Meg's Elle of a cover

Time was when her presence was all that was needed to make a party. But then Meg Mathews divorced the more placid of Oasis's Gallagher brothers and retreated from celebrity circles to look after their daughter Anais, two.

Now she is back - and clearly has little to hide. For her first major interview since the £10 million split, the 36-year-old is pictured on a magazine cover wearing little more than some festive boots.

Inside, her only adornment is her famous nipple bar. Mathews, who reportedly had her breasts enlarged as a wedding present for Noel, went on a crash diet for the photo-shoot - and was pleased with the results. 'For the first time in ages I looked in the mirror and actually liked what I saw,' she said.

In the Elle interview, she talks candidly about single motherhood, her wild party days and her longing for romance. But there is one topic on which she refuses to bare all - her famous ex. 'There's been plenty of times Noel has said things about me in the papers and I've wanted to say something back,' says Mathews.

'But then I think: "No, keep your dignity, keep your head down for Anais".

'So I will never talk about our split. It's to do with me and him.'

She claims her famed excesses - press stories in 1998 had her spending £27,000 a month on clothes - have given way to a more modest lifestyle.

'The crazy thing is, I've hardly been out these last two years as most nights Anais is asleep and I'm watching East-Enders chatting with the girls on the phone,' she says.

With a move back to the capital on the cards, to be nearer A-list friends and fellow mothers Kate Moss and Sadie Frost, Mathews feels it is time to get a job - if only to fill the time.

'The world is my oyster,' she says. 'I've been a stylist, fashion buyer, events organiser, PA. I've just got to work out where to blag myself next.'