Trisha Goddard has hosted her own talk show for five years

The blackmailer threatened Goddard that fake pornographic pictures would be published on the internet.

Security around the star has been stepped up after she received a letter demanding she paid the blackmailer �5,000 in used banknotes.

Police advised Goddard to increase security at her Norfolk home and at the Anglia TV studios in Norwich where her weekday talk show is filmed.

Anglia is also believed to have received threats from the suspect, who began the blackmail campaign in March.

The letter has been sent away for forensic testing in a bid to trace the culprit.

A spokeswoman for Granada, which owns Anglia, said: "The police have been working very closely with her and her family on security matters after the blackmail letter was received."

Traumatic

Detective Inspector Mark Beresford of Norwich CID said that Goddard had been interviewed over the blackmail threat and that inquiries were ongoing.

He said: "Offences of this nature are always treated seriously by the police, and are extremely traumatic for the victims.

"If anybody has any information as to who may be responsible, we would urge them to contact us."

Goddard, who is married to charity director Peter Gianfranceso, has presented her ITV1 show since 1998 when she replaced Vanessa Feltz.

The Trisha series, which draws its influence from US talk shows such as Jerry Springer, deals with all manner of topics including relationships, drugs and crime.