Jilted bride who travelled the world after her big day was called off sells her wedding dress

A jilted bride who travelled the world after her big day was called off is selling her wedding dress to raise funds for the families of two murdered British backpackers.

Katy Colins, 31, from Formby, has put her unworn gown up for auction on Ebay after revealing how she was left heartbroken by the deaths of Mia Ayliffe-Chung and Tom Jackson.

Mia, 21, from Buxton, Derbyshire, was killed after being stabbed in a knife attack in a hostel in Queensland, Australia, last month.

Tom, 30, from Congleton, Cheshire, died a hero trying to shield her from her attacker.

Katy says she was left devastated when her fiance called off their wedding more than three years ago and her dress has been hanging in her wardrobe ever since.

'Trying on wedding dresses and realising that you've found 'the one' is pretty indescribable,' Katy wrote on her travel blog notwedordead.com. 

'I'd never worn anything so pretty before, I felt like a Hollywood superstar. It hid my flaws and imperfections and was everything I'd dreamt about getting married in.It was the most special item of clothing I'd ever bought and was the dress that would be in framed photographs dotted around our house for years to come.

'Only before I knew it, it wasn't. The day that I was supposed to be feeling like a million dollars as I walked down the aisle wearing my dress, I was actually in a bikini on a beach in Turkey as my best friend whisked me away for what would have been my big day.'

Katy says that although she was initially besotted by her dress it became unbearable to even look at it. 

 Mia Ayliffe-Chung (left) was killed after she was stabbed in a hostel in Queensland while Tom Jackson (right) died when he tried to shield her from her attacker.

She continues: 'After my wedding was called off, sorting out what to do with the dress was added to the long list of things I needed to cancel and sort out.

'That list was mostly taken care of by my mum and best friend, so I didn't have to see the beautiful beads, the vintage inspired brooch or feel the fabric between my fingers. 

'I couldn't bear to look at it, so it was placed in its protective bag and put in the wardrobe. As with most things in life; once it was out of sight, it was out of mind.

'I got on with starting my new single life. I grabbed my passport, jumped on a flight to Thailand and the dress slipped from my thoughts as I got on with creating new adventures, fulfilling dreams and making new memories. The rest, as you know, is history.'

Katy quit her job in PR at Manchester Airport after being jilted, sold her belongings and set about travelling the globe.