'I feel like I am Daenerys now. There is such a connection between us': Game of Thrones fan transforms herself into character and says it has helped her beat her childhood bullies

Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones is one of the most desired women on television, and while unfortunately she is a fictional character, lucky fans can feast their eyes on British impersonator Lucy Hinsley.



Lucy, 22, from Brighton has spent thousands of pounds in a bid to achieve the ultimate Daenerys look.

The student says that transforming into brave Daenerys - otherwise known as Khaleesi - has helped her stand up to the bullies that tormented her throughout her life.

Lucy Hinsley, 22, right, from Brighton, Sussex, UK, as Daenerys Targaryen (left in Game of Thrones) has painstakingly made the Qarth Linen gown she is pictured wearing, which took a whole day to make at a cost of £25

Lucy, who made the Quarth Blue and Gold dress she is pictured wearing, which took over a month to make and cost £310, says that impersonating the Game of Thrones character has made her stronger



Lucy says, 'I feel like I am Daenerys now - we are so similar. There’s such a connection between us.



'I used to be a pushover. But Daenerys has taught me not to take any more nonsense from people. She’s my inspiration.'

Since her Game of Thrones inspired makeover, the student has gained a legion of fans and has been bombarded with requests for dates from men online.



Lucy, from Brighton, has been a victim of bullying since the age of four.



She explains, 'Ever since I can remember, I’ve been put down and picked on by my classmates.



'They never thought I would amount to anything. I was always made to feel quite small by the people around me.



Lucy, pictured in 2012, has been tormented her throughout her life by cruel bullies

Since her Game of Thrones inspired makeover, Lucy, who is pictured in a Blue Dangonscale dress that took her over a month and £50 to make, has gained a legion of fans and has been bombarded with requests for dates from men online

'If I ever did speak my mind at school, my classmates would tease me and take the mick out of me so I coped by retreating into myself. I became awfully quiet and shy.

'I had a tough time as a child - it was hard to deal with the constant bullying. I faded into the background and didn’t want to speak to anyone.



'In retrospect, I was exactly like Daenerys at the start of Game of Thrones when she is intimidated by her brother, Viserys Targaryen.



'In a parallel way, I was intimated by my classmates at school but eventually I would come out of my shell just like Daenerys.'

Lucy became an avid fan of Game of Thrones when the first season of the television show was released in April 2011.

Lucy is pictured (left) in the Qartheen Golden Corset and Tunic outfit she made at a cost of £310, which is a near perfect replica of the one worn by Daenerys Targaryen played by Emilia Clarke in the show (right) Lucy browsing market stalls in London in one of the six intricate costumes she has handmade

Lucy's hair started severely falling out after dying it white over and over again to try and copy the extreme look of the character

Lucy became an avid fan of Game of Thrones when the first season of the television show was released in April 2011

However it was not until April 2012 that Lucy would begin dressing up as her favourite Game of Thrones character. Lucy’s decision came about after a friend said she reminded her of Daenerys.



Lucy explains: 'The second my friend told me that I really looked like Daenerys - everything instantly made sense. I had always been in awe of her character.



'It just seemed like the perfect fit. I thought perhaps I could be just like this amazing woman after all.



'Whenever I read Daenerys’ chapters in the Game of Thrones books, I always thought about how similar we both were.



'I felt an intense connection with her character. I feel like Daenerys and I have travelled along the same path to finding myself. We are both fighting for something.

Lucy grew her eyebrows out to achieve the character's famous power brow look and has has splurged just under £900 on a beauty regime to mimic her fictional idol

Lucy in her Dothraki Leathers outfit she is pictured wearing, which took around six weeks to make at a cost of £150 (left) and with her signed Khal Drogo poster from Game of Thrones (right)



'When I was younger, I was bullied a lot at school. Like Daenerys at the start, throughout my life I felt so small and scared.



'But during the course of the book, Daenerys suddenly finds herself and becomes strong. I wanted to be like her and I believed I could become her.'

WHAT’S INSIDE LUCY’S DAENERYS WARDROBE Professional Hair Colouring and Extensions - £100

Hair colouring upkeep (roots and toner) - £800 (every 8 weeks since May 2012, £60 each time)

Qarth Blue and Gold dress with custom belt - £310 (Took a month to make)

Dothraki leathers - £150 (Took 6 weeks to make)

Blue Dragonscale Dress - £50 (Took a month to make)

Qartheen Golden Corset and Tunic - £350 (Took a month to make)

Qarth Linen Gown - £25 (Took a day to make)

Battle armour (Original Design by Lucy) including Miniature Arakhs Weapons and

Worbla Chest Plate - £350 (Took 3 weeks to make)

Leather boots - £40

Sandals - £15

Travelling costs - £200

Game of Thrones memorabilia - £100

TOTAL: £2,410

From that moment on, Lucy was on a mission to revamp into Daenerys - dying her hair white like the character and growing her eyebrows out to achieve the character’s famous power brow look.



She also began to amass a whole wardrobe of incredibly accurate costumes.



Talented Lucy explains, 'I would get back from college at 5pm and work until 5am making an outfit that looked exactly like Daenerys.



'I was living on three hours’ sleep per night. I became single-mindedly obsessed with perfecting the Daenerys look. It upsets me when a costume is not completely faultless.'

Lucy first debuted her new Daenerys look to a public audience at the London Comic con in May 2012. The response encouraged her to continue dressing as the character.



'Everyone at the convention thought my look was amazing, I was so chuffed. A few people came up to me and thought I was Emilia Clarke, the actress who plays Daenerys in the TV series. It was an incredible feeling.



'After all that time of being put down by bullies at school, it was so surreal getting admiration and acceptance for being Daenerys by people. I was almost scared to believe their complements. I was just elated!'

After much demand from her fans at the convention, Lucy created a Facebook page and immediately received over five thousand followers. She also became inundated with requests from photographers.



'I get so many requests from photographers asking to take my picture. I have to turn them down a lot because I don’t have the time.



'But the buzz of being Daenerys was addictive and I wanted to continue making more outfits.'

Since then Lucy has hand-made six costumes which are intricately based on costumes worn by the character in the hit show. Each outfit can take up to a month to make and Lucy spends hours sourcing materials that were used in the Game of Thrones series itself.



Lucy has blown over £1250 on Daenerys inspired costumes and has splurged just under £900 on a beauty regime to mimic her fictional idol. Her huge financial expenditure has left the student broke.

Lucy says, 'Dressing up as Daenerys costs a lot of money - I can’t go out at all anymore because I just can’t afford it. I don’t have any money left over to buy normal clothes for university either.'

Lucy’s unremitting quest to look just like the fantasy character has also damaged her natural looks.

She adds, 'My hair has started severely falling out after dying it white over and over again. My hairdresser has insisted that I return to a normal colour but I will always want to have white locks like Daenerys.'

Despite all the pitfalls, Lucy believes the effort is all worth it.



She says, 'Dressing up as Daenerys gives me a newfound confidence and strength. It makes me feel invincible and powerful.



'When people make mean comments to me online, I don’t back away anymore and I confront them instead. A lot of my friends and fans jump to my defence too!



'I can fight back in a way I never could be before, I feel very proud of that.'

Since dolling up as Daenerys, Lucy claims that her love life has dramatically improved for the better.



'I used to be really timid around men before I started dressing up as Daenerys but I can speak to guys confidently now. Daenerys has definitely helped me be more confident on a romantic level.

