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THE QUEEN and its star DAME HELEN MIRREN were the big winners at tonight’s (11FEB07) Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs), winning the Best Film and Best Actress awards.
Elsewhere, FOREST WHITAKER won the Best Actor prize for LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE star ALAN ARKIN won Best Supporting Actor and JENNIFER HUDSON won Best Supporting Actress for her role in DREAMGIRLS.
The ceremony took place at the Royal Opera House in London’s Covent Garden
. The full list of winners is as follows: The Academy Fellowship: ANNE V COATES Film: THE QUEEN The Michael Balcon Award For Outstanding British Contribution To Cinema: NICK DAUBENY The Alexander Korda Award For The Outstanding British Film Of The Year: THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND The Carl Foreman Award For Special Achievement By A British Director, Writer Or Producer In Their First Feature Film: ANDREA ARNOLD, RED ROAD The David Lean Award For Achievement In Direction: UNITED 93, PAUL GREENGRASS Original Screenplay: LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, MICHAEL ARNDT Adapted Screenplay: THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, PETER MORGAN/JEREMY BROCK Film Not In The English Language: PAN’S LABYRINTH Animated Feature Film: HAPPY FEET Actor In A Leading Role: FOREST WHITAKER, THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND Actress In A Leading Role: HELEN MIRREN, THE QUEEN Actor In A Supporting Role: ALAN ARKIN, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE Actress In A Supporting Role: JENNIFER HUDSON , DREAMGIRLS The Anthony Asquith Award For Achievement In Film Music: BABEL, GUSTAVO SANTAOLALLA Cinematography: CHILDREN OF MEN, EMMANUEL LUBEZKI Editing: UNITED 93, CLARE DOUGLAS/CHRISTOPHER ROUSE/RICHARD PEARSON Production Design: CHILDREN OF MEN, JIM CLAY/GEOFFREY KIRKLAND/JENNIFER WILLIAMS Costume Design: PAN’S LABYRINTH, LALA HUETE Sound: CASINO ROYALE, CHRIS MUNRO/EDDY JOSEPH/MIKE PRESTWOOD SMITH/MARTIN CANTWELL/MARK TAYLOR Achievement In Special Visual Effects: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MAN’S CHEST - JOHN KNOLL/HAL HICKEL/CHARLES GIBSON/ALLEN HALL Make Up & Hair: PAN’S LABYRINTH, JOSé QUETGLAS/BLANCA SàNCHEZ Short Animation Film: GUY 101, IAN GOULDSTONE Short Film: DO NOT ERASE, ASITHA AMERESEKERE The Orange Rising Star Award: EVA GREEN
. (IG/WN) WENN - INTERNATIONAL MUSIC NEWS - FEBRUARY 2007 ————————————————————————–

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U2, OASIS, ROBBIE WILLIAMS, COLDPLAY and KYLIE MINOGUE are among the acts expected to wow crowds at the world’s biggest ever concert to help save the planet.
Former US vice president AL GORE invited some of the world’s most influential media figures to a top secret London meeting last Friday (09FEB07) to plan the record-breaking gig.
An insider says, "It was the most stellar array of media figures you could ever see but to get all those people in the room on a Friday night shows how willing they are to help." The ‘Live Earth’ show will be held on 7 July (07) at venues in England, America, South Africa, Japan and Brazil in a bid to raise environmental awareness.
Gore says, "Television hypnotises billions but it is a one-way conversation filling minds with junk food. The only way to breathe meaning back into our words is through music. We need you." The full line-up of artists will be announced next week (15FEB07).

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BRITNEY SPEARS and model ISAAC COHEN’s brief romance failed because the pop star hadn’t moved on from her marriage break-up, he explains.
The couple began dating in mid-December (06) after they were introduced by Spears’ choreographer, but split at the end of last month (JAN07) citing work commitments.
However, Cohen now claims their relationship was doomed from the start because Spears was still reeling from her November (06) split from husband KEVIN FEDERLINE.
He says, "I adore Britney and in a different place at a different time we might have stood a chance.
"It was far too soon for her to get involved in a relationship with anyone.
"It was clear she was not over her marriage. The first time she invited me to her home I saw her wedding dress hung on the wall in a glass box. As we made love that night it was like Kevin was in bed beside us. She had not even begun to move on with her life."

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Bollywood star SHILPA SHETTY will miss out on an appearance at tonight’s (11FEB07) British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards after jetting home to be with her sick father.
The actress was told her dad SUDENDRA was suffering from a mystery illness on Friday (09FEB07), and she immediately jumped on a plane to make the 4,500 mile journey from London to Mumbai, India to look after him.
Sudendra developed a high fever after complaining of feeling ill at the end of last week (begs05FEB07), but is now thought to be recovering well. Her spokesman MAX CLIFFORD reveals, "Shilpa was understandably very upset when she was told her dad was very ill. She immediately made plans to fly home.
Obviously family always comes first."

