She might have been deported from the United States and stripped of British citizenship, but redheaded former spy Anna Chapman is achieving cult status in her home country of Russia.
Media there are speculating whether she'll run for office in next year's elections, her hometown paper is sponsoring a songwriting contest in her honor and tabloids fill their pages with tales from ex-boyfriends, German magazine Der Spiegel reported on its web site.
"I wear sunglasses and a hat on the street," the 28-year-old former spy told the magazine.
The U.S. government deported her along with nine others in a spy swap with Russia in July. Shortly thereafter, authorities in the U.K. stripped her of her passport and citizenship.
Chapman's ex-husband is a British national, and she lived in the country for several years, Britain's Daily Telegraph noted.
She told Der Spiegel that she can't discuss her time in the United States, but that she's found a new outlet for her throngs of fans.
"My website will be up and running soon," the Der Spiegel report quoted her as saying. "The contact information for my PR people will be listed there."
Chapman had stayed relatively under the radar post-deportation until late last month, when she posed in a sexy photo shoot for Russian magazine Zhara. Video from the session show Chapman flaunting her curves in a skintight teal dress.