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The research scientist who unmasked herself as call girl Belle de Jour has said she misses aspects of being a prostitute.
Brooke Magnanti - who told colleagues at the Bristol Initiative for Research of Child Health last month that she was the author of a blog about life as a high-class prostitute - said she missed the satisfaction of "doing a job well".
The sexually explicit blog attracted millions of readers and became a bestselling book and television series, but the blogger's identity was a mystery for five years.
Speaking publicly for the first time yesterday on Sky Arts 1/HD's The Book Show, Dr Magnanti, 34, said: "I miss the moment when you walk into a hotel, and get that feeling of, 'I'm about to do a job and I'm about to do it well'.
"I think there might be a bit left in Belle de Jour yet."
She said her alter ego had a confidence which she lacked in her everyday life.
"Like very many other jobs, you do turn on an aspect of your personality," she said. "It isn't that Belle wasn't me - Belle is the more confident part of me.
"Belle isn't the part of me that when someone opens the door, is thinking: 'do I look al lright?' Belle has to walk in and feel she looks all right."
A specialist in developmental neurotoxicology and cancer epidemiology, Dr Magnanti turned to prostitution while working on her PhD thesis at Sheffield University.
Since outing herself as Belle de Jour there have been further revelations.
Her father Paul, who lives in Florida, admitted that after splitting from his wife he used prostitutes regularly and introduced some of them to his daughter.
Dr Magnanti denied any shame about her previous life, saying: "It wasn't so much that I was ashamed myself, but I was afraid of other people's reactions."
Reader views (18)
Why is she in the news AGAIN? This isn't news, it's not a new story and it wasn't news when it was. If you miss being a prostitute luv then go back to it, nobody cares.
If you want news there was a spider in my car this morning. I got in to drive to work and it was behind the sun visor, only a little one though.
- Julian, London
The customer always comes first.
- Gwilym Rhys-Jones, marbella spain
Just imagine what our society will look like in 30 year's time if every father behaves like Belle de Jour's dad, producing kids who will think like her? Maybe we should have another story which shows that being in the same situation, there are other ways of thinking too...? I really wonder what Stephen C of London thinks of that.
- Bobo, Leatherhead, Surrey
If she misses aspects of a job well done she can always continue whoring on the side. What a sad lady.
- Jonathan Lloyd, Nesle Hodeng France
Prostitution itself is not illegal (Jon, London) but as for the Inland Revenue I am sure they will be approaching Belle and for this reason maybe she was unwise to identify herself. Or maybe she has already paid the tax after all the Inland Revenue are quite happy to live off immoral earnings. As to all of you who claim to be bored why are you bothering to comment?
This kind of prostitute is an empowered woman who knows and enjoys what she does. To link her with trafficked women is sloppy logic.
- Stephen C, London
I don't think the Government's failure to invest in further education caused this woman's prostitution. She has benefited from the very highest of Higher Education after all. She has a PhD and is a research scientist. Neither do I imagine she comes from a poor background. in my experience, students studying over here are from well-off families.
- Sue R, London
That's right Adam, because there is absolutely no other way for students to support themselves except becoming prostitutes.
It's all the society and the Government's fault and no one should ever feel that maybe they should be responsible for their own actions and the choices they make in life.
- Bottled-Banana, London, UK
So much interest and publicity for this ex prostitute, why? Who read her blog, who watched the series, who bought her book!!! You are as bad as she is! Why are we so interested in her rotten and sordid affairs. She is a prostitute who wanted to make a quick buck because she was too lazy to get a respectable job like most of us do whilst studying at university! People who try to glamourise having sex for money with any dirty old Tom, Dick or Harry should be ashamed of themselves, they give decent women a bad name. It's no wonder most men don't respect women anymore. What was wrong with her getting a decent job and working hard. She is always photographed smiling but I think she should be ashamed of herself. However, her father has a lot to answer for. What a way to bring up a child, what an environment to live in! Children learn from their parents and he obviously shows no remorse whatsoever! Society should and needs to respect decency again and punish or condone immoral behaviour. Prostitution in my eyes is a cheap and filthy act that lazy good for nothing women do so as to get their greedy little hands on a quick buck without working for it! Glamourous, I think not!
- Ashley Smithson, st albans
Nice to see that the British people are still as narrow-minded and prejudiced as they were when I lived there! The doctor has a story to tell. And as an escort, she would not have broken the law, since a person's private residence or hotel room is not a public place. As Pierre Trudeau said, the state does not belong in the bedrooms of the people.
- Steve, Calgahoma, Oklaberta, Canada
@ Jon, london
She was a student Jon, she could have claimed the tax back anyway!
- Frank, Home Counties, England.
EDITED by admin @ 13.20 on January 5 2010
- Jon, london
Convinced confidently
GOOD
- Shailender, India
Being a prostitute isn't glamourous. I despise this woman. The reality is smuggled women, brought over here, enslaved and hooked on crack and heroin and leading very, very miserable lives.
What a pathetic woman this 'lady' is...
- Paul, Bromley
ill pay you a fiver if it help
- Anon, london
Oh Please! We don't even mind that this woman is trying to glamourise prostitition (free speech and the like), but for her to think we are interested in her views?....I mean, some of us are also quite intelligent, we went to university did things, came out, moved on with our lives.... Don't think you're entitled to our valuable time (and attention) just because you slept with hundreds of men, wrote a book and made some bob. You have a PHD? Yeah, whatever...some kids will still not be inspired by your story.
In this difficult times, I think this paper should spend more time printing stories of some other less sensational but remarkable individuals too you know, like scientist/engineers who actually make things.
- Bobo, Leatherhead, Surrey
Adam - you can blame the Government for many things but not that this woman became a prosititute.
- Roy Grainger, London
Is anyone else bored of this woman yet? If I wanted to listen to a prostitutes viewpoint I'd move up to Kings Cross.
- Bob, Cheam
It is a sad inditement of our society and successive Government failures to invest in further education that some students have felt the only way to support themselves is to become a prostitute.
- Adam, Harrow, UK
