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Chubby Brown denies assault

Roy "Chubby" Brown

Comedian Roy "Chubby" Brown hit a woman in the face during a foul-mouthed dispute in a Teesside supermarket car park, a court has heard.

The comic is said to have hit 21-year-old Kelly Oliver after almost colliding with her grandmother’s car in Middlesbrough last September.

Brown, 65 and charged under his real name Royston Vasey, denied common assault at Teesside Magistrates’ Court.

The comedian, of Northallerton, is known for his explicit sexual material.

Ticket machine

Viviene Turner, prosecuting, said Brown reacted angrily after Miss Oliver watched him reverse his silver Lexus within an inch of her grandmother’s car in the car of park of the Middlesbrough town centre branch of Sainsbury’s on 2 September.

The court heard he wound down his window and swore at her.

Miss Oliver, now six months pregnant, said she did not respond.

She claims when she walked over to a ticket machine, Brown got out of his car and began shouting at her.

Brown is then said to have hit her with his right hand on the left side of her face.

The court heard Brown drove off when Miss Oliver’s grandmother said she would note down his registration number.

The court was told Brown admitted in 1996 to common assault occasioning actual bodily harm against his ex-wife, for which he was fined £300 and ordered to pay compensation.

Miss Oliver had two cautions relating to violent incidents and failed to comply with a dispersal notice in 2008, the court heard.

The case continues. </p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Anna Nicole story made into opera

Anna Nicole Smith

The Royal Opera House (ROH) is to stage the world premiere of an opera about the life of former Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith, who died in 2007.

The work, by composer Mark-Anthony Turnage and writer Richard Thomas, will be "a major event in the UK arts calendar" the ROH said.

Thomas was a co-creator of the controversial production Jerry Springer: The Opera.

Smith died aged 39 of an accidental prescription drug overdose in Florida.

Oil tycoon

At the time of her death, Smith – a stripper who went on to find fame as a model and actress – was embroiled in a long-running legal battle to claim a share of the estate of her late husband.

Billionaire oil tycoon J Howard Marshall was 89 years old – 63 years her senior – when they married.

Thomas said the opera would end with Smith’s death rather than the court battle over the disposal of her remains and custody of her daughter that followed.

Anna Nicole will have its world premiere at the Covent Garden venue on 17 February 2011 with Dutch soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek in the lead role.

Other highlights in the ROH 2010/11 season includes the Royal Ballet’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, a co-production with the National Ballet of Canada, choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon.

The UK premiere of Philip Glass’s In The Penal Colony, based on a short story by Franz Kafka about an execution machine, will be seen in September.

And world renowned soprano Angela Gheorghiou will star in the title role of Adriana Lecouvreur, based on the life of the tragic French actress, in November.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Tempah ‘to stay’ number one

The first official midweek singles chart shows that Tinie Tempah is due to hold on to the number one spot for a second week.

Church signs deal to fund album

Charlotte Church

Singer Charlotte Church has agreed a £2m deal with an investment company to finance the recording of her next album, it has been confirmed.

Specialist music investment company Power Amp Music, which launched in 2008, will bankroll the recording and marketing of the star’s next album.

Church said the deal gives her more "control and ownership" over what happens in her career.

Power Amp also funded Madness’ 2009 album The Liberty Of Norton Folgate.

‘Clear vision’

Church said she was "delighted" to sign the deal, adding: "This is a wonderful time to be a recording artist."

"It provides me with a financial commitment equivalent to that of a major record company."

Power Amp Power founder Tom Bywater said: ""Charlotte had a clear vision of what she wanted to do and we have provided the funding for her to achieve those ambitions while allowing her to retain full creative control and copyright ownership."

Church rose to fame aged 12 as a classical crossover singer, scoring a smash hit with her debut album Voice of an Angel.

After three more classical albums, she moved into pop in 2005 with Tissues and Issues, which went to number five in the UK album chart.

In 2006, she launched a TV career fronting her own Channel 4 chat show.

In recent years Church has focused on bringing up her two young children with rugby player partner Gavin Henson.

Last month it was announced she would be making a return to TV as part of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new talent search programme, Over The Rainbow.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Lost Boys actor Haim dies aged 38

Corey Haim

The Lost Boys actor Corey Haim has died aged 38, the Los Angeles coroner’s office has confirmed.

A spokeswoman said he passed away in the early hours of Wednesday morning at Providence St Joseph Medical Centre.

A post-mortem will determine the cause of death and no other details have been released as yet.

The Canadian-born star’s first role was in the 1984 hit Firstborn. In recent years, he appeared in reality TV show The Two Coreys.

The series, which also starred Haim’s friend Corey Feldman, was cancelled in 2008 after two series.

The pair, who both have battled drug problems in the past, starred in the 1988 movie License to Drive together and became well known for their on and off screen partnership.

After Firstborn, Haim landed a role in the 1985 TV movie A Time to Live and also appeared in several episodes of the TV show Roomies.

He went on to become a teen heartthrob after starring in the 1986 film Lucas, alongside Charlie Sheen and Winona Ryder.

Haim starred alongside Kiefer Sutherland in The Lost Boys, about a group of friends who do battle with a band of teenage vampires.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Street actress reveals depression

Beverley Callard

Coronation Street actress Beverley Callard has revealed she has been receiving treatment for depression.

