Baby almost born on Oprah Winfrey show

Toronto: Talk show queen Oprah Winfrey just missed welcoming a new kind of guest on her show on Thursday.

A pregnant Toronto woman was in the audience of The Oprah Winfrey Show' in Chicago when she went into labour and almost gave birth to her child on the sets, according to press reports.

According to the reports, Lori McCrindle of Toronto had gone to Chicago with her mother for the taping of Oprah's world-famous show when her water bag broke (meaning the rupture of the membrane containing the baby in the womb) and she went into labour.

The woman was rushed backstage where Oprah helped her go through the contractions and put her in the ambulance to be rushed to hospital. Twenty minutes later, 27-week pregnant Lori McCrindle gave birth to a son - born 14 weeks premature.

Named Justin Heath McCrindle, the boy weighs two pounds, 13 ounces, according to the woman.

Speaking to the Canadian Press from Chicago's Rush Medical Center, the Toronto woman said, "I was 27 weeks pregnant...I thought I'd be safe.''

She told Oprah Winfrey that her newborn was a little "battered and bruised'' from her ordeal before birth, but "doing pretty good,'' according to the report. "It's going to be a long, rough road,'' Lori McCrindle said.

Wishing her well, the talk show queen offered the Toronto woman to fly her back to Chicago any time she wished to see the taped show, according to the Canadian Press.

Oprah said it was the first time that a woman went into labour on the sets of her Harpo Studios. "After all these years, it is not too often that we have a first at Harpo Studios but yesterday was a doozy!'' Winfrey told her show audience on Friday.

"It's our first baby!'' she exclaimed.

Amid laughter, she suggested "Justin Oprah'' or "Justin O'' as two new names for the newborn.