By Katie Smyth

MISS SCOTLAND, Katharine Brown, gave friends and family a sneak preview of her highland dance routine in Dundee’s Hilton Hotel last night.

Katharine first clinched the title of Miss Scotland with a Bollywood number, but now she must turn her skills to a more traditional style in preparation for the Miss World contest in December.

Enlisting the help of the Ashley Walker Dance School, she has been in training since August.

Choreographer Leanne Adam said, “Katharine got in touch with us in early August to discuss learning a traditional dance for the competition. We showed her a number of steps and over the weeks we have worked together to create a contemporary dance that still retains a traditional Scottish theme. Katharine has been a fantastic student and she has a natural sense of rhythm.

“She’s worked very hard over the past few months and I’m sure everyone will be impressed with her performance.”

Katharine was able to draw on the experience of British champion dancer, Rhiannon McPhee, and the award-winning broadswords team.

The routine she has put together for Miss World, however, is an optional extra she is hoping will add some additional points to her main performance—a rap.

Katharine said, “This is an optional dance and I like to keep the traditional Scottish dance feel to it, but I also wanted the modern hip-shaking moves, a lot of smiles and claps and bopping around.”

Last night was Katharine’s first dress rehearsal of the routine in the Children First charity tartan dress she will wear in December.

She said, “This tartan is beautiful and they are lending it to me to go to Miss World.

“It means so much to me.

“It’s a great charity and I’m so privileged to be able to show their tartan all over the world.”

After Katharine performed her routine last night, the professional dancers took to the floor to show off their broadsword performance.

Katharine will leave for the Miss World contest on November 4, while the final takes place in Johannesburg on December 12.