“My girls both needed amputations – to give them the chance to walk”
Sisters both needed leg amputations after being born with the same rare condition - despite one-in-a-BILLION odds.
Mum-of-three Tatum Chirpich, 41, was shocked when her daughter Kennedy, nine, was born with a leg deformity.
The condition, fibular hemimelia, led to her right leg being amputated aged 16 months - but the tot quickly learnt to walk on a prosthetic limb.
Doctors told Tatum the condition was not hereditary and the chances of a second child having the same would be "like being struck by lightning twice".
So, she and husband Jeff Chirpich, 47, a truck driver, were gobsmacked when their second daughter, Dakota, three, was born with it as well - despite one-in-1.6 billion chances.
Dakota required both legs amputated - and had the procedure in December 2022 - but she too took to walking on prosthetics with ease.
Tatum says her daughters can do everything able-bodied children can do - despite the common misconception amputation is a "worst case scenario".
She says her girls didn't "lose legs" but instead is grateful the amputations allowed them to "gain mobility" and improve their lives.
Rather than comparing the rarity to being "struck by lightning twice" the family say they "won the lottery twice".
Tatum, a stay-at-home mum, from Nashville, Tennessee, US, said: "When Dakota was born with the condition, I was told I was selfish for having a second child.
"In movies, amputation is always portrayed as an 'end of the world' situation.
"So the misconception is that an amputee child is suffering because they're not able-bodied - I get comments about my girls saying 'poor baby, poor thing'.
"But my girls can do everything any other child can do - in fact they feel sorry for me because I can't take my legs off.
"I want to try to help people see amputation doesn’t have to be worst case scenario - sometimes it's the best."
Tatum and Jeff's first child together, son Casmir, 13, was born able-bodied.
Scans on their second child, Kennedy, didn't show any abnormalities, but when she was born on September 19, 2014, her parents learned she had a rare disability.
Fibular hemimelia occurs as a result of a genetic mutation and affects just one in 40,000 people in the world.
It caused one of her legs to only grow half normal length because bones were missing, and at sixteen months old, she had part of the leg amputated and her tibia straightened so she could be fitted with a prosthetic.
Tatum said: "She was trying to walk at six months old even with her limb difference - she was hitting milestones before her brother did.
"We had to get her a special kind of prosthesis before she even had her amputation because she kept trying to walk.
"When she'd just had her amputation she kept walking on her cast - there was nothing that could stop her."
When Tatum fell pregnant again they never expected their third child would have the same condition - as it due to a genetic mutation, rather than being hereditary.
But their second daughter Dakota, was diagnosed with the same rare condition.
The family are one of just a handful known in the world to have more than one child with the diagnosis.
Dakota's condition is more severe as it affected both her legs as well as one arm.
At two years old, Dakota had the lower region of both her legs amputated, and her tibia bones straightened.
Tatum said: "She is also missing the ulna bone in her left forearm so it's shorter, and she only has one finger.
"But it doesn't stop her from doing anything - except counting to 10 on her hands.
"With both the girls, we try to keep a sense of humour about these things."
Tatum said neither of her daughters have had issues being mistreated or bullied for their disabilities, and they both love their prosthetic limbs.
She said: "Kennedy is in third grade and all the kids are so intrigued by her leg and want to be her friend.
"She gets to change the pattern whenever she gets a new leg each year and all the kids think it's really cool."
The mum-of-three is trying to change the misconception that amputation is a scary or bad thing.
She said: "Any movie you've ever watched, amputation is portrayed in a negative light.
"A character loses their leg and can't cope any more - like it's an 'end of the world' situation.
"The term 'losing a limb' is so negative - I don't say my girls lost a limb, I say they gained mobility.
"If they had kept their limbs they wouldn't have the mobility they have."
Aid worker held by Taliban for five months walked 12 miles a day in cell to stay sane
A British aid worker held by the Taliban for five months has shed light on his horror ordeal - revealing he walked up to 12 miles a day in his cell to stay sane.
Ex-paratrooper Ian Purchase, 50, was arrested in Afghanistan's capital Kabul in May on suspicion of breaking local laws.
