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Ronan Keating Reveals He's Still 'Angry' About His Mother's Death (EXCLUSIVE)

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Ronan Keating has revealed he's still angry about his mother's death from cancer 14 years ago.

In an exclusive blog for The Huffington Post UK, the Boyzone singer says his mother came from a generation who were brought up "not to make a fuss, not to visit the doctor unless it was really serious and not to discuss 'women's troubles'".

He remembers: "When she finally made an appointment to see a specialist about the lump in her breast, it was too late."

Keating writes: "The anger we all felt ate at me in particular. I threw myself into work with Boyzone and used the madness of our lives to mask the hurt that I was feeling. I found it impossible to comprehend that my Mother had been taken from us."

ronan keating

He explains "the realisation that cancer can be treated if it is diagnosed early enough" drove him and his family to set up the Marie Keating Foundation (MKF).

Formed in 1998 in Ireland, with the aim of raising funds to pay for a mobile cancer awareness unit, and since partnering with Cancer Research UK, it has raised over £3.75 million.

Since his mother's death, Keating has had to cope with two more personal losses, the sudden death of his bandmate and friend Stephen Gately in 2009, and divorce from his wife of 14 years, Yvonne.

The couple are said to have "tried everything" to make the relationship work following rumours of the Boyzone star's affair with a dancer back in 2010.

Keating is now once again throwing himself into his music, with his first studio album in six years and the announcement of a brand new tour.

Having previously sold 25 million albums, Keating says, "The album is back to proper pop again."

Keating's writing team on the album includes Greg Alexander and Rick Nowells, who penned some of the star's biggest hits, Life is a Rollercoaster and Lovin' Each Day.


Vanessa Hudgens Turns Stripper In 'The Frozen Ground' Trailer, Plus 14 Other Child Stars Who've Gone Wild

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High School Musical star Vannessa Hudgens has left the school corridors far behind her, appearing as a stripper in dark thriller The Frozen Ground.

The trailer for the film shows Hudgens as prostitute Cindy Paulson in this real-life tale about Alaska's most notorious serial killer, Robert Hansen (played by John Cusack).

the frozen ground

Hansen, who was convicted in 1983 and is currently serving 461 years in prison, is responsible for killing 17 to 21 young girls.

When Paulson identified him to police, he managed to convince them she was lying.

Nicolas Cage stars as Detective Glenn Flothe, along with Radha Mitchell and Dean Norris. The film is written and directed by Scott Walker and produced by rapper 50 Cent.

Hudgens isn't the first actress to break free from the apple-cheeked innocence of her teenage years on screen with a startling change of image...

PHOTOS: Child Stars - From Mild To Wild

'Daybreak': Lorraine Kelly And Aled Jones To Present Morning Show From 3 September

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Lorraine Kelly and Aled Jones will start as hosts of ITV's Daybreak from 3 September, it has been confirmed.

In the latest shake-up to the show, the broadcaster has announced interim hosts Kate Garraway and Dan Lobb will be replaced at the beginning of next month.

Kelly, who was recently honoured with an OBE, and Jones were confirmed as Daybreak's new hosts in May - the show had been in flux following the sudden departure of Adrian Chiles and Christine Bleakley in late 2011.

lorraine kelly
Lorraine Kelly is a TV favourite

At the time, reports suggested that the pair were being axed as presenters after failing to help the show compete against its BBC rival Breakfast in the ratings.

However, Peter Fincham, ITV's director of television, said: "Adrian and Christine are both superb presenters. They have worked tirelessly to help establish Daybreak on ITV1 and they leave the show at a point when ratings have recently seen their biggest year-on-year increase."

aled jones
Aled Jones will be the new face of Daybreak with Kelly

When it was announced that Kelly would become one of the main presenters, as well as continuing to host her own magazine show from 8.30am to 9.25am on Monday to Thursday, she said "I'm really looking forward to this challenge and to working with Aled who is a warm, funny and a thoroughly decent bloke."

BBC North West Tonight co-anchor Ranvir Singh and 5 News presenter Matt Barbet will also join Daybreak to host the first hour of the show from 6am each morning.

> IN PICS: SEE THOSE WHO WERE ALSO NAMED IN THE QUEEN'S BIRTHDAY HONOURS LIST 2012

Happy Birthday, Rupert Grint: 'Harry Potter' Star Turns 24, Plus 25 Stars Who've Gone From Child To Adult On Our Watch (PICTURES)

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Harry Potter star Rupert Grint celebrates his 24th birthday on Friday. How's life post-Potter?

Since the end of his part in the wizarding world of the biggest film franchise ever, Grint has been branching out to play peoplefar-removed from his soft-mannered character Ron Weasley.

He's also been shying away from obvious blockbusters, opting instead for quite low-budget films.

