An Oxford mother has fulfilled a childhood dream by visiting the Arctic Circle ... as a 'guinea pig'.

Myfanwy Brown, 32, from Headington, followed in the footsteps of inspirational explorers when she headed north for the nine-day trip. The mother-of-five was chosen from more than 1,300 women who applied to take part in one of five solo adventures across the world.

Other trips included visits to Egypt, India, China, Sri Lanka and Canada, as well as a railway tour across Europe. As part of the deal, Mrs Brown was asked to test an American company's skin care products.

But she told the Oxford Mail she was happy to be a guinea pig - if it meant she could visit such a magical and inhospitable part of the world.

She said: "It was a very special place - all glaciers and snow-capped mountains.

"It was very barren, but there was a real sense of community spirit about the place."

Mrs Brown's journey began in Svalbad, one of Norway's northern-most islands in the Arctic Circle, where she saw Arctic foxes, reindeer, seals and walruses, but sadly, no polar bears.

Later, she travelled by ferry to Finnmark to meet the native Saami people and learn about life in the land of the midnight sun.

As she braved the freezing temperatures, Mrs Brown took part in a study in conjunction with Leeds University to monitor the impact of the climate on her skin.

She said: "I took a selection of products. I had to keep a skin diary and wrote about the effects the climate had on my skin."

Dr Richard Bojar, from the Skin Research Centre at Leeds University, said: "The journey gave us a fascinating insight into the effect of climate on the skin."

Neutrogena, the company that sponsored the trip, told prospective adventurers that experts would "assess the impact the cold weather, salt water, wind and 24-hour sunlight" had on their skin after arming them with a skin analysis kit.

Mrs Brown said: "I think I was chosen because I showed a willingness to put family life to one side and try something different."