Her hair seems to have sneaked up and surprised her from behind; her look is cheery, not come-to-bed

Sir: With this year's American elections over, the starting gun has been fired for the those due in 2000 and already a probable pairing of presidential candidates can be seen. For the Republicans, George W Bush, governor of Texas - but only after a bruising and divisive contest with the religious forces that dominate the right wing of the party. He might find it necessary to placate them with his choice of vice-presidential candidate, to achieve a "balanced ticket".

RUMOURS RESURFACED over the weekend that Bill Clinton was not alone in breaking his marriage vows, but that his wife, Hillary, was also involved in at least one extra-marital affair.

The Saturday Essay: Every nation needs its myths but the American ideal of rugged individualism is disintegrating

THE NEXT few days will be crucial for Hillary Rodham Clinton. Her words, gestures and appearances will help to determine public attitudes towards the scandal which threatens to plunge her and her husband into ignominy, writes Andrew Marshall.

SHE FLEW into Belfast, one of the most powerful women in the world, ready to speak out for women's rights and their key role in the Irish peace process. It didn't matter - all everyone wanted to know was whether she was still furious with her philandering husband.

GV: There is a certain dull monotony to the attacks on Clinton. For one thing, he himself is well-liked and no one save the mad (all right - half the American people should probably serve some time in a cloistered bin) finds him at all like Nixon who, at every full moon became a werewolf, to the applause, no doubt, of the binnable half.

SHORTLY BEFORE 1pm today, Bill Clinton will walk across to the White House map room. On the wall, a map shows Allied troops encircling Berlin in April 1945. This is where President Franklin Roosevelt would check the progress of the Second World War; it is where the US President will give his testimony.

Grand Jury: America holds its breath as the US leader finally testifies over allegations of adultery and perjury

Paula Vogel thinks paedophilia lurks in us all, and her new play is intended to expose it.

Hollywood's celestial craze is a reaction against materialism (and it really pulls in the punters).

AMERICA'S RELIGIOUS right has a message for women: they should "submit themselves graciously" to their husbands.

After Prozac Nation comes Bitch, Elizabeth Wurtzel's hymn to bolshy womanhood. Hettie Judah meets a girl who has turned provocation into a lifestyle, not to mention a career

BITCH: In Praise of Difficult Women by Elizabeth Wurtzel Quartet pounds 12.50