US news'Pregnant man' goes on Oprah Winfrey show
An American man who claims he is six months pregnant said it was a "miracle" in his first TV interview.
Thomas Beatie, 34, of Bend, Oregon, used to be a woman before undergoing gender reassignment surgery.
He first claimed he was pregnant in an article headlined "Labour of love" in a gay magazine, the Advocate, last month.
Many were sceptical, particularly after Beatie said he would not give any interviews until April Fools' Day.
But speaking on Oprah Winfrey's US chat show yesterday, he said: "Different is normal and love makes a family. And that's all that matters."
Beatie appeared with his wife, Nancy, for the interview. The audience was shown footage of his ultrasound scan and heard the sound of a heartbeat.
As he saw the scan on the monitor, Beatie told the doctor: "She's kicking. I can't believe it. I can't believe she's inside me. This is a miracle. We see this as a miracle."
He described pregnancy as a "human desire", not limited to women.
"I'm a person and I have the right to have my own biological child," he said.
Beatie said pregnancy did not make him feel more feminine.
"It doesn't make me want to go and shave my legs or something," he said. "I'm a man, I just happen to be a pregnant man."
He told Winfrey he had had a sex change but had not altered his reproductive organs because he wanted to have a child.
"I didn't know how, it was just a dream," he said.
"There was no plan laid out."
He said many organisations the couple had contacted for help had advised them against going public, warning: "The world's not ready for something like this."
But he said: "I think people will be shocked because no one's ever heard of a man giving birth before.
"I guess it's a shocking concept, but in this day and age that's possible. And it's happening now."
Dr Kimberley James, the couple's doctor in Bend, Oregon, told the show the pregnancy was "normal".
"This baby's totally healthy and this is, I consider, an average pregnancy," she said.
Beatie was born female and called Tracy Lagondino before undergoing gender reassignment surgery. He is legally married and has been married for five years.
He was a Miss Teen Hawaii finalist but described himself as a tomboy growing up.
Beatie told Winfrey he "found himself" at college after a boyfriend told him he was not feminine enough.
"I feel like I was meant to be exactly who I am today," he said.
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