Celebrities Category
Celebrity news & gossip from the world’s showbiz and glamour magazines (OK!, Hello, National Enquirer and more). We read them so you don’t have to, picking the best bits from the showbiz world’s maw and spitting it back at them. Expect lots of sarcasm.
X Factor Winners Watch: Sam Bailey Plays Asda Toilets In Leicester
SO. What did X Factor winner Sam ‘ScrewBo’ Bailey do next? A Hollywood biopic? A number one album? A chair on Loose Women?
Spotter: @Popjustice
Posted: 14th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities, Key Posts, TV & Radio | Comment
Photo: Murderer William Rutherford Benn, Great-Uncle of Politician Tony Benn And Margaret Rutherford’s Dad
FLASHBACK to 14/09/1983:
William Rutherford Benn, great-uncle of politician Tony Benn and father of the actress, the late Margaret Rutherford. A graphic account of how Tony Benn’s ancestor murdered his own father, twice attempted suicide, and years later died in an asylum is recorded in a new book to be published by W.H. Allen. The story is related in great detail in “Y Tony Benn- The Making of a Politician”, by Alfred Browne, Weekend Editor of Press Association.
Margaret Rutherford who becomes a DBE (Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the New Year Honours, celebrates with a cup of tea at her home in Buckinghamshire.
Date: 01/01/1967
William Rutherford Benn murdered his father, the Reverend Julius Benn, a Congregational church minister, by bludgeoning him to death with a Worcester Spode chamberpot.
Posted: 14th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities, Flashback, Politicians | Comment
How To Make Tamara Ecclestone’s Baby Jacuzzi
ANORAK’s favourite rich kid trying to find new ways to spunk her dad’s cash, Tamara Ecclestone, has been celebrating the impending arrival of her first child with a baby shower.
And it’s no longer a baby shower – it’s a Baby Whirlpool Bath. At a place, appropriately enough called The Orangery (see skin tones) at Kensington Palace, London, the gift receiving got underway. Tamara tells Hello!:
“One friend gave me a beautiful set of baby cups and plates and a silver infant knife and fork from Tiffany.”
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 14th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Kylie Minogue’s Epiphany For One
KYLIE Minogue gives hope to other single woman in their forties:
“I had a realisation that I need to do things differently. I didn’t want to become a parody of myself. I spent new year on my own. I stayed home alone as I wanted to stay true to my epiphany.”
That’s not a night in in front of the telly on your own, ladies. That is an epiphany…
Posted: 14th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Debbie Harry’s Decapitated Head Rests In A Box Of Chocolates On The Cover Of Josephine Tey’s The Franchise Affair
For those of you not keen to read the book, you can watch the 1980s TV dramatisation below.
* Robert Blair was about to knock off from a slow day at his law firm when the phone rang. It was Marion Sharpe on the line, a local woman of quiet disposition who lived with her mother at their decrepit country house, The Franchise. It appeared that she was in some serious trouble: Miss Sharpe and her mother were accused of brutally kidnapping a demure young woman named Betty Kane. Miss Kane’s claims seemed highly unlikely, even to Inspector Alan Grant of Scotland Yard, until she described her prison — the attic room with its cracked window, the kitchen, and the old trunks — which sounded remarkably like The Franchise. Yet Marion Sharpe claimed the Kane girl had never been there, let alone been held captive for an entire month! Not believing Betty Kane’s story, Solicitor Blair takes up the case and, in a dazzling feat of amateur detective work, solves the unbelievable mystery that stumped even Inspector Grant
Spotter: Kenneth in the 212
Posted: 13th, March 2014 | In: Books, Celebrities, Flashback | Comment
How Old Is Russ Kane?
HOW old is comedian Russ Kane?
Last weekend, the Sunday Times told us:
Kane, 33, is an Edinburgh Comedy award-winning comedian and television presenter with 557,000 Twitter followers who has fronted three shows on BBC3. Since Tony Hall, the corporation’s director-general, announced that he planned to close the BBC’s only television channel aimed at 16 to 34-year-olds he has become a crusader for the rights of the “yoof”.
Kane is of his audience.
“No one listens to us, no one gives a sh*t about us,” he says. “We’re one of the few countries where our young people don’t go out protesting. We’re too busy ‘neknominating’ [taking part in an online drinking game] each other and waxing our eyebrows off. So the problem is that we have a very quiet voice and you injure the group who is less likely to hit back.”
