Clinton wants £34m to host chatshow

Bill Clinton is negotiating with TV executives to host his own talk show on the NBC network.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the former president, famous for demanding huge fees for speeches and lectures, wants $50 million (£34 million) a year. "He wants to be the next Oprah Winfrey," the paper says.

Mr Clinton was a master of television during his presidency, staying in office through his TV skills, and his cool manner on camera before a grand jury, accused over his affair with Monica Lewinsky.

NBC officials would not talk about the discussions. Opinion is mixed about the prospect of a Clinton TV show. Outside experts say they doubt whether Mr Clinton would have the discipline for a regular TV show, and has not considered the effect on his reputation as a former head of state.

"The price he could pay is much higher than the potential pay-off," Robert Thompson, a professor of media at Syracuse University is quoted as saying. "A talk show is not the best way to erase Monica Lewinsky and the impeachment, and reposition himself in high-school history books."

Mr Clinton is reported to be making about $15 million (£10.3 million) a year from speeches, and has been given a $12 million advance for his memoirs, the largest sum ever paid for a book by an ex-president.

? Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev, 71, has gone into the restaurant business. The menu at Gorbachev's gourmet outlet in Moscow invites clients to "eat like the world's VIPs". It include venison steak a la George Bush, and ex-German leader Helmut Kohl's favourite - pig's stomach.

Watch out Kylie, here's Holly