He says he was then chucked in solitary confinement until his release in October, where he was "beaten and whipped".
But Ian says the mental anguish was tougher - not knowing what the next hour, let alone day, would hold.
He says he desperately clung to a routine to preserve his mental health and, despite being agnostic, prayed to God.
He constantly paced his 18ft by 14ft cell, often walking up to 28,000 steps in a day - the equivalent of 12 miles.
The dad-of-two, who served in 3 Para from 1995 to 2001, is now safely back home and is coming to terms with what happened to him.
Ian said: “I was kept in solitary. I was beaten and whipped in the first five days of being there.
"But the worst of the pain is the mental side - not knowing why you’re there or if you’ll ever get out. It was hard to tell day from night.
“I’m agnostic but part of my routine was desperate heartfelt praying. I wrote the names of my children, my mum and ex wife on the wall.
"I’d put my fingers on their names and beg God for a sign that they were okay and that I’d get back to them.
“I really believed it to the highest degree. I used all my mind and force to get through.
“Exercise was very important in my routine too. My cell was 30 paces around - about 14 foot by 18 foot.
“I walked up to 28,000 steps per day. That was my target - I never went below 15,000 [steps].
“Walking around in a circle like that has done my hips in but it was necessary.
“Walking helped me stay in the zone to stop the bad thoughts coming in. I knew I just had to have only positive thoughts in my mind to get through.
“I used to drift off into another world to keep the bad thoughts out. As soon as I’d start to see a nasty thought I’d have to shut down on it.
“Any negative feelings - even being hungry.”
Ian, from Salisbury, Wilts., says he was in Afghanistan to set up humanitarian aid for widows and orphans.
He entered the war-torn nation via a train from Uzbekistan in September 2021 because so many routes into the country were closed after the Taliban took control.
Ian says he was then contacted by friends and relatives of someone in Taliban captivity asking if he could help, in March 2023.
He arranged a meeting with a contact and, two months later, on May 6, hopped in a taxi to buy some chocolates to take.
He asked the driver to show him the location of the meeting location.
But he says the cabbie went closer than intended - and Ian was arrested on the spot.
He said: "They just asked for our documents, which I gave them, then they made a phone call and that was it.
"I was hit over the head, handcuffed and taken to this facility, that's where I stayed.
"My ID had always been good enough before.
"I was held in the old national defence building in the centre of Kabul."
Ian was eventually released along with three other Brits - medic Kevin Cornwell, 'adventure tourist' Miles Routledge and a man who cannot be named for legal reasons.
But his prison term was spent alone, he says.
He says he was fed twice a day, often by guards who didn’t speak the same languages as him.
He had to beg for showers and wasn’t given one for the first month - or a change of clothes, he said.
He was given some old history books which he read over and over using lights which were on 24 hours a day.
And there were only very small windows in the back of the cell.
After three months he was allowed to call his mum, and again six weeks later, each time for three minutes.
He said: "It's so difficult - you have no warning so you have no plan of what to say. They just came in one day and let me call her.
"I just kept asking if my kids were okay, if anyone was helping try to get me out, if she knew what was happening.
"I'd just keep repeating that I loved her, and my kids, just over and over. I knew how worried they all were about me."
Ian and the three other men were eventually returned to the UK on October 10
The Foreign Office apologised to the current Taliban administration on behalf of their families for any violations in the laws of Afghanistan.
But Ian said: “We still don’t know the terms of our release. On October 7th the commander came and said ‘You’re being released on the 10th'.
“I had no idea if it was true. They moved me into the same room as Kevin and the other man.
“We just waited and worried. We had no computers phones or passports - we lost the lot.
“Finally we were put on a flight to Dubai and then on to the UK. Nothing beats seeing my family again. It was such a relief.
“At the same time it’s very hard. There’s a lot to recover from, and I can’t go back to the life I had before.
“I have no money, nothing. All my stuff is all still there and I can’t go back again.
“I was arrested there once before but released after six weeks - it wasn’t like this.
“And it was a real mission to get into the country. I used a lot of my old Afghan contacts who are connected to the Taliban.
"I wouldn’t be able to do that now."