The 52-year-old actress, who plays Rovers landlady Liz McDonald, was absent from the soap for five months last year after a "serious breakdown".

She was treated at the Priory Clinic at the time and remains an outpatient at the facility.

Callard has now teamed up with mental health charity Mind to raise awareness of mental health issues.

The actress, reported to be "well on the road to recovery", said: "I feel it is really important to try and help lift the stigma that makes life so difficult for the one in four people who experience mental health problems."

‘Reach for help’

She thanked her friends, family and colleagues for their support and the media for respecting her privacy during her illness.

"Being able to recover out of the media spotlight has hugely helped me and meant that I could return to work last year whilst still receiving treatment as an outpatient.

"Now I feel able to speak about what I went through and thank everyone for their support," she said.

Paul Farmer, chief executive officer of Mind, said: "The support Bev received from her friends, family and ITV had a huge part to play in the steps she took back to good health.

"We encourage anyone who may be suffering in silence to reach out for help and urge those that they turn to, to be there for them without judgment."

A spokeswoman for Coronation Street said: "Everyone at ITV has been behind Beverley through this very difficult time.

"We are extremely proud of the huge progress she has made and delighted that she is back on screen at the centre of the show and we continue to support her."</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Florence gets first headline slot

Florence and the Machine

Florence and the Machine is to headline her first major festival, topping the bill at the Latitude event in July.

Florence Welch, who won best British album at the Brit Awards last month, has graduated to headline status after breaking through last summer.

Latitude organiser Melvin Benn booked her in September. "We were so sure that she would come through as being as strong as she is," he told BBC 6 Music.

Florence will be joined on the bill by Belle & Sebastian and Vampire Weekend.

Empire of the Sun, The XX, The Horrors and Charlotte Gainsbourg will be among the other musical acts on offer.

Known for its broad cultural agenda, the festival will also host performances from the Royal Opera House, the Royal Shakespeare Company, author Bret Easton Ellis, poet Wendy Cope and a half-hour excerpt of Hair: The Musical.

"There is a genuine guilty pleasure," Mr Benn said, referring to Hair.

The three-day event, which was headlined by the Pet Shop Boys, Nick Cave and Grace Jones in 2009, attracts 30,000 fans a year.

"I intend to make sure it doesn’t become too big," Mr Benn said. "It’s growing at the rate that it should grow at. It’s about right."</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

EMI names ex-ITV boss as chairman

Troubled record company EMI has named former ITV boss Charles Allen as its new chairman.

Mr Allen was already non-executive chairman at the firm, whose artists include Lily Allen, Robbie Williams, Katy Perry and Coldplay.

EMI also said chief executive Elio Leoni-Sceti would leave at the end of the month after two-and-a-half years.

EMI, which had annual losses of £1.75bn, has been hit by illegal downloading and falling album sales.

‘Great business’

It is not clear who will replace the outgoing chief executive, who said: "My job here is now done and it is time for me to move on".

Mr Allen praised the work of Mr Leoni-Sceti, who he said had done "a great job".

"Our goals for EMI Music remain the same. I will support and guide the group’s strong team, keep EMI’s focus on creativity… and deliver a digital platform," he said.

"This is a great business – our task is to ensure it has a great future."

EMI at the centre of a legal dispute between private equity owner Terra Firma and US bank Citigroup.

Terra Firma is seeking billions in damages linked to its £4bn purchase of EMI in 2007.

Its boss Guy Hands accuses the bank of inflating the price of the firm by not revealing that the only other bidder, Cerberus Capital Management, had withdrawn.

Citigroup is contesting the claim, saying it will defend its role in the proceedings "vigorously".

Job cuts

Lily Allen

EMI is now the smallest of the four major record labels, and has launched a turn-around plan to try to cut costs and boosting internet sales to compete against the likes of Universal and Warner.

It has also cut about 2,000 jobs but lost some of its acts, including Radiohead, in the row that followed. It plans further cutbacks.

Its most recent annual loss, in the year to March 31 2009 results was one of the biggest ever losses on a private equity investment.

EMI was sold at the height of the private equity buyout bubble in 2007. The business has been battered by its high debt levels and a weak performance as record companies struggle to make cash .</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Daly ‘fighting’ to save marriage

Vernon Kay and Tess Daly

Strictly Come Dancing presenter Tess Daly has said her 10-year marriage to fellow presenter Vernon Kay is "worth fighting" for.

It is the first time Daly has spoken on TV about her husband since he admitted sending explicit texts to five women.

Speaking on the BBC’s One Show, Daly said: "It’s been tough as you can imagine, but I’ve taken some time out to think things through."

Kay recently admitted on his radio show that he had been "foolish and selfish".

‘So much support’

Without referring directly to the texts, the Radio 1 presenter said that he had "disappointed and let down a lot of people".

He added: "To my family and everybody else, I am very sorry."

Daly, 40, who married Kay in 2003, said: "At the end of the day we’ve had 10 great years together, we’ve got two beautiful kids and we both think that’s worth fighting for.

"Dealing with it in private is difficult enough but dealing but with it in public is even harder.

"I’ve had so much support from everyone that I meet really, not just family and friends, that has really touched me a lot and has been amazing," she added.

Earlier this month the celebrity couple made their first official appearance together since the revelations when they attended a Prince’s Trust award ceremony.</p

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.