THEY’VE been her calling card since she was 19, and earned her an army of loyal fans, but Rhian Sugden’s famous boobs have also caused her years of pain.
Just four weeks ago the former girl went under the knife to have her natural - and now she has exclusively unveiled her new look for The Sun.
And the 38-year-old - who previously revealed her boobs had ballooned after she became mum to 16-month-old George - is delighted with .
“I feel so much sexier,” she says.
“I’m definitely lighter. I feel like my posture is better already. My confidence is back and I can wear clothes I’ve not been able to wear before.
“I’m bigger all over after and getting married, because I got comfortable, but I’m all right with that now because are more in proportion with my body.”
In a , lasting four and a half hours and costing over £10,000, surgeons removed “four coke cans worth” of tissue weighing 4.5lbs.
“I thought they actually removed the nipple, but they don’t,” she reveals.
“They remove the lower part of your boob, pull your skin down and then basically, use a cookie cutter to pull your nipple back through.
“I’ve got a mole that was on my upper chest that is now down by the nipple. My nipples have come up by 12 cms.”
Although she was nervous about the double procedure - a breast reduction and uplift in one - was initially worried they hadn’t gone far enough when she came round from .
“I was still out of it because of the general anesthetic. And I remember looking down and thinking they had put an implant in, not because they were big but because they were so perky,” she says.
“When the nurse came out I said: ‘Have you put an implant in?’ And she said, ‘No that’s all you.’
“I was still shocked at the size of them when I came out but the swelling has gone down now, and I feel like they’re settling in a bit more.
“I told them I wanted a significant reduction but I still wanted to be big, which didn’t really make sense.
“They took a good amount but, as much as I wanted to be smaller, in hindsight, I probably would have been upset because my boobs are a big part of my life.
Still a petite size 10, Rhian’s cup size has shrunk to an F, a month after surgery, and she reveals her left side now matches her right for the first time in her life.
I remember looking down and thinking they had put an implant in, not because they were big but because they were so perky
Rhian Sugden
“My boobs were a whole cup size different. The right one was always bigger so I’d always have to have one arm up, in every photoshoot, to make them look even,” she says.
“Most have a best side, facially, but I had a best side for my body, to disguise the unevenness of my boobs.
‘I got to pick the size of my nipples’
“Now they are symmetrical for the first time in my life and it feels weird not having to lift my right arm any more.
“I also got to pick the size of my nipples so they are now smaller and more symmetrical.”
Two decades as a have left her with few inhibitions and just minutes after we meet she whips off her bra to show me the scars - which run incredibly neatly around the nipples and down the underside of her boobs.
“I’m really happy with how they look,” she beams. “I think he’s done a really good job. We chose our surgeon well.”
Rhian previously revealed husband was not keen on the idea of a reduction - but she says he is chuffed with the results.
“Oliver was a bit nervous at first because he likes big boobs and he was worried about the scarring,” she says.
“But he can’t believe how well they’ve turned out. He’s very pleased with them. He says I look like again because they’re so perky. They look good and they’re still a good size. A decent handful for him.”
Oliver was a bit nervous at first because he likes big boobs and he was worried about the scarring. But he can’t believe how well they’ve turned out. He’s very pleased with them
Rhian Sugden
A tiny size 6 when she shot to fame at 19, as one of the UK’s best-loved glamour models, Rhian was a 32D cup, even then.
And after tying the knot with former star then going through six years of before conceiving George, she put on a few pounds - most of which went to her chest.
“I actually went for a consultation for a reduction before I had George, because I thought I was never going to have but Dr Hussein, at the Pall Mall Clinic in , said, ‘I’m happy to do it, but I think we should wait another year, just in case.’
“Then I got with George and they were twice as big when I went back this time. When I took my top off he said ‘Oh yes, they are....’ and I said, ‘saggy?’ And he went, ‘Yes’,” she laughs.
“They got bigger and bigger while I was pregnant and didn’t deflate and I really struggled to breastfeed because of the size of them.
“They were bigger than George’s head and I was worried about suffocating him. And because one of my boobs is bigger than the other I only really breastfed on one side so that one grew massive. It was a nightmare.
“I’ve always loved having big boobs, so it’s not that I hated them, but it got to the point where they were unbearable and was seriously affecting my life.”
Before going under the knife, in June, she revealed she was in constant pain because of her 34HH cups and she was on daily pain killers.
‘Out of proportion’
“They’re just so heavy. My back is in bits all the time, my posture is getting worse and I just want to feel better in myself,” she said.
“No matter what size bras I bought, or how much scaffolding there was, the dents on my shoulders got worse.”
Her “out of proportion” figure also meant dresses were impossible to buy, vest tops were a no-no, and she lived in trouser suits and blazers to “cover up my top.”
But after turning up to our shoot braless and in a boob tube - which she tells us, excitedly, she could never wear before - she was thrilled to slip into a backless denim dress as well as slipping on a vest top and shorts combo, without feeling top heavy.
“I can’t wait to buy a whole new ,” she says.
“Before the op, I was starting to hate how I looked because I was having to buy size 14 tops just to cover my chest and I’d look more than I was.
“I hated going out. I hate having pictures taken, which is part of my job, so it wasn’t ideal. I was ready to go down a C cup. That’s how desperate I was.”
No devoted parents, Rhian and Oliver spent and went through a traumatic birth, but says the arrival of George “took all the pain away”.
But recovery from the boob op was difficult because she couldn’t lift her son and “had to sitting up for two weeks.”
“That was hard, because we co-sleep with George so I had to go in the spare room, and I just couldn’t get comfortable.
“I still can’t lie on my side because my boobs feel like inflatable balls.”
As a new mum, she was also worried she wouldn’t be able to breastfeed a second baby, should she get pregnant again - but was reassured by surgeons that everything is still in working order.
People love a natural boob and I’m still natural. But whatever they think, I feel better in myself I’m confident to just be me
Rhian Sugden
But, while Oliver is keen to try for a sibling for George, Rhian jokes that she wants to “enjoy my new boobs for a while first.”
She is also keen to share her new look with her 500k fans - despite being trolled by many including one who started “demanding his back” and claiming she was making the “worst mistake of my life.”
But, brimming with confidence and beaming with and happiness, Rhian is confident her loyal followers will like what they see.
“A lot of people were saying, ‘You’re going to ruin your career’ but it’s an overhaul and, if anything, I’m hoping it’s gonna get better, because I’m new and improved. I’ve just had a refurb.
“People love a natural boob and I’m still natural. But whatever they think, I feel better in myself I’m confident to just be me.”
