Amanda Seyfried: Justin Timberlake was ‘easy going’ during love scenes

Friday, 04 November 2011 22:38

Although many actors complain of the awkwardness that can be present during onset love-making scenes, Amanda Seyfried says she enjoyed those she filmed with Justin Timberlake for recent release In Time.

The actress told the Mirror: “For the most part love scenes are fun. It’s a little intimating at first because it’s a very unnatural setting, but what you’re doing is very natural. It’s just that you’re not doing it with the person you’re used to being intimate with. But Justin is as easy going as anyone could possibly be.”

Seyfried and Timberlake first worked together on the film Alpha Dog.

The 30-year-old pop star had bigger concerns on the set of the science fiction thriller. He explained that he had to whip himself in shape for the movie, in which he plays Will Salas, a man who wakes up to discover he has a mere 23 hours left to live. 

He told the Press Association: “I had to specifically train and do some running to train for the movie.”

Timberlake relished the role, however, as he told press at the London premiere: “This is the first character I have played that I really admire a lot. He is so brave and I hope I would come out swinging too.”

Seyfried did her share of running on set, but told the Mirror that all the action was made difficult by her wardrobe: “I didn’t really like to run without holding Justin’s hand. He saved my life the second day of shooting when I was wearing tall Yves Saint Laurent shoes.”

The actress added: “It was amazing coming to work and getting into a wig and holding a gun and wearing high heels – so completely different from how I am in my private life.”

Kelly Rowland returns to X Factor

Thursday, 03 November 2011 17:03

Former Destiny's Child star Kelly Rowland jetted back to London on Wednesday, just as fellow X Factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos fell ill to a toothache.

 
According to a spokesman, Tulisa was forced to pull out of promotional gigs for her perfume launch due to tooth pain, and was scheduled to visit a dentist yesterday to seek treatment. In spite of her troubles, the former N-Dubz star will reportedly be well enough to return to work when X Factor airs on Saturday.

Kelly missed last week’s show after she caught a severe throat infection. She was forced to leave the girls’ mentoring to Alexandra Burke when she was forced to remain in Los Angeles.

Tulisa and Kelly haven’t exactly been seeing eye to eye after Tulisa accused Kelly’s protégé Misha B of picking on her girl band Rhythmix, driving members to tears.

Asked last week whether she would like to send a get well message to her fellow judge, Tulisa stalled a bit before telling Dermot O’Leary: “Sorry, I got lost there for a second.”

She quickly went on: “We all want to send our love to Kelly.”

The star added that she hoped to see Kelly back for the next week’s show.

Although Alexandra Burke stepped in to mentor Kelly’s group of girls, Kelly called in to deliver the final say on whether Misha B or Sophie Haninis would be allowed to stay in the running.

“This is so hard because I know how bad you both want this,” she said. “But I know that one of you wants it more and I have to be completely honest. The act that I’m sending home is Sophie.”

Gary Barlow has given fans his opinion on the Misha B bullying matter, explaining: “For anyone who thinks last week was all for the cameras, then they’re wrong. Tulisa is very young and what she came out with shocked me, to be honest.

“I couldn’t believe it had been brought to the stage, but she’s one of those people, who when she sees something she’s got to say it, so fair enough.”

Britney Spears plans big screen comeback

Thursday, 03 November 2011 16:59

The first feature film starring Britney Spears - Crossroads - wasn't exactly a box office blockbuster. But the Femme Fetale star hasn't given up hope on breaking into movies.
 

Brit Brit told The Sun: “Definitely next year I am going to take a different route. I see myself being a detective, assassin or even a bad girl.”

After wrapping her latest string of tour dates in London this week, the superstar was supposed to have attended a party at Mahiki on Monday but was a no show for the night.
 

The “Toxic” singer made further headlines when she hosted Nick Jonas onstage for the tease portion of her show at Wembley Arena. The former teeny bopper did not looked as pleased as many others would have been with Spears’ legs wrapped around his shoulders.
 
