Film and Broadway actor Ben Gazzara dies aged 81
Film and stage actor Ben Gazzara has died in New York at the age of 81.
He was best known for playing tough characters and villains in the films Anatomy of a Murder in 1959 and 1970's Killing of a Chinese Bookie.
Gazzara, who had been suffering from pancreatic cancer, later appeared in cult comedy The Big Lebowski, directed by the Coen Brothers.
He began his career in the theatre, starring in the original Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Method actor
Longtime family friend Suzanne Mados said Gazzara died on Friday.
The son of Italian immigrants, Gazzara was a proponent of method acting and it helped him achieve stardom early in his career.
In 1955, he originated the role of Brick Pollitt, the disturbed alcoholic son and failed football star in the Tennessee Williams' play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
He left the show after only seven months to take on the role of Johnny Pope, the drug addict in A Hatful of Rain, which earned him the first of three Tony Award nominations.
In 1965 he starred in the TV series Run for Your Life which saw him twice nominated for an Emmy during the show's three-year run.
His other films included The Strange One, The Thomas Crown Affair and Opening Night, one of three appearances directed by his friend John Cassavetes.
Gazzara's marriages to actresses Louise Erikson and Janice Rule, ended in divorce. He married his third wife, the model Elke Krivatand, in 1982.
David Peaston, R&B and gospel singer, dies aged 54
R&B and gospel singer David Peaston, best known for the tracks Two Wrongs (Don't Make it Right) and Can I?, has died aged 54.
His niece Neuka Mitchell, said the star passed away on Wednesday from complications of diabetes.
The musician, who had a string of hits in the late 1980s and early 1990s, came from a family of successful singers.
His mother Martha Bass sang with the Clara Ward Singers and sister Fontella Bass had a top-10 song in 1965.
Peaston kick started his career after winning several competitions on the Showtime at the Apollo TV show in the 80s.
Two Wrongs was his highest charting single, reaching number three in 1989.
In 1990, Peaston beat off competition from the likes of Soul II Soul to win a Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist.
In 2006, after a period of ill health caused by his illness - which led to both his legs being amputated, he returned to music with the album, Song Book: Songs of Soul & Inspiration.
Peaston is survived by his wife and two sons.
The King's Speech play has its world premiere
Almost a year after the film reigned supreme at the Oscars, The King's Speech has finally made it to the stage.
A packed house at the Yvonne Arnaud theatre in Guildford, Surrey, gave the play a rousing reception at its world premiere on Thursday night.
Playwright David Seidler called it "the fulfilment of a very long dream".
Seidler originally wrote his story about King George VI for the stage before he developed the screenplay.
Seidler went on to win an Oscar and Bafta for best screenplay for The King's Speech in 2011.
But the play has never actually been performed until now.
The film starred Colin Firth as Bertie, the king who conquered his debilitating stammer with the help of maverick Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush).
In this stage version, the lead role is taken by Charles Edwards, with Australian-born Jonathan Hyde as Logue, and Emma Fielding as Queen Elizabeth.
Joss Ackland plays King George V and Ian McNeice is Winston Churchill. The play is directed by former RSC artistic director Adrian Noble.
Speaking exclusively to the BBC after the premiere, Seidler - who himself had a childhood stammer - said it had been a "very emotional night".
"When I was a very young boy in the late 40s, my grandfather would take me to the Golders Green Hippodrome to see these wonderful creaky old British plays in which the diva and the leading man would swoop on stage and stand in the spotlight.
To me, as a little boy of eight or nine years old, it was absolute magic and I thought, 'I really want to be part of that world' - which was a strange ambition for a boy who stuttered and couldn't talk.
"Well, that little boy got a big thrill tonight."
Plans to bring the play to the stage were in place before the film became a huge international hit, making $414m (£261m) at the global box office.
Seidler said he had no second thoughts about staging the production so soon after the film's success.
"This is what I've always wanted," he said. "I had always envisaged the film as being something that would give me a little bit of money so I could help get this on the boards.
"I don't want to sound ungrateful, and I'm not, I'm so very pleased and happy the film did as well as it did. Winning an Oscar is just a wonderful thing to happen - certainly at my age - but this is what I wanted. This to me is more fulfilling than all the movies in the world."
The stage version of The King's Speech allows Seidler to explore characters and themes more deeply than Tom Hooper's film.
"There is now a fully fleshed out relationship between Lionel and his wife Myrtle that didn't exist in the film," he said. "The stage version has a great deal more of the politics and I think a great deal more humour - it's a richer canvas."
Seidler began researching his storyline for The King's Speech throughout the 1970s and 80s but abandoned it after the Queen Mother asked him not to pursue the project during her lifetime.
After the Queen Mother died in 2002, Seidler returned to writing the play. It was in 2005, at a script reading in London, that director Tom Hooper's mother spotted its movie potential and told him she'd found his next film.
With unconfirmed reports that the Queen had seen and enjoyed the film version of The King's Speech, would Seidler invite her to see the play?
"Any time Her Majesty would like a house seat, let me know and I will arrange it. I think it's unlikely, but I would love her to see it - it would be a great honour."
The King's Speech is at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford until 11 February. It will then tour to Nottingham, Bath, Brighton, Richmond and Newcastle.
Seal's model ex Tatjana Patitz says Heidi Klum and their children are better off without him
She fell for him because of his amazing talent and charming personality.
But Seal's former girlfriend Tatjana Patitz has broken her silence to reveal she split from the singer because of his temper tantrums.
And she has warned his estranged German supermodel wife Heidi Klum not to consider a reconciliation with the Kiss From A Rose singer for the sake of their children.
According to In Touch magazine she described the 48-year-old English crooner as a selfish and immature man who cannot control his volcanic personality.
The model, who is also German, said: 'He is not a nice person.
'He has anger issues. He is definitely not someone who I think of fondly now.'
Her claims come hot on the heels of previous reports that Klum, 38, demanded a divorce because she was worried about the effect Seal’s 'inability to control his temper' was having on their children.
It has also been alleged that the Project Runway star had grown tired of his love of 'hard partying.'
But while there are no suggestions the Londoner was unfaithful to Heidi, Tatjana believes the hunk cheated during their relationship,which lasted almost a year in 1997.
She was one of the fashion world's most famous faces when she hooked up with the soul star, and had also appeared alongside the likes of Cindy Crawford in George Michael's Freedom video.
She had also starred in the film for Duran Duran's song Skin Trade, and even tried her hand at making movies, featuring as a murder victim in 1993 Sean Connery flick Rising Sun.
Ministry of Works, Housing and Utilities Update on Water Supply in Grand Turk
The Water Undertaking of EMS wishes to advise the public that the problem at the RO Plant in Grand Turk is resolved. However, service will be restored to most areas on a gradual basis due to the ongoing process of building pressure in the pipe network to areas furthest from the RO plant. Areas likely to experience a delay in their water supply being restored include, but are not limited to: Sections of Breezy Brae, Ridge, Light House Road/Lower Breezy Brae, North Creek, Cork Tree and sections of Over Back.
The Water Undertaking apologizes for any inconvenience caused and will continue to work to ensure that all areas of Grand Turk receive water at the earliest possible time.
Climate Change Consultancy
Four development entities – DFID, FCO, DEFRA and JNCC, plan to develop a Climate Change Programme specifically targeted to the UK Overseas Territories.
They are inviting interested parties to apply for a consultancy to design the programme. The consultancy will identify the scope and best way to deliver an appropriate climate change programme for the UK OTs and develop a business case for it.
This programme will fill a gap identified in recent reviews of current climate change programmes which show that the Overseas Territories are not eligible to benefit from some programmes, and those which they can access do not fully meet their needs.
The consultancy has a start date of 20th February 2012 and is due for completion on 31st May 2012.
A full outline of the Terms of Reference with background information is attached. You may also contact the Department of Environment and Coastal Resources (DECR) in the Ministry of Environment and District Administration.
Severe Winter Weather Continues Its Hold on Europe
Severe winter weather continues to dominate in many European countries with air and road travel disrupted and gas supplies running low.
The hardest-hit country is Ukraine, where temperatures as low as minus 32 degrees Celsius have left at least 122 people dead. Oleksandr Heits, head of a rescue unit in Kiev, said many of the victims are homeless citizens of Ukraine's capital.
