Here's some good news for size 14 women: Gentlemen find the homely shape of the girl-next-door more attractive than the 'perfect' proportions of models.

That's the conclusion of a new study which involved 100 male students.

Miss Average can be defined as a 5'4" female with a 30" waist and 40" hips.

Aussie boffins asked male volunteers to rate the attractiveness of more than 200 drawings of female torsos of different sizes, The Couriermail reported.

They then compared the most attractive torsos with the vital statistics of eight groups of women, including models, Playboy centrefolds and normal members of the population.

The New Scientist reports that the real women best matched the ideal body shape, with the best fit being a British size 14.

Researcher Dr Martin Grundl said: "Why the subjects prefer this body most of all is pure speculation."

"That is the nature of beauty -- it is very easily to recognise but it is very hard to describe and to explain with words."

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh