Tina Malone has been forced to hit back at social media trolls after mean comments about her recent bikini pictures were been posted online.
Tina famously lost 12 and a half stone over the last six years, and has had eight operations to remove excess skin.
The actress has spoken out about feeling happy and confident with her new body, but her journey hasn't been an easy one with cruel comments surfacing online such as 'you have more wrinkles than a bulldog', while other social media users have called her new look 'scary'.
But Tina refuses to let the negative comments get her down, and has sent a very strong message to her online trolls, telling Closer magazine, 'My answer would be that jealousy is a terrible thing. I'd say to all the trolls: "Send me a picture of you and let's see what you look like".'
The 53 year old is married to personal trainer Paul Chase, 34, who she shares two-year-old daughter Flame with, and she couldn't be happier with her family.
Tina has credited her great sex life to her weight loss and no doubt has the support of her husband when mean comments arise online, 'I'm in the best shape ever and have a wonderful and happy sex life since losing the weight.
Known for her role in TV show Shameless, Tina initially surprised This Morning viewers when she appeared on the show back in August looking very different to how many fans remembered her. The mum has always spoken openly about using a few different methods to gradually lose a dramatic 12 stone over the last six years, and even though the weight issues of Britain's youngest were on the agenda for her appearance, viewers were much more interested in Tina.
Tina spoke to hosts Eamon and Ruth about her struggles with maintaining a healthy size during the segment on the show.
She said of her previous obesity, 'I injected insulin for 22 years. I was clinically and morbidly obese. I was on amlodipine and lisinopril for heart and blood pressure. I was taking 38 tablets a day for 19 years.
'Being obese is a disease, it's the psychological problems that take you to a place where you overeat. People need to be helped. For some people, they need a gastric band on the NHS'.
On her weight loss journey Tina has had a gastric band fitted, cosmetic surgery, as well as adopting a new healthy lifestyle. After having her gastric band in 2010, the actress last year underwent £50,000 of surgery to remove excess skin.
Viewers were quick to tweet in to the show, blasting her after she admitted she would tell a friend or family member if their child was fat, and criticising her appearance.
One wrote: 'OMG! That's Tina Malone??! What has she done to herself!', another said: 'Tina Malone's face!!! Wtf is going on!!! #thismorning' and another added: 'What has happened to Tina Malone? She looks like a skeleton!'
Tina, however, was quick to hit back at the public and some press in a series of tweets, picking up on how her comments had been misconstrued and the comments on her looks.
'for the first time ever i feel i have been wronged,misrepresented and made to sound like a dragon,i may look ugly,like a dragon,old,fat, and now some say wrinkly and too thin i can take all the stick for my looks 24 7,iv never been pretty,attractive etc,but bein falsely accused is too much,i am not backtracking,but let me make my point clearly,i WOULD NEVER BODYSHAME A CHILD,OR ANYONE UNDER 18'
Tina went on to say that her comments had been taken out of context and she of all people would understand 'how bein bullied or mocked for bein fat feels'.