“There are many homeless people coming here. It is minus 20 to minus 25 degrees Celsius outside. We're heating them up with tea. Some of them are staying for a night here. We're heating, feeding them and then they leave. Some citizens are bringing clothes and food for the homeless.”
Snow and extremely low temperatures have also gripped the Balkans, where many people are trapped in their homes or vehicles and six have been reported dead. The government of Bosnia-Herzegovina declared a state of emergency Saturday. In parts of coastal Croatia, where snow is very rare, army units were deployed to rescue trapped citizens.
Russia's gas export monopoly, Gazprom, says that it has been unable to satisfy gas shortages in at least eight European nations, ranging from Italy to Poland.
Further south, Rome, the Italian capital, is suffering from the heaviest snow fall in decades. Authorities have been forced to close several tourist sites, including the Colosseum and the Roman Forum.
Hundreds of people were rescued Saturday from a ferry that got stuck off Italy's Civitavecchia port, a frightening experience as described by some passengers.
“We were transferred from the ship to another, in the cold of the night, we were freezing, they made us get off the ship in conditions of a clear emergency, over planks, with the sea on our left, with the snow and the ice, without life jackets because there weren't any, not even in the cabins, among other things. I'm speechless.''
Authorities at London's Heathrow Airport, Europe's busiest, have announced a 30-percent decrease in flights as that city braces for as much as 15 centimeters of snow predicted to fall later on Saturday.
Electricity was cut off in many snow-bound places across Europe.
The Siberian cold front that has much of Europe in its grip is expected to ease next week.
Russia and China Block UN Resolution on Syria
Russia and China on Saturday again vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria condemning President Bashar al-Assad's nearly year-long crackdown on his people and calling for him step down.
Thirteen remaining member states voted in favor, including the United States, France and Germany.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon condemned the failed resolution, saying the Security Council has “lost an opportunity to take unified action” to help end the crisis. Mr. Ban said the inconclusiveness on Syria “undermines the role of the United Nations” in a time it needs to have a “unified voice.”
After the vote, U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice expressed Washington's disappointment with Russia and China, but she maintained that the U.S. will not give up or turn its back on Syria.
“The United States is disgusted that a couple members of this council continue to prevent us from fulfilling our sole purpose here: addressing an ever deepening crisis in Syria and a growing threat to regional peace and security.”
Russia defended its decision, saying members of the council have been undermining the opportunity for political settlement by calling for a regime change, pushing the opposition towards power and feeding methods of armed struggle.
“The draft resolution that was put to a vote did not adequately reflect the real state of affairs in Syria, and has sent an unbalanced signal to the Syrian parties.”
Churkin said Russia is committed to ending the bloodshed and will send Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the foreign intelligence service chief, Mikhail Fradkov, to Syria Tuesday to meet with President Assad.
Syrian ambassador Bashar Ja'afari accused members of the United Nations of supporting what he called “armed terrorists” for the violent crackdown against Syrian citizens.
“I would like to stress, Mr. President, in this context that the Syrian Arab Republic — which is a founding member of this world organization — has been targeted by some powers to punish it as a result of its commitment to international legality, especially in areas of defending the rights of people. Today, Syria is a sacrifice of a crisis manufactured by parties who do not want good for Syria and its people.”
The U.N. vote came just hours after U.S. President Barack Obama condemned Damascus for what he called “the Syrian government's unspeakable assault against the people of Homs” that killed more than 200 people early Saturday. He also urged the council to take a stand against President Assad's “relentless brutality” and again called on him to step down, saying he “has no right to lead Syria and has lost all legitimacy with his people and the international community.”
The government in Damascus has denied the assault and said the reports were part of a campaign by armed groups to influence the outcome of the U.N. vote.
Syrian opposition supporters, meanwhile, buried the dead Saturday from what they called a “massacre” in Homs. Angry mourners chanted slogans against the Syrian regime as they carried the coffins of the victims.
In the Damascus suburb of Daraya Saturday, Syrian security forces opened fire on a crowd during what was reportedly a sympathy march for Hom's victims, killing at least 12 people.
