It was only revealed this morning, but Cheryl Cole has previously come up with a canny way for us to let know her apart from her waxwork figure.

As she met her new mirror image at Madame Tussauds this morning, the X Factor judge unintentionally exposed what appears to be a new tattoo, snaking around the top of her left thigh.

Wearing an unbelievably short white minidress, the singer gave a tantalizing peek of the tail-like etching, thought to be her sixth tattoo, at the unveiling event in London today.

A spokesperson for the star confirmed to Mail Online that she had obtained the new ink, but refused to be drawn on further information about what the etching is and when Cheryl had it done.

She has five other known tattoos – her much-copied hand design, barbed wire around her right upper thigh, a outsized butterfly design on her back, as well as one on the left side of her bottom and ‘Mrs C’ on her neck – rather she is said to be keen to eradicate.