His latest film sees him star as The Dead Boys' Cheetah Chrome in CBGB, a flick about the New York punk scene.

Grint has spoken about the added pressure of playing a real person, mastering an American accent and fake guitar playing, but noted that at least he and Chrome have the same red-hair colour.

Talking about his latest character he told The Metro: "He’s a snotty-nosed punk rebelling against everything and quite morose – he’s the complete opposite of Ron. I’m still finding it strange breaking out of the whole Harry Potter thing because it was such a huge part of my life."

Before CBGB, he worked on The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman, set for release in 2013, alongside Shia LaBeouf, who plays a character who travels around the world on a drug-fuelled journey.

And, keeping busy, he's also attached to five other films in production. Including horror film Cross Country, the title role in Eddie the Eagle, The Drummer, Enemy of Man, and a voice role in Postman Pat: The Movie - You Know You're the One.

Grint isn't the first child star who's made the transition to adult actor - take a look at these American success stories below...


Plus, remember where it all began? Here's the Harry Potter cast through the years:

'The Voice UK': Jessie J Confirms She Will Be Back As A Coach For Series Two (PICTURES)

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Jessie J has confirmed she will return to The Voice for series two, despite rumours that she had been sacked from the BBC singing contest.

The Price Tag singer tweeted: "I WILL be a coach on the 2nd series of The Voice UK! I'm B B B BACK! As I have always said. Unless you hear it from me- Don't always believe what you read! Can't wait! #thevoiceuk #weback *fist to the sky* ;)"

The Laserlight hitmaker was referring to reports published in the press, suggesting that she had infuriated executives of the BBC talent contest by turning up late for recordings and with her negative comments made during a recording of The Graham Norton Show.

Jessie, who recently performed at the Olympics closing ceremony with Queen, is the first judge on The Voice UK to officially confirm her return, although both Tom Jones and The Script's Danny O'Donoghue have said they would love to come back for more spinning-chair action.

Will.i.am, also a coach on The Voice when it launched earlier this year, has recently teamed up with Danny for The Script's latest single. Proving that their on-screen disagreements are nothing but creative differences, the pair release their new tune, Hall Of Fame, on 2 September.

Watch the video below:


PHOTOS: The Voice judges last series...

'X Factor' Preview: Gary Barlow's Bum Grabbed By Cheeky Contestant (PICTURES)

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X Factor returns for its second episode of the series on Saturday, and preview photos from the show see judge Gary Barlow forced to cuddle up to one bold contestant.

Jamuna, 59, grabs the Take That singer's bum during scenes that see the usually straight-faced panellist squirm.

x factor

Egged on by Tulisa, the hopeful goes in for the kill after singing Shirley Bassey’s Kiss Me Honey Honey Kiss Me and announcing she thinks Gary is “gorgeous”.

Simon Cowell must be very jealous.

x factor
Can't blame a girl for trying?

PHOTOS: See more pictures from the second episode of the X Factor below...

'Sherlock' Writers Steven Moffat And Mark Gatiss Reveal Series Three Clues: Rat, Wedding, Bow

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Sherlock creator Steven Moffat has revealed the three key themes of Series Three will be

RAT
WEDDING
BOW

Can you guess what the three words stand for?

Speaking to a room of TV industry insiders and journalists at the Media Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, Moffat, joined by Sherlock producer (and his wife) Sue Vertue, co-creator Mark Gatiss and actor Andrew Scott, also spoke about how the BBC show became an international success story.

Moffat said: "We love Sherlock Holmes so much - this is fan fiction! We wouldn't have minded if nobody had watched it and we'd have been able to keep making it for each other."

Gatiss had previously hinted that the first episode of the next series will be an adaptation of Conan Doyle's story The Secret Of The Empty House.

The first mystery that needs explaining is how Sherlock cheated death to appear at his own graveside, after he was seen jumping from the roof of a high-rise building.

During the masterclass, Moffat and Gatiss both claimed that they know how series two's cliffhanger will be resolved.

Earlier in the day, while on his way to the Festival, Moffat played a hoax on fans when he tweeted his followers: "I'm revealing the three words for S3 early. Pipe, slippers, bed. There you go."

Gatiss and Moffat previously revealed clues to the second series in similar fashion with the words 'woman', 'hound' and 'fall'.

Those ultimately referred to Sherlock's femme fatale Irene Adler, the Hound Of The Baskervilles, and the concluding episode which ended with Sherlock's fall.

Andrew Scott, who plays Sherlock's enemy Moriarty, was also at the masterclass. He told the audience he was "absolutely terrified" about messing up his part, after noting the early affection for Sherlock from the UK public.

He revealed he looked at Twitter to see what people thought of his performance and compared the experience to being "kissed... then punched... then hugged..."

Scott refused to confirm if he'll return as Moriarty in a third series, reminding the audience, "Moriarty is dead."