Wikipedia says Kane is old than 33:
Russell Kane (born 19 August 1975)
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 13th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Lindsay Lohan Compiles A Cast List Of Everyone She’s Slept With In Hollywood’s Petrie Dish
CELEBRITIES, really, are supposed to be badly behaved. What is the point of being wealthy, popular and good looking if you’re not goin to rinse it for all it is worth? As fame is more likely to leave you than stay with you for life, you should spend your time in the limelight leading the life we’d all like to do, if only we could throw sickies off work for months at a time and money wasn’t an issue.
And so, to the brilliant Lindsay Lohan who had problems with drugs, drink, driving, jewels, fist fights and rehab, all the time, managing to do some acting and show off her boobies in some magazines.
As well as all that, she managed to have sex with some of the most famous people in the world, cementing our plebian jealousy.
In Touch magazine claims that Lindsay, while dossing about with friends at a hotel, wrote a list of 36 former shag buddies encountered in Hollywood’s Petrie Dish. The names included James Franco, Heath Ledger, Colin Farrell, Justin Timberlake, Zac Efron and Adam Levine.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 13th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Finally! The Malaysia Airlines MH370 Mystery Gets A Celebrity Face
FINALLY! With Katie Price discussing the Oscar Pistorius trial in Now magazine, it’s been left to Uri Geller to find a solution to the question’ What happened to Malaysia Airlines MH370?’
I have been asked to help. I believe in remote viewing. Can you help me? Can you please try to ‘see’ where YOU bel
Can the spoon bender solve the puzzle?
Is that the shadow of the missing jet over Uri’s face?
Posted: 13th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Like, A Justin Bieber Fan Talks To A Newspaper
ROXY, a Justin Bieber fan, has been speaking to a Canadian newspaper:
Transcript:
“He should, like, learn from his mistakes, but as the same time, like, young he’s like young still and he just, like, there’s a lot of pressure like on him right now and like, I just like, I just think people should just back off” – Roxy, Justin Bieber fan.”
Like…
Posted: 13th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Watch Staircases to Nowhere: Making Kubrick’s The Shining
STANLEY Kubrick’s The Shining has yet to get a dread sequel. Those film executives seeking to milk the success of the hit movie can watch Staircases to Nowhere, featuring words from the film’s producer Jan Harlan, Christiane Kubrick and Brian Cook, the First Assistant Director.
Spotter: Movies.com
Bryan Cranston: Teen Heartthrob
AS hard as it may be to imagine that the dark and intense meth maker of Breaking Bad was once a teen heartthrob, it’s true. In the mid-1980s Bryan Cranston was a dreamboat for teenage girls. So, when I came across the March 1985 issue of Teen Talk magazine, I couldn’t help but share his wonderfully cheesy pictorial. In light of the hardcore image Cranston acquired from Breaking Bad, it’s all the more humorous to see him described as an affable Prince Charming.
The issue also featured the likes of Duran Duran, Ralph Macchio, Prince, and Menudo. Poor Cranston didn’t have enough celeb status to get a mention on the cover. But the future Heisenberg did warrant a two page spread entitled “Bryan Cranston: He’s a Good Sport”. The article begins:
If you’re a fan of ABC-TV’s “Loving” you’ve probably fallen in love yourself – with actor Bryan Cranston. His character, drama professor Doug Donovan, is the resident good guy: sensitive, vulnerable and more than a little good-looking. So when Bryan recently called TEEN TALK and invited us to join him in his work out in Manhattan’s Central Park, we jumped at the chance.
“If you were a bat, could you keep your eye on the ball?” Actually, with those short-shorts, it would be pretty hard not to spot a ball (or two).
The article continues:
To our delight, we discovered that the real-life Bryan is every bit as nice as Doug, and he’s a great athlete, too. “Growing up, I always wanted to be a baseball star,” he told us. In high school, he played baseball, football and tennis. Now acting is his major passion, but as you can see, he spends plenty of time keeping in shape. “I take an hour-long aerobics class that I really enjoy, “he says. (So do all the girls in his class!) “I also love to play sports.”
Last spring, Bryan organized a soap star football game – “Loving” vs. “All My Children.” “It was fun,” he jokes, “but unfortunately, ‘All My Children’ cheated, so they beat us!” Bryan’s next project is organizing a soap star baseball game, with good guys pitted against bad guys. “I’d like it to be for the public,” he says.
We can’t wait for the game, but meantime, these exclusive pictures of our day with Bryan should score high with you.
