Huge noughties child star looks unrecognisable as she reveals she’s quit the limelight to become a nurse
A NOUGHTIES child star who teased that she was turning her back on the limelight to go to university has confirmed that she is now studying to become a nurse.
Alana Thompson, better known as Honey Boo Boo, rocketed to fame after appearing in TLC’s reality series Toddlers & Tiaras, which followed young girls entering into beauty pageants.
Now 18-years-old, star of the show Alana has fled from her roots in Atlanta, Georgia to study in Denver, Colorado.
She previously shared that she had dreams of becoming a neonatal nurse.
An Instagram story posted by Alana yesterday confirmed that these dreams were in motion and showed her studying for biology classes from bed.
Nicknamed Honey Boo Boo by her family, she won everyone’s hearts when her life on the US beauty pageant circuit was broadcast to a global audience back in 2012.
read more on child stars
One of the most iconic scenes showed Alana drinking “go-go juice” before a competition at six-years-old - concoction of Mountain Dew and Red Bull given to her by her mum, known as Mama June Shannon.
The tot’s sassy personality earned her a spin-off show where she was the sole star, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.
Alana looks totally different now to how she did as a TV star and has dialled down her appearance from pinky frilly dresses and ringlets to live a more down-to-earth life.
Mama June divulged in an exclusive interview with The Sun last year that Alana "had been accepted into some colleges"
Most read in Celebrity
"Granted, we've made a career out of it when it fell in our lap," she said.
"But I don't see Alana doing reality TV at the age of 40."
Leaving school with an education that could carve a medical career for her wasn’t easy though, according to Alana.
“Despite all the challenges and curveballs that were thrown my way, I still did it and I never gave up,” she penned in an emotional Instagram post.
“There were points in time when I just wanted to give up and just say f**k it, but at no point did I give up… I just kept going.”
The teen revealed she got “choked up” at her high school graduation ceremony in May.
“I can’t wait until I can tell everybody in the future about this day, especially my future kids,” she added.
“I'm not gonna lie, I look at my diploma now and it still feels a little surreal for me to be graduating high school.
“But I can finally say, ‘I DID IT’ and if nobody is proud of me, I'm proud of my damn self.”