Despite his ordeal Ian says he harbours no ill will towards Afghans, or Afghanistan as a country.
He said: “I would love for people to be able to go there for holiday. It’s a beautiful country.
“It’s stunning and I'm privileged and lucky to have been able to go there and have driven all over it.
“But it’s just not safe at the moment.
“It’s just not the right time - if you don’t have the right documents at a checkpoint anything can happen.
“And if nothing else, who’s going to insure those holidays?”
Ian was reunited in the UK with his teenage children, his mum and his ex-wife.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson said previously the UK government “regrets this episode”.
A statement reported by the Guardian said: “On behalf of families of the British nationals, we express their apologies to the current administration of Afghanistan for any violations of the laws of the country.”
Scott Richards, a co-founder of the Presidium Network, a British not-for-profit organisation that works in conflict zones assisted the men, posted on X after the release.
He said: "Mr Cornwell and the three other British Nationals which includes Miles Routledge have been released and have left Afghanistan. They are coming home!
"Thank you to everyone for their support of these men during this difficult period. We are all relieved."
Young quadruple amputee's incredible climb raises £12k for disabled kids
A selfless ten-year-old quad amputee feels 'on top of the world' after raising over £12,000 for other disabled kids - by scaling a 656ft mountain.
Luke Mortimer felt “very proud” to summit Embsay Crag, in North Yorks., dubbed his ‘Everest’, so he could “return the favour” to charities that had helped him.
The kind-hearted youngster was just seven years old when he contracted the severe bacterial infections meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia.
Although he survived the deadly illnesses, he lost all his limbs and needed 23 painful surgeries over a ten-week period to replace missing skin and address his wounds.
Luke’s family later relocated to a bungalow in Embsay, near Skipton, which volunteer group Band of Builders helped his dad, Adam Mortimer, adapt for him in September.
But ever since the move in 2019, the plucky lad has had ambitions to summit the nearby crag, which he can see from the garden of his rural home.
Following his successful summit on Saturday (Nov 4), Luke said he was amazed to have raised so much money - after initially hoping to make just £500.
He said: “It was tough, but I felt on top of the world.
“I’m really happy, and as well as that, I’m also pretty shocked. I thought we’d just get to £500, next minute we’re at over £11,000.
“At the top, I told everybody ‘I want you to shout, ‘We’ve cracked the crag’, and we all shouted it.
“It was tiring and tough, but when I got to the top I was very proud of myself. Everybody was really kind for coming out to support me."
Luke's dad Adam, 49, said 40 hikers had journeyed from all over the UK to climb the peak with Luke and hailed his son’s efforts as a “massive achievement”
He was also surprised at how much money they’d raised for charities LimbPower and the BBC’s Children in Need - after Luke appeared on its show last year.
Adam said: “We had some people who had seen the challenge on the news and had come from Sheffield and Chesterfield.
“We did it in a little over two hours, which was pretty good going. It was a massive achievement to get up. Luke was super proud. It was brilliant.
“It was great to get over £10,000. A big thank you to all the people who came out, who supported us and donated to us. It really meant a lot.”
Luke, previously a keen rugby player for Skipton RFC in North Yorks., was first struck down with meningococcal meningitis on December 13, 2019.
And he was transferred to Sheffield Children’s Hospital, where doctors found life-threatening septicaemia, also known as blood poisoning, had developed in his body.
Writing at the time of the incident John Firth, a family friend who set up a donation page for him, said his rugby-mad family’s life had been “turned upside down”.
He said: “Luke was a budding 7-year-old rugby player, a bundle of joy who even at a young age had embraced life and every day was a happy day.
"His whole family was part of the rugby community, with his dad coaching many age-grade youngsters and his mum, running a children’s rugby kit recycling stall, so that the young boys and girls, always had the right gear to play and train in.
"However, whilst the rest of us were buying and wrapping presents ready for Christmas, the family's life was turned upside down.
"Luke’s young life was saved, however, the disease has taken its toll on his little body.
"He has proven he is a fighter, however, his life and the life of his mum, dad and his big brother will never be the same."
Over the next few years, Luke endured endless sessions of physiotherapy and rehabilitation, while always wearing his trademark beaming smile.
