Cyrus apologises for topless photo

Rex Features

Miley Cyrus has apologised to fans for posing topless in a forthcoming issue of Vanity Fair.

The 15-year-old said that the snap, by photographer Annie Leibovitz, had not turned out how she expected.

She told OK!: "I took part in a photoshoot that was supposed to be 'artistic' and now, seeing the photographs and reading the story, I feel so embarrassed. I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologise to my fans who I care so deeply about."

The Disney Channel criticised the magazine for taking the picture, in which Cyrus appears wrapped in only a blanket.

A spokesperson for the network, home of her show Hannah Montana, said: "Unfortunately, as the article suggests, a situation was created to deliberately manipulate a 15-year-old in order to sell magazines."

However, a Vanity Fair representative told US TV show Entertainment Tonight: "Miley’s parents and/or minders were on the set all day. Since the photo was taken digitally, they saw it on the shoot and everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait of Miley.”