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British actress EMMA THOMPSON is desperate to shed her sedate image by appearing in a film by edgy Spanish director PEDRO ALMODOVAR.
The Oscar-winning star wants to take on a more shocking role after appearing in the HARRY POTTER films and romantic comedy LOVE ACTUALLY in recent years, but the controversial VOLVER director has turned her down.
She admits, "I’ve begged, I’ve offered sex, but he doesn’t listen - he’s refused me." However, Almodovar says he intends to work with Thompson eventually, revealing, "I hope it will happen. You don’t know how much of a pressure it is on my mind."

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Best Actress nominee DAME JUDI DENCH could miss the Oscars later this month (FEB07) to have an important knee operation.
The 72-year-old, who’s nominated for her role as a manipulative schoolteacher in NOTES ON A SCANDAL, might not be able to attend the ceremony at Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre on 25 February (07) because her persistent knee problem has become so painful she needs surgery.
A friend tells British newspaper The Mail on Sunday, "Judi has had this knee injury for a while and finally decided to do something about it. It has to be carried out by a specialist at a certain time. Even if they bring the operation forward she’s going to need some recovery time.
"She feels she would be jeopardising her health if she were to miss the operation for the sake of going to the Oscars. She wants to go but Judi has been the Oscars before and doesn’t care about the glitz and the glam of it all."

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Movie star and humanitarian MIA FARROW has returned to Africa in a bid to highlight Sudan’s "forgotten crisis".
The 62-year-old actress visited some of the 150,000 people displaced by the conflict in the Central African Republic yesterday (10FEB07) before meeting with President FRANCOIS BOZIZE to discuss what the outside world can do to help.
Farrow says, "It’s called a forgotten crisis, a forgotten humanitarian crisis, but forgotten implies that it was once remembered.
"I’m not sure it was in anyone’s consciousness… it’s undetected." The trip marks Farrow’s fourth visit to the region.

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LATEST: The attorney for tragic model ANNA NICOLE SMITH has filed a robbery complaint with police after an ex-lover allegedly took computer equipment and other personal belongings out of her Bahamas mansion.
Smith died on her way to hospital on Thursday (08FEB07) after her nurse found her unconscious in her suite at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Now the Bahamas residence she had been living in up to her demise is at the centre of an ownership dispute between Smith’s estate and US developer G. BEN THOMPSON, a former flame.
Smith’s attorney WAYNE MUNROE re-took possession of the house yesterday (10FEB07) after Thompson had the locks changed on Friday (09FEB07) and put a chain on the gate.
His lawyer, GODFREY PINDER, insists the mansion was on loan to Smith and her death meant her claims to the mansion were no longer legitimate.
Munroe argues the former Playboy playmate bought the property in July (06) for $900,000 (£460,000).
The Bahamas Supreme Court has arranged a hearing on the matter later this month (26FEB07).

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A second South Korean celebrity has committed suicide just three weeks after a young pop star hanged herself at her home.
Actress JEONG DA-BIN was found dead in the bathroom of her boyfriend’s apartment in Southern Seoul today (11FEB07). The 27-year-old television star is believed to have hanged herself after suffering from depression.
Her boyfriend says, "She came to my place last night. She was badly drunk. I woke up in the morning and found her hanged from a towel in the bathroom.
"She was under a lot of stress as she was unable to find work in recent months." Last month (21JAN07), 26-year-old singer U-NEE committed suicide in a similar fashion just before the release of her third album.
South Korea has the highest suicide rate among the members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

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British actor RALPH FIENNES is at the centre of an aeroplane sex scandal after allegedly following a flight attendant into a toilet.
The SCHINDLER’S LIST star was on a long-haul journey from Australia to India late last month (JAN07) when he reportedly "became amorous" with 38-year-old Qantas stewardess LISA ROBERTSON.
Her job is now in jeopardy after colleagues spotted her leaving the same cubicle as the 44-year-old actor.
In a statement obtained by British newspaper The Sunday Telegraph, Robertson says, "While conversing with Mr Fiennes during my break, I expressed a need to go to the toilet. I went to the nearby toilet and entered it, he followed me and entered the same toilet.
"I explained to him that this was inappropriate and asked him to leave. Mr Fiennes became amorous towards me and, after a short period of time, I convinced him to leave the toilet, which he did. I left the toilet a short time later." Fiennes split from his long-time partner FRANCESCA ANNIS last year (06) after he was caught having an affair with Romanian singer CORNELIA CRISAN.

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British rockers THE HORRORS were forced to axe a gig in Cardiff, Wales last night (10FEB07) after drummer COFFIN JOE was struck down with bronchitis.
Doctors ordered him to skip the show at Cardiff University to rest, and it is unclear whether he will be well enough to play the band’s gig in Sheffield, England tonight (12FEB07).
It’s not the band’s first medical incident this week (begs05FEB07) - on Wednesday (07FEB07) frontman FARIS ROTTER was rushed to hospital when he cut his leg after almost falling from the balcony during a gig in Birmingham.