And so ends this lovely bit of journalism. I never knew Cranston was such an all-around athlete. One minute he’s jumping rope (“Bryan’s got such great legs!”), the next he’s juggling, and the next he’s creating the purest methamphetamine on the planet…. well, that last part comes later.
Hey, actors have got to start somewhere. It’s not uncommon for actors to rise up through the ranks, starting in soap operas and ending up critically acclaimed superstars. However, there’s just something particularly amusing about seeing Walter White as a young buck, hamming it up for a teen magazine.
Posted: 13th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities, Flashback, Key Posts | Comments (2)
Keith Richards Is Writing A Children’s Book. Stop Laughing
WHEN rock musicians get bored, there’s a mental ticklist of things they need to do to stop them from shrivelling up and dying.
They are: painting; an album of ‘standards’; going into ‘the movies’; poetry; acting; something to do with classical music; appearing on a documentary about a niche interest that no-one knew they had, like steam engines or fixing antique cars; and finally – children’s books.
And so, to Keith Richards, who is going for the latter and, apparently, is writing a children’s book. Although, if you’ve seen his hands lately, you’d be surprised if he could hold a pen or punch the letters on a keyboard, let alone write a whole book.
Read the rest of this entry »
Listen To Daft Punk, Jay Z and Kanye’s Collab Leaked Online
AT the moment, Kanye and Daft Punk (above) are so hot. Everything they do is leapt on, prompting furious debate, fandom and craziness. And then there’s Jay Z. Jay Z’s pretty much past it, but he won’t care because he’s fantastically wealthy and married to Beyonce. Like he’d care what anyone thinks about anything.
And now, with clickbait catnip, there’s a tune featuring all three artists on the same song!
The track, which you can hear below, is called ‘Computerized’ and a lot of people are having kittens. It was leaked onto a Yeezy fansite as an unreleased track. As this writer has previous in fooling the world’s press with music parodies and hoodwinkery, alarm bells went off before hearing a second of the track.
Read the rest of this entry »
One Direction Go After George Osborne And Tax Dodgers
IT is usually indie fans who mock the rest of music for not being ‘real’ or doing anything worthwhile, when funnily, it is usually their favourite bands who are the most guilty of giving nothing to the world.
While everyone looks to rock music for protest, everyone’s missed the small fact that pop and hip hop have been the prime champions of hitting out against injustice. Guitar bands complain about Spotify or illegal downloads, concerned only for what they’re owed while pop and rap support Justice For The 96, hit out against corrupt police, call bullshit on the way media portrays women, stands up against bullying and berates corrupt politicians.
The latest is One Direction, who have urged their army of fans to lobby the Chancellor to hold the UK’s international aid budget steady and go after those guilty of corporate tax avoidance.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 11th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities, Music | Comment (1)
Brilliant Mel Brooks Knocks Them Bandy In This 1975 Interview
IN 1975, Mel Brooks appeared on Imperial College’s TV station Stoic to talk about his 1975 films Blazing Saddles andYoung Frankenstein. He sat opposite Mark Caldwell. He offers the insight that cowboys “do not make love to women in Westerns”:
“People say I am in questionable taste, you know what I mean? Well, I must tell you that I used the utmost discretion [and] I did not tell the whole truth about the Western, because they do not make love to women, you know that. They are very straight, very Christian and very with it, you know. They do make love to their horses. They do, they do. They don’t marry them, there is no formal ceremony, but they go off somewhere in the night with their horses.”
On the set of Young Frankenstein in Los Angeles on April 1, 1974, the teenage directors of Life Times Nine watched Mel Brooks shoot a scene in Dr. FrankensteinÂs dungeon and Peter Boyle in green-monster makeup put a friendly strangle-hold on Marilyn Becker, 17.
Colin Grimshaw writes on this video:
You can see that I have left the original countdown clock at the front because he couldn’t resist being funny even before we had started to record.
Posted: 11th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities, Film, Key Posts | Comment
Fruit of the Rhyme: 8 Songs of Fruit
THE problem with songs about food is that, well, they’re never really about food. Tasty as brown sugar is, the Stones weren’t really singing about sucrose. And when Robert Plant sings “Your custard pie, yeah, sweet and nice. When you cut it, mama, save me a slice” he’s not talking about pastries. You might say it’s a time honored tradition for rock and pop musicians to use food as symbols of sex and drugs.
