Gail Porter reveals the back-breaking misery that led her to go from 28JJ to 28C on Celeb Botched Up Bodies
MANY women dream of having full boobs, but Gail Porter’s 28JJ chest left her suffering horrific back pain and feeling as if she had bags of sugar strapped to her chest.
The Sun previously revealed the 90s lads mag favourite has undergone a breast reduction, taking her down to a more manageable 28C.
The process has been documented for the latest edition of Channel 5 show Celebrity Botched Up Bodies, where Gail is open about how much her breasts have impacted her life.
“J’s? Who’s got J’s? My nickname’s 28Js later,” the 45-year-old star said.
“It’s like sandbags. I’m exhausted, my back is just getting more and more curved.
“I was aware of being a little bit different and developing earlier than the other girls.
“You go to PE class and they’re all in vests and I had to wear a bra.
“People would ping my bra and call me names, so I was the laughing stock.”
Gail was so upset about the size of her chest it affected other areas of her life and she developed an eating disorder.
She didn’t eat properly for nine years and was still crippled by self-doubt when her infamous naked FHM cover was projected onto the Houses of Parliament in 1999.
“When I was 26/27, I was taken into hospital and I had no periods, I was told I could never have a child,” she explained.
“All I wanted to do was get rid of the boobs.
“Even when I was anorexic, they were constantly there. I’d get thinner and thinner. Legs were getting thinner, arms, face… boobs? We are not leaving you.”
Things got better for the star when she married her now ex-husband, Toploader guitarist Dan Hipgrave.
They had daughter Honey, now 14, together and Gail realised she needed to make a change for her little girl.
Unfortunately, the pregnancy made her boobs even bigger.
“It’s like I had three heads – huge, absolutely massive,” she said.
“Exercise is a bit of a nightmare. I love my running but it’s just… I’m knackered by the time I get back, not just from the running but the weight. They’re heavy.
“I can’t even look at myself in the mirror, it’s too ugly.
“It’s like carrying huge bags of sugar on my front all the time.”
Gail suffers from alopecia which means she has no hair, something which is a daily struggle.
She’s determined to improve her life though, which is why she decided on a boob reduction.
She’s seen meeting a doctor on the show, who examines her chest and asks about stretch marks on her boobs.
Horrifically, Gail explains the truth about the marks: “No, they’re self harm.
“When I was younger I wanted rid of them so I used to cut myself.
“That was years ago, but that’s how much I hated them.”
After careful discussion the doctor agrees Gail is fit for the operation, and during it he removes an amazing 3lbs of tissue and fat from her chest.
Despite being worried about complications before the surgery, Gail couldn’t be happier with the results.
“You’ve made them very perky, thank you very much. I’m thrilled to bits,” she told the doctor, before adding: “My life has completely changed.
“My confidence level has gone through the roof.
“I can wear dresses, I can wear tops without looking pregnant.
“My back has gone from hunched to sitting up straight.
“When I had these big breasts I didn’t feel like it was me… I’m beyond happy.”
Celebrity Botched Up Bodies previously featured Pete Burns, who revealed he’d undergone 300 surgeries to try to correct botched operations.
Celebrity Botched Up Bodies airs on Channel 5, Thursdays at 10pm