Tabloids suspect it was no accident that Jonas was selected from the crowd to join Spears on stage; that night marked the final night of Jonas’ work as Britney’s supporting act.
 

The tease schtick was a staple of the Femme Fetale tour – each night the singer brought a new boy onstage to be handcuffed and attended to by a fishnet-clad Spears.
 

Britney’s boyfriend Jason Trawick appeared onstage during the singer’s New York engagement at the Nassau Coliseum.
 

Jonas looked like he was feeling a bit shy as Britney draped him in a pink feather boa and danced seductively over him. He later wrote on Twitter: What a great night! LONDON! you rule! what a way to end the @britneyspears tour.”
 

He added: “And.. @britneyspears thanks for the strip tease.. ;)”

Madonna stalker detained in psychiatric hospital

Wednesday, 26 October 2011 16:44

Grzegorz Matlok, the man who broke into Madonna's London mansion, tried on Guy Richie's clothes and made himself at home in the singer's bed, was ordered into psychiatric care.

The troubled Matlok will receive treatment for his schizophrenia during his indefinite detention.

Before Judge Deborah Taylor ordered Matlok’s detention, the court heard a statement from Madge herself, who let it be known that she found the defendant’s presence in her home “extremely unsettling.”

“I do not know the defendant, I’ve not had any form of relationship with the defendant nor have I had any form of contact by phone or email, or by any other way, with the defendant,” read Madonna’s statement.

“In particular, I’ve never given the defendant permission to enter the premises of any of my other premises. It is extremely unsettling to know that, despite the extensive security I have, he has been able to break into two of my residential properties.

“I’m worried about my children’s safety as well as the safety of my staff.”

A psychiatrist told the court that Matlok believed his “delusions that Madonna loved him” and that he suffered from schizophrenia.

Dr. Nadji Kahtan explained that Matlok’s problem could be controlled: “In hospital he’s fully compliant and has expressed no wish to stop taking [his medication] and he says he wishes to still take it because he recognizes that he has a mental illness.

“We feel that the best way to manage his illness is for him to continue to be treated at the hospital in England until he can be moved to a hospital in Poland.”

Before breaking into Madonna’s home in London, the Polish national broke into Guy Ritchie’s property in Wiltshire. There Matlok donned a pair of the director’s jeans and was found hiding beneath a bed.

 
“It is the view of the doctors that if you fail to take medication, you pose a risk to Madonna Ciccone of real harm,” Judge Taylor informed the defendant.

Frontman calls new Coldplay album ‘schizophrenic’

Wednesday, 26 October 2011 16:40

Coldplay's Mylo Xyloto is making waves as the band's most ambitious effort yet, but of all the words that could describe the album, frontman Chris Martin is going with "schizophrenic".

Martin told MTV news: “It’s definitely a schizophrenic album… it keeps changing sounds. That’s why we called it such a strange thing, Mylo Xyloto. Because we felt like so many people have already made up their minds about us, both good and bad, that we can sort of start again from scratch and try and reflect all the music we listen to and we love.”

Brian Eno appears as co-producer and co-writer on the album credits, and the star’s ambient influence is obvious.
“Working with Brian, he was very much of the opinion that you should just be free to follow whatever you feel sounds best,” Martin went on, “without worrying about having to talk about it in interviews and everything and explain it.”

After a listen to the album – which features R&B star Rihanna on one of its tracks – no one would guess that the project had its beginnings in minimalistic acoustic sounds.

Drummer Will Champion told the news source: “Very early on in the process of recording this record, we were playing a lot of acoustic instruments and we had it in our mind that we might try to record a small-sounding, intimate, reflective record.

“And [a song like ‘Paradise’] came about, and it dawned on us that we couldn’t play it in that acoustic style. So we thought, ‘Okay, we’ll finish this one and then we’ll do another record,’ and the realization came very quickly that we can’t really focus on more than one thing at once.”

 
He added: “So we decided to put everything in one basket, and some of those songs from the acoustic thing survived – the song ‘Charlie Brown’ was originally in that format and ‘Us Against the World.’”