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LATEST: Scottish singer/songwriter KT TUNSTALL will attend the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles tonight (11FEB07) after beating a kidney infection.
The SUDDENLY I SEE singer, who is nominated in the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance category, is prone to kidney infections because a childhood illness left her with one under-sized kidney.
Earlier this week (begs05FEB07) Tunstall wrote on her MySpace page, "I’ve got another bloody kidney infection after a month of booze free, healthy living, fresh air, pudding-eating studio time, drinking lots of water and hideous cranberry juice. Why can’t fake strawberry milk be good for your vitals, eh?" However, a spokesman for the singer confirms, "KT is fine and will be flying out (to LA)."

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SIR BOB GELDOF’s socialite daughter PEACHES has caused a furore by reportedly keeping £6,000 ($11,700) worth of designer clothes she wore on a recent photo shoot.
The 17-year-old donned £2,000 ($3,900) worth of Luella Bartley clothes, as well as a £1,500 ($2,930) Chanel handbag, a £850 ($1,660) Chanel belt and various Miu Miu accessories, for a shoot due to appear in the April (07) edition of British fashion magazine i-D, but when she was asked to return the items she reportedly claimed they had been stolen.
However, Geldof has since been photographed in London wearing the clothes she wore on the shoot.
A magazine source tells British newspaper The Mail on Sunday, "We couldn’t believe it. Peaches repeatedly told us how guilty she felt that the clothes had been stolen, when all along she had kept them for herself." A spokesman for i-D magazine says, "Yes, we are aware clothes went missing but as far as I’m aware the situation has been resolved."

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Music mogul and reality show judge SIMON COWELL has been accused of planting a British pop star who was once signed to his record company in the second round of AMERICAN IDOL.
Former TAKE THAT backing singer TOM LOWE has made it through to the TV singing contest’s Hollywood stage after wowing the judges in Seattle, but he stunned Cowell at the end of his audition by saying, "I was at BMG Records in London at the same time that you were there." Lowe was a member of British boy band NORTH AND SOUTH, who scored four minor British hit singles on Cowell’s record label before splitting in 1998, but Cowell claims he can’t remember him.
However, a furious contestant tells British newspaper The Daily Star, "It’s really suspicious that they were at the same record company. Simon claims he doesn’t remember him but there’s a feeling among some people that this could be a fix.
"A career in the States could be worth £100 million ($195 million) so there’s a lot at stake and people aren’t happy." Lowe now works in tourism in Boston and sings in a band called TOMMY AND THE TIGERS.

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Crusading rocker CHRISSIE HYNDE staged a protest in Dubai yesterday (10FEB07) against the alleged shipping of thousands of starving, disease-ridden sheep from Australia to the Middle East.
THE PRETENDERS singer arrived in the Middle Eastern city on a boat with a man dressed up as a sheep to draw attention to the 100,000 animals allegedly being transported on each export ship.
Animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), who Hynde supports, claims the animals are subjected to "week long journeys through all weather extremes with scarce food and water".
Hynde stressed the importance of animals being slaughtered halal - according to Islamic law - by saying, "Animals have to be transported humanely, or it’s not halal".
However, LiveCorp, an Australian cattle export organisation, insists animals are shipped according to conditions agreed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA).

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LATEST: Late R&B singer GERALD LEVERT died last November (06) after taking a lethal mixture of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, a coroner has revealed.
Geauga County, Cleveland Coroner KEVIN CHARTRAND said the official cause of death was acute intoxication, and ruled the death accidental.
The drugs found in Levert’s bloodstream included the narcotic pain relievers Vicodin, Percocet and Darvocet, as well as anxiety medicine Xanax and two over-the-counter antihistamines.
ANDY GIBSON, a spokesman for the Levert family, said the CASANOVA singer had been taking the medication to ease discomfort from a lingering shoulder problem and surgery in 2005 to repair a severed Achilles tendon.
The autopsy also revealed the singer had pneumonia.
Levert died on 10 November (06) at his home in suburban Cleveland, Ohio. He was 40 years old.

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The Grammy Awards got off to an early start last night (10FEB07) when iconic rockers THE DOORS, folk singer JOAN BAEZ and rockers THE GRATEFUL DEAD picked up prizes for lifetime achievement.
Opera singer MARIA CALLAS, saxophonist ORNETTE COLEMAN and soul band BOOKER T AND THE MGS were also honoured by the US Recording Academy on the eve of the main Grammy ceremony, which will be held at Los Angeles tonight (11FEB07).
The Doors’ guitarist ROBBY KRIEGER said the band’s late singer JIM MORRISON would have been "very honoured".
He added, "People think he was anti-establishment, but in reality he wanted to be bigger than the BEATLES." The absence of deceased Grateful Dead stars was also noted, with drummer BILL KREUTZMANN saying, "I wish the rest of my brothers in the band could be here." MARY J BLIGE leads nominations at tonight’s ceremony.

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