Filming of Sherlock series three is due to commence in early 2013 and the show is set to return to TV in the autumn.

While on a break from Sherlock, Cumberbatch has starred in Parade's End which starts tonight at 9pm, BBC2. Here are lots of beautiful pictures to get you in the mood...

Total Recall Hits Cinemas: What's The Best Film Remake? (VIDEOS)

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Iconic nineties film Total Recall has just had a remake, with director Len Wiseman swapping tough-man Arnold Schwarzenegger for Colin Farrell as Douglas Quaid.

The futuristic setting has also been ramped-up by removing some of the more fantastical elements of 1990 film. For example, the Martian colonies and dormant alien technology are gone and Wiseman has brought the atmosphere in line with sci-fi thrillers such as Minority Report.

However, fans of the original have not all been pleased with the modern take on the cult hit - one HuffPost blogger called it "a joyless affair".

It seems unlikely it's going to become anyone's favourite remake, but DVD subscription and streaming service LOVEFiLM have polled over 4,500 film fans to uncover the best ever film remakes to watch instead.

Included in their top ten are Ocean’s Eleven, remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name, Daniel Craig’s brooding performance as reporter Blomkvist in David Fincher’s English version of The Girl with the Dragon and Martin Scorsese’s The Departed.

What do you think is the best film remake of all time? Is it in the top ten below?


'The Great British Bake Off': Is It The Best Cookery Show On TV? (VOTE)

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Has your kitchen suddenly acquired a new whisk? Have sprinklings of self-raising flour appeared upon your work surfaces? Or are you being proudly presented with cakes, tarts and pastries that look vaguely like they could be from a bakery?

Chances are it has something to do with The Great British Bake Off, whose return to our screens has inspired fans to switch their ovens back on.

The mouth-watering BBC series, which packs into each episode enough calories to make up five times your recommended daily allowance, fired up again this month and the second episode last week saw more than 4.2million tune in.

the great british bake off

The BBC2 series sees 12 hopefuls battle it out to be crowned the nation's best amateur baker under the expert eye of no-nonsense judges Mary Berry, and Paul Hollywood, a former chef at London's Dorchester Hotel.

Our nation's obsession with tantalising our tastebuds, watching animated chefs cook up feasts in front of us, while we cheat a little ourselves - scoffing down yesterday's left-overs or feeling proud of our ready meal, doesn't seem to be abating any time soon...

Even reality show supremo Simon Cowell has jumped on the band wagon of the tasty TV market, with his recent plans to launch a show called Food Glorious Food for ITV. It's expected to star Loyd Grossman, who - as cooking show fans will remember - was the first presenter of MasterChef and now fronts a delightful range of pasta sauces, stocked in all good supermarkets.

The show (which hopefully won't include Cowell putting Ant and Dec near a wok) promises to scour the country in search of the best family recipe. The winning dish will be sold in Marks & Spencer and there is a £20,000 prize for the cook. Tantalising, don't you think?

Meanwhile, glutinous chefs The Hairy Bikers have been freshening up their act by bringing us a less artery-blocking series named The Hairy Dieters.



But for those still hooked on the sugar-high of seeing syrup seductively poured over perfectly fluffy pancakes, or strawberries covered in full-fat whipped-up-cream, do not fret - The Great British Bake Off is back tonight (Tuesday) and it’s all about TARTS.

Tartes tatins, treacle tarts and elaborate fruit tarts, all techniques with challenges to discombobulate the contestants, and there's even an intertwined lattice top for the technical challenge... who'd have thought watching people get worked up over a over a pastry finish could be quite so entertaining?

PHOTOS: Contestants obsessed with cakes...


COMPETITION: Click here to win an exclusive Sonos wireless hi-fi system.

'Citizen Khan': BBC Sitcom About A Muslim Community Receives Approximately 200 Complaints (VOTE)

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BBC One's new sitcom Citizen Khan has received around 200 complaints, the Daily Mail reports.

The family-based sitcom, set in the capital of British Pakistan - Sparkhill, Birmingham, has been accused of "taking the mickey out of Islam", being guilty of "stereotypes about Asians" and being "disrespectful to the Koran", according to the newspaper.

citizen khan
(L-R) Alia (Bavna Limbachia), Dave (Kris Marshall), Mr Khan (Adil Ray), Amjad (Abdullah Afzal), Shazia (Maya Sondhi), Mrs Khan (Shobu Kapoor)

The BBC show's blurb reads:

Citizen Khan follows the trials and tribulations of loud-mouthed, tight-fisted, self-appointed community leader Mr Khan (Adil Ray) and his long suffering family...