Nicole Scherzinger and Lewis Hamilton end four year relationship

Tuesday, 25 October 2011 00:00

Pussycat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger and F1 racecar driver Lewis Hamilton have called it quits – this time for good. The pair split early this year, blaming work commitments, but friends of the couple say that they won’t be reuniting this time.

An insider told The Sun: “Nicole and Lewis have tried to make it work but realized it’s just not happening so have called it a day once and for all. 

“They’ve spoken at length about it but agreed there’s no point as they never see each other. They spend their whole time on opposite sides of the world. 

“Although they came to an amicable decision, Nicole is actually devastated about it. She thought Lewis was the one.” 

That Scherzinger’s career might have come between the two is not especially surprising; the newly anointed solo star released her debut album this year before landing a starring role on the US X Factor judging panel. 

“They still genuinely care for each other,” The Sun’s source added, “but they’ve decided to be adult about it and go it alone. There are no hard feelings.” 

The pair were the definition of a long distance relationship, with Hamilton based in Geneva and Scherzinger holed up in her Hollywood home. 

And Hamilton has had commitments of his own as he tours the world with his F1 team. The driver placed second at last Sunday’s Korean Grand Prix. 

In the past, the future seemed bright for the pair. But recent comments from Hamilton suggested that the couple would not be moving forward anytime soon. 

Asked whether he and Scherzinger would be starting a family, the 26-year-old said: “I’m still young. It’s a long way away.” 

After the breakup Hamilton told the Daily Mail: “I just want to move forward in a positive manner. The focus is on this season and doing the best I possibly can and getting the results on the track. I’m just keeping my mind on that.” 

Nicole Scherzinger releases Try With Me later this month.

Westlife plan final tour before breakup

Thursday, 20 October 2011 14:24

Yesterday The Sun broke the news that Irish man band Westlife are calling it quits after 14 years of making music together - though not before the farewell tour and one last greatest hits album.

To date the foursome have sold over 44 million albums and have had a record-breaking “dream come true” of a collective career.

“We today announce our plans to go our separate ways after a greatest hits collection this Christmas and a farewell tour next year,” Westlife said in a statement. “The decision is entirely amicable and after spending all of our adult life together so far, we want to have a well-earned break and look at new ventures.”

An insider close to the group revealed that they were not parting ways because of any internal disputes amongst the bandmates.

“This is it – the greatest hits album and the tour are their way of giving thanks to their loyal fanbase and saying cheerio,” the source told The Sun. “There’s no bad blood in the band, they’re still great pals. But all good things come to an end and they are all keen to do their own thing.

“It’s not something they have done lightly as they are still at the top of their game. They could carry on making albums into their old age the way their career has gone, but none of them want to do that. They’re all loaded and don’t need the money. It’s quality time they’re after and focus to do their own things.”

Already each member has plans to keep himself occupied during life after Westlife. Nicky Byrne will reallocate his vocals for use as a radio deejay and Kian Egan will appear as a judge on the Irish version of The Voice. Shane Filan will look to launch a solo career and Mark Feehily has plans to work as a songwriter.

Rihanna settles with David LaChapelle in plagiarism suit

Thursday, 20 October 2011 14:03

Rihanna has reached a settlement agreement with photographer David LaChapelle, who accused the R&B singer of using images "directly derived" from his work for her "S&M" video.

Earlier in the year LaChapelle filed a suit seeking $1 million (£630,000) in damages because he believed that shots in the raunchy video had been copied from images in his own portfolio.
 
The case moved forward in July when a New York judge allowed it to go to trial. Manhattan federal judge Shira Scheindlin said that LaChapelle “successfully alleges” that Rihanna had liberally borrowed from his work for her video.
 
“I like RiRi,” LaChapelle said shortly after moving to sue. “This is not personal, it’s strictly business. Musicians commonly pay to sample music or use someone’s beats and there should be no difference when sampling an artist’s visuals.”
 
