Oprah and Barbara battle it out for Pippa

Chat show hosts Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters are engaged in a 300,000-pound bidding war for Pippa Middleton's first ever TV interview in the US.

The younger sister of the Duchess of Cambridge, who is about to start promoting her upcoming book about how to be the perfect hostess, is considered to be the pair's "dream guest" for 2012.

Winfrey is said to have told staff at her OWN network to "pull out all the stops" to secure the interview while Walters is reportedly pressuring bosses at ABC to offer a six-figure sum for the interview.

Both want to secure Middleton as a guest for an hour-long special.

"The big guns see Pippa as the big-name interview of 2012... Oprah and Barbara Walters are hot on the case," Fox News quoted a source as telling the Sunday Mirror.

Middleton, who will donate any fee she receives to charity, rose to fame after her show-stopping appearance at Britain's royal wedding in April, when her sister married Prince William.

Last year, the professional party planner signed a publishing deal to write a book on party etiquette, for which she reportedly received a 400,000-pound advance.

Pippa Middleton's bum most searched on web

Pippa Middleton's shapely bottom was one of the web's top searches of the year.

An end-of-year check by search engine Ask Jeeves showed that there was a sudden jump in interest in the 28-year-old's curvy bum after the wedding of her sister Kate to Prince William, in April.

The Q and A site analysed all queries of the past year, about 700 million, to find the ones that sparked huge, sudden interest.

The list includes the death of singer Amy Winehouse, last summer. Love rat Ryan Giggs, is in there after taking out a super-injunction to try to hide his identity.

Actor Charlie Sheen, who smoked though his nose on a video blog also provoked plenty of questions.

Reality TV show The Only Way Is Essex sparked a rush in questions about catchphrases 'jel'and 'reem', used by its stars.

"We constantly have high levels of searches for household names and events like the recession but this is looking at individual search stars of 2011," the Daily Star quoted Oliver Hill of Ask Jeeves as saying.

"It's a mixed bunch from reality TV to royalty, comedy sketches to cult clips and sport to showbiz," he added.

American events like the death of Steve Jobs and Michael Jackson's final hours also grabbed Brits’ attention.

They searched for details of the on-off wedding of East Enders' star Jessie Wallace and the name Harper after David Beckham and wife Victoria chose it for their new daughter.

Pippa Middleton, Kardashians among "most fascinating" of 2011

NEW YORK: What do Britain's Pippa Middleton and the Kardashian family have in common?

They are all among the 10 most fascinating people of 2011, according to veteran journalist Barbara Walters.

Middleton, 28, younger sister of Prince William's new wife Kate, was named on Wednesday along with British reality TV guru Simon Cowell, singer Katy Perry and businessman Donald Trump as making the list in Walter's annual ABC TV special.

Walters will announce the number one most fascinating person of 2011 when the 90-minute show "Barbara Walters Presents the 10 Most Fascinating People of 2011" airs on December 14.

Other celebrities making up the top 10 most prominent names in entertainment, sport and pop culture include baseball star Derek Jeter, and "Modern Family" actors Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson who play a gay couple on the Emmy-winning TV comedy.

Middleton found unexpected fame during the British royal wedding in April when she wore a figure-hugging white dress as maid of honor to her sister Kate. She has been a constant fixture in U.S. and British celebrity media ever since.

Socialite sisters Kim, Khloe and Kourtney Kardashian and their mother Kris -- the biggest reality TV stars in the United States -- found new fame in 2011 when Kim held a lavish summer TV wedding after a whirlwind romance that ended in her filing for divorce just 72 days later. (Reuters)

Pippa to get 95,000 pound bomb-proof car

Pippa Middleton, sister of Kate, will get an armoured car with bullet-proof windows as a gift from her parents who are worried about her safety.

The Middletons fear that ever since the royal wedding of her sister Kate with Prince William, when 27-year-old Pippa's rear grabbed worldwide attention, she has become vulnerable to attack from obsessed fans, The Sun reported.

Pippa's parents - Michael, 61, and Carole, 55 - are now looking at a 95,000-pound bomb-proof BMW or Audi.

The car would still be drivable even if the tyres were shot.( 

• AP

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"Carole and Michael have taken a raft of measures following advice from one of William's most trusted bodyguards. Pippa's car will have all the latest security devices, including armour plating. It will be bomb proof," a source said.

Pippa caused a sensation on internet as the bridesmaid at her sister's wedding. A Facebook group in praise of her rear has more than 230,000 followers.