Mr Khan is a larger-than-life character, with strong opinions and big dreams. The challenges he faces are those of many fathers - how to make ends meet, keep his wife and daughters happy and impress his daughter’s future in-laws. Things would be so much easier if everyone just listened to him and followed his lead, but his obsessively house-proud wife and two feisty daughters usually have other ideas.




The series has been created by British Muslim Adil Ray, who also plays the lead role of Mr Khan. Explaining the concept of the sitcom, he recently told This Is Staffordshire: "I remember when Goodness Gracious Me first came on the radio. I thought, 'Wow, this is so strong that we're laughing at ourselves.' It was iconic and utterly brilliant.

"The biggest, most important, thing you can do is laugh at yourself.

"You then negate anything anybody can ever do. It's the ultimate weapon. If you can laugh at yourself, it doesn't matter what anybody says to you as you're laughing already."

One viewer wrote on Twitter:



While another said:



In a statement, the BBC have defended the show. They told the Daily Mail: "Citizen Khan has made a very positive start, launching successfully with 3.6million viewers and a 21.5 per cent share in a late-night slot.

"New comedy always provokes differing reactions from the audience. The characters are comic creations and not meant to be representative of the community as a whole."

SLIDESHOW: What's your favourite TV sitcom family?

Disney's Cinderella Is Brought Up To Date: How Does She Compare To Ariel, Snow White, Princess Jasmine And Pocahontas? (INTERVIEW)

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The timeless and enchanting Walt Disney film Cinderella, about a beautiful but unfortunate girl who's rescued by her fairy godmother, is part of many people's childhoods.

This week the film, one of Disney's most beloved masterpieces, was rereleased on Blu-ray high definition with enhanced picture and sound.

To celebrate it reaching a whole new generation of girls (and boys) who will no doubt soon be demanding blue puffy ball gowns and glass slippers from their parents, I spoke to Disney historian and author Paula Sigman Lowery about the evolution of key Disney female characters like Cinderella.

Asked how animation styles for Disney characters have evolved over the years, Lowery explained: "Things move a lot faster in animation in general today... the stories don’t unfold in the way Cinderella originally did in 1950."

And she added: "It's a little different now in that they’re starting to cast more well-known actors to do the voices whereas in the early days they very often cast radio actors who really knew how to act with their voices."

I pitched five of the best female Disney characters (a hotly-debated subject) to Lowery to find out in what way Cinderella, Ariel, Snow White, Princess Jasmine and Pocahontas are a reflection of the era in which their films were made. Here's how she sees it:

Cinderella 1950

When you think about the movies of the 1950s, and also the television shows of the late-1950s and early-1960s, women were often portrayed in a role where they did what people told them to do. Unfortunately that’s the role that Cinderella has. She is not in control of her destiny; she’s got a stepmother who is telling her what to do and she has to obey. Perhaps that was a little bit easier for audiences to take in those days because very often a woman’s domain was the household; it wasn’t going out into the world of business.

cinderella

Ariel (The Little Mermaid) 1989

She’s a young teenager and a rebellious one. I think that’s universal, but the stories that were being told in the 1980s echoed Ariel’s search for independence and the relationship she has with her father.

little mermaid

Snow White 1937

She was really very young, a girl of 14 or 15. When Walt Disney was a young man he saw the 1916 version of Snow White and he remembered that story. When he wanted to do his first animated movie he thought it was perfect because, as he said, it had the girl, the prince and the villain. I think of it as being less about the character of Snow White herself as it is about the fairy tale story, but she was the first cartoon character that was believable for an audience and someone you could really care about.

snow white

Princess Jasmine 1992

She’s really the first one to go out and say “I’m not going to live my life with people telling me what to do”. She plans to go out and live her life having absolutely no idea what it takes. She doesn’t carry money with her and she’s like a girl going out into the mall saying “I’ll have this” and “I’ll take that” with no concept of the reality. But she’s also very self-sufficient; Aladdin is trying to protect her and she’s showing him in many ways that she can take care of herself, as many women in 1992 were doing.

princess jasmine

Pocahontas 1995

The very strong relationship Pocahontas has with nature and the world around is very reflective of the global awareness of the mid-1990s. Then there’s her sense of wanting to move forward without knowing what’s around the river bend. She’s not content with a safe, easy life; she wants something more, which is what she shares with all these Disney female characters. They’re not going to give up on that wish.

pocahontas

Cinderella Diamond Edition is available now on Disney Blu-ray™

Watch the slideshow below for our thoughts on what happened to Disney's princesses after 'happily ever after'. Do you agree? Share your thoughts in the comments.


The Script's Danny O'Donoghue On Pouring His Heart Out And Working With 'Genius' Will.i.am For Album #3

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"If someone really f**king pisses you off, how cool is it to be able to put that into a song and have that played around the world?" asks a happy Danny O'Donoghue, frontman of The Script and coach on BBC singing contest The Voice.

His Irish pop-rock band, with two number one albums under their belt, are set to release their third on 10 September, with single Hall Of Fame leading the way.

The track features O'Donoghue's fellow The Voice coach and international music star Will.i.am - somewhat surprising after we last saw them bickering over "talent" and tactics on the Saturday night reality show.

Was recording together any more harmonious?

"We always have disagreements on the show but it's always about music, it's always about 'try harder', he's a great tactician as well. He says 'I've got tic tacs that stay fresh, oh yeah', which I think is hilarious.

danny odonoghue
Danny takes on Tom Jones, Jessie J and Will.i.am on The Voice

"On the TV show we are bickering back and forth, but not because I hate him, but because he didn't do something right with his artist. As soon as the cameras are off, he's slapping my hand and having the crack, so he's exactly the same as on the telly but even more passionate," O'Donoghue reveals.

He' s obviously thrilled to get the chance to work with Will - who as part of the Black Eyed Peas has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide and produced some of music's biggest stars: "What no one got to see him do on the show, which he's best at, is producing and writing. He's a true genius."

the script
Danny O'’Donoghue with The Script's Mark Sheehan and Glen Power –

So how hard was it to get the "genius" to record with Dublin's threesome The Script?

"We got him in a verbal headlock that day and said 'lets record the song.' I jumped in the car with him and we went to the recording studio and an hour and a half later we had the song in its entirety.

"I thought he was going to produce it but he just gave it to me and Mark (Sheehan) and said 'you guys go and produce it.' I thought 'wow I get the chance to produce Will,' that's a lot of trust, bloody too much at this stage in my career."

The upbeat motivational track that they've created (released on 2 September) is set for chart-topping status, with its video already having over 600,000 plays on YouTube. With lyrics such as "be believers, be leaders, be astronauts, be champions," are the The Script getting political?

"We wanted to inspire people to stop trying to be famous for the sake of it," O'Donoghue says passionately.

danny
Danny busking on the South Bank, London

It's a subject that he clearly feels strongly about: "Work hard, be a politician, be a school teacher, be all these things and the pillars of community that are missing because everyone 'wants to be on the telly'. Be something, and then, who knows, you might become famous in the eyes of people around you."

Fans of The Script's trademark break-up songs such as The Man Who Can't Be Moved and Break Even won't be disappointed though. Having split from his girlfriend of four years in June, O'Donoghue has once again poured his heart out on this latest album.

Songs such as Glowing and If You Could See Me Now are classic The Script love songs. The 31-year-old says: "Music has always been a way to get away and it's therapeutic to talk about things that go on in your life."

the script
Stateside: The Script perform at the Today Show Concert Series in New York City in 2011

The Script could be accused of being unimaginative with the title for their third album - is there anything deep behind the name #3?

"We use it as a way to guess people's ages, anyone above 20 is a number 3, anyone below is hashtag 3," he jokes.

"We recorded the album in studio three, I grew up at Number 3, I live in Flat 3 and there's three of us in the group. We didn't want a big statement like How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb.

"Three obviously is a magic number, part of Irish history and the Holy Trinity, there are a lot of connotations. Adele's record 19 represented her age and ours represents our mental age, three," he laughs.

O'Donoghue says he's already got what he wanted from the album: "I hope that we bled on the page," and I've got a feeling The Script fans will get what they want too.

WATCH: The Script featuring Will.i.am - Hall Of Fame


#3 - Tracklisting

1 Good Ol' Days
2 Six Degrees of Separation
3 Hall of Fame ( feat. will.i.am)
4 If You Could See Me Now
5 Glowing
6 Give the Love Around
7 Broken Arrow
8 Kaleidoscope
9 No Words
10 Millionaires
11 Moon Boots
12 Hurricanes
13 Hall of Fame (Original Version)
14 Breakeven (Live At The Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
15 The Man Who Can't Be Moved (Live At The Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
16 Talk You Down (Live At The Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
17 For the First Time (Live At The Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
18 VideoMaking of #3

'Take Me Out' To Feature Male Celebrities In Christmas Special: Which Bachelors Should Sign Up?

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The 'irresistible' (if you like waxed chests and fake tan) Take Me Out male line-up is set to feature four famous faces in the Christmas special edition of the ITV dating show, The Sun reports.

Hosted by Paddy McGuinness, the festive special of the hugely popular Saturday night modern-day answer to shows like Cilla Black's Blind Date will reportedly see four celebrity bachelors attempting to secure a date with one of 30 women.

If you haven't seen the show before, our gallery below can give you a taste of the sort of women on offer.

ITV always does a brilliant job of securing the loudest, brashest and most eccentric unlucky-in-love candidates.

paddy mcguinness
'No Likey, No Lighty': Take Me Out host Paddy McGuinness

Whether the male celebrities will still jet off to the 'Isle of Fernando's' or if they'll be put up in a 5-star swanky resort instead is, as yet, unconfirmed.

