What haven't we seen before, Lara?

A NUDE photo of Lara Bingle was apparently leaked this week, and has stirred up a photo scandal involving ex-boyfriend Brisbane Lion Brendan Fevola.

Bingle, who is currently dating Australian cricketer Michael Clark, claims the photo was sent around in 2006, and is said to have made the rounds to several Australian cricket and AFL players. In the photo, Bingle is seen grimacing and trying to hide her lady bits from Fevola, who reportedly took the picture during their fling.

But it’s not the first time we’ve seen the model topless – she bared her breasts for readers of German GQ in late 2005. So is this really about a breach of privacy, or the fact that a photo of her showering during her adulterous relationship with Fevola has been published for all the world to see?

For those keeping tabs, Bingle and Fevola acknowledged they had a relationship while he was still married, but Bingle reportedly ended the affair as soon as she realised he had a wife and family. Subsequently, Fevola’s wife Alex publicly blamed Bingle for the breakdown of her marriage and released a voicemail from Bingle to the media in a bid to demonstrate that Bingle was “obsessed”.

According to Woman’s Day magazine, which published the image on Monday, the image had been circulated among Australia’s elite athletes for some time now.

One player confirmed: “The image is on a lot of people’s phones.”

A photo of a topless Lara in German men's magazine, GQ.

The Woman’s Day story claimed Fevola “passed around” the image following their secret affair. Following the publication of the image, Bingle proceeded to sue Fevola, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

“Lara was 19 when the photo was taken. It’s evident from the photo it was taken without consent, without permission and totally without taste,” Bingle’s manager Max Markson said.

“Taking the photo was wrong and Brendan Fevola’s decision to distribute the photo was when he broke the law.”

Woman’s Day editor Fiona Connolly said the magazine published the photo because “it was going to come out at any point anyway”. She told Radio 3AW the photo had been “doing the rounds” among cricketers and footballers “for a long time,” and the fact newspapers picked up the story proved it was newsworthy. Connolly also said the magazine did not pay for the photo and would not disclose how they obtained the material.

Nicholas Pullen, a partner at TressCox lawyers, said Bingle would struggle to sue Fevola successfully unless she could prove he provided the photograph to Woman’s Day. He also said succeeding with a defamation claim would also be difficult.

“The next step in any defamation formula is: how is it making people think less of Lara Bingle than they already do. Well, she’s coming off a low base on that one,” said Pullen.

“In the version of the photograph I have seen, it doesn’t look like you are seeing terribly much more of Lara Bingle than you have already seen.”

We say: you make your bed, you sleep in it.

Love celebrity gossip, music and trivia? Get the latest entertainment! Join our newsletter: