How I got my trout pout and no one else should suffer the same humiliating ordeal,' by Leslie Ash

Leslie Ash has spoken out over her infamous botched lip implants in the hope other women undergo safe cosmetic surgery.

The former Men Behaving Badly actress, 48, was publicly humiliated when she suffered an allergic reaction to a lip filler injection in 2002.

Ash was ridiculed in the press for her 'trout pout' and her lips have never been the same.

Speaking out: Leslie Ash has spoken out about her botched lip-boosting procedure in a bid to inspire other women to be safe with plastic surgery

After suffering cruel taunts over her lips, then falling seriously ill after contracting the hospital super-bug MSSA, Ash is finally bouncing back with a new-found confidence.

She tells the Daily Mirror: My obsession with looking young began six years ago when I experimented with fillers to smooth out lined around my mouth.

'My lips seemed to be disappearing into my face. I decided to try a dermal filler and my first procedure went like a dream.

'Two years later, when the fillers had broken down, I returned to the same person for a top-up.

'I trusted her and it didn't occur to me to question what she was doing. That was a mistake I will always reject.

'As everyone knows ,my lips were injected and I suffered an allergic reaction. The media had a field day and I became a figure of fun.'

A fresh-faced Leslie, left, seen before the lip filler cosmetic treatment which made her an object of ridicule

'I trusted her and it didn't occur to me to question what she was doing. That was a mistake I will always reject.

'As everyone knows ,my lips were injected and I suffered an allergic reaction. The media had a field day and I became a figure of fun.'

Ash has decided to expose the hidden dangers of the cosmetic industry and the need for employees to be properly trained and qualified in a new documentary Leslie Ash: Face To Face.

In the documentary, Ash herself is given the opportunity to inject somebody with Botox.

Offering advice to potential cosmetic surgery customers, she explained: 'The beauty industry is unregulated so you must do the legwork.

Leslie exposes the dangers of cosmetic surgery in a new documentary Leslie Ash: Face To Face showing tonight on ITV

'There is so much information on the internet, but beware the cowboys and abusers who are part of this multi-million pound business.

'As long as it (the industry) remains unregulated and until the Government sets out some rules, it is not safe.'

After years of negative feelings over her lips, Ash has come to terms with her altered mouth and accepted the way she looks.

She said: 'I have decided it is time to stop hiding. I feel it is time to talk openly about the mistakes I made. I've had some corrective treatment and I feel much happier with how I look and feel about myself now.'