A source told the newspaper: “The special should make for fantastic viewing. These celebs are putting themselves out there."

Which single male celebrities would you like to appear on the show? Newly-single Tom Cruise or entertainment mogul Simon Cowell, perhaps?

Or, if you like your men a bit more youthful, how about One Direction's Harry Styles, pop cutie Olly Murs, Twilight heartthrob Robert Pattinson or cheeky Prince Harry?

Unfortunately, it's likely the type of celebrities who will agree to put themselves forward for such humiliation are probably going to be cut from the same cloth as those who appear on shows such as Celebrity Big Brother. Frankie Cocozaa it is, then.

Take our vote for who you'd like to appear on the show below:



The last series of Take Me Out came under fire after up to 90 contestants were said to have taken part in a "a wild sex and booze party at a £4.5million mansion".

The Sun reported the party, held to celebrate the new series, "turned into a frantic sex and booze tear-up" - and had the pictures to prove it.









'Daybreak' Change: Lorraine Kelly And Aled Jones Take Places On Sofa, Viewers Left Unimpressed

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Daybreak viewers woke up to two new smiley hosts this morning, as Lorraine Kelly and Aled Jones took over presenting duties.

Jones said he had set four alarms and checked them every hour throughout the night before his debut, while Kelly joked it felt like going back to school.

daybreak

And it wasn't just the presenters who were different on this morning's show; the set had also been given a revamp.

The citrus-coloured set looked like a throwback to Dabyreak's predecessor GMTV's orange hues.

One viewer tweeted:



However, not all of the online reactions were positive. One unhappy viewer said:



And another posted:



For Jones, who became a child star in the 1980s when his version of The Snowman song Walking in the Air became a hit and who now presents Songs of Praise, along with Good Morning Sunday, Cash in the Attic and Escape to the Country, this his most high-profile presenting job yet.

lorraine kelly
Lorraine Kelly and Aled Jones before they went on air

Kelly, on the other hand, has long been associated with the ITV's daytime TV. She will go on air at 7am each weekday except Fridays, presenting Daybreak until 8.30am, then switch to her usual Lorraine show.

The pair have been brought in to replace interim hosts Kate Garraway and Dan Lobb, who have been fronting Daybreak since the departure of former presenters Adrian Chiles and Christine Bleakley in 2011.

Kelly recently told The Sun: "We’re going back to basics. It’s all about giving people the main news and showbiz of the day.

“We’re bringing some of the fun back, not fun resulting from silly stunts, it’s having a sense of humour. But you don’t want to change everything.”

RELATED: See more child stars like Aled...

Robbie Williams 'Take The Crown': Singer Announces New Album (PICTURES)

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Robbie Williams has announced details for his ninth studio album, Take The Crown.

The Take That singer posted images of the album's artwork on his official website:

robbie williams

The tracklisting for the standard edition of Take the Crown is as follows:

1. Be A Boy
2. Gospel
3. Candy
4. Different
5. S**t On The Radio
6. All That I Want
7. Hunting For You
8. Into The Silence

9. Hey Wow
 Yeah Yeah
10. Not Like The Others
11. Losers (featuring Lissie)

Take the Crown is due for release on November 5, 2012 and is currently available to pre-order at Robbiewilliams.com.

Williams, who has sold over 70 million records worldwide and ranks among the best-selling music artists worldwide, will play a handful of shows across the UK and Ireland next month.

This album will be the first Williams has released since his move to Universal and has been produced by fellow Take That member Gary Barlow.

Williams recently added a new string to his bow, launching a new fashion range named after his grandfather.

The Farrell range at Selfridges was designed with Ben Dickens and is for men who like "a bit of snap" in their clothing. See photos from the launch below...



'Dredd 3D' Star Karl Urban Admits He Was Shocked By The Film's Violence (INTERVIEW)

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"I was certainly taken aback with some of the more graphic elements," says Karl Urban, the man behind Judge Dredd's mask in one of the most violent films of the year.

The Star Trek star, in his biggest role yet, plays the iconic comic book cop in Dredd 3D, scripted by The Beach writer Alex Garland and directed by Pete Travis.

However, despite admitting the film's violence is pretty shocking, he believes all the shootings, skinnings, blood and torture are warranted: "I feel that they speak volumes about the world in which Dredd lives in."

dredd

Urban adds: "I think the violence is actually a character in the film. Unlike a lot of films that come out where you get desensitised to the violence because you don't really see the impact, you do see the impact the violence has in our film and I think what Alex has done is really smart.

"He's treated the violence in our film the same way that Stanley Kubrick would explore those things in the Clockwork Orange and it generates a real edge."

