Letterman wife demanded apology?

David Letterman was allegedly "told" by his wife to apologise to her on air.

Earlier this week, the US chatshow host made a public apology to spouse Regina Lasko, following his on-camera confession that he had sexual relationships with several female staff members of his late-night CBS programme.

The 62-year-old was the target of an extortion scheme by Robert Halderman to expose the liaisons. The comedian later admitted that Lasko had been "horribly hurt by my behaviour" and that he had his "work cut out" in attempting to fix the damage the scandal had caused.

A source told Fox News that the amends "wasn't something Dave wanted to do at all".

"He wanted the whole thing to blow over," the insider added. "But Regina told him he better make an apology to let everyone know how sorry he was for how much he hurt and humiliated her."

Lasko, who married Letterman in March following a 23-year relationship, is claimed to have demanded his explanation verbatim, including "one or two jokes to be a part of it as long as they weren't at her expense".