Movie veteran Joan Collins has revealed she ended her first marriage to actor Maxwell Reed after he attempted to sell her to an Arab sheikh for $20,000 (Gbp13,300).

In her new memoir, titled Passion for Life, the Dynasty star admits her first union was a disaster, especially in the bedroom - and she fled to Hollywood after learning of her husband's bid to honour a rich Arab's indecent proposal to spend a night with the British beauty.

In the tome, Collins claims she was 18 when she lost her virginity to Reed, who was twice her age, recalling, "The act was awful and degrading."

The actress alleges he got her into bed by "drugging" her rum and coke, adding, "He ripped off my clothes while I was unconscious and I was violently sick afterward."

And her sex life as Mrs. Reed never improved. She continues: "The sex was awful. I gritted my teeth... and watched television."

Collins divorced Reed after five years of marriage and has wed four more times. She is currently married to Percy Gibson.