NEW YORK: Heather Mills, the handicapped former British model and estranged wife of ex-Beatle Paul McCartney, will participate in the next season of the US television show Dancing with the Stars, ABC television network said.

The fourth season of the show in which couples — a star and a professional dancer — compete, is scheduled to begin on March 19 with a lineup of 11 celebrities.

Among them is Mills, 39, presented by ABC in a statement as a “UN goodwill ambassador, activist for Adopt-A-Minefield and advocate for animal rights” as well as “the first contestant to compete with an artificial limb”.

Mills left leg was amputated below the knee in 1993 following injuries caused in a traffic accident. Mills and McCartney announced their separation in May 2006 after four years of marriage and the birth of a daughter. The couple’s impending divorce has generated a slew of mutual accusations and bitter fighting.

Other celebrities scheduled to compete in the show is Laila Ali, an undefeated world champion female boxer and youngest daughter of Muhammad Ali, country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, retired basketball player Clyde Drexler and Miss USA 2004 Shandi Finnessey. Joey Fatone, a former member of boy band NSync; Paulina Porizkova, ex-top model married to Cars singer Ric Ocasek; and actor Ian Ziering, of the television series Beverly Hills 90210 complete the lineup.