Actor and former Miss World announced move to US at pinnacle of her fame in India eight years ago
The Indian actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas has spoken of how Bollywood’s enduring obsession with fair skin was one of the reasons she left the industry to try her luck in Hollywood eight years ago.
Chopra, 40, is a former Miss World and was at the pinnacle of her fame in India when she abruptly announced the move to the US.
Continue reading...Partner announces ‘unexpected but peaceful’ death of personality who fronted Blind Date, Blankety Blank and was known for his drag persona Lily Savage
The TV presenter and comedian Paul O’Grady has died at the age of 67, his partner Andre Portasio has said.
O’Grady, also known for his drag queen persona Lily Savage, died “unexpectedly but peacefully” on Tuesday evening, a statement shared with the PA news agency via a representative said.
Continue reading...Amsterdam court dismisses French author’s complaint against film that shows him having sex with young women
A Dutch art collective can release an experimental erotic film showing the French novelist Michel Houellebecq having sex with young women in spite of the author’s attempt to stop its circulation, an Amsterdam court has ruled.
Amsterdam’s district court on Tuesday afternoon dismissed a legal complaint by Houellebecq and his wife, Qianyun Lysis, that had aimed to curb the distribution of the film KIRAC 27 by Keeping It Real Art Critics, as well as a trailer that was uploaded on the art collective’s website last month but has since been taken down.
Continue reading...The musician, who spent nearly the last 40 years of her life living in a monastery in Jerusalem, has died
Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou, an Ethiopian nun, composer and pianist, has died at the age of 99.
According to the country’s state-run news outlet Fana Broadcasting Corporate, she died in Jerusalem. Guèbrou had been living at the Ethiopian Monastery there for almost 40 years.
This article was amended on 27 March 2023 to correct the name of the film The Honky Tonk Nun from The Honky Tonk Man
Continue reading...Galleria dell’Accademia director issues invitation in wake of incident that forced principal to resign after parents’ complaints
The Florence museum which houses Michelangelo’s David has invited the board of a Florida Christian charter school to visit, after the school’s principal was forced to resign following parent complaints that pupils were shown an image of the nude sculpture in a class.
Hope Carrasquilla resigned as principal of the Tallahassee Classical school last week, after the school board told her to quit or be fired. Carrasquilla’s exit came after three parents complained about a lesson on David, with one parent claiming the 16th century Renaissance masterpiece was pornographic.
Continue reading...The Creed III actor’s ads were a key element in the army’s drive to revive struggling recruitment numbers
Ads for the US army featuring Jonathan Majors have been pulled after the actor’s arrest.
Majors, who authorities said was arrested on Saturday in New York on charges of assault and harassment, was the narrator of two ads at the heart of a broader media campaign that kicked off at the start of the NCAA’s March Madness college basketball tournament. Army leaders were hopeful that the popularity of the star of the recently released Creed III and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania would help them reach the youth audience.
Continue reading...Oscar-winning composer says son, also a successful composer, died on Saturday in hospital surrounded by family
Andrew Lloyd Webber has announced that his eldest son, Nicholas, has died from gastric cancer aged 43.
The Oscar-winning composer wrote on Twitter that his son, who was also a successful composer, died on Saturday at Basingstoke hospital in Hampshire surrounded by his family.
Continue reading...Comic, real name Xavier López, fronted children’s TV show that ran from 1967 to 2015
The Mexican children’s entertainer Xavier López, better known by his stage name Chabelo, has died at 88, Mexico’s president has said.
Andrés Manuel López Obrador tweeted that his eldest son “woke up early to see him [on television] more than 40 years ago”.
Continue reading...British viewers are showing an interest in travelling to Canada after launch of reality show’s third series
Canada’s tourism industry this week expressed hopes for a rise in UK visitors after the third series of BBC’s Race Across the World launched in the UK to rave reviews.
The reality show, in which five couples travel 10,000 miles (16,000km) from one side of Canada to another on a shoestring and without flying, could be a boon to the country’s recovering tourism sector. Arrivals were down 40% in 2022 from their high in 2019, but there are hopes for an increase with UK viewers inspired by the epic scenery and charmed by helpful Canadians.
Continue reading...Outrage over naked images of actor published in MailOnline could prompt move to curb cameraphones
Theatre audiences in London’s West End could be made to lock up their phones to prevent illicit images of actors being taken during performances.
The suggestion comes after naked photos of James Norton on stage in A Little Life were published in MailOnline.
Continue reading...The Best Part and I Hate Myself are performed by her character in A Good Person, written and directed by Zach Braff
Florence Pugh has released her first performances as a singer-songwriter, which are included on the soundtrack to her new film A Good Person.
