He seemed a true gent ..reality was darker than I imagined

TOM BRYANT tells how Combs put on an act smoother than baby oil

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THE instruction when it came was short and to the point. Diddy, 2pm. Soho Hotel. Meet by the lift.

The rapper's handler proceeded to tell me I had a "tight five-minute window" whereby he would "walk and talk" from our meeting spot to his waiting limousine in the hotel courtyard.

It wasn't exactly the full sit-down interview I had hoped for after Diddy Sean Combs flew into London to perform at the tribute concert for the late Princess Diana in 2007.

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But it came just four months after I'd spent hours with him in Paris where, truth be told, he was much more generous with his time. On that occasion, he regaled me backstage with wild stories about his sex life, including his love of 30-hour tantric sex sessions.

"As meticulous as I am with my work, I'm more meticulous with lovemaking. I like to do it for a long time," he told me.

It was a brash, outrageous interview.