BETH DITTO STARS IN ANTI-SIZE-ZERO SHOOT

Beth Ditto is pin-up girl for anti-size-zero campaign

Larger than life rock star Beth Ditto has appeared in a shoot celebrating 'real women' for style journal Pop magazine.

The outspoken feminist will surely fan the flames of the size zero debate by providing such a sharp contrast to the stick-thin models that will make their way down the catwalks in September's fashion weeks.

At 5ft and 15 stone, the 26-year-old singer of US band The Gossip has found herself the poster-girl in a backlash against women starving themselves to be super-skinny.

Katie Grand, fashion stylist and editor-in-chief of Pop, said: 'Beth Ditto has become an accidental size hero for the size zero... she has become a generational icon, confounding the tedious stereotypes of what it is to be a wonderful 21st-century woman.'

Beth stars alongside a number of women in the shoot, including Lindsay Lohan, Yoko Ono and Lily Allen, who Grand believes stand out in an industry where size still rules.

'None of them are traditional women in any way,' she tells the Independent. 'I like the fact that none of them are traditional sample sizes.'

The British Fashion Council has decided not to ban size-zero models from the catwalks at next month's London Fashion Week, but has set up an independent inquiry in to models' health.

Grand is one of many fashion insiders who has given evidence to the inquiry, due out in days.

Designers showing at next month's London shows, including Paul Smith and Julien Macdonald, have been warned to 'be aware of size and health-related issues when casting models', said a spokeswoman for the event.