Britney Spears has launched an attack on the paparazzi, claiming that they edited pictures of the pop star to make her look 40 pounds heavier.

Photos of Spears alongside her boyfriend Sam Asghari emerged online last weekend, but the 37-year-old was unhappy with them: she took to Instagram to address the photos, and shine a light on what she described as a "conspiracy theory".

"A lot of fans, in our world today, they always are subject to really criticize people and say that the pictures and videos that they’re posting are either not on time or they’re fake," Britney Spears began in her video. "But no one ever really asks, 'Are the paparazzi pictures fake, and do the paparazzi people do stuff to the pictures, and is the news really real?' It’s a conspiracy theory that I’m actually interested in."

"Yesterday, I went swimming. I look like I’m 40 pounds bigger than I am today," continued Spears. "This is how I am right now, and I’m skinny as a needle. You tell me, what is real?"

Meanwhile, MEGA - the photo organisation that took the pictures - have flat out denied that they edited Britney's photos, saying they think Britney "looks great". "We think Britney looks great and it’s ludicrous to suggest the photos or video were altered in any way,” said a rep for the company.

"They were not. We shot thousands of photos of her over the weekend and are very happy to let her see the original files if she so wishes. It was good to see her happy and having fun and we wish her well."

Britney Spears has launched an attack on the paparazzi, claiming that they edited pictures of the pop star to make her look 40 pounds heavier.

Photos of Spears alongside her boyfriend Sam Asghari emerged online last weekend, but the 37-year-old was unhappy with them: she took to Instagram to address the photos, and shine a light on what she described as a "conspiracy theory".

"A lot of fans, in our world today, they always are subject to really criticize people and say that the pictures and videos that they’re posting are either not on time or they’re fake," Britney Spears began in her video. "But no one ever really asks, 'Are the paparazzi pictures fake, and do the paparazzi people do stuff to the pictures, and is the news really real?' It’s a conspiracy theory that I’m actually interested in."

"Yesterday, I went swimming. I look like I’m 40 pounds bigger than I am today," continued Spears. "This is how I am right now, and I’m skinny as a needle. You tell me, what is real?"

Meanwhile, MEGA - the photo organisation that took the pictures - have flat out denied that they edited Britney's photos, saying they think Britney "looks great". "We think Britney looks great and it’s ludicrous to suggest the photos or video were altered in any way,” said a rep for the company.

"They were not. We shot thousands of photos of her over the weekend and are very happy to let her see the original files if she so wishes. It was good to see her happy and having fun and we wish her well."