One of the things that helps make Dredd 3D more than a senseless film about human slaughter is Olivia Thrilby's character, rookie Judge Anderson, whom Dredd takes out on assessment to see if she can cut it as a law enforcer in the irradiated wasteland that makes up Mega City One, a violent metropolis of more than 400 million citizens living in perpetual fear.

Anderson adds a human side to the film. For example, she is seen grappling with the fact she has to shoot someone at point blank range - not something Dredd would ever fret about.

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Olivia Thirlby as rookie Anderson

"It's a character-driven script and at the core of this movie is the relationship between Dredd and his rookie Anderson… and that's really the glue of this piece, the evolution of that relationship," explains Urban.

The New Zealand actor admits turning himself into heartless Dredd was "demanding" and notes: "We were shooting in the midst of a South African summer and Olivia and myself are wearing motorbike leathers and body armour, that was a challenge."

However, after reading the comics as a teenager, it wasn't a role he was about to turn down.

Is he as brave as the formidable Dredd?

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Urban laughs and quickly sets me straight: "One of the things about playing a character like this is you get to do and say things one would never do in real life and Dredd is the type of guy who is walking into danger when everyone else is running away. I think I'd be more inclined to run in the other direction."

The film, which boasts 96 minutes of relentless action, is not for the faint-hearted. I wonder if it was as terrifying to make as it is to watch?

"It felt like what you see on screen, which is a very threatening, isolating kind of beat. You are the target and you've got 200,000 thousand inhabitants of this building that want to see you not alive anymore, and that's just the beginning of our film."

Urban's face is covered throughout the film with his judge's helmet, which left him with the task of acting without the help of facial expressions. Instead, Urban created a distinctive voice to make him seem tough: "In my research I came across a passage in one of the Dredd comics, saying Dredd's voice sounded like a saw cutting through bone.

"So for me that was kind of the starting point. I was also conscious of the fact that, in our movie, Dredd uses his voice in many different ways for many different reasons, he uses it as a weapon so I had to find something that was going to be versatile and commanding."

One might think that by taking the lead role in such a film, Urban is keen to join the ranks of fellow leading action men such as Daniel Craig, Matt Damon and Colin Farrell, but he dismisses any such suggestion, stating: "I don't ever think about objectives like that.

"In doing Dredd, my prime focus and concern was just delivering the most interesting and three-dimensional character that I could. Anything beyond that is kind of outside my area of concern."

The film has been left open for a sequel, so will we see Urban back in that suit?

"I'd love to come back and continue telling the story of these characters. That being said, we're at the point where we are releasing this film and I'm really proud of it, I think it's an instant cult classic and if this is it and it's just a one-off, then it's a pretty damn good one-off."

Dredd 3D is released in cinemas on 7 September.

PHOTOS: Check out stills from Dredd 3D here...

Downton Abbey Series 3, Episode 1 Pictures: Looks Who's Back

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Lord Fellowes' Emmy Award-winning Downton Abbey finally returns for a third series on 16 September, and with a new series comes some new faces...

Among the fresh cast members are Hollywood legend Shirley MacLaine and O'Brien's awkward tall nephew Alfred Nugent, Downton's next footman, played by Matt Milne. Check out 86 beautiful photos from the first episode of series 3, including these new stars, in our gallery below.

Not forgetting Downton's much-loved characters, such as Mr Bates, who's pictured holed up in prison for the murder of his wife Vera, and love's young dream Matthew and Mary, who viewers finally saw get together during the Christmas special of Downton back in December.



HuffPost UK have interviewed the cast ahead of the ITV period drama's highly-anticipated return. Find out what they had to say, including some spoilers, below...

INTERVIEWS:



Downton Abbey returns to ITV1 9pm - 10:30pm, on 16 September.

'Harry Potter Wizards Collection': JK Rowling Discusses Whether Harry Potter Was Mad (EXCLUSIVE VIDEO)

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Hogwarts may have closed its doors forever and Harry, Ron and Hermione may no longer be making magic, but that doesn't mean you can't carry on watching Harry Potter films.

To celebrate the launch of Harry Potter Wizards Collection, the most comprehensive Harry Potter box set ever, The Huffington Post UK has an exclusive behind the scenes clip from the collection.

In the video above, Potter screenwriter Steve Kloves and J.K. Rowling discuss the rumours that boy wizard Harry's world was make-believe, and that he went mad after living with his aunt and uncle.

Kloves tells Rowling: "You made it pretty clear that he was an abused boy."

Just imagine if none of it was real - no Dumbledore, no Professor Snape, no Hedwig and even no Dobby. Surely it can't be true?

The new collection contains 31 discs, including all the films and more than 5 hours of never-before-seen special features. It's released on 10 September and is available to pre-order here.