He later learned to walk - and run - on prosthetic legs.
And after receiving £15,000 worth of donations from an army of well-wishers, he also got his first robotic ‘hero’ arm so he could do more for himself.
The Bungalow where Luke now lives with his brother Harry Mortimer, 14, and mum Christine Mortimer was previously changed for a man who was paralysed.
And volunteer organisation Band of Builders later helped his dad Adam fit it with a remarkable range of new adaptions, which were unveiled on September 3 this year.
Adam previously described Luke’s two-mile challenge, which began from Embsay Reservoir at 10am on Saturday morning, as his ‘Everest’.
He'd said: “For Luke, this is a huge thing. It’s above a normal walk for even me, so for Luke, it’s quite a tough challenge. It is kind of his 'Everest'.
"If you just did it purely on his stride, it’s half of anybody else’s. So it’s almost like if I’m walking a mile, he’s walking two."
Visit https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/adam-mortimer-4 to donate to Luke's appeal.
Fishermen rescue baby dolphin trapped in net as its mother held it afloat
This is the moment a pair of fishermen rescued a baby dolphin trapped in a fishing net.
Jose Ramón Pérez, 27, and Miguel Rodríguez, 36, were fishing 10km off the coast of Almería, Spain when they found the animal tangled in a net.
The two men spotted the young dolphin thanks to its mother, which had been desperately trying to keep her baby afloat.
The baby's tail was tangled in a rope and was being pulled underwater - almost drowning it.
But its mother would not leave its side and kept trying to lift it and keep its head above water.
José Ramon, a warehouse worker, and Miguel, a greenhouse owner, rushed to the baby's help after seeing the mother lift her flank above the waterline.
The pair believe she was asking for their help.
Jose Ramón, who is from El Ejido, said: "I saw something floating but it wasn't actually floating at the surface. It was underneath.
"Miguel said it was a dolphin but I thought it was strange because it hadn't moved at all.
"The mother put her side out of the water. She was trying to call us.
"When we got there she didn't leave our side for a second.
"She was holding its head up the whole time and the rope was even chewed."
Jose Ramón and Miguel called local authorities, who put them through to Equinac, a local conservation charity.
Equinac concluded that the situation was too dire to wait for their arrival and assisted the fishermen over the phone.
The rope was tied to an anchor and the dolphin, but with guidance from the charity the pair was able to cut the rope.
Although injured, the baby was able to swim off with its mother.
Jose Ramón said: "It was so hard to pull it up. I could feel it chafing our hands as we did it.
"I could see blood on the dolphin's tail from where the rope had cut it.
"They were panicked. The baby was thrashing around and screaming.
"When it did that the mother seemed like she was scolding it and trying to calm it down.
"As much as I try I can't express how it felt to be there. I was nervous and I was so sad for the baby. I don't know how long it had been there.
"I will remember this for my whole life. it was a truly magical moment."
Eva María Morón, a coordinator at Equinac, said: "If those boys hadn't been there, the baby would have died. This animal owes them its life."
Equinac also claims that the trap was placed there illegally by a known culprit.
She added: "We know who is responsible for the traps and he has been reported to the police.
"It's a massive problem that we fight against every day. We find these things every day.
"Not all dolphins live to tell the tale."
Astronaut gets chilling surprise when they spot huge skull on Earth
An astronaut had a chilling surprise when they spotted a huge skull on Earth.
An unnamed crew member of the International Space Station (ISS) snapped the eerie sight earlier this year.
NASA have now released the image, which they have entitled "A Ghostly Face in the Rock".
It shows a huge volcanic pit in northern Chad, with the skull illusion caused by shadows and volcanic features.
The space agency explain: "From above, the 1,000-metre (3,300-foot) deep volcanic pit and soda lake Trou au Natron in northern Chad has the look of a ghostly face staring back at you.
"An astronaut on the International Space Station captured this photograph of the distinctive feature on February 12, 2023.
"The edge of the “face” is partly formed by shadows cast by the rim of a caldera—a type of volcanic crater formed after an explosive eruption or the collapse of the surface into a partially-emptied magma chamber.
