Kate loses her curves

Kate Winslet was once as well known for her voluptuous curves as her Oscar-nominated acting roles.

And she still loves to speak out in defence of the larger woman. But in her latest photo shoot for a men's magazine, Ms Winslet appears to be turning into the Incredible Shrinking Woman. Looking thinner than ever, she sports a sleek new hairstyle accentuating previously unseen cheekbones, noticeably smaller breasts, a pert bottom, slender legs and an implausible washboard stomach.

And the reason? Digital trickery by staff at GQ magazine. Editor Dylan Jones admits the shots were "digitally manipulated" after they had been taken, making her look more slender than she really is.

He said: "Kate saw the pictures before publication and loved them. Various parts have been improved, including her stomach and legs. As far as I remember she was aware of the alterations. I'll be very surprised and a little disappointed if she is anything other than completely happy. I don't think we've gone too far - I think she looks magnificent."

Ms Winslet's New York publicist, Robert Garlock, confirmed the actress had approved the photos before publication. He said he was aware the photographs had been altered but said they only made the actress look more fantastic than she does at the moment. "She has lost quite a bit of weight," said Garlock, who also represents Calista Flockhart and Uma Thurman. "She has been working hard and looks fantastic."

The photograph is a far cry from the young actress who graced Titanic, and she looks even thinner than a year ago, when she appeared at the Oscars having lost four-and-half stone following the birth of daughter Mia.

At the time she said: "I don't want to lose any more weight. I'm there now." But the 27-year-old's appearance has undergone a major makeover since she split from husband Jim Threapleton and moved in with film director Sam Mendes.

Still, in the GQ interview Ms Winslet says: "What is sexy? All I know from the men I've spoken to is that women think in order to be adored they have to be thin. Very thin. I just don't understand that way of thinking."

Jones confesses that such digital trickery is commonplace in glossy magazines. "Almost no picture that appears in GQ - or any other magazine or newspaper - has not been digitally altered in some way. They are all tidied up a bit," he said.

"Agents and publicists have much greater control over the image rights to their clients, so they want to make sure they are seen in the best possible light."

But other editors say they would not have gone so far. Damien Foxe, of fashion organ FHM Collections, said: "It's true pictures are routinely manipulated but we'd never alter the body shape of a woman. Kate is an icon for women who want someone more realistic representing them. However I'm sure her market value in America will increase."

Evening Standard Life & Style editor Liz Jones, a former Marie Claire editor, said the only time she changed a body shape was to make Renee Zellwegger fatter: "She'd lost loads of weight after filming Bridget Jones and was positively skeletal.

"The amount of computer enhancing and body part swapping now is taking it all a bit too far. I'm always surprised when meeting famous women in the flesh - they look nothing like their glossy image.

"It's about time women were told about these tricks of the trade. We feel bad enough about our bodies in January without being made even more depressed."

And sometimes such digital "improvements" backfire. After Mel B approved a bikini-shot for the cover of Loaded, the lads' magazine airbrushed it out and covered her most sensitive parts with a swarm of bees.

The singer was reported to be furious.