Remember where it all began? Here's the Harry Potter cast through the years:

'Coronation Street' Actor Bill Roache Believes World Will 'Change Dramatically' On 12 December

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Coronation Street veteran Bill Roache has predicted the world will "change dramatically” on 12 December.

Roache, who plays scholarly Ken Barlow in the long-running ITV soap, has shown himself to be a rather spiritual man...

In an interview with Silent Voices, a spiritual, paranormal and metaphysical magazine, Roache said: "This will be the Golden Age, when a majority will know they are love and they are spiritual beings.

“The earth will continue to cleanse itself while material and negative things will collapse and cease to be.”

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The Queen meets Bill Roache who plays Ken Barlow

It's not the first time Roache has spoken about his unusual spiritual beliefs and a "Golden Age". Interviewed on a Welsh chat show in December last year, he said he believed in telepathy, reincarnation and that natural disasters are caused by "negative energy".

"There are some cleansings that have to take place, where negative energy has to be discharged, and these will be in the form of earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and tsunamis [in 2012]," he told chat show host Kevin Moore. "So all the bad things coming to the surface will be seen and they will fall away.

“We’ll move into the golden age, which will be a wonderful age where we’ll all love, we’ll communicate telepathically. We’ll all be aware of our spiritual selves, and it will be a beautiful place to be.”

Luckily he's not actually predicting the world will end on 12 December, however - unlike the ancient Mayan prophecies which believe the date marks the end of the world on the calendar.

Actor Seth Rogen last year revealed that he was left speechless by a conversation in which George Lucas, the producer of Star Wars and other Hollywood hits, told him of his belief that the world would end in 2012.

And in May a poll revealed nearly 15 percent of people worldwide believe the world will end during their lifetime and 10 percent think the Mayan calendar could signify it will happen in 2012.

WATCH: The top 20 soap moments of the last 20 years...









'X Factor' Gary Barlow On His Overs' Makeovers: 'We've Given Them A Bath' (INTERVIEW)

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"We've given them a bath, it worked a treat," jokes Gary Barlow as we discuss his decision not to give his X Factor contestants the typical dramatic makeovers - featuring a lot of fake tan - we usually get to see on the show.

Scottish singer Melanie Masson, one of Gary's chosen final three 'Overs', reflects: "I think we've been given an upgrade rather than a makeover."

And Carolynne Poole, who also tried her luck on last year's show, adds: "I think there'll be a natural progression if we're lucky enough to carry on through the weeks. They'll probably just pile more and more makeup on."

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Kye Sones, Carolynne Poole, Melanie Masson and Gary Barlow

The 32-year-old explains: "Because we're older and a bit more mature, I think it would be a bit too much if they were to completly change us."

The only man in Gary's group, Kye Sones, a chimney sweep from London, says: "I know I've had every dodgy haircut under the sun and you stick with what works for you, so for them to change it, I know it wouldn't really work out. We know who we are as people and musically, and that's something we all sit very comfortably with."

As we chat inside a small dressing room at ITV's head office, the group are gearing up for their first live show on Saturday night. Are they starting to feel nervous?

"I'm pretty scared about falling down those steps when the doors open, that's my worst nightmare," frets Carolynne.

Gary, ever the mentor, reassures her: "Falling over is never a good look, but you'd probably get voted in if you fell over, we'll use that later on."

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Gary and his Overs on Daybreak on Tuesday

INTERVIEW: The X Factor Wildcards talk about the moment they found out they'd be back on the show.

The gang all seem to be raring to go. "We've known for three weeks that we've been through and not been able to tell anyone," says Melanie.

The Overs could have a new member come the weekend, if viewers vote for Liverpudlian wildcard act Christopher Maloney to re-enter the competition. Is that something they all want to happen?

"We love him, he's brilliant. Whenever I've seen him audition, the crowds love him, they come up off their feet so he deserves a place definitely. We hope he's back, we've left a man and have got to go back and get him," enthuses Gary.

However, curly-harired Melanie is more cautious in her response: "It's so difficult because obviously there are some great wildcards. There's Amy and Times Red and I'm quite close to Scott from Times Red, he's a fellow Scot of course, but Chris is one of us, we've gone through this journey with him... he's a great talent."

I ask Gary, who seems to take the competition very seriously, how important it is for him to win this year...

"It's a tricky question, that, because obviously it would be brilliant to win. There's always a side of me that thinks the judges should be competitive, but as long as it's not at the cost of the artists on the stage.

"I think if I were to send someone home because of something I'd said it would really upset me," the Take That singer reasons.

He adds: "Ultimately what we want is someone who will sell lots and lots of records. Within a year they've forgotten who their judge was anyway.

"That is the main aim of this show - to get superstars at the end of it, people who are going to sell records all over the world. I wouldn't ever stand in anyone's way just because they weren't in my category."

Has Gary got the X Factor winner in his category? Let us know below.









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