ZOE Tay's BIG.

So big, in fact, that rumour has it that the Queen of Caldecott had to have her, ahem, assets digitally reduced on a poster for The Ultimatum, for fear of stealing the thunder from her co-stars.

So big, in fact, that during the press conference for the upcoming drama series, co-star Fann Wong couldn't help but talk about them massive mammaries.

Not that she sounded jealous or anything.

Ok, maybe just a little.

Fann couldn't disguise her girly excitement when she talked about Zoe's twin wonders.

'You'll never complain your assets are too big,' she chirped cheekily at the interview with The New Paper.

Fann even had time to indulge in a little wishful thinking.'Too bad the breasts were not on me!' she said, laughing out loud.

She added: 'I asked Zoe, 'You mean your breasts are digitally reduced already? I thought they are still very big leh!'

Fann said the last time that she noticed Zoe's bosom was during her first pregnancy in 2005.

'They were difficult to miss. They were so big she looked like she had three heads!' Fann said before collapsing into giggles.

And she wishes her own bosom could be bigger, too.

Her cup size is anyone's guess since she's too shy to reveal it.

She added with a forlorn look at her chest: 'But it's possible only if I go under the knife. I'm very sure my boobs wouldn't be that big even if I got pregnant.'

And is she preggers? Fann might be playing her cards close to her chest, but hubby Christopher Lee had told The New Paper after their solemnisation ceremony on 16 May that he wants many children.

So, watch this chest...err space, for updates.

Zoe, on the other hand, didn't think that her breasts got altered on the poster.

'They look the same size to me. I think it's just a rumour and people exaggerated it... perhaps the gown enhanced the size? My breasts are actually very small!' she insisted.

According to Zoe, her chest has shrunk since she stopped breast-feeding second son Ashton last February. Ashton is now 11/2, while older brother Brayden is 4.

Zoe might think her image wasn't altered, but it was.

Mr Paul Chan, vice-president of Channel 8 Branding & Promotions, confirmed with The New Paper on Sunday that the photo was doctored.

He said that there were concerns that Zoe's chest might distract from the other stars on the poster. He did not want to name the people who raised the alarm but said that they were uncomfortable with the visible size of Zoe's assets.

Reduce her bits

He admitted though that he felt the swell of Zoe's bosom was not that overwhelming.

Nonetheless, two graphic artists, one female and one male, were then tasked to reduce Zoe's parts.

Using Adobe Photoshop, an image-enhancing software program, the artists lightened the shadows around the bosom and altered Zoe's skin tone slightly.

According to Mr Chan, the artists tried many times to find the right size for Zoe.

He added: 'They giggled a lot in the process.'

The New Paper could not get a copy of the original photo but Mr Chan claimed the difference, while slight, is noticeable.

But size of bosom notwithstanding, Zoe still stands out from her co-stars in her shimmery blue dress.

On the poster, Fann, Li Nanxing and Tay Ping Hui are dressed in black and fade into the background.

This wasn't intentional, said Mr Chan.

He explained that the two Ah Jies were asked to bring several outfits to the photo shoot.

Zoe brought two gowns provided by a stylist friend - one the blue gown seen in the poster and the other one a dark green one.

Fann brought a black dress and another silver one chosen by the drama's stylist.

The final outfits were chosen simply because the actresses looked better in them .

Mr Chan said: 'Fann's black dress was very classy while Zoe's blue gown added visual vibrancy to the poster.'

This article was first published in The New Paper