We certainly can’t go through them all, so let’s narrow it down and focus just on songs with fruit in the title. Here’s a playlist that not only is interesting and fun, but also rich in Vitamin C.
1. “Apples and Oranges” by Pink Floyd
The setting is the produce section at the grocery store; however, apples and oranges are also an allusion to the differences between Syd and a girl he sees there (who, according to Syd himself, he’d been stalking for hours).
In this video, Floyd makes an appearance on American Bandstand. Syd looks absolutely stoned out of his mind, and you can tell the cameraman takes care to avoid him as much as possible.
2. “I Am a Tangerine” by Tommy James and the Shondells
Tommy has admitted that he was hopelessly wasted when he wrote this song, and that it makes no sense whatsoever. Don’t go reading clever allusions and metaphors into this one, folks. When Tommy screams “Hello Banana”, he was genuinely introducing himself to a piece of fruit.
3. “Peaches’ by The Stranglers
“Peaches” is a simple song about walking up and down the beach staring at the ladies. However, the fruit acquired a gynecological connotation by the line:
“Will you just take a look over there. Is she tryin’ to get outta that clitares?
“Clitares” being a French word for bathing suit, and I’m sure The Stranglers were well aware of how the word would get misinterpreted. Clever bastards.
4. “Tangerine” by Led Zeppelin
Led Zep were no strangers to fruity music – let’s not forget “The Lemon Song”. Page wrote this one during his Yardbirds days, purportedly about singer-songwriter Jackie DeShannon. The false start at the beginning begat an interesting urban legend – that the intro was the remnant of the “the greatest song ever recorded” but the tape was destroyed, and both Plant and Page couldn’t remember how it went. This snippet at the beginning (not in the video above) is all that remains.
It’s total bulls**t, but nonetheless it’s an urban legend that should be fostered and encouraged. Of course, when it comes to fruit-centered urban legends, nothing will compare to the “Cranberry Sauce/I Buried Paul” conspiracy.
5. “Raspberry Beret” by Prince
Theories abound regarding the meaning of this song. Many feel it’s just a simple story about a young nobody who becomes captivated by a woman who enters the store where he works. Prince was under fire from Tipper Gore over his racy lyrics for “Darling Nikki”, so he wanted to tone things down a bit. But the fact that the store is owned by “Old Man Johnson” belies a dirty subtext. After all, this is the same guy that brought you “Soft and Wet” and “Cream”.
So, what does it mean? Some think the “raspberry beret” refers to an uncircumcised penis. Others say it’s menstrual blood. I say this is may be best left unanswered.
6. “Blackberry Way” by The Move
Very much in the vein of “Penny Lane”; sort of a downbeat answer to the peppy McCartney classic. Personally, I cannot get past the “ooh-wah” bridge (at about the 1:45 mark in the video) which is lifted directly from Harry Nilsson’s “Good Old Desk”. It’s stolen so exactly, the song is ruined for me.
7. “Cherry, Cherry” by Neil Diamond
Speaking of plagiarism, “What I Like About You” by the Romantics features a guitar riff pretty damn similar to Diamond’s “Cherry, Cherry”. Of course, there’s always some borrowing and cross-pollination in pop music. In fact, you could argue “Cherry, Cherry” owes some of its melody to “Dirty Water” by The Standells.
Whatever its roots, I’m inclined to agree with Rolling Stone in calling this one of the greatest three-chord songs of all time. You’ll notice no horns or drums; that’s because this hit was actually a demo version. Adding drums, horns and other polish detracted from the energy, so they kept the original.
8. “Dear Delilah” by Grapefruit
I could have ended this playlist on top with “Strawberry Fields”, “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” or “Blueberry Hill”. Instead, I’ll invalidate the entire premise of this article and offer up a song without any fruit at all in its title. The band’s name is certainly fruity enough, though. Grapefruit was of the hallowed 60s tradition of bands naming themselves after fruit (ex. Moby Grape, The Lemon Pipers, Strawberry Alarm Clock… not to mention Apple Records). In Grapefruit’s case, John Lennon actually named them after Yoko’s awful 1964 book.
Grapefruit’s singer is a member of the amazing Young family – the same clan that spawned AC/DC (Malcolm and Angus Young) and The Easybeats (George Young). Grapefruit had the full support of The Beatles, but couldn’t achieve the success they no doubt expected.
You might say that everything was going peachy keen at Apple, but they wanted to be top banana, and ended up with sour grapes.