"The “eyes” and “nose” are cinder cones—steep conical hills built around volcanic vents. The cinder cones are thought to be relatively young in geological terms, likely forming within the past few million years and possibly as recently as the past few thousand years.
"The white area around the “mouth” is a mineral crust made of a salt known as natron—a mixture of sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride, and sodium sulfate. It forms as hot spring water pools on the surface and evaporates, and mineral-rich steam rises from the surface of the geothermally active area."
Trou au Natron lies just southeast of Tarso Toussidé, a broad volcanic feature with fumaroles and an active stratovolcano. One of several volcanic peaks in the Tibesti Mountains, it is the source of several relatively recent—though poorly documented and studied—eruptions.
The remoteness of Trou au Natron makes it difficult for scientists to access. However, analysis of rock and fossil samples collected in the 1960s indicate that Trou au Natron was filled by a glacial lake hundreds of meters deep about 14,000 years ago.
An expedition led by German researcher Stefan Kröpelin reached Trou au Natron in 2015 and collected samples of fossilised aquatic algae thought to have formed some 120,000 years ago.
NASA say satellite observations of the region have helped fill in some details.
They explain: "One pair of University of Cambridge researchers have pieced together a rough sequence of the region’s volcanic activity based on observations from the ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer) sensor on NASA’s Terra satellite. They divided the activity into six phases, with the formation of Trou au Natron as one of the most recent events of geologic significance."
The astronaut photograph was acquired on February 12, 2023, with a Nikon D5 digital camera using a focal length of 500 millimeters. It was taken by a member of the Expedition 68 crew.
Baker creates life-size replica of King Charles made out of cake
A talented baker has risen to the occasion to create a stunning life-size sculpture of King Charles - made out of CAKE.
Emma Jayne Morris, 53, sculpted His Majesty's head out of Rice Krispies and marshmallows before constructing his face using modelling chocolate.
It even comes complete with the monarch's sparkling crown which is adorned with 2,500 zodiac crystals individually placed on by Emma.
The edible part of the crown are the giant ruby on the front and sapphire on the back which are crafted from tempered sugar isomalt and sugarpaste.
Cake artist Emma, who painstakingly spent 120 hours working on the 5ft 10ins model, completed the King's body using 60kg (9 stone) of sugarpaste.
She is showcasing her incredible creation at the Cake International event at the NEC in Birmingham, which begins today (Fri) and runs until Sunday (5/11).
Emma, a mum-of-three, from Aberdare, South Wales, said: “I decided to pick King Charles with it being his coronation year.
"I know we're a few months down the line but I wanted to mark what was a historic occasion for the country.
"I first hand carved the shapes out of polystyrene, which was extremely time consuming, making sure I had everything down to his exact height.
"Then I covered it in what would probably be the equivalent of about six wedding cakes worth of baking materials.
"If I had done the entire thing out of cake, we would not have been able to transport it, and we like to be careful with food wastage too.
"It took me about four days to do the crown and the head and body took three days each. I worked from 8am to midnight each day to get it ready in time.
"The King has such distinctive features from his nose to his ears and I wanted to make it as lifelike as possible without it becoming a caricature.
"His eyes were definitely the most time-consuming part of the cake.
"Made from modelling paste, hand painted and filled with piping gel the fully edible eyes were put in the air fryer in dehydration mode for a whole day to dry out the gel and create a lifelike, glazed look.
"His eyelashes are made from individual strands of wheat painted with edible colouring and individually placed on his eyelids with precision and care.
"This lifelike detail is so important for me, especially when we are talking about the King."
Other amazing cakes at the show include 54-year-old Jane Lashbrook's life-sized replica of rock legend Ozzy Osbourne.
Visitors were also wowed by a creation of Max from Stranger Things floating in the air from the scene where she is possessed by the villain Vecna.
“I grew up in an Amish community with 18 siblings"
A woman who grew up in an Amish community with 18 siblings revealed how she didn't cut her hair or take a shower for 19 years.
Lizzie Ens, 38, grew up in a strict Amish community surrounded by her brothers and sisters but always felt she “didn’t belong”.
She didn’t have any electricity, running water and had to sew all her own clothes and wasn’t allowed to cut her hair.
