Winfrey is one of America's highest paid entertainers

Chat show queen Oprah Winfrey may postpone bowing out from her talk show, according to reports.

Winfrey, who is one of America's highest paid entertainers, had announced she would be quitting her popular talk show in 2006.

But now the Hollywood Reporter trade paper suggests she is in discussions to extend her contract for a further two years, taking it to 2008, after a change of heart.

Following Winfrey's announcement that she was leaving, US network ABC desperately began searching for a replacement for the luctrative programme.

The Oprah Winfrey Show has been an enduring success and extremely profitable with syndication rights sold across the world.

It has consistently been the number one chat show in the US since its inception in 1986, although for a while Jerry Springer threatened its dominance.

Bestseller

Winfrey has branched out into acting, winning an Oscar nomination for The Color Purple, and has her own monthly magazine.

Her book club has also proved a huge success, with her endorsement of a novel ensuring it makes the bestseller lists, although she has recently scaled this back.

Her chat show is made by King World Productions, which is owned by rival CBS, but is shown through the ABC network and its syndicated stations.

But the Hollywood Reporter quoted "insiders" as saying there is no guarantee that ABC will be offered the extra two years that Winfrey may be extending the life of the show.

The Oprah Winfrey Show has seen its own spin-off with its resident lifestyle coach Dr Phil McGraw getting his own series, simply called Dr Phil.