NEW YORK - Heather Mills says her decision to compete on "Dancing With the Stars" is no publicity stunt. Mills, who is divorcing former Beatle Paul McCartney, says she is appearing on the show for charity, not to gain public sympathy.
"I've been chased and hounded for 10 months and told I'm a publicity-seeker, yet I've never gone out and done anything," the activist and former model says in an interview that was to air Tuesday on the syndicated TV show "Access Hollywood."
The new season of "Dancing with the Stars" begins Monday March 19 on CTV.
Mills, who lost her leg below the knee in a 1993 motorcycle accident, is the first contestant with an artificial limb to compete on the dance show.
"As much as everyone would love it to go flying, I'm sure it's not going to come off," Mills says. "It can, once it gets hot, start to slide and come off, so I've pulled a sleeve over the top, which doesn't look as cosmetically good."
She adds: "I've got a secondary spare leg just in case I overdo it on the foot and it breaks or something."
McCartney, 64, and Mills, 38, separated last May after four years of marriage and began divorce proceedings in July. They have a 3-year-old daughter, Beatrice.
Mills says she plans to donate her appearance fee to Viva! -- an organization that campaigns on behalf of animals killed for food.
"Dancing With the Stars" returns Monday for its fourth season. The new cast also includes Olympic skater Apolo Anton Ohno, model Paulina Porizkova, former "Beverly Hills, 90210" star Ian Ziering, former 'N Sync member Joey Fatone and other celebrities.
Mills says her participation on the show is "going to help a lot of kids with disabilities and adults that want to get up and learn to dance, and know that with an artificial leg, you can dance."
