Monica Lewinsky rushed out of her first book signing session in Britain in tears yesterday, apparently overwhelmed by press attention.
The former White House intern had her first meeting with the British public at London's Harrods department store, but walked out after signing just four copies of Monica's Story, the account of her affair with President Bill Clinton.
Arriving to the accompaniment of two bagpipers playing the Wee Man of Skye, Lewinsky looked confident. But once she had begun signing books at a table in front of scores of TV cameras and press photographers, she appeared nervous and did not look up.
After only 10 minutes she jumped up, brushing tears from her eyes, and rushed out of the store's book department, telling her chaperones: 'I can't do it.' She was taken to the private top-floor suite of Harrods' owner, Mohammed al-Fayed, and returned 45 minutes later to resume signing copies once the press had been cleared from the book department.
'As you can see she was a bit overwhelmed by it all. There are a lot of press here and she has never done anything like this before,' Harrods' spokesman Laurie Mayer said.
'A lot of people said they thought it was an act, but I don't think it was. She is just a very nice normal person, just like any other 25-year-old,' Mayer said.
But Angela and John Wesley, who began queuing at the store at 8.30am as soon as they arrived back in London from a 10-day holiday in Hong Kong, were less sympathetic.
'She may have left in tears but I'm sure she won't be in tears when she collects her cheque,' said Angela Wesley.
Lewinsky appeared to grow more confident once she had resumed signing, but would not talk to customers and was not amused when a Bill Clinton look-alike insisted on shaking her hand.
