Sunday Times 2
Seducer in chief
The way he intertwined his fingers through theirs, the gleam of his blue eyes…?and the overwhelming scent of power.
This week, actor Tom Sizemore claimed that Bill Clinton had an affair with Elizabeth Hurley – only later to withdraw the story, claiming he was high on drugs when he made the outrageous allegations.
But what is it about Bill that so attracts women?
Here, two writers remember their own encounters with the former President, and try to explain why he has such a hypnotic effect on the opposite sex.
Old charmer: Jenni Murray says of all the handsome men she has met, not one has compared with Bill Clinton (AFP)
Jenni Murray
Truth be told, I’ve met many an attractive man, from movie stars such as Tom Hanks and Jack Nicholson to deliciously handsome writers and intellectuals who I daren’t name on account of them still being around and it being too embarrassing to let on.
But not one has compared with Bill Clinton.
Our encounter came at a reception in 2004 to mark the publication of his memoir, My Life.
Before he arrived, I found myself gazing in astonishment around a room full of grown women of all ages, breathless with anticipation.
Then he entered.
Tall, chunky and a bit on the flaccid side if the truth be told, but the testosterone that suddenly pinged around the room was palpable.
None of us should have approved of him, never mind lusted after him. Here was a man who’d exploited a 21-year-old intern then denied their association.
We should have been feeling sorry for the wonderful Hillary. But despite all these worthy instincts, I doubt there was a woman there who wouldn’t have followed if he’d whistled.
Yes, he oozed power and influence, and there’s no doubt an expensive, well-cut suit, a good haircut and the supreme confidence that goes with being President of the United States can act as an irresistible aphrodisiac.
But there was something more about Bill Clinton. He worked the room as you would expect from such a consummate professional – charm overload is what appeared on the surface.
He made you feel for those few short moments that you were the only woman in the world and he’d never met anyone as interesting or as lovely as you.
So, it seemed you were gazing up at the perfect man – good looks, wealth, engaging conversation, sense of humour. Any woman would find herself forgetting the flab and the fatal emotional and moral flaws. Sadly, when it came to me, he didn’t whistle. Shame!
Bel Mooney
Meeting Bill Clinton was a moment of such electricity that I have to pause for only a moment to remember the whole encounter, second by second in the most captivating detail.
It was December 14, 2001, and I accompanied my then husband, Jonathan Dimbleby, to the BBC’s 26th Richard Dimbleby lecture – which was given by Clinton. The whole evening – Jonathan’s introduction and the lecture – was overshadowed by the recent outrages of September 11, so painfully fresh in the collective mind.
Clinton spoke brilliantly, and if I had been star-struck at the beginning of the night, I was even more so at the end.
My diary records: ‘Whatever faults Bill Clinton had/has, he is still a class act – both in delivery and content. I felt so inspired by him – especially as he mixes glamour and compassion.’
Later, at a dinner at the BBC, at last I got to meet Clinton. My husband introduced me – and from that second I was lost.
Bill takes my proffered hand to shake it but then refuses to let it go. This is amazing. We’re holding hands! He stares into my eyes as if there is no one else in the room – and (for me) there isn’t.
His eyes are fixed on my face and his soft, warm hand is firmly grasping mine. Oh, the thrill!
I feel like a teenager, although Bill and I are exactly the same age – 55 at the time.
My diary entry ends, ‘My God, does he know he is sexy!’
© Daily Mail, London