And Now the Latest Episode of The Simple Life - Paris in Jail

The average Hilton hotel room offers a comfy bed and en suite bathroom. The average room in the women's jail in Lynwood, south Los Angeles, offers a lumpy cot and an en suite, open plan toilet.

For now, Paris Hilton will have to settle for the latter. A judge in Los Angeles yesterday sentenced the hotel heiress, part-time pop star and general celebrity to 45 days in prison for violating the terms of an earlier probation order.

An attempt to win clemency from the judge by the soberly-dressed Hilton had little effect. With her parents in the courtroom, Hilton said: "I'm very sorry and from now on I'm going to pay complete attention to everything. I'm sorry and I did not do it on purpose at all."

Hilton was stopped by police in February as she drove her Bentley along Sunset Boulevard and charged with driving on a suspended licence. She had been arrested and her licence suspended for 36 months last year for driving under the influence of alcohol. Police had also stopped her in January and told her she should not be driving, but had not arrested her.

In court, Hilton said she had not realised her licence was suspended. She blamed the mistake on one of her advisers.

The 45-day sentence passed down by Los Angeles superior court judge Michael Sauer is not as harsh as it might have been. California law allows for a maximum jail sentence of 90 days for the offence.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles attorney said the ruling "sends a clear message that in Los Angeles, no one is above the law".

Hilton will serve her sentence at the Lynwood women's jail, near Compton in south Los Angeles, a world away from her habitual haunts in Beverly Hills.

Under the terms of her sentence, she will not be allowed work release, use of an alternative jail or electronic monitoring in lieu of jail. She is due to start her sentence on June 5.

Whether Hilton will follow the model of domestic queen Martha Stewart and put her jail experience to good use remains to be seen. But there could be an upside to Hilton's travails. One of her many talents is that of TV reality show star. Even now, producers will be salivating at the prospect of Paris: The Simple Life in Jail.