NEWS LITE\Princess mum on marriage.

After a Caribbean vacation from her family troubles, Princess Diana returned Thursday to London to face a meeting with her lawyers and rumors that she had made up her mind to divorce Prince Charles.

Her attorney, however, told reporters not to expect an announcement after today's meeting. Dismissing newspaper reports, lawyer Anthony Julius said the princess had not decided to divorce her husband of 14 years.

Queen Elizabeth II last month urged the couple to divorce, and Prince Charles agreed. British newspapers claimed this week that Diana had told her advisers that she, too, would agree because she had realized - reluctantly - that her marriage was over.

Julius disputed the reports. "It is not true to say that she has said yes to a divorce."

Wynonna hears wedding bells 

Wynonna will marry Arch Kelley III, father of the country star's son, Elijah, 1. The singer said Kelley proposed Wednesday in a tepee at her Nashville farm. "It was on bended knee," she said. "There was a candle, and there were tears." Wynonna, 31, who expects a second child in July, didn't announce when the wedding would be but said the ceremony would be a quiet one at home with the family.

Gore writes Dear Ann

Vice President Al Gore put aside some time from Washington's budget battles to take up his pen and write a letter to Ann Landers.

Gore's correspondence extols a critique the syndicated advice columnist wrote about the phone system at the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Chicago. Landers said she had called the agency and waited 45 minutes to reach a "live, warm body."

"Please know you have contributed to improved teleservice," Gore wrote. "After that column appeared, the National Performance Review got together with some of America's best companies, and now, government agencies are taking steps to improve."

In the column, which appeared Thursday, Gore included examples from his book, "Common Sense Government," which he said show how government agencies are working to improve.

"Is it possible to turn the federal government around so that Americans can come to expect exceptional service?" Gore wrote. "Not only is it possible, it's happening."

Lander's response: "Thank you for taking the time to write. Your letter shows you know how important these problems are to real people, and I am pleased to share it with my readers."

Grisham cramming for case

John Grisham, master of the legal thriller, has been away from the courtroom so long that he is brushing up on his tactics.

Mississippi Rep. Bobby Moak said he will help the author and lawyer prepare for a rare courtroom appearance. The two will spend a long weekend in a remote spot going over a lawsuit that goes to trial this month.

"This is his last case," Moak said. "Even though he's not been in the courtroom the past four years, I think he's actually improved his lawyering skills."

Grisham, a former member of the Mississippi House, gave up his political and legal careers to write such best sellers as "The Firm" and "The Client."

Grisham, who is suing Illinois Central Railroad Co. on behalf of the estate of a conductor killed on the job in 1991.

Gumbel leaving 'Today'

Bryant Gumbel has signed on for what will be his last year on "Today."

This will be his 15th year anchoring the show - a record. Jane Pauley was there for 13 years and now anchors "Dateline NBC." Tied for longevity at nine years are anchors Dave Garroway, who launched the show in 1952, and Hugh Downs.

"We are discussing a number of other projects with Bryant that I hope will keep him at NBC News for the next 15 years," NBC News President Andrew Lack said Thursday.

Gumbel, 47, said: "When I first agreed to anchor 'Today,' Dave Garroway told me to do it for five years. 'Any more than that,' he said, 'and you wind up going in the woods to talk with a moose.'

"Well, I'm not ready to head for the woods just yet . . . but 15 years is a long time in one place, and the world's too exciting to enjoy from just one vantage point."

Michelin chef overrated 

The Michelin guide Thursday denied a report that it modified its venerated rating system and awarded an unprecedented fourth star to a Paris chef. A magazine admitted the report was a prank.

"It's a hoax," Michelin spokesman Alain Arnaud said in a telephone interview. "It's completely unknown to us and is not based on facts since this year's guide has not yet been printed."

The 1996 edition of the prestigious red guide to restaurants and hotels in France will not hit bookstores until early March.

This week's l'Evenement du Jeudi, an established news magazine, reported that Michelin - France's oldest and most respected food guide - had selected Claude Peyrot, chef-owner of the Le Vivarois in Paris, as the world's first and only four-star laureate. The story was picked up by news organizations.

"This was an April Fools' Day prank intended to shake the world of gastronomy out of its doldrums," l'Evenement's food writer Ferico Legasse said Thursday.

Legasse, one of France's top food critics, said the prank was intended to encourage Michelin to ignore less reliable food guides such as the GaultMillau and the Bottin Gourmand.

"I want Michelin to go back to its roots as the defender of traditional French cuisine made from the finest local products," he said.

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(1) John Grisham Says he's rusty (2) Bryant Gumbel Raising anchor