Lizzie left aged 19 when her boyfriend at the time, from another Amish community, escaped himself and helped her do the same.
She left with just $20 and got a job as a dishwasher so she could integrate into modern society.
Her life is now "completely different" and she finds looking back on her lifestyle growing up "crazy".
Lizzie, a functional nutrition practitioner, from Phoenix, Arizona, said: “We had no electricity and no running water.
“We didn’t have showers.
“I had never cut my hair before I left – that was surreal.
“I knew from a young ages that I wasn’t going to be there by entire life.
“I knew I didn’t belong.”
Lizzie is one of three sets of twins in her family of 19 children – the eldest now 47 and the youngest aged 25.
She said: “We had sibling rivalry – in general we were close.
“Every morning for breakfast you cooked enough for 20 people.
“You are cooking for an army three times a day.”
From aged five Lizzie would do house chores, cleaning and milk the cows.
She said: “We are taught how to work hard from a young age.
“We grew all our own fruit and vegetables and had animals for meat.”
Lizzie said her community was very strict – and controlled what she wore.
She said: “We had to sew our own dresses and they had to go down to our ankles.
“All our hair had to be covered and couldn’t be cut.”
They didn’t have bathrooms and instead had to go to outbuildings to use the toilet and used newspaper or magazines instead of toilet paper.
Lizzie said: "We didn't have indoor plumbing so we didn't have showers.
"I didn't have a shower until after I left."
As a teenager, Lizzie started to question the rules of her community.
She said: “From my young teenage years I put my attention on things going on in the outside world.
“I questioned a lot.
“The men came up with the rules and the women had to follow them.
“I could not get on board with the hierarchy.”
Lizzie had been dating a boy from another Amish community when she received a letter from him saying he had escaped.
He told her he could pick her up that night along the road if she wanted to leave too.
She went to bed and left a note before climbing onto the roof and jumping off to her freedom.
Lizzie said: “I sat on the roof contemplating how I’m going to jump off.
“I was jumping off to my freedom and destiny.
“I landed and ran.”
Lizzie managed to connect with an ex-Amish couple who let her stay with them and helped her get a social security number so she could get a job.
Lizzie had $20 which she used to get her first set of clothes and a haircut.
She said: “I cut my hair out of rebellion.
“It was a massive culture shock.
“You have to unlearn things.
“That deconstructing of what you did all your life doesn’t just go away.”
Lizzie decided to “embrace” her journey and got a job as a dishwasher before becoming a personal trainer and then transitioning into holistic health and starting a coaching business.
Three of Lizzie’s siblings have also left but she hasn't spoken to most of her family in years, she says.
She said she doesn’t “hang onto” her past.
Lizzie said: “I embrace my life.
“My life is so vastly different.
“I look back and go that’s crazy.”
“I’m a Marilyn Monroe impersonator – I'm fed up of sexy pic requests"
A Marilyn Monroe impersonator sick of potential dates making lewd comments and asking for sexy pictures says she doesn't dress up to 'fulfil a fantasy'.
Talented Isabella Bliss, 36, is a burlesque dancer, comic, singer and writer alongside her role as the iconic sex symbol.
But she says most suitors can't look past her blonde bombshell looks - which has made it hard to find a partner.
Isabella says some men make crude jokes while others think she'll likely be self-obsessed and a narcissist due to the perception of Monroe's personality.
Unmarried and without children, Isabella, from Basildon, Essex, blames her love life struggles on her job.
But she says she loves what she does - and she has never wanted to have to give it up for anyone.
Isabella said: "I clearly state on dating apps that I know I look a bit like Marilyn Monroe - it’s my job. But nine out of 10 times they get inappropriate.
"Some people are confused and don’t understand how I get paid for it. Sometimes they want to go on date to see if I do look like Marilyn.
“But I still haven't given up on idea of meeting the love of my life and having my happy ever after.”
Isabella first started performing as a burlesque dancer at 20.
People quickly started commenting on her resemblance to Monroe, who is still widely held as one of the great sex symbols.
An actress, model and singer, Monroe died in 1962.
