When Natascha Kampusch, the Austrian teen famously kidnapped in 1998 who escaped some weeks ago from her captor (who went on to kill himself) made her first TV appearance, the inevitable book deal questions began to be asked. So no wonder, according to the Bookseller, the competition is heating up in a big way for her potential memoir of her eight-year ordeal. HarperCollins and Headline have put offers on the table, and Random House, Little, Brown and Penguin have confirmed interest. Publishers speculated that the price for UK and Commonwealth rights would reach £500,000.

Hannah Black, editor at Random House's Century, said: "It's a completely fascinating, extraordinary story." Emma Tate, non-fiction publisher at Headline, agreed: "I think it will be the biggest misery memoir there's going to be." Kampusch has not invited approaches for a book deal, but has appointed lawyers to deal with enquiries. Her former lawyer, Dietmar Ecker, confirmed in a recent interview that her advisors had their sights set on Hollywood: "From a purely capitalist point of view, this woman is a goldmine. Of course, you're not supposed to say that sort of thing out loud."

Well, of course not, never mind that the quote about it being "the biggest misery memoir there's going to be" seems rather unseemly, doesn't it? But of course Kampusch's wretched tale is going to attract a boatload of interest. The only question is how well this will translate to the American market - and how many *other* foreign rights get picked up at Frankfurt...