The hijab hit the headlines in September when it was announced that a Muslim contestant would be wearing a headscarf in the finals of the Miss England beauty pageant.

Cue lots of people saying wow, this is fantastic and inclusive and wonderful while others, like me, were left scratching our heads.

Women wear the veil to send a message that they do not want to be judged for their looks. Wearing it in an arena where the whole point is to be judged seems a tad ironic.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have anything against Muslim women wanting to be fashionable.

There are dedicated ‘modesty’ fashion shows held annually in London now which show off haute couture without being revealing and there are specialist boutiques where you can buy floor-skimming attire in colours like sludge and mud in a bid to look edgy without flashing any flesh.

But what I also find slightly perplexing is the growing trend of hijabi bloggers who post videos of themselves plastered in make-up as if to overcompensate for the fact they cover their hair.

The eyelashes take on Tarantula-like proportions, they contour the hell out of their cheekbones and gurn and pout at the camera like drag queens. Their faces flash like Belisha beacons, so bright they are visible from space.

Sometimes I find myself asking, is it more modest to go around with your hair covered but congealed in make up or to go out fresh-faced with your hair loose?

And don’t get me started on the highlighter. I saw a very attractive young hijabi with her face so sparkly she looked like she was imitating the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz.

I went behind the scenes at a Miss Universe contest a few years ago and I was struck by how friendly and fun the girls were. It really did seem like a big sisterhood, all very supportive, not catty or bitchy and just like being part of a huge family.

All the young women taking part spoke about how they supported each other and had made lifelong friends.

Maybe I have got it wrong, I thought.

Then the show started and the girls sashayed out like clones: all Barbie-haired, shiny toothed, long limbed and spray tanned – even the Asian girls – and there was something rather upsetting about it all.

Maybe this is how the world is these days.

No corner of society is untouched by TOWIE and Kardashian wannabes. In the past we used to play down our looks and achievements but now it’s all ‘LOOK AT ME!”

And now Muslim women can be just as fame-hungry and attention-seeking as the next person.

The girl who took part in the contest is studying law but like Matilda’s negligent mother from the Roald Dahl classic, maybe she thinks choosing ‘looks over books’ is the way to go.

Dress it up however you want but maybe sometimes the headscarf is nothing to do with modesty and everything to do with naked ambition.