According to the photographer’s publicist Jaret Keller, LaChapelle is satisfied with his undisclosed settlement sum.

Keller told the BBC: “David is happy with the settlement.”
 
In the suit the photographer had accused the “S&M” video of being “directly derived from and substantially similar to” eight of his original photographs. These included a shot of a dominatrix lording over a chained man on a leash, one of Lady Gaga clad only in newspaper headlines and a photo in which a woman dons latex headwear.

LaChapelle felt that the “composition, total concept, feel, tone, mood, theme, colors, props, settings, decors wardrobe and lighting” of the video was imitating his unique work.
 
The photographer is known for his colorful fantasy scenes and for his work with celebrities like Paris Hilton, Kanye West, Madonna, Angelina Jolie and Pamela Anderson.

No word has yet emerged from Rihanna or her spokespeople concerning the settlement.

Stone Roses to launch reunion tour

Wednesday, 19 October 2011 15:09

Manchester rockers the Stone Roses have announced an "extensive" world tour to follow two Heaton Park gigs in June.
 

Frontman Ian Brown told members of the press that after a 15 year split, he and guitarist John Squire had settled their differences. The band has plans to release a new album.
 

Of the band’s two records, their eponymous debut is highly regarded by critics. The Stone Roses split in 1996 after working together for nearly 13 years.
According to the four original band members, it was the death of bassist Gary Mounfield’s mother which brought them back together. Mounfield – aka Mani – had been denying reunion rumors that popped up following his mum’s funeral service.
 

Brown said that at the press conference that a reunion tour would last for as long as they could draw one out. Mani called the reunion a “suck it and see thing.” Drummer Alan Wren – aka Reni – “would be happy with 12 months.”
 

So far the band has not been able to announce any festival dates.
 

The foursome also admitted that they’d been making music once again. Mani described the scene: “Something magical happens when us four are in the room together, you can’t put your finger on it. It’s just so beautiful to capture it again. I’ve missed it.”
 

Each man had different reasons for returning to the band. Brown called the current musical landscape a place that is “boring, bland and corporate with nobody saying anything.” He added that music fans could use “uplifting in times like this.”
 

When rumors of a reunion first began circulating, Squire also denied them, telling NME: “When it’s just a get-together for a big payday and everyone gets their old clothes out, that seems tragic to me.”

Adele: Americans ask if I know the Queen

Wednesday, 19 October 2011 15:04

23-year-old Adele is one of the most successful acts to hit the airwaves in years. Her recent LP 21 saw the top of the charts in nearly 20 countries, but the “Someone like You” singer doesn’t see herself as a superstar.

But according to Adele, Americans see her as something else entirely. She told The Sun: “American people think I am posh even though I am really not. They think I have a very British accent, as in: ‘Do you know the Queen?’ I just laugh at them. In England I am thought of as common as muck.

“I’d like to know a couple of the royals, though. I’d love a night out with Prince Harry; he seems like a right laugh. I love Kate Middleton, she’s brilliant. And I love William.”

The singer is obviously a fan of the royal family, though perhaps not as much so as her nan. After Adele was selected to sing at the Royal Variety Performance, it was her grandmother who excitedly picked out her costume for the show.

“When I called my nan to tell her, she was so excited because she’s 65 and the Queen is her imaginary best friend. So I was really dressed up in the dress that she picked for me. It looked like I was trying to be a princess.”

In spite of all her success, Adele has no interest in “the fame side of things.” She explained: “I’m pretty oblivious to everything…. My mum even calls me ‘Jenny’ when we’re out in public because if she starts shouting ‘Adele’ in a big department store people are going to look round and it gets awkward.”

Instead of flitting about in free designer clothes and sipping bubbly with her fellow celebs, Adele prefers to stay home and bake biscuits.

“I started learning to bake in August 2009 because I hadn’t been home for a very long time and wanted to do something homely,” she said. “So when I got back I got loads of cookery books and it was just me and my little dog hanging out.”