Madonna turns back hands of time

It is no secret that Madonna's hands are not wearing quite so well as the rest of her celebrated anatomy. But you'd never guess it from her latest photoshoot.

As well as a flawless, wrinkle-free complexion, the almost-48-year-old singer shows off a set of digits which bear no relation to the gnarled and veiny actualité.

With a flawless sheen and healthy, plumped-up look, they could well belong to a woman less than half Madonna's age. And that, according to one airbrushing expert, is because they actually do.

Michelle Facey, from the David Martin photography studio in Liverpool, said: 'I am shocked by what I am seeing. Quite simply, these are someone else's hands.

'While it is possible that they have been totally digitally retouched - her natural skin colour being built up to effectively smooth down the veins - it is more likely that they actually belong to a woman in her twenties.

'If you look at the size of her fingers on the right hand compared with her thumb on the left, they are not on the same scale. Her right hand consists of huge, sausage-like fingers, far bigger than its usual size, and is totally out of proportion with the other.

'Alternatively, Madonna could have had hand fillers injected into the skin of her hands to give them a plumper, more youthful, appearance.

'But with ever-advanced digital technology, almost anything is possible nowadays, and anyone or any body part, can be made to look younger.'

The image was released to mark Madonna's signing a six-figure deal to become the new face of the Swedish fashion chain H & M.