The violence sparked protests outside Syrian embassies across the Middle East and Europe Saturday. Protesters stormed Syrian embassies in Berlin, London, Athens, Cairo and Kuwait City, clashing with guards and police.
Tunisia has expelled Syria's ambassador and decided to end its recognition of Mr. Assad's government.
“The reality is that Russia and China have today taken a choice to turn their backs on the Arab World and to support tyranny rather than the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people.”
Chinese ambassador Wang Min said Beijing supports Moscow's stance on the resolution and called for more discussions on the divisive parts of the paper.
“It is regrettable that these reasonable concerns are not taken into account. To put through a vote when parties are still seriously divided over the issue, will not help maintain the unity and authority of the Security Council or help properly resolve the issue.”
US Senator: China Cannot Avoid ‘Arab Spring’
A leading U.S. senator and one-time presidential candidate is warning China, “the Arab Spring is coming.”
Republican Senator John McCain made the comment to Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun Saturday during a high level security conference in Munich.
McCain, in his Arab Spring warning, referenced the recent self-immolations by Tibetan monks to protest Chinese rule in Tibet. He said, ” there is not a way that you will be able to stifle it completely because of these devices,” while pointing to a mobile phone.
Meanwhile, reports from Tibet say three more Tibetans set themselves on fire Friday in the town of Serthar in Sichuan province. Two survived and one is feared dead.
In the past year, 16 other Tibetans, mostly Buddhist monks and nuns, have died by setting themselves on fire in protests against Chinese rule.
Regional tensions intensified in March of last year when a young Buddhist monk, demanding the return of exiled Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama, set himself on fire and died at a monastery in Sichuan.
China seized control of Tibet more than 50 years ago, forcing the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan leaders to flee to northern India. Beijing accuses the Dalai Lama of wanting to separate Tibet from the rest of China, a charge that he denies.
Many Tibetans accuse the Chinese government of working to erode their culture and faith, and resent the large-scale migration of China's ethnic Han majority into Tibetan areas.
McCain also raised concern about China's activities in the tense South China Sea. Several East Asian countries claim part of the sea, which holds abundant natural resources, but China claims the entire area as its own.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang told the conference that as his country continues to develop it has a bigger stake in peace and stability. He said, “There is no reason for us to upset the situation.”
Russians Brave Cold to Rally For Fair Elections
Despite bitter cold temperatures tens of thousands of protesters turned out in Moscow and other Russian cities Saturday to demand fair elections, but also to support the government.
Russian news media say up to 35,000 people participated in the rally in Moscow's Bolotnaya Square. But organizers say there were many more. Opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, says the big turnout in the cold weather shows that people want change.
“It is a fantastic success. Especially with this dogged cold. And this is no joke. When more than a hundred thousand people go out in the street with this cold weather, it means that they are really fed up.”
Protesters shouted slogans and carried banners saying “Russia without Putin.” Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will run for a third presidential term in March 4 vote. Polls show that he will win the election.
Russian media say that many more pro-government demonstrators gathered in another location in Moscow Saturday. Moscow media reported some complaints from state employees — teachers, nurses, and post office workers — that they were forced to attend a pro-Putin demonstration. But Prime Minister Putin said it would not be possible to gather so many people if they did not want to come.
“So many people came, I don't think anyone expected it. Honestly, I didn't expect it either. According to official information, there were about 134,000 and according to Moscow authorities' data 190,000. Certainly when the authorities organize something there's always talk about
the administrative resources. I don't rule out that there were some elements of these resources here as well, but it's not possible to gather 134,000 or 190,000 just on administrative resources alone. It's not possible. It's quite obvious that the people came to express their position and this is connected to their support of what we are doing.''
Opposition politicians claim Mr. Putin's United Russia party stole one million votes in the December parliamentary vote in order to maintain control of the lower house. The leader of the Left Front movement said it was a wake-up call for many Russians.
“Russia has radically changed after December 4th's dishonest elections. People started to feel that they are citizens and that many things depend on them, that there is a need to obtain real change from the authorities and to put these authorities under the control of the people.”
Mr. Putin served two presidential terms from 2000 to 2008 before becoming prime minister. Moscow has since extended the presidential term to six-years.