Oprah Winfrey insists she’s still with her long-term boyfriend, Stedman Graham, and even made a statement that she’s not gay. Her BFF Gail goes with her everywhere and there are rumors that Gail is her lover and that Stedman is just for show.

The National Enquirer is reporting that Stedman’s 82 year-old mom suffered a stroke back in October and is practically begging heartless Oprah to visit her:

In an exclusive interview with The Enquirer at her Whitesboro, N.J. home, 82 year-old Mary Graham said she was rushed to the hospital in October after suffering the stroke, which has left her frail and partially paralyzed.

As a result of the life-threatening medical crisis, she is unable to leave her house, where she is cared for round-the-clock hospice nurses.

Widowed Mary said Stedman visited her at Christmas, just before he flew to South Africa to join Oprah at the launch of the school she founded for impoverished girls.

Oprah told Mary that work commitments prevented her from joining Stedman when he saw his mother.

“Oprah called me from Africa and said she hadn’t seen me for Christmas or Thanksgiving because she was filming her new television show. It would have been nice to see her,” said Mary.

[From The National Enquirer print edition, January 29, 2007]

The article goes on to say that Oprah can do work for charity but she can’t be bothered to visit the ailing elderly woman who is practically her mother-in-law.

Another column in this week’s Enquirer talks about how Oprah brought a sick amount of assistants, shoes and clothing to Africa for her charity visit. They say she had “two hairstylists, several manicurists and makeup people, a dozen trunks of clothes and a whopping 100 pairs of shoes.”

I never bought Oprah and Stedman’s relationship despite their attempts to keep up appearances. If they’re not really together why would she be bothered to visit his mom? Still, maybe the woman gets on her nerves. Not everyone gets along with their mother in law.