Bill Clinton would have been proud of her. You might have expected poor old Monica Lewinsky to spend the night alone in her Randolph Hotel suite, perhaps having a quiet weep as she looked down at the Martyrs' Memorial.

But there was no way the fun-loving former White House intern was going to spend her night in Oxford washing her hair.

Monica Lewinsky has never been a stay-at-home kind of girl. And she wasn't going to start in the city where the young Bill Clinton always said he had such a wild time. So she happily combined two of her favourite pastimes - handsome young men and chocolate tart. Ed Hawkes, the captain of Oxford University Golf team, could hardly believe his luck when he was asked to accompany the world's most famous mistress to dinner.

Ed, of Worcester College, and seven student pals escorted Miss Lewinksy to the plush Oxford eaterie, The Lemon Tree.

Ed said: "She had a very enjoyable evening. It was organised by a friend of mine who knows her.

"It was not a date. She just wanted to get away from it all and was in great form." And who was sitting on the next table but Clinton Pugh, the restaurant's proprietor. Clinton, 40, said: "Heads turned as if the Queen had walked in."

The first customer at the book-signing at But there were groans of disappointment yesterday when Miss Lewinsky arrived an hour late in a blue Daimler to sign books at Waterstone's yesterday was .

With 600 people lining the streets to greet her, a trim-looking Miss Lewinsky, dressed in a navy blue suit, rushed straight into the store with her head lowered, without pausing to wave.

The queue for signed books stretched all the way down to Turl Street. And book buyers were rewarded with a warm smile as well as Monica's monicker.

Steve Cuthbertson, of Shipton-under- Wychwood said: "She was really nice. She said my son had a good firm handshake."

, Anita Wynne, 70, of Stone's Court, Oxford. She said: "She is hot stuff. She has sexual attraction and has a lovely Rubenesque figure. Not like some of these skinny models."

Outside, builders across the road unfurled a flag with some strange reference to cigars. But Oxford students held up banners demanding: "Take her back, Bill" and "Oxford welcomes the Second Lady."

Miss Lewinsky earlier told Mr Tony Marrinan, of the Randolph Hotel, that Miss Lewinsky had never been to Oxford. But after her big night here she said she's certain to be back.

Story date: Friday 12 March

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.