Isabella first performed as Monroe in 2013 at her friend's birthday as a joke.
But her performances escalated from there - and she made a name for herself as the 'Marilyn Monroe of burlesque'.
In 2017 she wrote a one-woman show dedicated to the icon, and next year will be touring the show as a full theatre production.
But Isabella says she feels like she has to make a choice between the career she loves and finding the man of her dreams.
And she says she worries the opportunity to meet the right man and start a family is beginning to fade away.
Isabella said: “Marilyn herself just wanted to find her person and be loved and feel loved but who she was made it so difficult for her.
“I’m another year older and another year closer to making a choice – do I choose to pursue my dream, tour my show and enjoy the career I love so much?
“When in the background I’m watching that opportunity to meet right person, have kids and get married start to disappear."
Isabella says she's had all manner of crude comments - with one man bizarrely asking if she'd slept with the late US president John F Kennedy.
The real Monroe is alleged to have had an affair with Kennedy.
Isabella said: "Someone messaged on my Instagram and asked what John F Kennedy was like in bed. They see me as a thing and not a person."
“Men think I’ll be really smutty or sleazy or that it’s ok to talk to me about my body - they ask for selfies all dressed up or in lingerie. It’s like I’m there to fulfil their fantasy.
“They think because I just look like her, they don’t realise I sing her songs, write comedy and scripts, have my one-woman show, they think I just look like her and take pictures like her.
“Dating apps are a minefield as it is, men are wildly inappropriate, now imaging compounding that with looking like a Hollywood sex icon.
“I’m lucky to work a job I love and I’ve never wanted to have to give it up for somebody.
“If I was to give it all up to get married and have children I’d want it to be my fairytale.”
Clever bear waves its paw to zoo visitors to get extra snacks
This is the moment a clever bear used its paw to wave at zoo visitors - to get some extra snacks.
A video shows the cheeky bear sitting back and waving to guests as they throw food into its enclosure.
The grizzly's tricks were captured at a zoo in Kaliningrad Zoopark in Russia.
Baby says “I love you” – at just eight weeks old
The 'world's youngest talking baby' - who said "hello" after six weeks - has now said "I love you" after just eight weeks.
Mum Somer Galal, 30, is thrilled with the progress of little Berlenti Eid.
The tot said "hello" on October 5 - 45 days after she was born.
She then said what sounds like "I love you" two weeks later, on October 19 - 59 days after birth.
Babies tend to use three-word sentences around the age of three, according to information online.
Somer, an architect from San Francisco, California, said of the 'I love you': “It was such an exciting moment - so incredible and heartwarming to hear.
"She often says 'hello' and sometimes 'good', but it was enchanting to hear those precious three words: 'I love you'.
"I was chattering away while changing her nappy when she blessed me with a little half-smile.
"I said 'I love you' and I hoped for a response.
"The sheer elation I felt is truly indescribable. We're totally in awe of her.
“It was so heartwarming when she said ‘hello’.
"No one would believe me - even her dad, and I wondered if I was being a crazy mum.
"We think she's the world's youngest talking baby.
“Even if she doesn’t know what the words mean she repeats them because it makes us smile.
“She’s definitely communicating because she says ‘hello’ if I’m busy and my focus isn’t on her so she’s using words to get my attention.
“It’s amazing!”
Berlenti, who was born to Somer and dad Omar Eid, 31, weighing 8lbs 9oz on August 21, has most of her chats with mum and gran, Beverly Galal, 70, while having her nappy changed.
Somer thinks her youngster coughs before speaking because she’s preparing her young vocal chords.
The mum has begun teaching her to count and play piano too.
She said: “I put my fingers up and she mimics me, and I put her hands on the piano keys and press them to show she can make the sounds.
"It’s very cute and she enjoys it.
"Maybe all babies are capable of this but we don't look for it, or maybe she's a genius - I'm open to all possibilities.
"At my first pregnancy scan the doctor commented that her brain development was really advanced.
"I thought they were being encouraging but maybe she's a little prodigy.
"Berlenti's talking is an incredible feat for eight weeks old - we’ve consulted a paediatrician to find out how best to support her development.
"Even the consultant was amazed."
