When I see others happy, it makes me happy. I just didn’t want to sit around inside anymore - I wanted to get out and cheer people up.”

To see Chellsi’s trips out on Instagram, search for her username ‘chellsileesmascots’.

She is also available on a Facebook group called ‘Spot The Minion’.