(insert sounds of crickets chirping)
Sorry. A fruit pun was bound to happen at some point. My sincere apologies.
Posted: 10th, March 2014 | In: Flashback, Key Posts, Music | Comments (3)
Lily Allen: Not Keen On Feminists
FEMINISTS are really, if we’re being honest here, only truly great at one thing – and that’s picking holes in people’s arguments. That would be the arguments of the patriarchy, sexists and bigots and, most importantly, the arguments of other feminists.
Throwing a match on the kindling is Lily Allen, who thinks feminism shouldn’t even be a thing in 2014, stating that “everyone is equal” in the modern world.
Good news for all those children who have been victims of FGM, the women who are denied rights by backward governments and the rest.
Read the rest of this entry »
That Moment When Kurt Cobain Met Courtney Love
WHEN Kurt Cobain met Courtney Love, it made it into this biography:
Already infamous in Portland, Love was holding court in a booth when she saw Kurt walk by a few minutes before his band was set to appear onstage. Courtney was wearing a red polka-dot dress. “You look like Dave Pirner,” she said to him, meaning the remark to sound like a small insult, but also a flirt. Kurt did look a bit like Pirner, the lead singer of Soul Asylum, as his hair had grown long and tangled — he washed it just once a week, and then only with bar soap. Kurt responded with a flirt of his own: He grabbed Courtney and wrestled her to the ground.
Love is…
inger Courtney Love and her daughter Frances Bean Cobain pose as they arrive at a gala on Feb. 8, 2007, in Beverly Hills, Calif. Love, the widow of the Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain, says she intends to sell most of his belongings. “I’m going to have a Christie’s auction,” the 42-year-old singer tells the AOL music Web site Spinner.com. The rocker committed suicide in 1994.
Spotter: Kottke
Posted: 7th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities, Flashback | Comment (1)
Sharon Stone Takes Just One Bottle To The Shower
SHARON Stone wants us to know:
“There was a point in my forties when I went into the bathroom with a bottle of wine, locked the door and said, ‘I’m not coming out until I can totally accept the way I look right now.’ ”
Sharon takes one bottle into the shower…
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 7th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comment
Victoria Beckham Is Looking For Her Chest
CELEBRITY Quote of the week came form the mouth of Victoria Beckham who was talking about her surgically enhanced breasts:
“I don’t have them anymore. I think I may have purchased them.”
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 7th, March 2014 | In: Celebrities | Comments (3)
England To Have A World Cup Song Befitting How Dull They’ll Play
ANYONE who saw England play against Denmark last night or, indeed, have ever seen England play in any tournament of any kind, will know that everyone’s going to be treated to some spectacularly dull football.
In Brazil, it is pretty obvious that the English will wilt like old salad in the tropical heat. It’ll be a marvel if they even get out of their group, which features Luis Suarez’s Uruguay, the mighty Italy and Costa Rica.
With England’s Crapenaccio on offer, we need a song that will befit England’s laboured performances.
So step forward Gary Barlow – the dowdiest of popstars – alongside Mel C and Emma Bunton, Kimberley Walsh and Gary Lineker – who together, will record England’s official 2014 FIFA World Cup single.
Read the rest of this entry »
The Greatest Rock Biopics: From Hendrix to Guthrie
BIOPICS are problematic at the best of times, but get it right and you can cement a person’s place in history forever. Especially tricky are rock biopics because, half the time, the person or people they celebrate, are still alive. Or at least, they were around not that long and you can remember if they were horrible or not.
However, some rock films are better than the actual careers of the artist they pay tribute to.
Have you seen The Doors film? That’s a daft romp through 60s fluff and nonsense with some hilarious mystical sequences and leather trousers. 10,000% better than actually having to sit down and listen to anything The Doors ever committed to record. We can whip the horses eyes? C’mon! You’d much rather see one of Meg Ryan’s boobs and laugh at Billy Idol in a hippie wig!
With a biopic of Jimi Hendrix due to drop any minute now, played by Andre 3000 from Outkast, it seems like a perfect time to look at some of the finer performances in the oeuvre.
Jimi Hendrix
Let us start with the newest and most exciting biopic in a while. ‘All is By My Side’ features Andre Benjamin as the late Hendrix. We knew he was a man who could pull off Hendrix’s wild attire, but the footage doing the rounds shows that Benjamin is more than adept at doing an impression of Jimi. Have a look.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted: 6th, March 2014 | In: Film, Key Posts, TV & Radio | Comment