The British actor has written and performed two songs: the slow ambient ballad The Best Part, and the self-lacerating piano-driven number I Hate Myself. Each are presented in the film as being sung by her character, Allison, a promising musician whose career is set back by personal tragedy.
Continue reading...Legendary folk star is reportedly offering input into screenplay for drama film about her life
Cameron Crowe, the director of Almost Famous and Jerry Maguire, is developing a new drama film with Joni Mitchell about her life.
According to a story on the entertainment site Above the Line – which was subsequently reposted on Mitchell’s own website – the project is not a documentary and Mitchell has been collaborating with Crowe on the script for the past two years.
Continue reading...Singer-songwriter says ‘the old days are gone’ amid wider consternation at ticketing company’s pricing policies
Neil Young has lambasted Ticketmaster over its concert ticketing policies, saying “concert tours are no longer fun” due to what he sees as exploitative pricing.
Young wrote on his website:
It’s over. The old days are gone. I get letters blaming me for $3,000 tickets for a benefit I am doing. That money does not go to me or the benefit. Artists have to worry about ripped off fans blaming them for Ticketmaster add-ons and scalpers. Concert tours are no longer fun. Concert tours not what they were.
Continue reading...Patrick Amadon, whose work flashed up names from pro-democracy protests, says it had to be taken down ‘to be a completed piece’
A Hong Kong department store took down a digital artwork that contained hidden references to jailed free-speech defenders, in an incident the artist says is evidence of the erosion of free speech by Chinese authorities.
Patrick Amadon’s No Rioters was put on display on a billboard at the huge Sogo Causeway Bay store as the city was promoting itself as a cultural hub following years of pandemic travel restrictions. Art Basel Hong Kong, a prominent art fair in Asia, began this week, alongside other art events.
Continue reading...Polly Sanderson-Grasham said seeing her father’s state after the incident was like ‘a slap in the face’
The daughter of the man who collided with Gwyneth Paltrow on a ski slope, has said seeing her father’s state after the incident was like “a slap in the face”.
Polly Sanderson-Grasham said that following the crash in 2016, her father was unable to “see the forest for the trees” and got “lost in the minutiae” of things.
Continue reading...Actor in talks to take on role made famous by James Stewart in remake written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight
A remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 thriller Vertigo is in the works with Robert Downey Jr “eyeing” the lead role.
According to Deadline, Paramount Pictures has given the film the go-ahead with the Iron Man star producing and potentially taking on the role of the obsessive detective made famous by James Stewart.
Continue reading...Roiland says he ‘never had any doubt that this day would come’ after authorities say there was ‘insufficient evidence’
Felony domestic violence charges against Rick and Morty creator Justin Roiland have been dismissed, two months after he was dropped from the show.
Kimberly Edds, a spokesperson for the Orange County district attorney’s office, confirmed the development in a statement on Wednesday, saying: “We dismissed the charges today as a result of having insufficient evidence to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Continue reading...Two dembow progenitors are suing superstars including Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee – in a case that also names Justin Bieber – claiming that they deserve credit for birthing the genre
With the release of their song Fish Market in 1989, the Jamaican duo Cleveland “Clevie” Browne and Wycliffe “Steely” Johnson inadvertently changed the course of pop music. The track featured the first known example of what would come to be known as a “dembow” rhythm – the percussive, slightly syncopated four-to-the-floor beat that travelled from reggae to become the signature beat of reggaeton, today the world-conquering sound of Latin American pop.
Now, more than 30 years after Fish Market was released, Steely & Clevie Productions is suing three of reggaeton’s most celebrated hitmakers – El Chombo, Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee – for what they characterise as unlawful interpolation of Fish Market’s rhythm (or “riddim”), and are seeking the credit – and royalties – they say they deserved from the start.
Continue reading...Case that was heading to high court next week is settled, after Jon Moss claimed he was owed lost tour income following expulsion from group
Jon Moss, a founding member of Culture Club, will be paid £1.75m by his former bandmates, who have reached a settlement with him instead of commencing a high court trial.
Moss was allegedly “expelled” from Culture Club in September 2018 by manager Paul Kemsley, bringing his 37-year career as the band’s drummer to an end.
Continue reading...Member of girl group Twice says she ‘didn’t correctly recognise the meaning’ of symbol on Sid Vicious T-shirt she wore
Chaeyoung, a member of Twice – one of the most globally successful K-pop groups – has apologised after wearing a T-shirt featuring a swastika.
The 23-year-old’s T-shirt featured an image of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious wearing a swastika logo. She posted a photo of herself wearing it on her Instagram account to her 8.6 million followers, but soon deleted it, replacing it with an apology. “I didn’t correctly recognise the meaning of the tilted swastika in the T-shirt I wore,” she wrote. “I deeply apologise for not thoroughly reviewing it, causing concern. I will pay absolute attention in the future to prevent any situation similar from happening again.”
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